A/HRC/21/45 international order that is more democratic and more equitable, and how to reconcile the tensions between, on the one side, the legitimate interest in profit and trade expansion 19 and, on the other side, the right of States, large and small, to sovereignty and control over their natural resources, and the right of peoples to self-determination,20 to decide their domestic policies of full employment and equity. 40. Military expenditures, the power of the military-industrial complex, the overt and covert trade in weapons, international organized crime, in particular drug trafficking, money-laundering and corruption21 of government officials and non-State actors continue to have a deleterious effect on the proper functioning of democracy in many countries. The impact of the ―war on drugs‖ and of the ―war on terror‖ on the rule of law also deserves close attention. The killing and harassment of journalists, reprisals against human rights defenders, censorship and deliberate disinformation by government and private sector media frustrate the democratic goal of empowering the population to develop responsible opinions upon which to act in the political arena. Frequently news reporting and commentary avoid the crucial issues and distract attention with red herrings of all kinds. Observers have noted that all too often the ―elephant in the room‖ is ignored. Such practices undermine democracy. 41. The International Expert considers that the emergence of a democratic international order would be advanced by the participation of a growing number of States which implement democratic principles domestically. 42. Concern has been expressed about the role of religious institutions in the conduct of public affairs. The Independent Expert would like to explore how religious institutions can also contribute to a more democratic and equitable international order. 43. Greater efforts are needed to limit current attempts to shrink the space of civil society at the international and domestic levels. Arbitrary and undue restrictions on the effective enjoyment of fundamental freedoms, including the freedoms of association, peaceful assembly and expression, seriously obstruct the realization of a more democratic international order. 44. From the domestic perspective, obstacles to the promotion of a more democratic international order also include a lack of correlation between the will of the people and the policies and practices adopted by their governments, even democratically elected governments, and reflect an epistemological and perception gap between the governing elites and the population at large. This lack of correlation may be attributed in part to the ―psychology‖ of power, but also to the deliberate distortion or manipulation of public opinion.22 45. It is generally recognized that a well-informed citizenry is a condition of democracy. A country where public opinion is manipulated by the government or private media cannot 19 20 21 22 Trade expansion, however, should not be achieved at the expense of local farmers and local industry, thus causing a destruction of local economies and increased unemployment. Nor is it ecologically sustainable to relocate production and thereby increase the consumption of fuel for transportation purposes. See Cliff Durand and Steve Martinot, eds., Recreating Democracy in a Globalized State, 2012; Noam Chomsky, Profit over People. Neoliberalism and Global Order, 1999. See United Nations Convention against Corruption, in force 2005, 161 States parties; United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime and the Protocols thereto. See, inter alia, Tzvetan Todorov, Les ennemis intimes de la démocratie (Paris, Robert Laffont, 2012); Edward S. Herman and Noam Chomsky, Manufacturing Consent (New York, Pantheon Books, 2002). 15