A/HRC/24/38 do not “exacerbate their exclusion and often perpetuate the privilege of elites who are able to influence policy directly”.61 32. The concerns of mass protesters demanding democratic reforms as well as of the Indignados and Occupy movements deserve greater democratic attention and corrective action. Democratic participation cannot mean only elections; it implies direct influence in the democratic process, however that is achieved. Dictatorial regimes that conduct no elections, semi-democratic regimes with rigged elections and dysfunctional democracies with pro forma elections hinder the international democratic order. Electoral systems should be gradually improved and electoral monitoring worldwide should be welcomed by Governments62. But genuine participation starts at the grassroots and must include a reliable system of selecting candidates who are truly representative of the voters. When the candidates are selected by party machines and the only persons who are ever selected are the elites, then the system is dysfunctional, producing candidates who are not committed to their constituents but to party discipline and to those who finance the party. 33. By definition, democracy is oriented toward the public interest, not toward shareholder profit or the market. Aspects of unregulated capitalism and privatization are simply incompatible with the idea of democracy – because they are demonstrably not what the demos wills or even needs, but what a handful of investors want in order to maximize profits with the excuse that the “trickle down” effect will ultimately help the poor. But do the people agree to the trickle down philosophy, which mostly does not work? How can the financial institutions be held to account when unregulated markets fail and general unemployment ensues? Yet, Governments have “rescued” the banking industry, bailed out at the expense of the “trickle down” poor, who are defenceless against the generalized abuse of power. 34. Privatization of public functions constitutes an attack on democracy, because the public interest can only be protected by a public entity, whether a municipal administration or parliament, and not by a board of directors of a corporation oriented toward profit and expanding markets. 35. My initial report to the Council identified a number of obstacles, including those of a semantic nature. Undoubtedly, language itself interferes with the proper analysis of social and economic issues, when the terminology used is vague or misleading, or when different countries and media use the words “democracy”, “freedom”, “rule of law”, “international community”, “consensus”, “globalization”, “peace”, “terrorism”, etc. with different meanings. There are also generic obstacles such as hubris, self-righteousness, moral cynicism, moral nihilism, and those artificial, self-imposed thinking barriers such as the idea that only positivistic law is law, only positivistic rights are rights. Another obstacle is the lack of solidarity among civil society representatives, who should demonstrate a commitment to the equality in human dignity of all victims and reject media focus on “politically correct” victims and systematic blackout of others. Competition among victims is a sad phenomenon manifesting double standards. Civil society has not only rights but also duties, which it must exercise ethically and responsibly. States, National Human Rights Institutions, intergovernmental organizations and non-governmental organizations must demonstrate the same commitment to the brotherhood of humankind and the universality of human rights – not just to rights à la mode. 36. One premise of this report is that democracy requires a free press that informs the public, enabling it to exercise conscientious judgment, free of government censorship and 61 62 12 A/HRC/23/36, para. 14. Global Commission on Elections, Democracy and Security, Deepening Democracy: A Strategy for Improving the Integrity of Elections Worldwide.