A/HRC/39/47 (f) To integrate a gender perspective and disabilities perspective into his or her work; (g) To report regularly to the Human Rights Council and the General Assembly in accordance with their respective programmes of work; (h) To support the strengthening and promotion of democracy, development and respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms in the entire world. 12. The mandate calls for the identification of obstacles and best practices and the formulation of proposals and recommendations on possible action. Whereas there exists a rich normative framework for the realization of a democratic and equitable international order, the challenge lies with current practice. There is a disconnect between the theory and the practice. The mandate holder will interrogate current practice to identify gaps and showcase existing models where promising outcomes have been achieved. Through consultations, studies and cooperation with other mandate holders, the Independent Expert will seek to broaden public understanding of the mandate at all levels. III. Thematic priorities 13. The Independent Expert proposes to address a number of thematic priorities over the course of his tenure, namely: (a) forms and practice of democracy; (b) public participation and decision-making in multilateral institutions; (c) corruption and open government; (d) the emergence of global governance forums; (e) global economic challenges; and (f) youth facing fragility and violence as well as opportunity. While these themes reflect key areas of interest to the mandate holder, they are not exhaustive and adjustments could be made following further comments and suggestions. The Independent Expert seeks views on these issues as well as reflections on obstacles and good practices related to the promotion of a democratic and equitable international order. He would welcome submissions of information on these themes, as well as practical examples of their impact on human rights, at the email address ie-internationalorder@ohchr.org. A. Forms and practice of democracy 14. The mandate holder is aware that, although the notion of “democracy” has been a subject of intense debate for centuries, and despite the fact that democracy is considered a “universal value”, it is far from being realized globally.1 The world remains in a state of flux and is witnessing the retreat of democracy through the rise of populist political parties and the creeping tyranny of authoritarian leaders. As his predecessor has rightly observed, democracy remains a much-contested notion to which States attribute varying content. The focus of future work in this area will be less on the theoretical construct but more on the practice of democracy at the national level. What explains the resurgence of the different variants of populism and nationalism in various parts of the world? What is the relationship between this resurgence and conflict? Can it be attributed to the lack of democracy or the distorted application of the norm? Can it also be attributed to the outright failure by democratic models of governance to deliver the desired social and economic transformation demanded by the electorate(s)? We need to interrogate the existing practices across the world and identify obstacles to the growth of democracy and equitable development. Are the core values of democracy — participation, inclusion, equity, reciprocity, dialogue and compromise, fair competition and respect for rights — being compromised? What explains the emergence of so-called models: meritocracy, militarized democracy and dictatorship disguised as democracy? To what extent have ethnicity, struggle for resources, denial of rights, militarism, the rise of religious and cultural fundamentalism and overemphasis on national sovereignty contributed to growing inequalities, insecurity and social injustice within nations? 1 4 Amartya Sen, “Democracy as a universal value”, Journal of Democracy, vol. 10, No. 3 (July 1999).