THE POLITICS OF ABSENCE

 

Institutions may continue functioning long after confidence has departed.

Bangkok, Paris, Washington.

Three cities. Three political dramas. Three variations upon the same question: what happens when established institutions cease to command the confidence of those who must operate within them?

In Bangkok, diplomats leave a conference room to protest the presence of a Russian minister. The meeting continues, and its final statement is adopted.

In Paris, demonstrators challenge the government from outside the institutions of the Fifth Republic. Their protest is not a parliamentary vote, but it is nevertheless an assertion of political authority.

In Washington, the struggle over the congressional elections has become, according to Reuters, a struggle within the President's own political organization.

These are not identical events. Their causes, consequences and moral significance differ considerably.

But they illuminate a common feature of modern government.

Institutions are not sustained by formal rules alone.

A constitution may distribute powers. An international organization may prescribe voting procedures. A political party may establish offices, committees and chains of command.

None of these arrangements can manufacture confidence.

And confidence, once withdrawn, does not necessarily produce institutional collapse.

More often, the machinery continues to operate.

The conference adopts its communiqué. The French government remains in office. The American campaign proceeds towards election day.

It is tempting to mistake this continuity for stability.

Yet the distinction between an institution that continues to function and one that continues to command authority is among the most important distinctions in political life.

The twentieth century furnished enough examples of governments that survived long after their legitimacy had begun to disappear.

The twenty-first century has become remarkably skilled at preserving the appearance of institutional normality.

The chairs remain arranged around the table.

The microphones are switched on.

The communiqué is ready.

What remains uncertain is who still wishes to sit down.

— The Observer's Desk