The violent crackdown in Tiananmen Square in China happened in 1989, and Chile, Brazil, Uruguay and Argentina were all on a slow, difficult road toward democracy after having suffered similarly cruel military coups and dictatorships.
[6] As part of the institute's 20th anniversary celebration in 2015, Bengt Säve-Söderbergh wrote an essay, "The Birth of an IDEA",[7] that captures how the organization was born and its relevancy.
[12] Anyone can access data on topics such as voter turnout, electoral system design,[13] quotas for women and political finance laws and regulations.
International IDEA's founding Member States were Australia, Barbados, Belgium, Chile, Costa Rica, Denmark, Finland, India, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, South Africa, Spain, and Sweden.
[1] As of 2024[update] the 35 Member States include: Australia, Barbados, Belgium, Benin, Botswana, Brazil, Canada, Cape Verde, Chile, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Ghana, India, Indonesia, Luxembourg, Mauritius, Mexico, Mongolia, Namibia, Netherlands, Norway, Panama, Peru, Philippines, Portugal, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Tunisia and Uruguay.
Past Democracy Forum topics have included anti-corruption, accountability, natural resource management and youth participation.
The headquarters is in Stockholm, Sweden, with additional offices in New York, USA; Washington, DC, USA, Brussels, Belgium; The Hague, Netherlands; Kathmandu, Nepal; Abuja, Nigeria; Suva, Fiji; Thimphu, Bhutan; Santiago, Chad; The Gambia; Kenya; Sierra Leone, Chile; Lima, Panama City, Panama; Peru; Asunción; Addis Ababa, Ethiopia; Tunis, Tunisia; Canberra, Australia.