Democratization of foreign policy: The Ottawa process as a model

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Abstract
Does the Ottawa Process leading to the signing of an international treaty to ban anti‐personnel landmines in December 1997 represent an example of the democratization of foreign policy through the construction of a partnership between government and civil society? There are two contending views of the democratization of foreign policy. The first is that existing institutions of representation provide an adequate framework for foreign policy‐making. The second is that the quality and performance of democracy would be enhanced by more active public engagement in the foreign policy process. The author argues in favour of the second view, and shows that public diplomacy modeled on the Ottawa Process has the potential to contribute to the quality and vitality of liberal democratic institutions. Moreover, the author finds little evidence to support two objections: 1) that a consultative foreign policy leads to the co‐optation of non‐governmental organizations (NGOs); or 2) that public diplomacy makes policy makers virtual ‘hostages’ of the NGOs.

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