For a very long time most countries in Asia and Africa were colonies under the control of European nations. People of the colonised countries had to wage struggles to achieve independence. They not only wanted to get rid of their colonial masters, but also wished to choose their future leaders. Our country (India) was one of the few colonies where people carried a nationalist struggle to liberate the country from the colonial rule. Many of these countries became democracies immediately after the end of the Second World War in 1945. India achieved Independence in 1947 and embarked on its journey to transform itself from a subject country to a democracy. It continues to be a democracy.

Ghana, a country in western Africa, used to be a British colony named Gold Coast. It was among the first countries in Africa to gain independence. It inspired other African countries to struggle for freedom. But Ghana and most of the countries that became democracies after gaining independence had a mixed record. They could not remain democracies for long.

The next big push towards democracy came after 1980, as democracy was revived in several countries of Latin America. The disintegration of the Soviet Union accelerated this process. Soviet Union controlled many of its neighbouring communist countries in Eastern Europe. Poland and several other countries became free from the control of the Soviet Union during 1989 – 90. They chose to become democracies. Finally the Soviet Union itself broke down in 1991. The Soviet Union comprised 15 Republics. All the constituent Republics emerged as independent countries. Most of them became democracies. Thus the end of Soviet control on East Europe and the breakup of the Soviet Union led to a big change in the political map of the world.