http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/article2803715.ece?

homepage=true Democracy can t be achieved only through elections, United Nations Secretary Gener al Ban Ki-moon said Sunday at a conference in the Lebanese capital Beirut. Democracy is not easily achieved as it needs time to be constructed. It is not re ached through elections alone, Mr. Ban said, and that real reform was necessary f or democracy to be fulfilled in the Middle East, It is now time to listen to the demands of the Arab people and time for the rule of one to end, Mr. Ban told a U. N. conference on democracy in the Arab world. The U.N. has a role in assisting change in the region and it is committed to help ing the Arab countries in their transition period, he added. More than 50 policymakers, academics and development experts from around the wor ld at the two-day conference, entitled Reform and Transitions to Democracy, organi zed by the U.N. Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia. The aim was to provide decisions-makers in emerging democracies in Arab countrie s with an opportunity to interact with leaders who encountered similar challenge s during their countries transitions to democracy, organizers said. The themes addressed by the conference include how Arab Spring countries can car ry out the transition from autocracy to democracy, strengthening democratic inst itutions and reintegrating one-time combatants into society. Popular revolts toppled long-standing despots in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya last y ear. Among the key participants in the conference was former Chilean president Michel e Bachelet, who will speak about her country s transition to democracy after 17 ye ars of oppression under Augusto Pinochet. Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu and Egyptian presidential hopeful Amr M ussa were also attending. Keywords: Ban ki-Moon, democracy conference, United Nations