One of the great ironies of the current age is that the existence of the First World, with its rule of law, protection against inflation, strong financial system, property rights, economic success, etc, actually makes the plight of less developed countries worse. It reduces the need to focus on development, economic progress, rule of law, etc, because there is always a Swiss bank account in which to store one’s looted wealth and a London flat to which one can retreat to. The Western legal and financial system is like a drug to which third world kleptocrats are addicted, and which further removes them of responsibility to their own people.

When the West developed, the only way Western elites could get rich and secure was to make sure there countries were rich and secure. Of course, it wasn’t always smooth as the 20th century showed us, but we in the West have got there.

Robert Mugabe, the Burmese junta, Hugo Chavez, and their like (the” trends that produced” them) are actually made more likely by the presence of the Modern West. All the more reason for both a League of Democracies AND, as you argued a “For example, every government official above the rank of bureau director or colonel should execute a waiver giving up the prospect of residence, citizenship or bank accounts in developed countries.”

Actually, what we need is not for government officials in third world countries to execute a waiver but for First World countries to impose it automatically. We can allow governments and businesses and their people to open accounts in Western banks – including Switzerland – but they would have to subject to annual audits for fraud, theft, money laundering etc… And we’d have to look at Dubai (Iranian money), Singapore, HK as well, and have rules for those domiciles who choose to opt out of such an audit system (maybe bans of certain financial activity, to make it painful not to participate).