Qatar is definitely not a democratic country, there is no doubt about this. But which country is really democratic? There are a few countries in Europe that they are close to what is called 'democratic state' but just close, not democratic in the pure sense. I would definitely not call USA democratic as well. Yes they are very good in 'exporting' democracy to other countries but once you are there you know how the system works ( I was once there and I am still shocked by the way the police acts and behaves to civilians) . I would not call democratic most of Asian countries as well, majority of them (some covered up 'monarchies' ) are light years away from the 'democratic state '. So is it really that bad that there is a monarchy in Qatar? And if yes, the reason why this question was raised is to discuss how it will affect expat pilots (in terms of salary, working conditions, lifestyle...) and not if we like it or if we think we should do something to change it.