Composition : Democracy

Democracy is one of the most buzzing sounds from last century to these days. The world has observed thousands of uproars from the Arab world to Africa, from South East Asia to the Far East, From Latin America to Fast Europe for democracy. The fall of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republic (USSR), the fall of Yugoslavia, the fan of Czechoslovakia, and the incidents of Arab Spring (Tunisia, Egypt, Yemen, Syria), North Korea, Zimbabwe, Venezuela, and Cuba are the most reasons for democracy.

Democracy:

Democracy originating from the Greek word `demolcratir (from demos ‘people’ and kratos ‘rule’) is a form of government in which the people have the authority to choose their governing legislation. Who people are and how authority is shared among them are core issues for democratic theory, development, and constitution. Cornerstones include freedom of assembly and speech, inclusiveness and equality, membership, consent, voting, right to life, and minority rights.

Democracy vs Republic :

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Types of Democracy:

Generally, the two types of democracy are direct and representative.

(A) Direct democracy:

Direct democracy is a political system where the citizens participate in the decision- making personally, contrary to relying on intermediaries or representatives. A direct democracy gives the voting population the power to:

1.Change constitutional laws,
2.Put forth initiatives, referendums and suggestions for laws,
3.Give binding orders to elective officials, such as revoking them before the end of their elected term or initiating a lawsuit for breaking a campaign promise.

Direct democracy as a government system currently exists in the Swiss cantons of Appenzell and Kurdish cantons of Rojava.

(B) Representative democracy:

Representative democracy involves the election of government officials by the people being represented. If the head of state is also democratically elected then it is called a democratic republic. The most common mechanisms involve election of the candidate with a majority or a plurality of the votes. Most western countries have representative systems.

(i) Parliamentary system:

Parliamentary democracy is a representative democracy where government is appointed by, or can be dismissed by, representatives as opposed to a “presidential rule” wherein the president is both head of state and the head of government and is elected by the voters. Parliamentary systems have the right to dismiss a Prime Minister at any point in time that they feel he or she is not doing their job to the expectations of the legislature. This is done through a Vote of No Confidence.

(ii) Presidential system:

Presidential Democracy is a system where the public elects the president through free and fair elections. The president serves as both the head of state and head of government controlling most of the executive powers. The president serves for a specific term and cannot exceed that amount of time. The president has direct control over the cabinet, specifically appointing the cabinet members.

Elements of Democracy:

Democracy consists of four key elements:

(i) A political system for choosing and replacing the government through free and fair elections;

(ii) The active participation of the people, as citizens, in politics and civic life;

(iii) Protection of the human rights of all citizens;

(iv) A rule of law, in which the laws and procedures apply equally to all citizens.

Justification:

Several justifications for democracy have been postulated. These are the followings:

i. Legitimacy: Social contract theory argues that the legitimacy of government is based on consent of the governed, i.e. an election, and that political decisions must reflect the general will.

ii. Better decision-making: Condorcet’s jury theorem is a logical proof that if each decision-maker has a chance to participate in decision making having the largest number of decision-makers, it will result in the best decisions.

iii. Democratic peace: Democratic peace theory claims, and has successfully proven empirically, that liberal Democrats p democracies do not go to war against each other.

iv. Economic success: Democracies are more economically successful because undemocratic political systems tend to limit markets and favor monopolies at the expense of the creative destruction which is necessary for sustained economic growth.

Democracy Index 2019:

The twelfth edition of the Democracy Index finds that the average global score has fallen from 5.48 in 2018, to 5.44. This is the worst average global score since The Economist Intelligence Unit first produced the Democracy Index in 2006. Bangladesh ranked 88th with an overall score of 5.57, according the EIU report.

Criticism of democracy :

“The best argument against democracy is a five-minute conversation with the average voter.”

— Winston S. Churchill

i. Political instability: More recently, democracy is criticized for not offering enough political stability. As governments are frequently elected on and off, there tend to be frequent changes in the policies of democratic countries both domestically and internationally.

ii. Short-termism: Democracy is also criticised for frequent elections due to the instability of coalition governments. Frequent policy changes with regard to business and immigration are likely to deter investment and so hinder economic growth.

iii. Corruption: Whilst countries that have high levels of democracy tend to have high levels of corruption. It is also clear that countries with moderate levels of democracy have high corruption, as well as countries with no democracy having very little corruption.

iv. Potential incompatibility with former politics: Sustained regular inspection from democratic countries are normally not sufficient in preventing the erosion of democratic practices. The new upcoming government may not follow the policies adopted by the former ones.

v. Disparity or racial discrimination: Such a system could result in a wealth disparity or racial discrimination. This is because democracy is responsive to the desires of a large middle class increasingly willing to disregard the muted voices of economically marginalized groups within its own borders.

vi. Susceptibility to propaganda: Voters may not be educated enough to exercise their democratic rights prudently. Politicians may take advantage of voters’ irrationality, and compete more in the field of public relations and tactics, than in ideology.

In spite of having lots of limitations, democracy can still be compared to the life of the general people who believe in equal rights, freedom of speech, freedom of thoughts, a self identity in their states. As long as the rights will not be fulfilled, the struggle for the democracy will continue beyond the century throughout the world.

“People shouldn’t be afraid of their government. Governments should be afraid of their people.”

— Alan Moore (Movie: V for Vendetto)

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