Title Chapter 1 What is Democracy Why Democracy.pdf ✅

CIVICS Chapter 1: What is Democracy? Why Democracy?
(1) WHAT IS DEMOCRACY? WHY DEMOCRACY? 01 What is Democracy? Why Democracy? What is Democracy? Definition of Democracy Democracy is a form of government in which the rulers are elected by the people. One chief factor common to all democracies is that the government is chosen by the people. It also helps students to demarcate between democratic and non-democratic governments. From the non- democratic government, take the example of Myanmar, where rulers were not elected by the people. Those who were in charge of the army of the country took over as rulers and people had no say in this decision. Dictators like Pinochet (Chile) are not elected by the people. This also applies to monarchies. It is not possible to give only one definition of democracy. Democracy has many features. Some features of a democracy are Democracy is a form of Government in which the rulers are elected by the people. • Chile under Pinochet was not a democratic country because Pinochet was not elected by the people. Saudi Arabia is also not a democracy as it is a monarchy. Features of Democracy The simple definition of democracy gives rise to various questions, which are given below: • Who are the rulers in this definition? • What kind of election constitutes a democratic election? • Who are the people who can elect the rulers or get elected as rulers? • Finally, what form of government is a democracy? In a democracy, all major decisions are made by the elected leaders. • General Pervez Musharraf led a military coup in Pakistan in October 1999. He later changed his designation to President. He also amended the Constitution of Pakistan according to which the President could dismiss the national or provincial assemblies. Moreover, although the people elect representatives to the provincial and national assemblies, the elected representatives were not authorised to make final decisions. • The final decisions could only be taken by Musharraf and other senior military officers
(2) WHAT IS DEMOCRACY? WHY DEMOCRACY? 01 who were not actually elected representatives of the people. • Pakistan, under such circumstances cannot be called a democracy as the elected representatives of the people have the power to make major decisions in a democracy. In a democracy, free and fair elections should be held regularly. • In China, elections are held regularly after every five years. People elect the members of the Parliament called National People’s Congress. The Parliament has the power to elect the President of the country. • In China, only the members of the Chinese Communist party or its eight allied parties can contest elections, and thus, only the Communist party can form the Government. • In Mexico, elections are held after every six years, but until 2000, every election was won by the Institutional Revolutionary Party (IRP). The IRP used every legal and illegal method to win the elections. Teachers in schools were forced to influence parents to vote for the IRP, media ignored all activities of the ruling party but only focused itself on criticising the opposing parties and large sums were spent on campaigning for IRP candidates. • Thus, democracy must be based on free and fair elections where those currently in power have a fair chance of losing the elections. Democracy should be based on the principle of one person, one vote and one value. • In Saudi Arabia, women do not have the right to vote. • In Fiji, the vote of a local Fiji has more value than that of an Indian Fijian. • In Estonia, the citizenship rules are such that the people belonging to the Russian minority find it difficult to vote. • Therefore, we find that each adult citizen must have one vote and each vote must have one value. Rules of Law and Respect for Rights • In Zimbabwe, President Robert Mugabe has been ruling since independence. Although Mugabe is popular, he uses unfair practices during elections. • He has amended the Constitution multiple times in order to increase the powers of the President and to make him less accountable.
(3) WHAT IS DEMOCRACY? WHY DEMOCRACY? 01 • The members of opposition parties are jailed if they raise their voice against the Government and protests against the Government and its policies are declared illegal. • It is important for a democratic government to grant basic rights and freedoms to its citizens and the government should be accountable to its citizens. • Therefore, a democratic government rules within the limits set by constitutional law and citizens’ rights. The government must function within basic rules of the Constitution and citizens’ rights. One person, one vote, one value one value Democracy is based on a fundamental principle of political equality. However, there are many instances of denial of the equal right to vote. Until 2015, in Saudi Arabia, women did not have the right to vote. Estonia has made its citizenship rules in such a way that people belonging to the Russian minority found it difficult to get the right to vote. In Fiji, the electoral system is such that the vote of an indigenous Fiji has more value than that of an Indian Fijian. Definitely not a democratic government. The feature of democracy this highlight is that in a democracy, each adult citizen must have one vote and in turn, each vote must have one value. Why Democracy? Some arguments against a democratic government are • Democracy leads to instability as leaders keep on changing in a democratic setup. • The decision-making process is delayed in a democracy because several people have to be consulted in a democratic setup. • Sometimes even elected people do not know about the best interests of the people. Thus, at times, it leads to bad decisions. • There are several cases of corruption as democracy is based on electoral competition. • Most people do not know what democracy is. Thus, they should not decide anything. According to these arguments, democracy does not seem to be an ideal form of government. But it is not so. The following arguments prove that democracy is the best form of government. Cons of Democracy • Leaders keep changing in a democracy leading to instability