Spread of democracy

Democracy Index as published in January, 2007. The palest blue countries get a score above 9.5 out of 10 (with Swedenbeing the most democratic country at 9.88), while the black countries score below 2 (with North Korea being the least democratic at 1.03).Base on The Economist Intelligence Unit's index of democracy.

Theory of Democracy

Aristotle

Aristotle contrasted rule by the many (democracy/polity), with rule by the few (oligarchy /aristocracy), and with rule by a single person (tyranny/monarchy or today autocracy or dictatorship). He also thought that there was a good and a bad variant of each system (he considered democracy to be the degenerate counterpart to polity).

Robert A. Dahl uses the term polyarchy to refer to societies in which there exists a certain set of institutions and procedures which are perceived as leading to such democracy. In his 1989 book, Democracy and its critics, Dahl gives the seven following characteristics of a polyarchy (p. 233):

1) Control over governmental decisions about policy is constitutionally vested in elected officials; 2) Elected officials are chosen and peacefully removed in relatively frequent, fair and free elections in which coercion is quite limited; 3) Practically all adults have the right to vote in these elections; 4) Most adults also have the right to run for the public offices for which candidates run in these elections; 5) Citizens have an effectively enforced right to freedom of expression, particularly political expression, including criticism of the officials, the conduct of the government, the prevailing political, economic, and social system, and the dominant ideology; 6) They also have access to alternative sources of information that are not monopolized by the government or any other single group; 7) Citizens have an effectively enforced right to form and join autonomous associations, including political associations, such as political parties and interest groups, that attempt to influence the government by competing in elections and by other peaceful means.

Quotes on democracy:

• Democracy...is government by discussion. John Stuart Mill, On Liberty

• Democracy is a system ensuring that the people are governed no better than they deserve. George Bernard Shaw

• Democracy is the worst form of government, except all the others that have been tried. SirWinston Churchill

A note: The United Nations has declared 15 September as the International Day of Democracy.

Source: Wikipedia (May 20, 2008), adjusted.

Date: 2015-12-18; view: 720