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by Dr. Ruwantissa Abeyratne

In the present context, one cannot doubt with justification that from the perspective of a lawyer, and particularly from that of an international lawyer, democracy is a neglected concept.

This is because modern discourse is dominated by calls for human rights and fundamental freedoms, with cries for more entrenched and stronger self determination rights. It is not often that one hears cries for more democracy.

Since conflict between various social groups and their diverse interests is inevitable, a state must, as of necessity develop and establish mechanisms that would ensure dispute resolution between differing groups without recourse to violence and war.

The essence of democracy lies in the philosophy that laws must be made and disputes resolved through a consultative process and that democratic institutions and processes would minimize the risk of differences and disputes erupting into war and discord.

These institutions could achieve objectives of peace through their inherent ability to channel competing interests into forums of discourse and dialogue. For this reason, the Third International Conference of the New or Restored Democracies on Democracy and Development, held in Bucharest from 2 to 4 September 1997, adopted the Bucharest Declaration which declared that "there exists an almost universal recognition that a democratic system of government is the best model to ensure a framework of liberties for lasting solutions to the political, economic and social problems our societies face."

Past experiences in democracy

Interpreted literally, the word "democracy" means rule or governance by the people ( from the Greek demos, which admits of the people forming their own government in which the right to take political decisions rests with the people and therefore by the whole body of citizens of a territory, following procedures of majority rule).

In its pristine purity, decision making by the majority of the body of a people directly was called "direct democracy". However, democracy is a generic term which has its own derivatives, and the more commonly practised form of democracy at the present time is one such derivative where citizens exercise their right of decision making through elected representatives.

When this practice is applied to the exercise of public power and the administration of government, a practical dilemma presents itself to the rulers, in the form of a central political choice between ways and means of deploying or limiting public power on the one hand, and the effective maintenance and enhancement of the quality of human life on the other.

The most significant past example of political philosophy lies in Plato's The Republic ( circa. 378 B.C) which, arguably is the most insightful and emotional expose of political analysis in early times. Plato, whose formative stage of life was spent during the great war between Athens and Sparta which resulted in the defeat of Athens, typically tried, like many other political philosophers who went through similar circumstances, to find remedies for political injustice and decline.

The Republic is essentially a dialogue between Socrates and various learned Athenians, and outlines a utopia of ideal democracy which offers an indictment on prevalent Hellenic politics. Aristotle, who followed, accepted a conservative and hierarchical order which was calculated to offer the citizenry a good life through the rule of law and justice.

Both Plato and Aristotle based their ideology on a city State, although Aristotle's pupil Alexander the Great obviated the sustenance of the city-state as the only viable option for hierarchical rule by swamping the cities of old Greece and bringing them under an empire.

Modern approaches to democracy

The basis of modern democracy is Hobbes' Leviathan, which begins with the premise that the supreme power, whether it be a man, woman or assembly, is called the sovereign.

Hobbes (1588-1679), recognized initially that the powers of the sovereign are unlimited, untrammeled and unchallenged. The sovereign has the right of censorship over all expression of opinion, on the basis that the main interest of the sovereign is the preservation of internal peace.

Therefore, a true sovereign will not use the power of censorship to suppress the truth, because a doctrine which is at variance with peace cannot be true.

Hobbes emphasized that the laws of property should be entirely the purview of the sovereign, for in absolute nature and in its pristine purity, there is no property, as property is created by government.

Hobbes believed that, even if a sovereign were to be despotic, the worst despotism was better than anarchy.

The interests of governments become singularly identifiable with the interests of the subjects. Above all, rebellion is wrong : not only because it usually fails; but also, if it succeeds, it sets a bad example.

modern philosophers

The most noble of the great philosophers - Spinoza (1632-1677), derived his political philosophy from Hobbes, but differed with Hobbes on the subject of freedom of opinion, which should not, in Spinoza's view, be subject to governmental control. But both Hobbes and Spinoza held the common view that any kind of rebellion was bad against a sovereign.

The influence of the early philosophers on the modern philosophers becomes apparent with the thrust of Aristotle's Politics, which fundamentally held that a government is good when it aimed at the good of the whole community, and bad when it cared only for itself.

Aristotle was emphatic when he made the distinction between oligarchy and democracy by using the economic status of the governing party as the only criterion for the distinction: oligarchy is when the rich govern without consideration for the poor; and democracy is when the sovereign gives power to the hands of the poor and needy in initial disregard for the interests of the rich.

Aristotle argued that monarchy was better than aristocracy and aristocracy was better than polity. The greatest political sin, according to Aristotle, was the corruption of the best in a political society. He placed tyranny as the worst form of government, next to oligarchy, and placed democracy over both categories.

Aristotle concluded that, among actual governments, democracies were the most liked and beneficial. The Utilitarian School, of which Jeremy Bentham was a protagonist, recognized democracy as being composed of four essential and basic elements: subsistence; abundance; security and equality.

According to Bentham, a good democracy had to ensure these elements for its community. Bentham observed: " wars and storms are best to be read of, but peace and calms are better to endure".

The two fundamental postulates which Bentham attributed to good government were equality and security, which to Bentham formed the cornerstone of a balanced sovereign.

Immanuel Kant (1724-1804) who wrote in his Perpetual Peace in 1795, recommending a federation of free States, bound together by a covenant eschewing war, was more emphatic about prohibiting war than considering the virues of the political clustering of States. Kant viewed war as a problem which only an international government could quell.

The group of States, according to Kant, should be republican in civil constitution, with a distinct separation of powers between the executive and the legislature.

Kant attacked democracy on the ground that a democracy gave overt and unjust powers to the executive which were invidious to a State.

Of course, Kant's theory against democracy, favoring a community of States under one international government, fell into disfavor in his own country in 1933 and has not gained official acceptance since. John Locke (1632-1704), a moderatist philosopher, deviated from dogma, whilst essentially retaining his faith in the goodness of positive morality. This led to Locke's abiding faith in religous tolerance and parliamentary democracy as the two necessary elements of basic governance.

Locke is believed to be the father of empiricism - which was founded on the premise that all knowledge is based on experience. There is evidence in philosophical history that Locke applied the theory of empiricism to parliamentary democracy, ascribing to democracy a certain imperative which brings to bear a compusive element to democracy.

Accordingly, democracy, although reflecting the overall will of the people, would succeed only if practised with empirical dependance upon past experience. Political negoitiations, according to the empirical democracy doctrine, should therefore not be destitute of past experience, whatever the overall will of the community may be.

empirical democracy

The wisdom of Locke's empirical democracy is perceived in its application to democracy in the modern context, which is also consistent with the Aristotlean view, that the highest virtue is for the governing few, who could, if the interests of the community dictate, subject conservative and theoretical ethics to political necessity and prudence. Although Aristotle required a president or prime minister to be magnanimous in this regard, the modern interpretation and context of good government does not necessarily require a leader to be magnanimous, but to be different from the average citizen; and to have certain merits connected with his or her status.

The essence of modern practical democracy is to curb unnecessary power of the central government and not to buttress the authority of the State to the point of corruption and self service.

The end result is personal freedom and a society which precedes the State. Also, there is a compelling need in a functional democracy for a loyal opposition which does not portend a real threat to national security. This does not, however, mean that democracy should make the executive impotent.

On the contrary, a strong and lean executive, as Aristotlean philosophy recommends, is an essential tool of a workable democracy.

(The author is a senior official at the United Nations in Montreal)

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