The eve of the 75th anniversary of independence is an appropriate time to reflect on our chosen path of democracy. When talking about the importance of democracy it is important to define it accurately. In Abraham Lincoln’s words it is a, ‘Government of the People, by the People, for the People’. In other words democracy is popular sovereignty. At its heart is the concept of the population choosing a Government through regular, free, and fair elections.
The people ponder about a few aspects of democracy and the reason for selecting it as the most preferred form of Government in the world. Another issue often highlighted in Sri Lanka in recent times is the widespread perception that democracy is under threat.
There are many faults with democracy. However, the vast majority of people are convinced it is the best system of Government. But there is a growing demand that democracy needs to be further deepened, by reinvigorating the rights and guarantees enshrined in liberal democracy, and making it more responsive and accountable.
Political scientists believe democracy has played a vital role in the story of civilization as it has helped to transform the world from power structures experienced for centuries such as monarchy, empire, dictatorship and authoritarian rule into a more people-centric system of Government.
The best argument in favour of this system of Government is that democracy, in theory at least, provides a mechanism for some form of rule by proportionate representation, with citizens empowered to bring about change through participation and persuade the powerful to act for the greater good. Furthermore, democracy guarantees the right to free expression of political preference and promotes progress through peaceful competition between different interests and ideas.
Sri Lanka has enjoyed an adult franchise since 1931. Women of Sri Lanka were privileged to get voting rights merely 13 years after British women were given that right. At that time women in many countries did not have the right to vote. In the United States, coloured African origin people were kept apart from the so-called democratic system of voting. It was only in 1965 that African-Americans in the southern states of the USA gained a guaranteed right to vote.
Democracy has played a vital role in the story of civilization, helping transform the world from power structures of monarchy, empire, and conquest into popular rule, self-determination, and peaceful co-existence.
At the same time there is a crisis over democracy in recent times. There are new opinions on values democracy embodies, especially on the exercise of the right to choose leaders in free and fair elections, freedom of the press, and the rule of law. When the Soviet Union collapsed three decades ago, it appeared that totalitarianism had at last been vanquished and liberal democracy had won the great ideological battle of the 20th Century.
However, democracy is also facing a crisis and in some countries it is battered and weakened. Some countries that had become staunch democrats have started to turn towards a totalitarian system of Government. In our region Pakistan and Myanmar are two examples. The military in Myanmar, which began a limited democratic opening in 2010, executed a shocking campaign against some minorities and rebuffed international criticism of its actions. Pakistan too finds the continuous influence the military holds over the democratically elected Government has not diminished over the years.
At the same time most powerful democracies like the United Kingdom, France, United States, Brazil and India are mired in seemingly intractable problems, including social and economic disparities, communal issues, militancy bent upon fragmentation, occasional terrorist attacks, and an influx of refugees.
Although the threats to democracy are mounting at a rapid pace, political scientists are confident of its survival. During the era of Gauthama Buddha 2500 years ago, democracy was practiced by the Lichchavis, a group of princes who ruled the State collectively. According to historians, a direct form of democracy was practiced in ancient Greece, but there were many slaves in that society, and hardly anyone was a citizen and able to participate in the system of Government. After that the democratic system of Government vanished for several centuries. It emerged once again as representative democracy in the late 18th Century with revolutionary changes in America, France, and Haiti and the gradual emergence of democracy in Britain.
After World War II, the defeated powers Germany, Italy, and Japan became strong democracies and UK, France, Portugal and Spain commenced decolonization granting independence to its colonies across the globe and most of them, including India and Sri Lanka became thriving democracies.
In the next four decades, the dictatorships in Portugal, Spain, and Brazil collapsed and became democrats. In the Far East, countries like Taiwan and South Korea in the beginning and Vietnam and Cambodia later, switched to the Government system of democracy. The former East European and Central Asian members of the Soviet Union too followed in line after the collapse of the Soviet Union.
Eminent thinker Amartya Sen argues democratic values are essential to successful development, pointing out no substantial famine has ever occurred in an independent and democratic country with a relatively free press. He cites the example of India, where the last famine in 1943 took place under British colonial rule. However, others argue that China came over poverty under a non-democratic system of Government.
Many political scientists agree that there are many faults in democracy and they need to be rectified. It is most likely that democracy needs to be further deepened, by reinvigorating the rights and guarantees and making it more responsive and accountable. However, the unanimous opinion is that when you look at the alternatives it is easy to arrive at the conclusion that people living in democracies have no alternative.
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