Democracy

This chapter will define the nature of democracy, U.S interpretation of democracy within the liberal framework and U.S democratic institutions and governance, and current trends in U.S foreign policy to background the discussion of U.S democracy promotion in Pakistan in later chapters. Democracy, like a State form, is to be distinguished from monarchy, aristocracy and dictatorship because it is based on the concept of free expression of a people's will and the right to determine their own political, economic, social and cultural system with full participation in all the aspects of their lives. ihe word democracy', which is a term that comes from Greek, is made up of the words demos= People and kratein= to govern, to rule. Democracy can thus be literally translated as the government of the people or government of the majority.. U.S president Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865). has defined democracy as government of the people, by the people, for the people, and political activist and leader of the Indian independence movement, Mohandas Gandhi has interpreted it as 'something that gives the weak the same chance as the strong' thereby highlighting the egalitarian principle at the heart of a democratic system.Democracy helps to make society cohere well because it is a form of government in which the people govern, either directly or through the elected representatives .It is based on the belief that the view of the many should prevail over the opinion of few. iiDemocracy allows the people to hold the power which they exercise directly or indirectly through a system of representation generally involving periodically free elections.iii It enables all or most citizens to participate directly in making government decisions. Democracy is one of the most difficult forms of government for both the politicians and for the people. History shows that the process of building a democracy is very complex.iv Democracy in Practice According to Dahl, democracy helps prevent rule by cruel and vicious autocrats, guarantees citizens a set of fundamental rights, ensures a broader range of personal freedoms, helps people protect their own fundamental interests, provides the maximum opportunity for self-determinationthe freedom to live under laws of one's own choosingprovides the maximum opportunity for the exercise of moral responsibility, encourages human development, fosters a relatively high degree of political equality, promotes peaceas modern representative democracies do not fight one anotherand generates prosperity. vWithin a democracy, free elections are contested by freely organized parties operating under the principle of universal suffrage hfor control of the effective centers of governmental power. T A democratic system can be presidential, as in the U.Sor parliamentary, as in the UK.. While there is much debate over the merits of either system, t othere is general consensus that democracy is a political system institutionalized under the rule of law. The term democracy refers very generally to a structure of group decision making characterized by a kind of equality among the participants at an important for the collective decision making. Four features of the democracy are noted which are considered to be the essential elements of democracy. First, democracy concerns collective decision making, by which are meant decisions that are made for groups and that are binding on all the members of the group.

Second, many groupings, not necessarily political, be called democratic. So there can be democracy in families, voluntary organizations, economic firms, as well as states and transnational and global organizations. Third, the definition is not intended to carry any normative weight to it. It is quite compatible with this definition of democracy that it is not desirable to have democracy in some particular context. So the definition of democracy does not settle any normative questions. Fourth, the equality required by the definition of democracy may be more or less deep. It may be the mere formal equality of one-person one-vote in an election for representatives to an assembly where there is competition among candidates for the position. Or it may be more robust, including equality in the processes of deliberation and coalition building.vi

Essential elements of democracy

Fundamental freedom and fundamental rights, Rule of law, Separation of powers, Free and fair Elections and Public opinion and freedom of the media have always been considered essential elements of democracy and U.S has sought to extend these to other nations through its framework of liberal internationalism.

Fundamental freedom and fundamental rights Human rights are an important element of democracy. In 1945, the United Nations, an international organization which was founded after World War II to replace the League of Nations, to stop wars between countries, and to provide a platform for dialogue. . In a way, it represented an embodiment of the liberal aspirations of nations such as the U.S and Great Britain, leading powers of the time.In 1948 it published the Universal Declaration of Human Right which guaranteed individual Right.vii Since its inception, the UN has made significant contribution in various regions of the world for the pursuit of democracy. As the extract from the UN General Assembly Resolution given below shows, UNfocuses on the basic human rights of people. Freedom is the basic right of people. Every person who born has a right to born free. All human beings are born with equal and inalienable right sand fundamental freedoms.The United Nations is committed to upholding, promoting and protecting the human rights of every individual. This commitment stems from the United Nations Charter, which reaffirms the faith of the peoples of the world in Fundamental human rights and in the dignity and worth of the human person. In the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the United Nations has stated in clear and simple terms the rights which belong equally to every person. These rights belong to you. They are your rights. Familiarize yourself with them.

Help to promote and defend them for yourself as well as for your fellow human beings. Adopted and proclaimed by General Assembly resolution 217 A (III) of 10 December 1948viii The following UN Articles offer more insight into its democratic and egalitarian agenda: Article 1 All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood. Article 2 Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status. Furthermore, no distinction shall be made on the basis of the political, jurisdictional or international status of the country or territory to which a person belongs, whether it is independent, trust, on-self-governing or under any other limitation of sovereignty. Then there are political and civil rights mean that people participate freely without any restrictions in the political process. This also include the freedom of speech and freedom of press Article 3 Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person.ix This means that everyone has a right to live in the world, freely and no one has a right to bound the life of other. And every person has a right to secure himself. Maslows hierarchy of needs put the right of security at second level, after the fulfillment of basic needs human wants security and protection. Then social and economical rights came which include the minimum level of wages for the survival of the life. These also include the right of education. The development and growth of human rights are only possible when humans live in a democracy. Human rights are much more important component of democracy. The development and evolution of human rights are only possible when humans live in a democracy, and it is possible only when the population itself or through representation can draw up the laws that will rule and publicly control the three powers: the legislative power the executive power and the judiciary power. Rule of Law The Rule of Law has some necessary principles and procedures that guarantee the freedom of each individual and which allow them to participate in political life. There is, first of all, the right to growing of individual personality. In the Constitution of a Democratic State of Law the concept of independence of the judiciary is deep-rooted. This means that the judiciary is strictly distinguished from the executive and the legislative powers. Rule of Law ties politics

to law and right, it mean submit your expression of the power under judicial control and guarantees the citizens for the personal freedom.

Separation of Powers The term separation of powers actually means division of the State power into three parts. In a democratic State, the power of the State can be controlled and influenced efficiently, first leading by itself. The State power must then be spread among several organs. In general, it is the Constitution of a country that settles how the State power is to be distributed among different organs. Usually the power is separated through three institutions x Legislative Power Parliament should normally base into two chambers the legislative power draws up and adopts the laws of countries. Executive Power It is based on the Government and administration the executive power enforces laws and government policies in countries. Judicative Power It consists on the courts of justice. The judiciary power represents the legal framework for countries and exercising the power on the masses. Free and fair Elections The Elections compose one of the most important pillars of democracy. The Electoral Laws clearly define the organization of the elections. Mean how the voters can take decision and how to assign them into the corresponding seats. For this purpose there are two types of laws. That is kwon as an active electoral law and a passive electoral law. Active electoral law It defines that which can participate in Govt decision about the masses. Citizens who can use active electoral law have the right to vote. Passive electoral law It is related to the elected represantitatives. Those who can use passive electoral law have the right to be elected. In the most cases, the whole electorate can use both types of right. Democratic elections are free when citizens have the right to choose from a number of candidates or parties that can run for the election without any constraint. They must also be free to decide whether they want to use their right to vote or to give up from doing if they desire. Democratic elections are impartial when each citizen who can use his/her right to vote has at his/her disposal a vote and when neither his/her origin nor his/her sex, language, incomes or possessions, job or social stratus/class, sexual identity, training, religion or political convictions have an influence of whatever kind on the assessment of the value of his/her vote. In democratic elections, there must be no way of knowing for which political party or for which particular candidate a citizen has voted.xi

Public opinion and freedom of the media Media freedom is significantly important for democracy. It contributes to creating plural, open societies and accountable, transparent systems of government, as well as safeguards human rights and fundamental freedoms. In a free media sector plays an essential role in guaranteeing the freedom of expression and freedom of information, both are necessary for smooth the progress of the effective participation of citizens in democratic processes. Freedom of expression therefore includes an obligation on states to prevent unnecessary media concentration and control. As special representatives on media freedom from international organizations note, In recognition of the particular importance of media diversity to democracy, special measures, including anti-monopoly rules, should be put in place to prevent undue concentration of media or cross-media ownership

U.S democracy vis-a-vis Liberal Internationalism

The word democracy cannot be defined without reference to liberal democracy. Liberal democracy accurately reflects Washingtons operational code that is known liberal democratic internationalism . In operationalizing their concept of democracy, Americans have made much use of ideas derived from the construct of liberal internationalism. The resulting conceptualization underscores their policies at home and abroad.The liberal democracy can be described as a form of representative democracy in which elected representatives hold power that limited by a constitution and its give emphasis to protecting individual liberties, equality and the rights of minority groups. the liberties that strength be protected are freedom of speech and assembly, freedom of religion, the right to private property and privacy as well as equality before the law and due process under the rule of law. The constitutional rights, also called liberal rights, are definite through controlled institutions and statutory laws. in addition, the constitutions of most contemporary liberal democracies prohibits majoritarianism, which is rule by the will of majority, when it harms those in the minority.xii With respect to its current foreign policy, U.S assumes that it must be internationally prominent in the pursuit and promotion of democratic governance around the world because democracy cannot flourish without its help and encouragement. It would appear that the U.S wishes to impose an international world order premised on their brand of liberal internationalism using a mechanism of collective security, international organizations and mutual defence to achieve this objective. Democracy promotion around the world derives not only from the cultural heritage or creed of America but also from the pursuit of its national interests in the Wilsonian tradition. The U.S vision for a liberal world order has evolved during the 20 th century to assume a global breadth in modern times. T T

Modern Trends in U.S Foreign Policy and Democracy promotion The ideological underpinnings of U.S. foreign policy have shifted significantly from the Vietnam War onwards. The goal of pre-Vietnam war foreign policy was to defend liberal democracy against its opponents, but this goal gradually became n destabilized in Vietnam and, presently in Iraq by the neoconservative belief that the aspiration to democracy is universal because everyone is interested in freedom. This difference was that this argument neglected the fact that the U.S. was not promoting democracy per se, but a particular form of democracy dominated by liberal principles of government. Because liberal democracy consists of a set of procedures like elections and legislative decision-making,it is a universal and rational form of government that can be implemented anywhere and anytime in order to create human freedom. However,procedures such as elections and legislatures are not in fact a part of a universal aspiration toward freedom but instead make up a set of specific traditions and rituals. The establishment of liberal democracy consequently is not simply a matter of allowing a natural development to occur in the absence of violence, but consists in the establishment of a certain form of political representation and liberal procedures. xiii Hence, the present promotion of democracy by the U.S is agenda based. The U.S wishes to promote a particular brand of democracy consistent with its cultural practices, and more importantly, national interests. Monten (2005) offers an insightful analysis of how two contending interpretations of the nationalist premise of liberal exceptionalism have developed to exert influence on U.S promotion of democratic change The earlier perspective known as exemplarism, which sees U.S exerting its influence on the world through the force of its example has been succeeded by 'vindicationism' which shares the 'city-on a-hill' identity of exemplarism but also believes in undertaking 'active measures to spread its universal values and institutions' rather in the fashion of missionary, evangelist and crusader. Bush's democracy promotion, which is a central component of U.S grand strategy would appear to be much influenced by a liberal exceptionalism grounded in vindicationism. Then next chapter will look at U.S democratic promotion in Pakistan after 9/11.

Articles consequences of this neo conservative shift for us foreign policy

End Notes

Munoz,Herldo, Democracy Rising Assessing the global challenges, Published in US(2006), P.135

ii

Becker, Paula, Jean-Aim A. Raveloson, WHAT IS DEMOCRACY?

http://library.fes.de/pdf-files/bueros/madagaskar/05860.pdf

,pp.4-20

iii

------------,------------,http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/democrac(Accessed April20,2012)

iv

------------,--------------, Democracy Building http://www.democracy-building.info/index.htm (Accessed April 23,2012),P,4

Ibid,P 148,149

vi

Christiano, Tom, "Democracy", The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Fall 2008 Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.), http://plato.stanford.edu/archives/fall2008/entries/democracy(Accessed MAY 5,2012)

vii

Ibid .p,4

viii

United Nations,declaration of human rights

http://www.un.org/events/humanrights/2007/hrphotos/declaration%20_eng.pdf

p,1

ix

Ibid.P,1

Ibid. P,10

xi

Ibid. P,6

xii

---------,-------------, What is liberal democracy http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-liberaldemocracy.htm ( Accessed 20 Feb 2012)

xiii

Pan, David, Liberalism as a Political Idealogy in U.S Foreign Policy , Availabe Dt 22 Mar 2008, ( Accessed 14 Feb 2012) , http://www.telospress.com/main/index.php?
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