DEMOCRACY: PEOPLE’S CONSTANT STRUGGLE
If we speak of family, religion or violence, we can say they were born with the human beings. This is not the case with democracy. The origin of power was not democratic, but despotic. When humans first walked the Earth, they gathered in nomad groups, which were only able to survive under the despotic ruling of a warrior leader, for they were pressured by the challenges of nature and rival groups. As it’s the case with the wolf and its pack, the first political element to emerge among human beings was the power of a single leader.
Around the year 620 and 593 b.C, Athens, the first Greek city, received from Dracon and Solon its first fundamental laws. The evolution of democracy as a concept started then. Thanks to these laws, the difference between the laws of nature, full of gods, and the purely human laws of the city was established. Without this distinction, there could not have been democracy.
The ethimology of the word democracy goes back to the Greek: demos meaning people and Kratein meaning govern, rule. The meaning then could be summed up as the government of the people, in all its diversity. A democratic government, according to Robert H. Dahl, is fundamentally characterized by it’s capacity of answering to the claims of its citizens, not establishing political differences among them, all citizens being equally able to express their preferences before their peers and the government; individually or collectively. Also, the citizens shall receive equal treatment from the government, not discriminating people according to the content or origin of their preferences.
The same way democracy is born, it also gives rise to the struggle to keep it alive, once democracy is not only a government system, but also an ideal, it’s synonymous of unrestricted respect for the life of each individual, of equality, of tolerant, of freedom of speech and universal values. It doesn’t necessarily work in different a society, that’s why throughout history we have seen many paying with their lives to implement it or keep it.
Nowadays we can see a large variety of important events which affect democracy in a positive or negative way. Even in democratic societies we can still see military coups, censorship to the media, coercion or repression of the opposition, the restriction to assemblies or the right to come and go. Two recent examples are the scandal caused by the publication of charges of Mohamed in the year 2005 and the torture methods used in the Guantánamo military base in Cuba. Other crucial happenings restore our faith in democracy, such as Evo Morales rise to power in Bolivia two years ago as the first ingenuous representative ever to reach the presidential office and the surprising victory of Barack Obama, who comes into history today as the first African American to reach the White House defeating his opponent by a large margin, bringing the hope of improving the racial discrimination situation in the United Status, where the black population could not vote until 1965.
Obama, in his first presidential speech addressed the audience saying: “If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible; who still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive in our time; who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer.”
Without a shadow of a doubt, democracy is a strong tool to maintain or implement a culture of peace in any country. The Kenyan activist Wangari Maathai, Nobel Peace Prize laureate in 2004 said that “sustainable development, democracy and peace are inseparable”. That’s what was shown in practice by nine presidents of the Union of South American Nations (Unasur) who supported Evo Morales’s government through a declaration, and asked for the end of the opposition’s occupation in this country, in order to open dialogue. The summit, at the same time, condemned the attempts for civil coupe or ruptures of the institutional order and claimed the restoration of peace and the respect for democracy in Bolivia.
In our days, the human beings are victimized by the highest violence and perversion levels, and we can also see the rise on the number of institutions who fight for world peace, a product of the imperative necessity of fleeing a world plagued by bloody merciless wars (social, political, economical and spiritual). An ideal as important as PEACE, whose millions of arms embrace the dreams of the human family, inevitable encompasses the maintenance of democracy as the road which will lead us to reach our dreams.
It’s important to see democracy as the best government system nowadays and tear down the walls of intolerance and disrespect for different forms of life, and in place, built a bridge of respect among all human beings. Let’s raise our voices and say: ENOUGH OF VIOLENCE. It’s our responsibility….
The economist Alberto Acosta, MA in Economy, from the University of New York (NYU) and MBA, editor of the “Diario El Universo” and political and economical analyst of Ecuador, commented in the topic Democracy in Latin America answering the following question to AMISRAEL Ecuador:
WHAT IS THE PRESENT SHAPE OF DEMOCRACY IN LATIN AMERICA?
There is still a lot to be done, in order to reinforce democracy in Latin America. There is a better awareness of it, however, unfortunately, the institutions are weak and are still subject to manipulation by private interested and political groups.
 WHAT IS THE REAL ROLE OF CITIZENSHIP IN A DEMOCRATIC GOVERNMENT?
The role of citizenship is not restricted to the voting process on election days. Citizenship must be part of all democratic processes. How do we do that? The challenge is to include the citizens in the decision making process, for example, though the socialization of the town projects, discussion forums about the priorities for the communities and the like.
WHAT ROLES DOES DEMOCRACY IN THE INTERNAL PEACE OF THE PEOPLE?
If we intend to build a democratic society, the people know they have participation in the national management. The problem arises when governments decide to act with no connection with society. These measures can cause social conflicts. The population disapproves of the government actions and these disagreements may cause violence.
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IS THE ELECTION PROCESS A DEMOCRATIC ONE?
The election process is a democratic one, but is not enough to ensure a democratic society. Democracy encompasses many other factors such as civil liberties, a transparent and efficient government, enough political participation of the society and a political democratic culture, among others.
WHAT ARE THE WEAKEST POINT IN THE LATIN AMERICAN DEMOCRACIES NOWADAYS?
Those are: weak institutions, low level of democratic culture among the population, low level of transparency from the government and no involvement of society in defining and implementing the projects of public interest. All these factors may lead to regimens which run over the civil liberties and nip the democratic participation of the citizens.
YOUR LAST CONSIDERATIONS:
The backbone of democracy is citizenship. The armed forces also have a role, as well as each one in the society. And each role is essential: the farmers, the businessmen, the army, etc. Each one of these sectors are vital for the development of the society. However the responsibility of building a a democratic society lies in citizenship, in the organization and the institutions we must create. (Picture of the economist Alberto Acosta taken from an issue of Diario El Universo)
Foto de Econ. Alberto Acosta, tomada de una publicación de Diario El Universo. |
Text: Roxana Lascano /
Gabriela Egas
English Version: Patricia Mamede
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