Essay on "Democracy"

Essay - Democracy

“In a democracy the poor will have more power than the rich, because there are more of them, and will of the majority is supreme”- Aristotle

Among the different forms of government, democracy is regarded as the best and ideal form of government. Democracy originally derived from two Greek words ‘demos’ meaning ‘people’ and ‘kratos’ meaning ‘rule’, is a system of government in which people directly or indirectly have share in the administration. Democracy is a system of government in which power is vested in the people, who rule either directly or through freely elected representatives. According to Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary, "Democracy is a system of government by the whole population or all the eligible members of a state, typically through elected representatives". According to Abraham Lincoln, 16^th president of USA, “Democracy is the government of the people, by the people and for the people.” This system of government was originally practiced in the ancient Greek city-states about 3,000 years ago. It is the most common political system of the modern times.

In a democratic country, the government is formed by the elected representatives of the people. Democracy encourages as well as allows the rights of citizen such as freedom of speech, religion, opinion and association in a peaceful manner. If anyone is deprived of basic rights the court gives him justice. In a democratic country, it is true that the common people are superior.

The modern form of democracy was started from England. Nowadays, the representative democracy is now practiced differently in different countries. No two democracies may be identical. The common types of modern democracy are parliamentary or presidential, limited monarchy or republic, and unitary or federal. In parliamentary democracy, the Prime Minister, the executive ruler, is elected by the legislative. On the other hand, in presidential system, the President, the executive chief, is directly elected by the people. A unitary system of democracy has centralized power whereas the federal system has decentralized power between two sets of government – central and provincial. A monarchial system has hereditary state head- king queen who exercises only constitutional power as a nominal ruler where the real power rest on the elected prime minister while in the republic even the state head is an elected representative.

Democracy has partly system where it can be successful only when people understand the responsibilities given to them. They must think of not only their rights but also of those of others. They should perform their own duties too. The must obey the laws of the land. Democracy can’t be successful if the people are not educated. If they are educated, they can use their votes properly and choose the good persons of the good parties.

The mandate of democratic government lies if it listens to the will and voice of the people and guarantees freedom and equality. Though it is not the perfect form, many political thinkers believe that the democracy is better than any other forms of government which existed or still exist in the world. There is direct check and control of the people. Citizens are involved in makin plans and policies that are good to all round development through participatory approach. The most important advantage of democracy is that the people gain a sense of participation in the process of choosing their government during election. They get the opportunity to voice their opinions by the means of electoral votes due to which it gives rise to a feeling of belonging in the mind of the people towards their society.

Democracy has certain merits that political thinkers appreciate. It is impartial, benevolent, and teaches the lesson of tolerance, brotherhood and unity. It also makes people self-dependent, politically conscious and responsible. Democracy can provide for changes in government without violence. In a democracy power can be transformed from one part to another by means of elections. The jurisdiction of the citizens of a nation determines its ruling authorities. It gives equal opportunities to make progress to all the people. It is above any kind of undue favor to any religion, caste, creed or color. The people are supreme and cannot be exploited by any dictator or group of persons. Democracy can provide for changes in government without violence. In a democracy, power can be transferred from one party to another by means of elections. The jurisdiction of the citizens of a nation determines its ruling authority. Moreover, any government is bound by an election term after which it has to compete against other parties to regain the authority due to which this system prevents monopoly of the ruling authority. The ruling party has to make sure it works for its people for it cannot remain being the authority after completing its term if they are not re-elected by the people.

The popularity of democracy is increasing. Now, most countries at least in form have this system of government. Many countries have obtained democracy at the cost of many precious lives. But democracy is not always the best form of government. If handled improperly it may become the worst form of government. Democracy has some disadvantages too. While democracy today appears to be the most popular choice when it comes to choosing a form of government, it brings with it many complications that would be absent in a dictatorship. When a part is in majority it becomes difficult in a democracy to force unacceptable principles down the throat of the public. When this is made possible, it leads to outrage. The main disadvantages are instability of government, rising market prices by the free economic system. The loss of much property in the party election, the use of the force to dominate the others opinion and principle, etc. causes the prices to go up. Government by popular majorities means rule by the average man, who is generally unintelligent, controlled in his conduct more by emotions than by reason and of limited knowledge. What standard of judgment can make us believe the opinion of 51% of the people to be wiser than 49 percent? For these reasons, Wiston Churchil says that “Democracy is the government of fools.”