Democracy-Is it Possible?

With the news of several elections flooding the airwaves from the First to the Third Worlds, the powers and ideals of a democracy surface as human beings' best example of man's moral worth and moral responsibility. Only in a democracy is each individual's right to vote for the way he wants to be governed is sacrosanct. Democracy is the common birthright of the whole human race and should serve the needs of all, equally and justly. But does it? Writes Qamar Shahzad....

While democratic values are applicable anywhere and everywhere, perfect application has never been reached, and likely never will be. Perfection, is not a human possibility, and a perfect democracy will always remain an unattainable ideal. Nevertheless, it is the best form of government that the human race has come up with. To quote Winston Churchill in a speech in the House of Commons in 1947: "No one pretends that democracy is perfect or all-wise. Indeed it has been said that democracy is the worst form of government, except for all those that have been tried from time to time." What are those alternatives to democracy that man has tried through the ages? Oligarchy, monarchy, aristocracy, autocracy, and all the "isms" you can muster -- fascism, totalitarianism, bolshevism, communism, colonialism, imperialism, ad infinitum. Would you too not vote for democracy?

Present day democratic principles are attributed to Western European/American philosophy, while Greece is regarded by most scholars as its birthplace. Anthropological studies have shown however, that humanity has a long history of "government by discussion", where ancient groups, tribes, or clans in China, Southeast Asia, Africa, Spain, and the American continent practised some form of democratic procedure. Man has courted democracy since the beginning of time. The romance flourished in ancient Greece as early as 600 BC. Its very name is derived from the Greek demos meaning "the people", and kratos meaning "authority or rule" -- "rule by the people". Because the Greeks viewed dictatorship as the worst form of government, they created its exact opposite. Its drawback was that it applied to only 50 per cent of the population. The other 50 per cent, women and slaves, positively had no rights. So much for a perfect democracy! Then came Plato (427? - 347? BC) who wooed and won democracy in his Republic, where virtue is the lifeblood of any society and philosophers only should rule. Plato characterises 'a good society' as one that possesses four basic virtues -- justice, wisdom, moderation, and courage --with a mutual consent of the ruler and the ruled. His fiery passion for democracy profoundly influenced subsequent political thinking. The Romans picked the torch from the Greeks. Roman statesman Cicero (106-43 BC) was likewise impassioned with the concept of a perfect republic, which must respect all men's "natural rights".

With Christianity, the concept that "all men are created equal in the eyes of God" -- prevailed, and the only commandments men must obey were God's. Feudalism defied those lofty ideals. Agricultural lords became all mighty during the Middle Ages (400s-1200s AD) also known as the Dark Ages in Europe -- "dark" because the light of learning was dimmed during that period. Knowledge acquired from the ancients withered and waned; only some of the ancient Roman principles survived in a few monasteries, cathedrals, and palace schools. The mastery of Greek arts and crafts, now lost to the Europeans, ignited the Byzantine Empire which preserved much of the legacy of Greek and Roman life, and the Arabs overwhelmed the West by basking in the glow of their splendid civilisation, which spread from Spain to the borders of China.

A great cultural movement known as the Renaissance (1300-1500) awakened the Europeans from their cultural doldrums. A new spirit of individual thought and independence was born. A burning hunger and thirst for learning triggered the invention of the Moveable Type Printing by Johannes Guttenberg (1395-1468) in the 1440s. With the availability of books, knowledge spread like wildfire and hastened the growth of democracy. Learning brought a new sense of individual freedom which found its expression in defying both church and monarch -- society's ultimate rulers. Martin Luther King opposed the powers of the Roman Catholic Church and led the Protestant Reformation. Both churches defended the people's right to oppose absolute monarchy. Freedom once savoured could no longer be contained. In England a historic document, the "Magna Carta" (1215) or Great Charter was signed by King John, creating the law-making body known as "Parliament", which transferred some of the King's powers to the people. Democracy was discovered once again, but monarchs continued to abuse their powers, proclaiming their "divine right" to rule. The "Petition of Right" (1628) called for the king to cease collecting taxes without consent of Parliament. Charles I refused to comply, and by 1642 civil war broke out in England. Long before the French guillotined their King Louis XVI (1793) their neighbours beheaded their King Charles (1649) and established their first republic -- the Commonwealth.

Philosophers and writers further ignited the flames of freedom with their new, exciting, revolutionary ideas. John Locke of England defined the purpose of government as a tool of the people "defending their rights to life, liberty and the ownership of property". Across the channel the lesson was learnt. A few decades later, Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778) expanded on Locke's ideas of the rights of citizens in his Social Contract (1762). Together with other philosophers and political writers like Voltaire and Montesquieu, Rousseau helped bring about the "French Revolution" (1789).

Across the Atlantic another revolution was getting underway as the colonies of the New World refused to pay taxes to the British King George III. "A Declaration of Independence" from Britain was drafted in 1776 by Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826), who borrowed many of his ideas from the English philosopher John Locke.

Around the world democracies danced at the funerals of monarchies. Those monarchs that remained, adopted constitutions that limited their powers to ceremonial duties. Women were granted the right to vote by the dawn of the 20th century, slavery was abolished by America's 16th president Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865): "As I would not be a slave, so I would not be a master!" He was assassinated within a few days of his victory.

By 1950 almost every country on the planet had a form of democracy that recognised the equality and dignity of its citizens, with free elections to be held periodically to ensure true representation. Citizens participate in the formation of their government by voting and must abide by the rule of the majority while preserving the rights of the minority.

The quality of government depends on the quality of participation. The higher the level of literacy and good education the better the quality of their democracy. Behind the rise of every revolution and the death of every monarchy was not only fear and oppression, but hunger and poverty. Excessive taxation became unbearable and unacceptable to the people. Yet even "a government of the people, by the people and for the people" has never been and can never be completely just to all the people. The disparity between rich and poor is astounding in the richest of democracies.

Despite his vote and equal civil rights, a poor man is often trampled upon, even in a democracy. Equal educational opportunities are the best and most effective method of closing the gap. When he masters learning, then will he find the key to happiness, success, prosperity and true equality. Man's triumphs was that he transferred his thoughts to acts. So, while democracy will always be no more than an ideal, man will continue to court it until he finds a better substitute. Only by improving himself can he come close to a perfect romance and a perfect democracy. The empires of the future are the empires of the mind --Winston Churchill. In a near perfect democracy, may the near perfect always win!