The concept, which is so often used in our time and therefore has already become familiar, was once an unthinkable and impossible phenomenon. And this is due solely to the fact that before mid-19th centuries, the ideas of liberalism and democracy were in some contradiction with each other. The main discrepancy was along the lines of determining the object of protection of political rights. sought to provide equal rights not to all citizens, but mainly to property owners and the aristocracy. A person who owns property is the basis of society, which must be protected from the tyranny of the monarch. Ideologists of democracy perceived deprivation of the right to vote as a form of enslavement. Democracy is the formation of power based on the will of the majority, the entire people. In 1835, Alexis de Tocqueville’s work “Democracy in America” was published. The model of liberal democracy he presented showed the possibility of building a society in which personal freedom, private property and democracy itself could coexist.
Main characteristics of liberal democracy
Liberal democracy is a form of socio-political structure in which representative democracy is the basis for the rule of law. With this model, the individual is separated from society and the state, and the main attention is focused on creating guarantees for individual freedom that can prevent any suppression of the individual by power.
The goal of liberal democracy is equal provision to everyone of the rights to freedom of speech, freedom of assembly, freedom of religion, private property and personal integrity. This political system which recognizes the rule of law, the separation of powers, and the protection of fundamental freedoms necessarily presupposes the existence of " open society" An “open society” is characterized by tolerance and pluralism, making possible the coexistence of a wide variety of social political views. Periodic elections provide an opportunity for each of the existing groups to gain power. Characteristic feature Liberal democracy, which emphasizes freedom of choice, is the fact that the political group is not obliged to share all aspects of the ideology of liberalism. But regardless of the ideological views of the group, the principle of the rule of law remains unchanged.
Liberal democracy is a form of socio-political system - based on a representative one, in which the will of the majority and the ability of elected representatives to exercise power are limited in the name of protecting the rights of the minority and the freedoms of individual citizens. Liberal democracy aims to ensure that every citizen has the rights to due process, private property, privacy, freedom of assembly, and freedom of religion. These liberal rights are enshrined in higher laws (such as other forms of statutory law, or in precedent decisions made by the supreme courts), which, in turn, confer on various government and public bodies powers to ensure these rights.
A characteristic element of liberal democracy is open society characterized by the coexistence and competition of the widest range of socio-political views. Thanks to periodic elections, each of the groups holding different views has a chance to gain power. In practice, fringe viewpoints rarely play a significant role in the democratic process because the public sees them as a threat to liberal democracy itself. However, the open society model makes it difficult for the ruling elite to maintain power, guarantees the possibility of a bloodless change of power and creates incentives for the government to respond flexibly to the needs of society.
In a liberal democracy, the political elite in power not obliged share all aspects of the ideology (for example, she may advocate ). However, she obliged obey the principle mentioned above. Term liberal V in this case understood in the same way as in the era bourgeois revolutions end: providing every person with protection from arbitrariness on the part of those in power.
Structure of the socio-political structure
Political system
Democratic character government system enshrined in the fundamental laws and supreme precedent decisions that constitute . The main purpose of the constitution is to limit the power of officials and law enforcement agencies, as well as the will of the majority. This is achieved with the help of a number of tools, the main of which are independent justice (by branch and at the territorial level) and a system of “checks and balances”, which ensures the accountability of some branches of government to others. Only such actions of government officials are lawful if they are carried out in accordance with the law published in writing and in due order.
Although liberal democracies include elements of direct democracy (), the vast majority of supreme government decisions are made by the government. The policy of this government should depend only on representatives legislative branch and the head of the executive branch, which are established as a result of periodic elections. Subordination of the government to any unelected forces is not permitted. In the interval between elections, the government must operate in a mode of openness and transparency, and facts of corruption must be immediately made public.
One of the main provisions of liberal democracy is universal suffrage, which gives every adult citizen of the country an equal right to vote, regardless of financial status or income. The exercise of this right is usually associated with a certain registration procedure at the place of residence. Election results are determined only by those citizens who actually voted, but often turnout must exceed a certain threshold to be considered valid.
The most important task of electoral democracy is to ensure that elected representatives are accountable to. Therefore, referendums must be free, fair and honest. They must be preceded by free and fair expression of different political views, combined with equality of opportunity for election campaigns. In practice, the political is determined by the presence of several (at least two) who have significant power. The most important necessary condition for this pluralism is . The choices of the people must be free from the dominant influence of armies, foreign powers, totalitarian parties, religious hierarchies, economic oligarchies and any other powerful groups. Cultural, ethnic, religious and other minorities should have an acceptable level of opportunity to participate in decision-making, which is usually achieved by granting them partial self-government.
Rights and freedoms
The most frequently cited criteria for liberal democracy take the form of civil rights and liberties. Most of these freedoms were borrowed from various movements, but acquired functional significance.
- Right to life and personal dignity
- Freedom of speech
- Freedom of funds mass media and access to alternative sources of information
- Freedom of religion and public expression of religious views
- The right to associate in political, professional and other organizations
- Freedom of assembly and open public debate
- Academic freedom
- Independent justice
- Equality before the law
- The right to due process of law under conditions
- Privacy and the right to personal secrets
- The right to own property and to private enterprise
- Freedom of movement and choice of place of work
- Right to education
- The right to free work and freedom from excessive economic exploitation
- Equality of opportunity
Some of these freedoms are limited to a certain extent. However, all restrictions must meet three conditions: they must be strictly in accordance with the law, pursue a righteous purpose, and must be necessary and adequate to achieve that purpose. Laws imposing restrictions should strive to be unambiguous and not allow for different interpretations. Legitimate goals include the protection of reputation, personal dignity, national security, public order, copyright, health and morality. Many restrictions are forced so that the rights of some citizens do not diminish the freedom of others.
It deserves special attention that people who fundamentally disagree with the doctrine of liberal democracy (including for cultural or religious reasons) have the same rights and freedoms as others. This follows from the concept of an open society, according to which the political system should be capable of self-change and evolution. Only those who call for violence are deprived of their rights. Understanding the importance of this provision is relatively new in liberal democracy, and a number of its supporters still consider legal restrictions on the propaganda of any ideologies hostile to this regime to be legitimate.
Terms
According to popular belief, a number of conditions must be met for liberal democracy to emerge. These conditions are: developed system justice, legislative protection of private property, the presence of a broad and strong civil society.
Experience has shown that free elections by themselves rarely produce liberal democracy, and in practice often lead to “flawed” democracies in which either some citizens are disenfranchised, or elected representatives do not determine all government policy, or executive branch subjugates the legislative and judicial systems, or the justice system is unable to ensure compliance with the principles laid down in the constitution. The latter is the most common problem.
Level material well-being in a country is also unlikely to be a condition for a country's transition from an authoritarian regime to a liberal democracy, although research shows that this level plays a significant role in ensuring its sustainability.
Story
The turning point was Alexis de Tocqueville's Democracy in America (1835), in which he showed the possibility of a society where individual freedom and private property coexisted with democracy. According to Tocqueville, the key to the success of such a model, called “ liberal democracy”, is an opportunity, and the most serious threat to it is the sluggish government intervention in the economy and its violation of civil liberties.
After the revolution of 1848 and the coup d'etat (in 1851), liberals increasingly began to recognize the need for democracy. Events have shown that without the participation of the broad masses in the social contract, the liberal regime turns out to be unstable, and the full implementation of ideas remains. At the same time, movements began to gain strength that denied the possibility of a fair society built on private property and free society. From their point of view, full-fledged democracy, in which all citizens have equal access to all democratic institutions (elections, justice, etc.), could only be realized within the framework. However, having become convinced of the growth in the size of the middle class, the majority of Social Democrats abandoned, decided to participate in the democratic process and seek legislative reforms with the aim of moving towards socialism.
Liberal democracy in the world
A number of organizations and political scientists maintain ratings of the level of liberal democracy in countries around the world. Among these ratings, the most famous are Polity Data Set(English) and Freedom in the World. Most experts believe that the countries of the European Community, Japan, USA, Canada, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand and India are liberal democracies. A number of African countries and former USSR call themselves democracies, although in fact the ruling elites have a strong influence on the outcome of elections.
Types of liberal democracies
The presence of liberal democracy is largely determined by the principles actually implemented and the compliance of the regime with the above criteria. For example, it is formally a monarchy, but is actually governed by a democratically elected parliament. In Great Britain, formally the highest power is vested in the hereditary monarch, but in fact such power is vested in the people, through their elected representatives. The monarchy in these countries is largely symbolic.
There are many electoral systems for forming parliament, the most common of which are the majoritarian system and the proportional system. Under the majoritarian system, the territory is divided into districts, in each of which the mandate goes to the candidate who receives the majority of votes. Under a proportional system, seats in parliament are distributed in proportion to the number of votes cast for parties. In some countries, part of the parliament is formed according to one system, and part according to another.
Countries also differ in the method of forming the executive and legislative branches. In presidential republics, these branches are formed separately, which ensures high degree their division by function. In parliamentary republics, the executive branch is formed by the parliament and is partially dependent on it, which ensures a more even distribution of power between the branches.
The Scandinavian countries, being liberal democracies, are also... This is due to high level social protection of the population, equality in living standards, free secondary education and healthcare, a significant public sector in the economy and high taxes. At the same time, in these countries the state does not interfere in pricing (even in the public sector, with the exception of monopolies), banks are private, and there are no obstacles to trade, including international trade; effective laws and transparent governments reliably protect the civil rights of people and the property of entrepreneurs.
Liberal democracy in Russia
Liberal democracy has never been realized in Russia. According to the Freedom in the World rating, the USSR in 1990-1991. and Russia in 1992-2004. were considered partially free countries, but since 2005 Russia has been included in the list of unfree countries.
In Russia itself, part of the population mistakenly associates the doctrine of liberal democracy with an ultranationalist party. Democracy is generally supported, but most people place social rights above liberal ones.
Critical analysis
Advantages
First of all, liberal democracy is based on the rule of law and the equality of all before it. Therefore, it is in democracy that the highest level of law and order is ensured.
Further, liberal democracy ensures that government is accountable to the nation. If the people are dissatisfied with government policies (due to corruption or excessive bureaucracy, attempts to circumvent laws, mistakes in economic policy etc.), then in the next elections the opposition has a high chance of winning. After she came to power, the most reliable way to hold on is to avoid the mistakes of predecessors (dismiss corrupt or ineffective officials, comply with laws, attract competent economists, etc.) Thus, liberal democracy ennobles the desire for power and forces the government to work for the good of the nation. This ensures a relatively low level of corruption, which in an authoritarian regime can only be achieved at the cost of an extremely tough dictatorship.
Because politically important decisions accepted by elected representatives - professionals who are members of the political elite - this frees the people from the need to spend time studying and discussing many government issues. At the same time, a number of countries (Switzerland, Uruguay) and regions (California) actively use elements of direct democracy: and.
Constitutional protection against the dictatorship of the majority is an essential advantage of this regime and distinguishes it from other types of democracy. In fact, every person, according to some characteristics, belongs to a certain minority, therefore, in conditions of complete subordination to the will of the majority, civil rights are suppressed. In a liberal democracy, this has the opposite effect, since it forces the current majority to view itself as a temporary coalition and therefore pay attention to the point of view of the current minority.
Because the minority is able to influence decision-making, liberal democracy ensures the protection of private property for the wealthy, social protection for the poor, as well as smoothing out cultural, ethnic and religious conflicts. The most democratic countries in the world have the lowest levels of terrorism. This effect may even be spreading beyond the region: statistics show that since the late 1980s, when Eastern Europe many countries have taken the path of liberal democracy, total number military conflicts, ethnic wars, revolutions, etc. in the world have sharply decreased (English).
The ability to change a government or its policies peacefully and without violence promotes stability and certainty in society. This is also facilitated by the fact that democracy forces the government to work openly, communicate its strategic goals and report on ongoing measures to achieve them. Freedom of speech also allows authorities to be better informed about the real state of affairs in the state.
The consequence of liberal democracy is the accumulation human capital, low inflation, less political and economic instability and relatively low government intervention in the activities of entrepreneurs. A number of researchers believe that these circumstances (especially economic freedom) contribute to economic recovery and an increase in the level of well-being of the entire population, expressed in GDP per capita. At the same time, despite high rates of economic growth, several liberal democratic countries are still relatively poor (India, Costa Rica, Estonia), while a number of authoritarian regimes, on the contrary, are thriving (Brunei).
Research also shows that liberal democracies are more effective at managing available resources when they are limited than authoritarian regimes. Thus, liberal democracies are characterized by higher life expectancy and lower infant and maternal mortality, regardless of the level of GDP, income inequality or the size of the public sector.
Flaws
Liberal democracy is a type of representative democracy, which has attracted criticism from supporters of direct democracy. They argue that in a representative democracy, the power of the majority is expressed too rarely - at the time of elections and referendums. Real power is concentrated in the hands of a very small group of representatives. From this point of view, liberal democracy is closer to , while the development of technology, the growth of people’s education and the increase in their involvement in the life of society create the preconditions for the transfer of increasing powers of power into the hands of the people directly.
Marxists and anarchists completely deny that liberal democracy is democracy, calling it a “plutocracy.” They argue that in any bourgeois democracy, real power is concentrated in the hands of those who control financial flows. Only very wealthy citizens can afford to campaign politically and spread their platform through the media, so only the elite or those who make deals with the elite can be elected. Such a system legitimizes inequality and facilitates economic exploitation. In addition, critics continue, it creates the illusion of justice, so that the discontent of the masses does not lead to riots. At the same time, “stuffing” certain information can cause a predictable reaction, which leads to manipulation of the consciousness of the masses by the financial oligarchy. Supporters of liberal democracy consider this argument to be devoid of evidence, for example, the media rarely voice radical points of view because it is not interesting to the general public, and not because of censorship. However, they agree that campaign finance is an essential element in the electoral system and that in some cases it should be public. For the same reason, many countries have public media that pursue a policy of pluralism.
In an effort to maintain power, elected representatives are primarily concerned with measures that will allow them to maintain a positive image in the eyes of voters in the next elections. Therefore, they give preference to decisions that will bring political dividends in the coming months and years, to the detriment of unpopular decisions, the effect of which will appear only in a few years. However, doubts have been expressed whether this is really a disadvantage, since long-term forecasts are extremely difficult for society, and therefore an emphasis on short-term goals may be more effective.
On the other hand, to strengthen their voice, individual voters may support special lobbying groups. Such groups are able to receive government subsidies and seek solutions that serve their narrow interests, but do not serve the interests of society as a whole.
It is believed that democracy and liberalism are extremely close, almost identical concepts. But this is not always the case. What are their most popular interpretations?
What is democracy?
Democracy- is a political regime in which decisions on governing the country are made by the people - directly or through elected representative bodies. Moreover, in democratic regimes, power is usually divided into 3 branches - legislative, executive and judicial. This scheme excludes the concentration of the predominant volume of powers in someone else's hands - as is the case with authoritarianism and totalitarianism, which are traditionally opposed to democracy.
What is liberalism?
Liberalism- is an ideology centered on the proclamation of the supremacy of human rights and freedoms, assigning them leading role in the socio-economic and political development of society. The state, in accordance with liberal concepts, should in various ways to ensure that its citizens have every opportunity to exercise their rights and freedoms. According to some ideologists, this should be expressed, first of all, in the non-interference of the country's authorities in social processes. However, if necessary, the authorities must provide legal protection for the interests of their citizens and ensure equality of all residents of the country before the law.
The main freedoms that traditional liberalism proclaims are:
- freedom of speech;
- freedom to choose religion;
- freedom of political views, cultural values;
- freedom to choose a representative similar in ideology to government bodies;
- freedom to choose a profession and do business.
Thus, liberalism is an ideology that affects 3 main social institutions - politics, society and economics.
Comparison
The main difference between democracy and liberalism is the defined social phenomenon. The first term denotes the political regime, the second - ideology. However, the concepts of democracy and liberalism, as we noted above, are very similar in many aspects. What is the reason for this?
The fact is that the practical implementation of the ideas of liberalism can be fully realized only under a democratic political regime. Only those people who have political freedoms- that is, freedom of choice of views, values, representatives to government bodies - are able to count on the adoption of laws guaranteeing other liberal preferences.
In turn, not every democracy can involve the introduction of liberal concepts into the life of society. It is quite possible that the people of the country will decide that they do not really need excessive freedom of speech or choice of political views, and will elect into power those people who will pass laws restricting such freedoms (or will themselves pass the corresponding laws in a referendum).
Thus, liberalism is possible only in democracy, but democracy is quite capable of existing without liberalism.
Having determined what the difference is between democracy and liberalism, let us record its key criteria in the table.
What is the difference between liberalism and democracy?
I didn't think about it for a long time a simple question. And finally, it seems, I found the answer, in the form of a folk tale:
1. If a gentleman comes to the stable and consults with the groom and coachman on how best to go about his business, and then decides where exactly to go - this is liberalism.
2. If a master comes to the stable and consults with the groom and coachman on how best to go on business, and then the master, groom and coachman, by a majority vote, decide where the master should go - this is real democracy.
Ball lightning 01/29/2012 22:57:19
Review: positive
No. Liberalism is when a gentleman comes to the stable and advises how to properly care for a horse, without understanding a damn thing about this undertaking, forgetting why he actually came... Democracy is when a gentleman comes to the stable and asks the groom to teach him how to care behind the horse, forgetting at the same time why he actually came... In your presentation: the first is Stalinism, the second is not amenable to rational thinking, because why then is the master needed? :-)))
Sergey Skopinov 01/30/2012 21:15:57
Sveta!
To “no” - of course - there is no judgment. But I don’t agree with your interpretation of my “reflection.” Stalinism, in my opinion, is when a gentleman comes to the stable, consults with the groom and coachman, and then, smoking a pipe, says: “You, comrades, are wrong. We’ll probably shoot you. But - after the war. For now, harness...":)
Ball lightning 01/30/2012 21:57:00
The pile is small... Master Stalin did not shoot coachmen like Rokossovsky, Zhukov and Beria; they were needed himself. But he listened to advice and made decisions himself... What can you say about your interpretation of the concept of Democracy? Why do we need a master, a parasite (the state), if the groom and coachman know the way themselves? this is communism. About which a lot is written, but few people understand :-)
Sergey Skopinov 01/31/2012 13:46:43
Therefore, according to my classification, Stalin is not a democrat, but a liberal. :)
The essence of communism was expressed figuratively by Chernomyrdin - they wanted the best, it turned out - as always. You are right that the state in its current form is a freeloader. But the problem is that large groups of people, in an unorganized form, are a dangerous phenomenon. They undergo spontaneous processes of self-organization, which are not always of a “humanitarian” nature. Chaos is always a structural simplification of the system (at the first stage) and its new structuring at the second. It is not a fact that the participants in the first process will necessarily survive the second period. History confirms this.
Ball lightning 02/01/2012 18:59:00
“But the problem is that large groups of people, in an unorganized form, are a dangerous phenomenon. Spontaneous processes of self-organization take place in them, which are not always of a “humanitarian” nature.” (c)
Perhaps we imagine Communism on earth differently. I am without any groups. I imagine communism on Earth as a paradise where every person is clearly aware of his mission on earth and is useful only on the level when it comes to barter. There are no groups, each family does its own thing... The distance from one house to another is at least one km. Russia can afford communism.
However, there is no way without an army :-))) Someone must guard heaven on earth.
Liberal democracy is a form of political order that has two fundamental qualities. The government is "liberal" in terms of the core values that underlie a given political system, and "democratic" in terms of shaping its political structure.
The key values associated with the liberal democratic political system go back to traditional liberal ideas about limiting power and are designed to ensure the existence of a wide range of civil and human rights. The above can be guaranteed by such instruments as a constitution, a bill of rights, the principle of separation of powers, a system of checks and balances, and most importantly, the principle of the rule of law.
The functioning of a democratic political system reflects the will of the people (at least the majority of them). Social consent within the framework of a liberal democratic political system is ensured through representation: liberal democracy (sometimes also defined as representative) involves a small group of people making political decisions on behalf of all citizens of the country.
Those who assume such duties and responsibilities act with the consent of the citizens and rule on their behalf. Meanwhile, the right to make decisions is conditional on the presence of public support, and it can be denied in the absence of approval of the government’s actions from the population to which the government is accountable. In this case, citizens deprive their elected representatives of the right to exercise power and transfer them into the hands of other persons.
Thus, elections, during which the will of the population is manifested regarding the actions and personnel of the bodies government, is a fundamental function of liberal democracy. The electoral system gives all adult citizens of the country the right to vote, ensures regular elections and open competition between political parties aspiring to power.
The liberal democratic political system is primarily associated with first world countries with a capitalist economic system.
See also the articles “Rule of Law”, “Elections”, “Civil Rights”, “Democracy”, “Legitimacy”, “Liberalism”, “Marxism-Leninism”, “Accountability”, “Political Tolerance”, “Human Rights”, “Representation”, “Separation of powers”.