COMMENTS ARE WELCOME. Powers behind control: An essay on democracy Peter L. Hupe Department of Public Administration Erasmus University Rotterdam hupe@fsw.eur.nl To be presented at the Annual Work Conference of the Netherlands Institute of Government‚ held at Erasmus University Rotterdam‚ October 29‚ 2004 Workshop 3: Institutional Rearrangement of the Public Domain 1 Abstract In contemporary Western democracies the role of government is not what it used to be. In the public
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Democracy is a universally recognized ideal and is one of the core values of the United Nations. Democracy provides an environment for the protection and effective realization of human rights. These values are embodied in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and further developed in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights‚ which enshrines a host of political rights and civil liberties underpinning meaningful democracies United Nations activities in support of democracy and
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2. Is there democracy in Singapore? What is Democracy? Singapore has been recognized as a representative democratic state since August 1965. However‚ to examine if Singapore is in fact democratic‚ we need to first define the word “democracy” and its parameters. The word originated from M.Fr democratis in the 1570s‚ with ‘demo’ referring to common people and ‘cratie’ to rule of strength. Therefore‚ by definition‚ Singapore can be classified as a democratic country due to the fair elections which
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policy areas? A Liberal Democracy is a merging of liberalism and democracy. Ludwig von Mises (1927) describes liberalism as a strategy for achieving the dream of freedom‚ rather than merely a theory. Liberalism inspires political emancipation (Kelly‚ 2004) to the extent where all citizens can exercise their natural rights without infringing on those of others and inevitably‚ ensuring the citizens’ autonomy. This objective is achieved through operating in a democracy. Democracy is a system of rule by
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A long time ago‚ approximately over 2400 years‚ the Ancient Greek Polis developed the first democracy. This was the first time this particular political system was established and organized. Not long after‚ the Roman Republic formed their version of a democracy to rival Greece. Both societies used democracy as a way to band their people together‚ and become stronger republics. There are many similarities and differences between the political systems of Rome and Greece. Both systems had in place
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Egypt‚ in terms of democracy‚ is limited. Superficially it contains all the basic requirements of a democracy: a parliament‚ a president and regular elections. However‚ "elections do not a democracy make." In Egypt’s sordid past it has been occupied‚ reoccupied and moreover controlled by external forces unique in the Arab world. Strong nationalism has led Egypt through social experiments that failed. Imitation has brought about a parliamentary monarchy cut short by a coup. In the end‚ "Rule from
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“By 1928‚ the essentials of democracy had been achieved”. How far would you agree? Democracy‚ the ideal that all the citizens of a nation determine together the laws and actions of their state: a government ‘for the people‚ of the people and by the people’‚ was necessary in Britain‚ as Aristotle once said‚ ‘man is by nature a political animal’. Franchise is the right to be able to vote and in 1830‚ only one out of ten adult males could vote; by 1832 it was a privilege of the landed elite and by
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The primary disadvantages of democracy are a general lack of accountability‚ the prospect of personal interest becoming the predominant factor in decisions‚ and negative financial implications. A democracy lays the power to make decisions in the hands of the majority. This‚ ironically‚ places an emphasis on both individual and group power. A group controls the decision-making process‚ but an influential individual can control the group. The issue with democracy‚ in spite of the power of the people
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Road to Democracy essay notes 1989 sparked the change of ideas and dawned the opportunity to finally end apartheid. PW Botha was forced to step down as president by members of his own cabinet. FW de Klerk‚ who realized the urgency of the need for a different approach towards to monstrosity of apartheid‚ took Botha’s place. Many among the tens of thousands who gathered at the Grand Parade in Cape Town on February 11 1990 had probably never seen Nelson Mandela before. Some did not have a
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Democracy or dictatorship? [pic] We all have been saying in the past and even now that even the worst democracy is better than dictatorship but the question we need to ask ourselves is that even after all the efforts made by the lawyers movement and fresh elections in pakistan have we achieved a REAL democracy? At this present time we got two mainstream parties PPP and PML(a-z) both been controlled in undemocratic ways where one person lead it and no matter what happens he/she is gonna be leader
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