Democracies and Dictatorships
Democracies
Democracy comes from two Greek words and means rule by the people. But how do “the people” rule? They can’t have a direct say in every decision that is made, though the early Greek democracies did (unless you were a woman or a slave that is!). But this was a long time ago when each Greek city was independent and populations were small. An assembly of all citizens would meet, they would elect officials and any citizen could suggest a policy or a new law, it would be debated by all those present, and decisions would be reached by a majority vote.
Today, of course, given the size of populations, this is impractical and we have developed what we call “indirect democracies” in which we elect representatives at regular intervals to make decisions on policy, taxation and new laws on our behalf. If we don’t like what they do, we can elect somebody else at the next election.
Also, as the electorate (those who are eligible to vote) got bigger and bigger in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, political parties developed so that those of a like-mind can organise themselves to get elected under the banner of a party which publishes its policies. And if a party has a majority after an election is held, they will form a government, whilst those from other parties constitute the opposition which will criticise government policies and publicise government failures, as well as offering alternative policies. In this way governments will be held to account at the next election, and the alternative policies of the other parties are well known. In this way, the people rule “indirectly” at least.
What are the advantages, then, of democracies?
Everyone can have a say in who forms the government that makes the laws and policies that affect their lives.
In that, each person only has one vote, everyone has the same amount of power.
We can choose between different individuals and different political parties.
Political parties and individuals are required to outline their proposed policies before each election.
Governments are held accountable and can be peacefully changed.
We feel more involved and we are less likely to be exploited.
What are the disadvantages?
Is everybody capable of exercising their vote sensibly?
Some personalities may flatter to deceive. For example, they may be very persuasive but actually are not very good at getting things done.
The media influences the way we think a lot, and is often privately owned with its own interests to think about.
Countries have very different electoral systems (the means by which votes are allocated to individual candidates or parties) which means there is not agreement as to the best way to elect our representatives.
In electing a government, you give the go-ahead for all its policies when you might not agree with some of them.
If an election doesn’t produce a government with a clear majority, it can man that little gets done, i.e. the government doesn’t actually govern.
Dictatorships
Today, dictators still lead a political party; they are not entirely on their own. But no other parties are allowed and so we refer to them as “one-party” states. This can happen from what we call the right-wing of politics, for example Mussolini and fascist Italy and Hitler and Nazi Germany, and it can happen from the left-wing, for example Stalin and Mao were leaders of their country’s communist party as well as being dictators.
Dictators dictate, that is to say they dictate policy without any discussion with the general population (there may have been some limited discussion within their own party but often not even here). Criticism is not allowed and any opposition will be firmly dealt with by the police and law courts which are under direct control of the dictatorship. The media will also be tightly controlled. In this way, people only here one version of events and policies are always presented in a positive light. There is no open debate.
This means that economic policy – agricultural policy as well as industrial policy: what to make, how much and at what price, and things like interest rates and tax rates – are all decided without debate. Social policy such as religious rights, women’s rights and the rights of minority groups, are all decided without any debate. And foreign policy too: which countries to trade with, whether to go to war or not, are all decided without any debate.
So, what are the advantages and disadvantages to dictatorships? Are there any advantages?
1. The country will advance in a consistent direction – policies will not radically change every few years. But what if those policies harm the majority of people, or even a minority of people? There is no opposition voice; no free media.
2. Politics can be more stable. Though power is concentrated in fewer hands and institutions like the courts are controlled. Those in power are more easily corrupted, and power is much more easily abused.
3. Everyone knows where they stand. Though people feel powerless, unable to take control of their lives. There is very little individual freedom. Personal rights are restricted.
4. There are low crime rates. But rule by fear’ can result. People can be oppressed.
5. It can be the best means to govern in an emergency. But who declares the emergency? Who declares when it is over?