The political system more widely in Western countries is represented by a representative democracy, essentially liberal and bourgeois. Through its representatives shall be allowed, through elections, to turn the will of the people in acts of government.
One of the consequences that would arise is that one is led to conclude that democracy and "representation" are in a sense synonymous. Unfortunately, recent history shows that this is not true
Democracy is the form of government that responds to the principle of identity between rulers and ruled, that the popular will and the law.
This correspondence refers to the fundamental equality of citizens, namely the fact that they are all also members of one political unit. Argue that the people are sovereign, not by nature and by vocation, is to say that people derive from both the public power which the laws. Therefore, the rulers can not be other than executive officers and must be tailored to specific purposes by the general will. The role of the representatives should be minimized as their representative mandate loses all legitimacy when achieve the purposes or projects which do not correspond to the general will.
That's the theory. ... Exactly the opposite of what happens today. In liberal democracies the primacy is given to the representativeness or more precisely the "REPRESENTATION-incarnation". In fact, the representative is far from being just a "salesman" in charge of expressing the will of the voters, he himself embodies this desire for the mere fact of being elected. This means that he is in his election on the grounds that no longer allows him to act according to the will of those who elected him, but rather according to their wishes, in other words, that he feels empowered by voting to do what he believes right thing to do.
In the representative system, since the voter with the voting delegate its political will to him who is the center of gravity of power lies inevitably in the representatives and political parties that will group together, and no longer the people. The political class will soon form an oligarchy of professionals and technicians who are defending their own interests, all in a general climate of confusion and irresponsibility. Add to this, then, that today those who have a decision-making power is held by most of the time thanks to a nomination or a co-option rather than pursuant to an election.
E 'clear, however, that there can never be entirely escape the idea of \u200b\u200brepresentation as the majority ruling is to face in modern society, with insurmountable difficulties.
representation, however, does not exhaust the democratic principle. It may, to a large extent, be corrected by the implementation participatory democracy, this new orientation is now even more essential because of the general development of society. The crisis of institutional structures, the growing disaffection of the electorate for large parties of a conventional type, the renewal of community life, the emergence of political or social movements (ecological, regional, identity, etc.) whose common characteristic is to defend existential values \u200b\u200brather than negotiable interests, suggesting the possibility of re-creating an active citizenship at the grassroots level.
But the political horizon undergoes further treatment. While the middle classes are often confused and feel threatened. The classes are increasingly disillusioned by the practices of a left that, after almost all his renegade political principles, tends to be more and more with the interests of social strata represented by the middle class. In other words, the middle classes no longer feel represented by the extreme right, while working class people feel abandoned and betrayed by the extreme left.
These and other factors necessitate an in-depth overhaul of the democratic practices that can occur only in the direction of a true participatory democracy.
It is not the level of large collective institutions (parties, unions, etc.), now all more revenue or not in crisis and that therefore no longer have their traditional role of social integration and mediation, it is possible to recreate such an active citizenship. The control of power can not only be the prerogative of political parties. PARTICIPATORY democracy today can only be a democracy "basic".
This grass-roots democracy does not aim to generalize the discussion at all levels, but rather to determine, with the assistance of many people, new procedures for decision.
This is to allow individuals to engage as citizens and as members of the "public sphere", as far as possible by encouraging the flourishing and the multiplication of new public spaces of initiative and responsibility.
The referendum procedure (the initiative) is therefore not only one of many forms of direct democracy. PARTICIPATORY
But democracy is not only a political significance, it also has a social significance. Fostering relations of reciprocity, allowing the recreation of a social bond can help rebuild weakened today organic solidarity, to mend the social fabric disintegrated by individualism and the competitive system and the public.
In his capacity as a producer of basic social, participatory democracy, then proceed with the rebirth of community assets, the reconstruction of solidarity neighborhood to neighborhood, country.
"Participate" means taking part of a whole or of a whole and assume the active role that derives from this membership.
For all this it is necessary to highlight the importance that the approval of the Regulations for the exercise of the popular initiative took place in the City Council to Rottingdean, a result of our petition, a few days ago.
Despite almost twenty years of delay, even in our City a first micro-step "towards participatory democracy.
Stefano Romanini
President Citizens' Committee "in Rottingdean Movement
One of the consequences that would arise is that one is led to conclude that democracy and "representation" are in a sense synonymous. Unfortunately, recent history shows that this is not true
Democracy is the form of government that responds to the principle of identity between rulers and ruled, that the popular will and the law.
This correspondence refers to the fundamental equality of citizens, namely the fact that they are all also members of one political unit. Argue that the people are sovereign, not by nature and by vocation, is to say that people derive from both the public power which the laws. Therefore, the rulers can not be other than executive officers and must be tailored to specific purposes by the general will. The role of the representatives should be minimized as their representative mandate loses all legitimacy when achieve the purposes or projects which do not correspond to the general will.
That's the theory. ... Exactly the opposite of what happens today. In liberal democracies the primacy is given to the representativeness or more precisely the "REPRESENTATION-incarnation". In fact, the representative is far from being just a "salesman" in charge of expressing the will of the voters, he himself embodies this desire for the mere fact of being elected. This means that he is in his election on the grounds that no longer allows him to act according to the will of those who elected him, but rather according to their wishes, in other words, that he feels empowered by voting to do what he believes right thing to do.
In the representative system, since the voter with the voting delegate its political will to him who is the center of gravity of power lies inevitably in the representatives and political parties that will group together, and no longer the people. The political class will soon form an oligarchy of professionals and technicians who are defending their own interests, all in a general climate of confusion and irresponsibility. Add to this, then, that today those who have a decision-making power is held by most of the time thanks to a nomination or a co-option rather than pursuant to an election.
E 'clear, however, that there can never be entirely escape the idea of \u200b\u200brepresentation as the majority ruling is to face in modern society, with insurmountable difficulties.
representation, however, does not exhaust the democratic principle. It may, to a large extent, be corrected by the implementation participatory democracy, this new orientation is now even more essential because of the general development of society. The crisis of institutional structures, the growing disaffection of the electorate for large parties of a conventional type, the renewal of community life, the emergence of political or social movements (ecological, regional, identity, etc.) whose common characteristic is to defend existential values \u200b\u200brather than negotiable interests, suggesting the possibility of re-creating an active citizenship at the grassroots level.
But the political horizon undergoes further treatment. While the middle classes are often confused and feel threatened. The classes are increasingly disillusioned by the practices of a left that, after almost all his renegade political principles, tends to be more and more with the interests of social strata represented by the middle class. In other words, the middle classes no longer feel represented by the extreme right, while working class people feel abandoned and betrayed by the extreme left.
These and other factors necessitate an in-depth overhaul of the democratic practices that can occur only in the direction of a true participatory democracy.
It is not the level of large collective institutions (parties, unions, etc.), now all more revenue or not in crisis and that therefore no longer have their traditional role of social integration and mediation, it is possible to recreate such an active citizenship. The control of power can not only be the prerogative of political parties. PARTICIPATORY democracy today can only be a democracy "basic".
This grass-roots democracy does not aim to generalize the discussion at all levels, but rather to determine, with the assistance of many people, new procedures for decision.
This is to allow individuals to engage as citizens and as members of the "public sphere", as far as possible by encouraging the flourishing and the multiplication of new public spaces of initiative and responsibility.
The referendum procedure (the initiative) is therefore not only one of many forms of direct democracy. PARTICIPATORY
But democracy is not only a political significance, it also has a social significance. Fostering relations of reciprocity, allowing the recreation of a social bond can help rebuild weakened today organic solidarity, to mend the social fabric disintegrated by individualism and the competitive system and the public.
In his capacity as a producer of basic social, participatory democracy, then proceed with the rebirth of community assets, the reconstruction of solidarity neighborhood to neighborhood, country.
"Participate" means taking part of a whole or of a whole and assume the active role that derives from this membership.
For all this it is necessary to highlight the importance that the approval of the Regulations for the exercise of the popular initiative took place in the City Council to Rottingdean, a result of our petition, a few days ago.
Despite almost twenty years of delay, even in our City a first micro-step "towards participatory democracy.
Stefano Romanini
President Citizens' Committee "in Rottingdean Movement
0 comments:
Post a Comment