What is democracy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

What is democracy - Essay Example A popular definition of democracy is government of the people, by the people, for the people. Elections are held periodically (usually every 4 or 5 years) that determine ministers who would take part in state’s operations. Every adult (usually above 18 years) has the right to vote and decide on the ministers who would actively represent their country Even after election, there are checks and balances so that those who hold offices are kept on their toes. If people are not satisfied with the performance of a particular minister or party, they can show their dissent through petitions, marches, blogs, or other peaceful means. There are rooms for diverse opinions and multiple parties exist to represent different ideologies. Some countries under British model of democracy can have any number of parties, like in the parliamentary form of democracy. The number of parties is restricted to three or four in some democracies like US and UK because of administrative reasons, ensuring that democratic tenets are not compromised in the process. It is only natural that under democratic system, which promotes diverse views and opinions, there are multiple parties competing with each other. The head of state is either designated as ‘president’ or ‘prime minister.’ As democracy takes into account majority view while taking collective decisions, the basic concept right from formation of ruling council (parliament) to any minute issue regarding its operation remains the same. A country is divided into a number of regions or provinces. A candidate is selected as winner for a particular region if he or she has secured the maximum number of votes for that region. A candidate either represents a party or can stand independent. If a candidate stands independent, depending upon the constitution of that country, he or she may or may not be allowed to support a political party later on during the elected tenure. Parliament consists of group of ministers who have all won maximum number of votes from their respective regions. Ministers represent different parties, if not independent. The party that has sufficient amount of majority will be the ruling party from which key ministerial post of president or prime minister is determined. The ruling party’s members together determine who their president or prime minister would be. President or prime minister, as the case may be, allocates responsibilities to other ministers in the party, such as defense minister, finance minister, etc. This is the main concept behind any democratic form of government, which is tailored in context of a particular country. When democracy is in pure form, one can expect that there will be no distinction made on account of religion, caste, language, or culture. In democracy, there is a right for everyone to live with whatever small or big aspirations they have. Democracy gives an opportunity to all to progress, without making distinction on personal issues like sexual orientation, believe or disbelieve in reincarnation, etc. The terms democracy and civil society come side by side. While defining civil society, Jane Morse states that civil society comprises â€Å"individuals like you and me.† Interesting to note is the statement, ‘democracy depends on civil society’ by Morse. What Morse perhaps wants to highlight through this watchword is overwhelming importance of citizens. Democratic government is there to serve its citizens. Democratically elected government is not an end by itself, but means to an end of serving its citizens. According to America.gov, â€Å"Governments alone cannot build strong democracies, thriving economies, or stable societies; it is the people themselves — especially the civil society organizations — that bring people together.† While democratic government is given a mandate by citizens to run state in the best interest of citizens, civil society absorbs citizens in a m ore direct way. If there is threat on civil society, then it reflects that the problem is perhaps with the true implementation of