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Politics
| Law, Politics and the State |
941122c |
| The three bodies of state authority |
941122 |
| The evolution of western politics since the 16th century |
941122e |
| Types of state and their limitations |
g980916 |
| Seven Ideological Types |
941125 |
| The Nature of Political Philosophy |
941122d |
| 500 years of genocides |
940918 (ggcyog) |
Law, Politics and the State
Based on Laski H (1931,1961) Introduction to Politics;
George Allen and Unwin
Traditionally people have justified the institutional system under which they live in
one of three ways:
Theology
|
Law is a body of divine rules given to those who live under them by a god
or gods, and worthy, accordingly, of obedience because of their divine inspiration. Men
are asked to obey them because divine anger will follow their infraction. eg the Code of
Hammurabi, the Law of Moses. |
Ancient Custom
|
At one remove from God-given Law is the idea of law as a body of ancient
customs preserved by a priestly class and demanding the obedience of men through fear of
divine displeasure if they are broken. |
Natural Law
|
Obedience to the law is recommended on the ground that its principals are
born of the ultimate nature of things, and that men's behaviour ought, accordingly, to
conform to them. eg Roman jurisprudence, the cosmological view of Thomas Acquinas and the
theories of Kant and Hegel. |
The above justifications put the roots of law outside the control of man. Such systems
were used to justify social orders in which the many lived for the benefit of the few (eg,
for Hegel, freedom was found in obeying the King of Prussia!)
Democracy
It is now more common to believe that the law cannot be binding upon people unless they
consent to make it so; otherwise, it is naked coercion and cannot be given any
ethical foundations.
Such thinking is based on the concept of the social contract whereby people
agree to make the state and to endow it with the power to issue orders. The major problems
with this line of thought are:
 | existing states evolved - they were not created by social contract. |
| how to deal with dissenting minorities? |
| how to deal with representation when the state becomes big? |
| designing peaceful mechanisms whereby consent may be revoked. |
| NB |
| What of the case where consent is 'manufactured' by education and the media ie
Gramsci's concept of 'elegant power' (hegemony)? |
|
|
| Hobbes reckoned that power should, and Locke that it should not, be unlimited and
irrevocable. Rousseau reckoned that the state should be conducted by permanent referendum |
|
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The Three Bodies of State Authority
Legislature
|
The body which lays down the rules |
Executive
|
The body which carries out the rules |
Judiciary
|
The body which sits in judgement when (a) citizen v
executive and (b) citizen v citizen |
The "rules" form the constitution which can exist in four formats:
| |
written |
unwritten |
| rigid |
USA |
|
| flexible |
|
UK |
| Rigidity is ultimately undesirable because circumstances change. |
| A written constitution is preferable because it forms a more solid basis for debate. |
| Thus a flexible, written constitution would be best so long as safeguards were
established to ensure broad, popular consent to amendations. |
| NB |
| What happens to the concept of democracy when, through control of the media, the
few are able to 'manufacture the consent' of the many? |
|
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The Evolution of Western Politics since the 16th Century
Based loosely on Thomson D (1966 Ed) Political Ideas;
Penguin
Most features of the contemporary, western, political scene can be enlightened by
reference to historical developments since the 16th century. The increasing prominence of
the concept of "individualism" is a key feature. The following four stage
typology grasps the major themes:
16-17th centuries - The Creation of Political Sovereignty
| separate secular governing authorities within distinct territorial areas |
| independence of empire from external church |
| superiority of sovereign over all other internal lordships |
Machiavelli (1459-1517); Luther (1483-1546); Hobbes (1588-1679)
17-18th centuries - The Social Contract Concept
| changed relationship between the sovereign power and the citizen |
| the rule of law and the need for the consent of the governed |
| origins of the liberal and constitutional traditions |
| 1776 The American Declaration of Independence |
| 1789 The French Revolution |
Locke (1632-1704); Montesquieu (1689-1755); Rousseau (1712-78); Paine (1737-1809)
18-19th centuries - The Origins of Nation States
| democratic & industrial revolutions lead to nationalism |
| in 1810 only 15 of today's 165 states existed |
| 1870-71 political unifications of Germany and Italy |
Burke (1729-97); Hegel (1770-1831); Mazzini (1805-72)
19-20th century - Liberal Democracy
| support for the individual against excessive governmental authority |
| reaction to the tyranny of mass opinion in urban, industrialised society |
J S Mill (1806-73); Spenser (1820-1903)
19-20th century - Revolutionary Communism
| 1848 The Communist Manifesto |
| 1918 Formation of the USSR |
| 1949 Formation of the People's Republic of China |
Marx (1818-83); Lenin (1870-1924); Mao (1893-1976)
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Types of State and their limitations
Based on Mayoux L & Johnson H (1994) Working for
Development - Study Guide; Open University T532
There is no evidence to suggest that democracy and socio-economic development are
causally linked eg throughout history and in more recent times non-Democratic states have
achieved high levels of GNP per capita.
This begs the question of the function of a state. The following table lists the
characteristics of four types of states and notes some of their limitations.
Liberal
democratic |
| Competition (through elections and multiple
parties) for political offices, at regular intervals, excluding the use of force |
Voting in national elections does not imply
empowerment of women and men locally to control the decisions and actions that
fundamentally affect their lives. Marxists have argued that the
procedural guarantees and freedoms are illusory; workers and peasants in capitalist
democracies cannot vote to not have capitalism, and capitalism serves the narrow interests
of the bourgeoisie. |
| Participation of citizens in politics through
various forms of collective action at different levels |
| Accountability of rulers to the ruled through
modes of representation and the rules of law |
| Civil and political liberties sufficient to
ensure the integrity of participation, competition and accountability |
Semi-democratic |
| Competitive elections involving more than one
political party |
One 'dominant' party usually wins and gains
government |
| Some political participation through business
associations and other interest groups |
Local participation is closely controlled and
monitored by the dominant party and state apparatus |
| There are civil and political liberties |
But they are qualified to some extent |
Non-democratic
- Military Rule |
| Where the armed forces or a
military-controlled civilian party is dominant, usually as a result of a coup d'etat.
Officers in the armed forces then place their own people in key posts at various levels
within the state apparatus. |
There is often political instability as the
regime grapples with the twin problems of political legitimacy and bureaucratic control. |
| The military initially provides the political
leadership in the regime to which the state bureaucracy is accountable. |
| Later, military leaders either sponsor a
political party or eventually, as citizens, lead one themselves |
Non-democratic
- Socialist |
| Strong leaderships attempt to mobilise the
entire society through the party and state apparatus for the purposes of nation building
and social reconstruction in accordance with socialist ideology |
Tends to have a totalitarian dimension as it
tries to encompass the whole society |
What can you say about the political persuasions
of those who constructed this table?
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Seven Ideological Types
Based on Derbyshire JD and Derbyshire I (1991) World Political
Systems; Chambers
An ideology is a body of ideas which reflects the beliefs and values of a nation and
its political system.
In the 16th century the prevalent ideology was Absolutism (the divine right of
kings) but the philosophy of the social contract and of the need for consent
led to the alternative broad ideologies of Liberal Democracy and Communism;
however, since the collapse of communism, many see an ineluctable global movement towards
a mixed-economy form of liberal democracy.
As of 1991 there were 165 nation states which, before the major changes in Eastern
Europe, could be categorised as belonging to seven ideological groups:
Ideological Type |
Nos. |
% of Pop |
Examples |
Liberal Democracy |
50 |
33% |
UK, USA, India |
Emergent Democracy |
51 |
22% |
Spain, Panama, Uganda |
Communism |
08 |
31% |
USSR, Cuba, China |
Nationalistic Socialism |
16 |
03% |
Iraq, Ethiopea, Tanzania |
Authoritarian Nationalism |
12 |
06% |
Iran, Zaire, Indonesia |
Military Authoritarianism |
14 |
04% |
Paraguay, Sudan, Burma |
Absolutism |
12 |
01% |
Kuwait, Brunei, Swaziland |
| In a Liberal Democracy there are rights to representative
government and to the enjoyment of individual freedom. An Emergent Democracy is one
approaching "liberal" status but with some lingering instabilities. |
| Pure Communist ideology (Marx/Engels) seeks to abolish private
property and class distinctions and works towards the day when the state "withers
away". In fact most communist states (Marxist/Leninist) adopted a form of Socialism
wherein the state was the "vanguard of the proletariat" and practiced a highly
centralised form of governmental control of the economy. |
| Nationalistic Socialism is often based on Marxist/Leninist
thought but is highly adapted to differing cultural and economic contexts. Most countries
in this category are poor and have a charismatic leader at the head of a single party
which promotes a somewhat mixed economy. |
| Authoritarian Nationalism is typified by the one party state
wherin the consent of the citizens to the will of the party is not deemed overly
important. Military Authoritarianism occurs where the military
rather than the party is the autocratic base. |
| Absolutism is the ideology of the Divine King. Consent and
representation are not present. There is no constitution. The sovereign power (often
hereditary) dictates. |
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The Nature of Political Philosophy
Brown A (1986) Modern Political Philosophy: theories of the
just society; Pelican
The need for political philosophy is ... linked to the Socratic
project of examining one's life.
It may be going too far to say that the unexamined life is not
worth living, but if reason and wisdom have any value then such a life will
be less than satisfactory. And to ignore the political dimension of life is to adopt a
position which is inadequate in practice.
Political inquiry may thus be understood as the completion of our
project of practical reasoning, the search for practical wisdom. (Brown (1986))
There are four areas of concern in Political Philosophy:
| Meaning: What is the meaning and function of the concepts
characteristic of practical discourse ("good", "right",
"ought", "must" etc). What do we mean or imply when we state that
something, say a society, is good or well ordered, for example? |
| Method: How do we determine what considerations are relevant, and in
what way, in evaluating competing practical options? What kind of argument may we use?
What kind of evidence may we appeal to? |
| Metaphysics: Here we inquire into the presuppositions of practical
thought and discourse, and examine their consistency or otherwise with the presuppositions
of our other ways of thinking (eg science or religion). We would hope that our procedures
in these various spheres are at least consistent. |
| Application: Deciding how to answer a question is not the same
as answering it. Method has to be applied, theory converted into practice. Here we ask,
and try to answer, the question: "What actions or organizational forms are good or
right?" |
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500 Years of Genocides
Diamond J (1991) The rise and fall of the third chimpanzee -
how our animal heritage affects the way we live; Vintage
The following table is based on data presented in Diamond's book, The Rise and Fall
of the Third Chimpanzee. The table is not of necessity complete and not totally up to
date. There is also a problem in defining genocide eg when Americna settlers killed the
last 20 Susquehanna Indians in 1763 - was that genocide or just a fairly minor mass
murder, despite the completeness of the extermination?
The key to the number of dead in each case is:
- x = less than 10,000
- xx = 10,000 or more
- xxx = 100,000 or more
- xxxx = 1,000,000 or more
- xxxxx = 10,000,000 or more
Date |
Dead
|
Victims
|
Killers
|
Place
|
1492-1600 |
xxxx
|
Caribbean Indians |
Spaniards |
West Indies |
1497-1829 |
x
|
Beothuk Indians |
French |
Newfoundland |
1498-1824 |
xxxx
|
Indians |
Spaniards |
C & S America |
1572 |
xx
|
Protestants |
Catholics |
France |
1620-1890 |
xxxx
|
Indians |
Americans |
US |
1652-1795 |
xx
|
Bushmen, Hottentots |
Boers |
S Africa |
1745-1770 |
xx
|
Aleuts |
Russians |
Aleutian Islands |
1788-1928 |
xxx
|
Aborigines |
Australians |
Australia |
1800-1876 |
x
|
Tasmanians |
Australians |
Tasmania |
1835 |
x
|
Morioris |
Maoris |
Chatham Islands |
1870s |
xx
|
Araucanian Indians |
Argentinians |
Argentina |
1904 |
xx
|
Hereros |
Germans |
S W Africa |
1915 |
xxxx
|
Armenians |
Turks |
Armenia |
1917-1920 |
xx
|
Jews |
Ukranians |
Ukraine |
1929-1939 |
xxxxx
|
political opponents |
Russians |
Russia |
1939-1945 |
xxxxx
|
Jews, Gypsies etc |
Nazis |
Europe |
1940 |
xx
|
Polish Officers |
Russians |
Katyn |
1941-1945 |
xxx
|
Serbs |
Croats |
Yugoslavia |
1943-1946 |
xxx
|
ethnic minorities |
Russians |
Russia |
1947 |
xxx
|
Moslems, Hindus |
Hindus, Moslems |
India, Pakistan |
1955-1972 |
xxx
|
S Sudanese |
N Sudanese |
Sudan |
1957-1968 |
xx
|
Indians |
Brazilians |
Brazil |
1962-1963 |
xx
|
Tutsi |
Hutu |
Rwanda |
1964 |
x
|
Arabs |
Blacks |
Zanzibar |
1965-1967 |
xxx
|
communists & Chinese |
Indonesians |
Indonesia |
1966 |
x
|
Ibos |
N Nigerians |
Nigeria |
1970s |
x
|
Ache Indians |
Paraguayans |
Paraguay |
1971 |
xxxx
|
Bengalis |
Pakistan Army |
Bangladesh |
1971-1979 |
xxx
|
Ugandans |
Idi Amin |
Uganda |
1972-1973 |
xxx
|
Hutu |
Tutsi |
Burundi |
1975-1976 |
xx
|
Timorese |
Indonesians |
East Timor |
1975-1979 |
xxxx
|
Cambodians |
Khmer Rouge |
Cambodia |
1975-1990 |
xx
|
Moslems, Christians |
Christians, Moslems |
Lebanon |
1976-1983 |
xx
|
Argentine civilians |
Argentine army |
Argentina |
1977-1979 |
xx
|
opponents |
dictator |
Equatorial Guinea |
1978-1979 |
x
|
opponents |
Emperor Bokassa |
Central African Republic |
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