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| '''Liberal democracy''' is a form of ] where majority rule is restricted by |
'''Liberal democracy''' is a form of ] where majority opinion is rarely expressed, and where majority rule is restricted by constitution and qualified by respect for constitutional rights that are about to protect several minorities. (such as ] and ], ], the right to private property and privacy, as well as equality before the law and ] under the ], and many more) | ||
| Such constitutional rights (also named liberal rights) are guaranteed through various controled institutions and various statutory laws in order to protect the rights of individuals and minorities from the ']'. | Such constitutional rights (also named liberal rights) are guaranteed through various controled institutions and various statutory laws in order to protect the rights of individuals and minorities from the ']'. | ||
Revision as of 14:09, 2 August 2004
Liberal democracy is a form of representative democracy where majority opinion is rarely expressed, and where majority rule is restricted by constitution and qualified by respect for constitutional rights that are about to protect several minorities. (such as freedom of speech and assembly, freedom of religion, the right to private property and privacy, as well as equality before the law and due process under the rule of law, and many more)
Such constitutional rights (also named liberal rights) are guaranteed through various controled institutions and various statutory laws in order to protect the rights of individuals and minorities from the 'Majoritarianism'.
Some would argue that liberal democracy isn't democratic or liberal at all. They would argue that "liberal democracy" does not respect the majority rule (except when citizents are asked to vote for their representatives) and that it is based on a restrictive constitution, voted by dead old people. They would argue that, by prohibiting citizents to cast votes for all subjects (and especially for serious subjects like going to war, like tricky constitutional amendents e.t.c), this turns "liberal democracy" the antechamber of oligarchy and even of dictatorship or fascism. (as history proved it also)
Others would say that only a liberal democracy can guarantee the individual liberties of its citizens and prevent the development into a dictatorship.
Generally contemporary liberal democracies are representative democracies with no plebiscite. The elected representatives, by using constitutional tricks, they have managed to eliminate plebiscites and make them impossible to happen.
But a few liberal democracies have additional systems of referenda to give the electorale a small possibility to overrule decisions of the elected legislature or even to take decisions by plebiscite without giving the leigslature a say in that decision. Switzerland is one of the few liberal democracies with a representative system completed with referend and plebiscites. Adding referenda to a political system could help preventing the evolution of a liberal democracy in an olicharchy.
Australia, Canada, the member states of the European Union, Iceland, New Zealand, Norway and the United States are all examples of liberal democracy (though of course it is sometimes argued that none is perfect with respect to the above rights).
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