"Democracy creates stability in a society"

Democracy is defined as people power—by the people, for the people, and through the people, and comprises two fundamental political beliefs—liberalism and equality. These two guiding principles emphasize individual rights, the freedom of thought and speech, and consider all individuals of equal value.

Democracy is but a political theory, and theories do not bring about stability; it is the application of these theories that shape societies. I hope to explain how the key features of democracy affect societal stability, and to relate them to its implementation in different circumstances.

Societal stability is said to be multi-faceted. It is generally characterized into three broad spectrums—social stability, economic stability, and political stability. This includes peace and tolerance, a dynamic and vibrant economy, and a strong government which is accountable for its actions.

Democracy is also known as “the rule of the majority”. Democratic governments take into account the view of the majority to decide on issues. Yet, they also regard minority rights, and do not tolerate discrimination. Democracy also encourages active citizen participation and the representation of multiple viewpoints. This promotes a peaceful process of negotiation and mediation, locally, regionally, and internationally—testament to it bringing about social stability.

The democratic electoral process is said to be free, fair and regular. Elections are held every few years, and most adult citizens are allowed to stand for office. The multi-party representative system provides voters with a choice of candidates, parties, and policies to vote for. This keeps the government on their toes and urge for accountability and transparency of the country’s affairs. Therefore democracy can be said to have the ability to maintain political stability.

Studies have suggested that democratic freedom is tantamount to economic development. It allows for economic freedom, and unleashes the animal spirits of entrepreneurs. With free markets and private ownership of property and businesses, democracy allows for an economic explosion—which would establish a huge wave of capital, a low unemployment rate and sufficient reserves.

But democracy relies on various assumptions for it to function. It assumes that the majority of the citizens are well-educated, responsible and mature enough to know what’s best for them, their community and their society. A good example would be how Hitler instigated and convinced the people to carry out racial cleansing in Germany—and they followed him blindly.

Democracy also assumes that everyone is treated equally, and given equal opportunities, and that minority rights are not abused by the “tyranny of the majority”. For example, in Sri Lanka, the pro-Sinhalese government won due to the majority of population being Sinhalese. This government passed down many discriminatory against the Tamils, and this generated much conflict and bloodshed between the Tamils and Sinhalese. This shows that democracy does not always bring about societal stability.

I believe that there is no all-curing panacea to domestic and world problems because every country has a different history and socio-economic climate, and therefore, the stability of a society should be determined by the effectiveness of the government in handling the country’s issues, not by its choice of political theory. Yet, I feel that democracy has an important economic advantage—it allows for dynamic diversity, and this brings about stability, because the economy takes centre-stage in most societies.