DEPARTMENT OF LAW

ALIGARH MUSLIM UNIVERSITY

SESSION-2020-2021
Subject- Political Science
Topic- Differences between Democracy and Dictatorship;
Political Socialization between the Two Forms of Government

SUBMITTED BY: SABA ALAM

ENROLLMENT NO.: GM4700
FACULTY NO.: 20BALLB330

SUBMITTED TO: DR. SHAKIL AHMAD

DATE OF SUBMISSION: 22/06/2021
 SYNOPSIS

I. Introduction
II. Meaning of Democracy
III. Essential condition of Democracy
IV. Merits and demerits of Democracy
V. Meaning of Dictatorship
VI. Features of Dictatorship
VII. Difference between democracy and dictatorship
VIII. Meaning of Political Socialization and its Agents
IX. Political Socialization between the two forms of Govt.
X. Conclusion

A.
Introduction
With the advent of the 19th and 20th centuries, dictatorships and constitutional
democracies emerged as the world’s two major forms of government gradually
eliminating monarchies with significant political power, the most widespread form
of government in the pre-industrial era.

DEMOCRACY

Democracy is a system of government by all the people of a country usually,

through the representatives whom they elect, as allowing freedom of speech,
religious and political opinion.

Therefore, democracy literally means - the rule by the people. Democratic

governments are beneficial for the countries and their citizens. People are the
source of power i.e. they exercise absolute power. Free and fair election is the pre-
condition of democracy.

In the 18th century, for the establishment of democracy, the American

Declaration of Independence, 1776 and the French Revolution of 1789 are
especially important. By accepting both of these incidents as bases, efforts
went on, in Europe, for the establishment of democratic governments.

Abraham Lincoln defines democracy as- “government of the people, by the

people and for the people.” In the formal definition, democracy is
government by the people in which the supreme power is vested in the
people and exercised directly by them or by their elected agents under a free
electoral system.
USA and India are the world’s most healthy democracies.
The essential conditions for democracy are as follows:
1. Political freedom
2. Economic equality
3. Social equality
4. Educated citizenship
5. Freedom of Press
6. Well organized and active opposition
7. Deserving leaders must be elected
8. Presence of local-self government
9. Independence of judiciary
10. Rule of law

1. Political Freedom-
Political freedom refers to freedom to live in society that is based on
individual’s rights. In a democratic country, every person has the right and
freedom of thought, belief and conscience. Political freedom is closely
related with the concept of human and natural rights.

2. Economic Equality-
Economic equality in society can guarantee the success of democracy. It
involves equitable distribution of income and wealth and adequate
opportunities for livelihood. It will cross out the formation and
discrimination on the basis of class. The citizens must be enabled to utilize
means of economic development.

3. Social equality-
A democratic system has to ensure the social development is in tune with
democratic values and norms reflecting equality of social status and
opportunities for development, social security and social welfare.
4. Educated citizenship-
Citizens must avail opportunities of universal and compulsory education.
Without popular and effective political participation, no democracy can be
successful. People must be vigilant of their rights, freedoms and duties as
citizens of a democratic system. Awareness will make them educated in
their choices of people they elect to power. According to Bryce, indolence
and indifference on the part of the citizens are the two enemies of
democracy.

5. Freedom of Press-
It is only through press that the people can exercise their right to freedom of
speech as well as right to discuss, criticize or support the policies of the
government in a democratic society.

6. Well organized and active opposition-

In a democratic system, political parties play a major role. They contest
elections, wield power and check the policies of the government at power.

7. Deserving leaders must be elected-

The people are sovereign (independent) but they have to be led by their
leaders. In a democracy, the leaders are in reality the policy-makers and the
decision takers. Thus, people need to be informed about their choices to
choose the right leader who are able, mature and dedicated.

8. Presence of local-self government-

For a successful working of democratic system, one of the most essential
conditions is establishing an elaborate system of self-government institutions
like, village panchayats, municipalities, district boards, etc.
9. Independence of judiciary-
Independence of judiciary means fair and neutral judicial system of a
democratic country, which can take its decision without any interference by
other organs of the government. The court plays an important role in
protecting the fundamental rights of the citizens.

10. Rule of law-

The rule of law, defended by an independent judiciary plays a crucial role by
ensuring that civil and political rights are safe and dignity and equality of
citizens are not at risk.

The cornerstone of democracy includes freedom of speech and assembly,

equality, right to life, minority rights and voting. In order to ensure
equality, universal adult franchise was the greatest experiment in India’s
democratic history. It means all the adult citizens have a right to vote
without any discrimination on the basis of class, religion, caste or gender.
According to James Bryce, democracy really means nothing more or less
than the rule of the whole people, expressing their sovereign will by their
votes.
According to Bentham dictum,” Everybody to count for one, nobody for
more than one.” Democracy also upholds liberty of individual.
 MERITS OF DEMOCRACY
1) Democracy gives voice to the citizens of a country in the legislation
and builds a sense of responsibility in them.
2) It brings peace, order and prosperity and at the same time enhances
the dignity of citizens.
3) It inculcate better and high standard of character to the citizen and
government both.
4) The poor and least educated has the same status as the rich and
educated.
5) If the citizens are not happy with their representatives then in next
elections they may not re-elect them.

DEMERITS OF DEMOCRACY
1) Leaders keep changing in a democracy that leads to instability.
2) It is slow moving system as it needs the approval of many
departments and ministers.
3) Democracy is all about power play and political competition
there is no scope for morality.
4) It leads to corruption as it is based on electoral competition.
 DICTATORSHIP

During the republican phase of ancient Rome, a Roman dictator was the special
magistrate who held well defined power, normally for six months. They were
allocated absolute powers during times of emergency.

A dictator is a political leader who possesses absolute power. A dictatorship is a

state ruled by one dictator or a small clique. Benito Mussolini was a dictator who
marked the beginning of Fascism and Adolf Hitler whose policies resulted in the
death of 50 million in Europe. Since World War-2, a broader range of dictatorship
arose because of the ideological conflict between autocracy and democracy.

Military dictatorships are regimes in which high-level elites and officers hold
powers, determine and exercise full control.

Germany, Italy and Egypt have seen some of the world’s longest dictatorial
regimes.

Features of Dictatorship
1) A common aspect is suppression of elections and freedom of thought and
expression of the masses in order to maintain complete supremacy.
2) They employ political propaganda to repress the political opponents and
monopolize the rule of power.
3) They do not abide by the rule of law procedure and citizens are subordinate
to the ruler.
4) In dictatorship, state is worshiped and ruler is glorified.
5) There is a proclamation of state of emergency and large number of innocent
people killed as consequence.
6) The individual does not enjoy liberty and basic human rights.
 Democracy
The head of the country in a democratic
government is the one who gets the most
support in the form of votes in a general
election. They also have the additional
responsibility of ensuring the welfare of
the electorate.
Political control in a country is provided
through free and fair elections, with two
or more political parties being involved.
The media in a democratic form of
government is known as the fourth pillar
of democracy as they  watch the
government’s every move and criticize it
should any misstep is taken.
In a democracy, the fundamental
rights of the citizen are protected by the
constitution. Citizens have the right to
join political parties and other
organizations
There are free and fair elections.
Elections offer a choice and fair
opportunity to the people to cast their
votes.
Dictatorship
One individual is the sole authority of
the country with no institution to
keep its power in check.
In a dictatorship no elections take
place or they are heavily regulated by
restricting the number of political
parties and limiting gatherings and
associations.
The media is the mouthpiece of a
dictatorial government. Regardless of
what a dictator does, the media will
only show what needs to be shown to
the masses so that a cult of
personality is always maintained.
In a dictatorship, little importance is
given to fundamental rights, with the
populace being generally subjected to
constant policing, monitoring and
brutality.
The elections are not held and
decisions are made without any
involvement of citizens.
 POLITICAL SOCIALIZATION

Political socialization is the process by which individuals crystallize political

identities, values and behavior and acquire political cognition and attitude that
remain persistent throughout the life. It refers to a learning process by which
norms and behaviors acceptable to well running political system are transmitted
from one generation to another. Political scientists James Coleman observed that,
“we do not inherit our political behavior, attributes, values and knowledge
through our genes. Instead, we come to understand our role and to fit in to our
political culture through the political learning process.”

AGENTS OF POLITICAL SOCIALIZATION

FAMILY: Families perpetuate values that support political authorities and can
heavily contribute to initial political ideology views and identification.

MEDIA: mass media is an influence on political values and beliefs. Various media
outlets provide different partisan policy stances that are associated with political
participation.

THE STATE: The state has the ability to misinform, or inform the press and thus,
the public a strategy which may be referred to as propaganda in order to serve a
political agenda.
 Political socialization in democracy is better than
that of dictatorship.

 In democracy, the government is considered for the welfare of the people.

On the other hand, in dictatorship, the nature of government if of military
and least concerned with the welfare of the people. Their aim is to maintain
law, order and discipline.

 In democracy, citizens enjoy various fundamental rights. Here, government

works in order to hinder the hindrance.
In dictatorship, there is suspension of rights and more emphasis is given on
duties.

 In democracy, there is freedom of media.

In dictatorship, whatever is depicted in media, it is scrutinized and censored
by the government. No one dared to voice against the ruler.

 In democracy, there is cut throat competition.

In dictatorship, people do not get concerned with the government and if
anyone disobeys its policies, there is severe punishment.
 CONCLUSION

Democracy and Dictatorship are the two forms of government having their own
pros and cons. Democracy imply that it is made according to the people’s choice
whereas a dictatorial regime favors the interest of the ruler himself. There is no
guarantee that justice would be served in any form of government. It is difficult to
decide which form is superior to the other. The success of any form of government
is based on the selection of rulers or political leaders selected by free electoral
system. Above all, democracy is the best form of government that most of the
nation of the world practice.