Chapter : WHAT IS DEMOCRACY?

WHY DEMOCRACY?
SHORT ANSWER QUESTIONS.

Q1. How would you define Democratic decision ?

Ans. (1) A democratic decision involves consultation with and consent of all those who are
affected by that decision .
(2) Those who are not powerful have the same say in taking the decisions as those who are
powerful.

Q2. What is an ideal democracy?

Ans. An ideal democracy is that when the following standards will be fulfilled :
(1) When no one goes hungry to bed.
(2) Every citizen must be able to play an equal role in decision making and have an equal
right to vote .
(3) Every citizen needs to have equal information , basic education , equal resources and a
lot of commitment .

Q3. How the ideals of a democratic decision making could be realised ?

Ans. Every democracy has to try to realise the ideals of a democratic decision making as
follows:
(1) This cannot be achieved once and for all . This requires a constant effort to save and
strengthen democratic forms of decision making .
(2) This is the strength and the weakness of democracy , the fate of the country depends
not just on what the rulers do, but mainly on what we, as citizens ,do.

Q4. What are the conditions that apply to the way a government is run after elections ?
Ans. There are some conditions that apply to the way a government is run after the elections -
(1) A democratic government cannot do whatever it likes , simply because it has won an
election .
(2) It has to respect some basic rules.
(3) In particular it has to respect some guarantees to the minorities .
(4) Every major decision has to go through a series of consultations.
(5) Every office bearer has certain rights and responsibilities assigned by the constitution
and the law.
(6) Each of these is accountable not to the people but also to other independent officials .
Q5. Why should Pakistan under General Musharaf not be called a democracy ?
Ans. There are many reasons :
(1) People may have elected their representatives to the national and provincial assemblies
but those elected representatives are not really the rulers .
(2) They cannot take the final decision, the power to take final decisions rests with the army
officials and with General Musharaf , and none of them are elected by the people .

Q6. What are the similarities among army rule , dictatorship and monarchical rule?
(1) In this form of governance , they do not require all citizens to take part in politics .
(2) In fact most non-democratic governments would like citizens not to take part in politics.

LONG ANSWER QUESTIONS

Q1. Could we say that the rulers during the reign of General Musharaf were elected by the
people of Pakistan ?
Ans.
(1) In Pakistan, General Pervez Musharaf led a military coup in October 1999.
(2) He overthrew a democratically elected government and declared himself the Chief
Executive of the country .
(3) In 2002 he held a referendum in the country that granted him a five year extension .
(4) Pakistani media , human rights organisations and democracy activists said that the
referendum was based on malpractices and fraud .
(5) So Pakistan has had elections , elected representatives, and some powers. But the final
power rests with the military offices and General Musharaf himself .

Q2. Do you think in China the elections offer people any serious choice?
(1) In China, elections are regularly held after every five years for electing the country’s
parliament called National People’s Congress.
(2) The National People’s Congress has the power to appoint the President of the country .
It has nearly 3,000 members elected from all over China.
(3) Some members are elected by the army . Before contesting elections , a candidate
needs the approval of the Chinese Communist Party .
(4) Only those who are members of the Chinese Communist Party or eight smaller parties
allied to it were allowed to contest elections held in 2002-2003.
(5) We can't say that in China the elections offer people any serious choice because the
government is always formed by the communist party.
Q3. Why do you think the elections that have taken place in Mexico until 2000 were not free and
fair ?
Ans.
(1) The country has never been under a military or dictator’s rule. But until 2000 every
election was won by a party called PRI (INSTITUTIONAL REVOLUTIONARY PARTY)
(2) Opposition parties did contest elections but never managed to win.
(3) The PRI was known to use many dirty tricks to win elections . All those who were
employed in government offices had to attend its party meetings .
(4) Teachers of government schools used to force parents to vote for the PRI.
(5) Media largely ignored the activities of opposition political parties except to criticise them .
(6) Sometimes the polling booths were shifted from one place to another in the last minute,
which made it difficult for the people to cast their votes.
(7) The PRI spent a large sum of money in the campaign for its candidates.

Q4. What were the instances of denial of equal right to vote:

Ans. There are many instances of denial of equal right to vote .
(1) In Saudi Arabia women do not have the right to vote.
(2) Estonia has made its citizenship rules in such a way that people belonging to Russian
Minority find it difficult to get the right to vote .
(3) In Fiji , the electoral system is such that the vote of an indigenous Fiji has more value
than that of an Indian-Fijian

Q5. “Popular government can be undemocratic “. Explain by giving an example of Zimbabwe.

Ans.
1. Zimbabwe attained independence from White minority rule in 1980. Since then the
country has been ruled by ZANU-PF , the party that led the freedom struggle
2. Its leader , Robert Mugabe , has been ruling the country since independence .ELections
have been held regularly and always won by ZANU-PF.
3. President Mugabe is popular but also uses unfair practices in elections.
4. Over the years his government has changed the constitution several times to increase
the powers of the president and make him less accountable .
5. Opposition party workers are harassed and their meeting disrupted.
6. Public protest and demonstrations against the government are declared illegal.
7. There is a law that limits the right to criticise the president.
8. Television and radio are controlled by the government and give only the ruling party’s
version.
9. There are independent newspapers but the government harasses those journalists who
go against it .
10. The government has ignored some court judgments that went against it and has
pressurised judges.
 CONCLUSION
The example of Zimbabwe shows that popular approval of a ruler is necessary in democracy ,
but it's not sufficient. Popular governments can be undemocratic.Popular leaders can be
autocratic .

Q6. Describe the features of Democracy as a Form of Government .

Ans.
(1) In a democracy the final decision making power must rest with those elected by the
people .
(2) A democracy must be based on a free and fair election where those currently in power
have a fair chance of losing .
(3) In a democracy each adult citizen must have one vote and each vote must have one
value.
(4) A democratic government rules within limits set by the constitutional law and citizen’s
right.
(5) A democracy is a form of government in which the rulers are elected by the people .

Q7. What are the arguments for democracy ?

Ans.
(1) A democratic government is a better government because it is a more accountable form
of government .
(2) Democracy improves the quality of decision making .
(3) Democracy provides a method to deal with differences and conflicts .
(4) Democracy enhances the dignity of citizens .
(5) Democracy is better than other forms of government because it allows us to correct its
own mistakes.

Q8. What are the arguments against democracy ?

Ans . The arguments against democracy are:
(1) Leaders keep changing in a democracy . This leads to instability.
(2) Democracy is all about political competition and power play . there is no scope for
morality
(3) So Many people have to consult in a democracy that it leads to delays .
(4) Elected leaders do not know the best interests of the people; it leads to bad decisions .
(5) Democracy leads to corruption for it is based on electoral competition.
(6) Ordinary people don't know what is good for them ; they should not decide anything .

Q9. How people are being ruled in modern democracies ? Why is it necessary to rule like this?
Ans.
(1) The most common form that democracy takes in our times is that of a representative
democracy .
(2) In countries we call democracy, all the people do not rule. A majority is allowed to take
decisions on behalf of all the people .
(3) Even the majority does not rule directly . the majority of the people rule through their
elected representatives . This becomes necessary because :
A. Modern democracies involve such a large number of people that it is physically
impossible for them to sit together and take a collective decision .
B. Even if they could , the citizens do not have the time , the desire or the skills to take part
in all the decisions .