What is Democracy? Why Democracy?

The simple meaning of democracy

The word democracy comes from the Greek word demokratia — demos means “people” and kratia means “rule”. So democracy literally means rule by the people. The most common and clearest definition was given by Abraham Lincoln, the former President of the USA: “Democracy is government of the people, by the people and for the people.” In a democracy, the final decision-making power rests with the people themselves, who choose their rulers through elections.

A simple definition and why we need to refine it

The basic definition is: democracy is a form of government in which the rulers are elected by the people. But this simple definition is not enough, because many governments that are not truly democratic also hold “elections.” To understand real democracy, we must look at the features that separate a genuine democracy from a fake one. We do this by examining counter-examples — countries that called themselves democratic but were not.

Feature 1: Rulers are elected by the people

In a democracy, those who govern are chosen by the people. Take the example of the former Pakistan under General Pervez Musharraf (1999). He led a military coup, removed the elected government, and later held a referendum that was full of malpractices. People had no real power to choose — so this was not a democracy. A government that is not elected by the people, or where unelected people hold the real power, fails the first test.

Feature 2: Free and fair electoral competition

It is not enough to hold elections; the elections must offer a real choice and fair chance to the people. Consider the example of China: elections are held, but only candidates approved by the Communist Party (or its allies) can stand. The voters cannot really choose freely. Compare this with Mexico before 2000, where the PRI party won every election for decades through unfair means — teachers were forced to make students vote for it, polling booths were shifted, and the ruling party spent huge money. These were elections, but not free and fair, so they did not make those countries democratic.

Feature 3: One person, one vote, one value

In a true democracy, each adult citizen must have one vote and each vote must have equal value. This is the principle of political equality. There have been many cases where this was denied: in Saudi Arabia, women did not have the right to vote for a long time; in Estonia, citizenship rules made it hard for the Russian minority to vote; in Fiji, the vote of an indigenous Fijian had more value than that of an Indian-Fijian. Where some groups are denied votes or where votes count unequally, democracy is incomplete.

Feature 4: Rule of law and respect for rights

A democratic government must rule within limits set by the Constitution and citizens’ rights. The example of Zimbabwe under Robert Mugabe shows this clearly. Although elections were held regularly and Mugabe’s party kept winning, the government used unfair pressure, changed the Constitution to increase its own powers, harassed those who criticised it, and reduced the independence of courts and the press. Holding elections is not enough — if rulers do not respect the rule of law and the rights of citizens, it is not a genuine democracy.

Putting it together: a fuller definition

Combining all four features, we get a complete definition: Democracy is a form of government in which (1) rulers are elected by the people, (2) through free and fair elections offering a genuine choice, (3) on the basis of one person one vote one value, and (4) where the elected government rules within the limits of the Constitution and respects the rights of citizens. All four conditions must be present.

Why democracy? Arguments in favour

Why should we prefer democracy over other forms of government? (a) Accountability: A democratic government is the people’s own government — it has to answer to the people and is responsive to their needs. (b) Better decisions: Democracy improves the quality of decision-making because decisions are taken after discussion and consultation, reducing the chance of rash or irresponsible decisions. (c) Peaceful conflict resolution: Democracy provides a method to deal with differences and conflicts peacefully, which is essential in diverse countries like India. (d) Dignity and freedom: Democracy enhances the dignity of citizens by treating them as equals and respecting their freedom. (e) Self-correcting: Democracy allows us to correct our own mistakes — there is room to change wrong decisions and to throw out a bad government in the next election.

Arguments against democracy (and the answer)

Critics point out the weaknesses: leaders keep changing which causes instability; it is all about political competition and power play, leaving no room for morality; so many people have to be consulted that it leads to delays; elected leaders may not know the best interest of the people, leading to bad decisions; democracy can lead to corruption as it is based on electoral competition; and ordinary people may not understand complex issues. While some of these criticisms have truth in them, they point to the challenges that democracies must overcome — they are not reasons to reject democracy itself. On balance, democracy is still better than any other form of government because it is the only one that respects people’s freedom, dignity and right to choose.

The broader meanings of democracy

Democracy is not just a form of government for a country. The principle of democracy — equality, participation and respect for everyone’s opinion — can be applied to any organisation, such as a family, a school, a club, or even a group of friends deciding what to do. In this broader sense, democracy is a way of life and a principle based on consultation, equality and tolerance.