Democracy 101

 

Reading an entry by Wild Knight on Gardjola yesterday, I was somewhat surprised to read the statement of the Dutch Minister of Justice, Piet Hein Donner, that the state should not do anything to prohibit the imposition of laws that go against the fundamental principles of freedom and human rights. According to Minister Donner, should two thirds of the Dutch population one day want to impose a system that treats women and non-believers as second class citizens, imposes severe restrictions on freedom of thought and conscience and establishes the most brutal and inhuman punishments then so be it. "It would be a disgrace to say: 'That is not allowed!'."

Fortunately, Donner's rather odd understanding of what democracy is all about is not the mainstream view in Europe, at least at this time. However, his argument is dangerous enough to be worth refuting. Democracy is not about the imposition of the will of the majority on everyone else. Nor is it simply about passing laws by majority vote. The system is worth anything only if it can also guarantee the rights of minorities and of individuals. If it does not do so then it is not 'rule by the people for the people' but merely a dictatorship of the majority. There are clear situations where we must say 'That is not allowed!' and these include any attempt to impose any totalitarian system, whether it is purely political or, as is the case nowadays, politico-religious.

For those who have not yet had the opportunity to read it, I would recommend Karl Popper's The Open Society and its Enemies and his other works on political philosophy. When they finish with it, I would recommend that they lend their copies to their local MPs, just to make sure that they are at least aware of the basic principles of democracy and freedom.