Liberal Democracy

The term is essentially the combination between liberalism and democracy. At the core of liberalism is individual freedom and protection of that freedom. Democracy alone simply means majority rule, which in practice can mean tyranny by a majority. As such, a majority can decide to harm minorities or passes a law that puts ethic minorities at disadvantage. In a liberal democracy, there are safeguards to protect minorities through a constitutional procedure and due democratic process. This means that when it comes to passing a bill, special provisions that exist for minorities must be considered. The majority cannot pass a law that benefit them but that will infringe on the rights of minorities. If they do, the latter can, for instance, appeal to the constitutional court. In a liberal democracy, the rights and interests of minorities--whoever they happen to be at any particular time--are respected and protected. Such a society observes the rule of law, which limits the power of the state and ensures judicial independence. It employs a system of constitutional checks and balances to enable public scrutiny of government actions and to ensure that a government does not have absolute power to do whatever it pleases. A liberal democracy prizes pluralism and tolerance. It sees dissent and disagreement as being normal and even as something positive. A majority might be right or wrong. If it is wrong, it is the process of open discussion and debate between people of different convictions and opinions that can put things right. Without discussion, there is no way to find out what people want and what better solutions there might be. A liberal democracy can take the form of a constitutional republic or a constitutional monarchy.

The Friedrich Naumann Foundation promotes liberal democracy, respect for human rights, rule of law and economic freedom. Please, feel free to visit  http://www.fnfasia.org    for more study.