P. V. V. SATYANARAYANA Lecturer in Political Science P.R. Govt. College (A) Kakinada

TYPES OF DEMOCRACY

 Democracy in the contemporary world is considered to be a popular form of Government in which people enjoy rights and freedoms: social, economic and political.  Democracy indicates an involvement of the people in the functioning of their government.  A wide range of democratic practices exist in order to further engage citizens in making political and institutional decisions.  The level to which this engagement occurs is mandated either by the constitution or by individual governments through legislation and through the choice and design of the electoral system.

 While some countries offer more provisions for direct citizen participation within the constitutional framework, others have firm restrictions.

 Therefore Democracy is categorised into two broad forms on the basis of the citizen’s participation: Direct and Indirect. Now let us study the meaning, features, merits and de-merits of direct democracy. Meaning of Direct Democracy  In simple terms, direct democracy is where political power is exercised by the citizens without representatives acting of their behalf.  In a direct democracy, major decisions on public policy are made directly by the mass of adult citizens.  Most of the citizens personally participate in the decision making process. In other words, the whole body of adult citizens govern the political society.  Direct democracy is also termed as "pure democracy". It can be defined as  A system in which people as a political community, come together in a forum to make policy decisions themselves, with no intervening institution or officials.  A political system in which the citizens vote directly in matters of public concern and every citizen participates in the decision-making. Evolution  The first ever known direct democracy is said to be the Athenian democracy in the 5th century BC.  This democratic system worked through three main bodies: assembly, council and courts.  All citizens could vote but only a free adult male born in Athens of two Athenian parents was considered a citizen. As women, children, and slaves were not citizens, they could not vote.  In the modern times Switzerland after becoming a federal state in 1848 instruments of direct democracy were introduced at the national level.  Today, a variety of direct democracy mechanisms are provided for at both federal and cantonal level along with an elected Parliament.  The Swiss voters are given the chance to cast their votes in federal ballots on an average of four times a year. Parthenon, symbol of Greek Democracy FEATURES OF DIRECT DEMOCRACY

 Direct democracy enables the citizens to have a direct say in the governance of the country. This is done through various mechanisms like plebiscite, recall, etc.  Direct democracy is a constantly evolving and is flexible system of governance.  In a direct democracy there is accountability and an effective local government as citizens work in partnership with elected representatives to ensure good governance.  Direct democracy has the ability to limit the influence of the pressure groups, control spending. All legislative decisions are taken after proper arbitration. INSTRUMENTS OF DIRECT DEMOCRACY

In a direct democracy, citizens have the right to participate and be heard in political decision making. This is done through certain instruments or components of direct democracy.

Referendum The referendum is a tool by which the citizens of a nation declare its choice about a decision. It is a direct vote in which an entire electorate is asked to either accept or reject a particular proposal. This may be adoption of a new law; change in the existing policy or even a change in the constitution of the country. It is of two kinds, i.e., mandatory and optional.

Initiative The initiative is defined as the people's power to approve or reject legislation initiated or proposed by someone other than the legislature. Initiative is of two kinds, i.e., Direct and Indirect.

Recall Recall is the name given to an instrument by which a specified number of citizens can demand a vote of the electorate, on whether an elected holder of public office should be removed from that office before the end of his/her term. MERITS OF DIRECT DEMOCRACY DE-MERITS OF DIRECT DEMOCRACY