essay homework

Direct democracy is back in fashion, seen as a way of restoring trust in politics. But are the referendums a bad idea?

Direct democracy is the oldest form of this political regime. It was born in 5^th century before Christ.

It is direct, which means that people get in one place and decide. It is unmediated – all the people are the government and a separate political class does not exist and continuos, which means that people regularly engage in political life. Today the most common form of direct democracy is the referendum, but is this form of political participation a good or bad idea?

Referendums might have a positive impact on the society, when they are a result of a longly built consensus for a particular case. An example can be the 1997 devolution referendum for Scotland, Wales and Ireland, which gave these countries some political autonomy. Scotland established a National Parliament and Wales and Ireland established their National Assemblies. This result united peoples and strengthened their national identity.

Referendums may also improve the political education and awareness in the society. When people, by the referendum, are given some more power, there is a chance that they will learn about the voted issue. For example, in 2003 there was a EU accession referendum in Poland. At first the society had been sceptical, but a massive information campaign were organised and people realised that the accession was beneficial for Poland and eventually agreed. It clearly shows that referendum is an opportunity for the people to acquire a lot of useful knowledge.

On the other hand, the idea of referendum lowers the responsibility of the governments. Letting people to decide might be used by the politicians as a way to avoid consequences. For example, a referendum in the controversial cases such as abortion or euthanasia it is comfortable for the politicians not to expose themselves on conservative people criticism by voting pro or liberal people criticism, by voting contra.

To many referendums in important issues may also destabilise the political scene. In the California for example, constant recalls and referendums made many people redundant, many hospitals bankrupt and civil liberties threatened. It shows that in some cases ,where the expert knowledge is required, masses simply are not competent enough to make right choices.

The institution of referendum certainly has some advantages. It may unite the people and improve their knowledge. On the other hand, giving people too much power leads to destabilization of the system. Therefore, I conclude that the referendum should be used only in some general cases, such as EU accession or devolution. In other cases, people should leave the decision to the experts.