Theoretical considerations
Key ideas:
- The meaning of democracy;
- The importance of 'separation of powers';
- Liberal and conservative governments.
Democracy
In this section we will take a brief look at the definitions of democracy and liberalism and the ideological platforms of Australia's major political parties. It is important to have some understanding of these broader political ideologies and how they have influenced politics both in the Northern Territory and Australia in general.
What is democracy?
Democracy is a political system that has been adopted by many modern nations
and, some argue, has underpinned Australian politics since the Eureka
Stockade. It is described as government by the people or their elected
representatives. Thus, it is a political system in which supreme power lies
in a body of citizens who can elect people to represent them and the numerical
majority of an organised group can make decisions binding the whole group.
The term democracy is derived from the Greek words 'demos' — the people and 'kratia' — rule. It originated more than 4000 years ago in Athens. Here a group of philosophers and politicians devised a system of government which they felt would give every citizen a chance to participate in the affairs of the state. Pericles was one of the major champions of Democracy, who promoted the idea of extending the vote to the lower classes. The Enlightenment period of the 18th and 19th centuries sought to instil humanist principles in government across Europe and inspired a revival of this political system in modern times.
Representative democracy
The essence of a modern democratic society is representative democracy with a system of checks and balances on those representatives exercising power. Modern democratic systems seek to eliminate or reduce opportunities for the abuse of power. This is carried out by the development of institutional structures that are put in place to circumvent abuses and prevent them from occurring. Australia's system of government is based on representative democracy (sometimes called parliamentary democracy) which means that the Australian people elect representatives to make decisions for them and govern on their behalf, making or changing laws as required. Normally each representative is elected by, and responsible to, a particular subset of the total electorate known as his or her constituency.
Australia's Federal parliament is comprised of two parts, known as chambers; the House of Representatives (or lower house) and the Senate (or upper house). The party (or parties in a Coalition) which has a majority of members elected to the lower house, becomes the government and the leader of that party becomes the Prime Minister. The largest non-government party then becomes what is known as the Opposition whose members act as watchdogs on the activities of the government.
As Parliament can't look after all the details of the day-to-day running of the country, the executive government (Cabinet) coordinates this by developing policy and instituting the Public Service to implement policy, provide services, enforce laws and deal with the day to day issues. Cabinet is made up of the Prime Minister and Ministers chosen from elected members of the ruling party (or parties) in the parliament led in theory by the Head of State (or Governor General whose role really is more ceremonial than executive). Government departments are set up to assist their Minister in developing government policy. Departments are staffed by a Public Service of permanent officers who are expected to be neutral and serve the executive government of the day.
Separation of powers
Australia operates under the Westminster system of the separation of powers which is one of the processes set up in order to protect the electorate from the dangers of an elected government abusing its power. This system is critical to effective government in Australia. According to the system there are three separate elements to the government:
- the Legislature or parliament makes the laws;
- the Executive puts the laws into operation;
- the Judiciary or courts interprets the laws.
The powers and functions of each of these 'arms' of government are separate and no single arm is able to exercise complete authority. Each is dependent on the other and this prevents powers from being concentrated in one area of government. Parliament makes laws, but the Judiciary interprets them, the Executive develops policy, but this must be ratified by legislation that can only be approved through the parliament and the interpretation of law by the Judiciary can often oblige or even compel the government to develop or amend legislation. The interdependence of each on the other helps keep the others from exceeding their power and ensures the rule of law and protects individual rights.
Ozpolitics and Australianpolitics.com are two sites that provide a good overview and insight into some of the details of Australian government structure. Take a look at one or even both of these sites to get a better idea of the institutions that are the foundations of Australian government.
Liberalism
Because the system of democracy is informed by the philosophical ideals
of liberalism, it is essential that we understand the tenets of liberalism
and its role in developing the government systems we have in Australia today.
Exercise
Let's stop a minute and deconstruct the word liberalism. It's easy to spot the root word 'liberal'. What does the word liberal mean to you? Jot down your own meanings and see how they compare with the official definition.
Click on the link to see how your answers matches with the definition in this web dictionary.
Can you see now what liberalism is all about? The promotion of individual liberty and equality. Lets look at this philosophical movement more closely.
Liberalism is one of the major political ideologies of the modern world and the dominant language of public discourse in most modern democracies. It is distinguished by the importance the philosophy attaches to the civil and political rights of individuals. Modern ideals of liberalism were born in the Enlightenment epoch and developed through the 1800s and beginning of the 1900s, the period during which Australia was being established as a modern political entity. Liberals demand a substantial realm of personal freedom – including freedom of conscience, speech, association, occupation, and, more recently, sexuality – which the state should not intrude upon, except to protect others from harm.
Today, particularly after the decline of communism, it is the dominant political ideology in many parts of the world. Liberalism grew out of the recognition in the sixteenth century that tolerance was the only alternative to the wars of religion and has extended this in more modern times to provide a neutral framework within which citizens can pursue their diverse understandings of a good life. Liberalism is thus seen as the only humane response to the inevitable pluralism and diversity of modern cultures. Ideally in a liberal society the tie that binds people (in absence of a religious or cultural bond) is a shared commitment to liberal principles of freedom and equality. Australian society has also been strongly influenced by the interactions and debates that have occurred between liberalism and other social and political ideologies. Socialist policies, those which seek to ensure that the government plays a strong role in the provision of services and the production of goods, often clash with the conservative and capitalist policies that generally see this as more of the role of private industry.
Discussion
Who are the people and what are the experiences that have had an impact upon the development of your political identity? Why have these people and events been so important in shaping your thoughts and ideas on politics? Post your thoughts on Discussion Board.
Liberalism vs Conservatism
Although the essential tenets of liberalism, being essential aspects of democracy, have been embraced by the major political parties in Australia, each political party in Australia has its own interpretation of how these ideals might be achieved and thus their own particular ideological platforms which inform the policies they make and their response to issues of the day.
The two major political parties in Australia, Labor and Liberal, are often characterised as being liberal and conservative respectively. The Labor Party is traditionally associated with more liberal ideologies while the Liberal Party, although still essentially liberal is ironically enough, associated with more conservative views. Conservatism is often linked to the defense of traditional values (particularly those of a religious and nationalistic nature), the valuing of traditional social norms and, in many cases, fiscal conservatism – minimization of government debt, high levels of taxation and limited government spending. More controversially, conservative governments can seek to minimize the role of government in the management of a nation and support business and corporate interests to carry out many of the roles of government.