W The legislature held a debate on "The Way out of the Constitutional Crisis". The event is attended by talker of the Sejm Szymon Hołownia, talker of the legislature of Małgorzata Kidawa-Błońska and Prime Minister Donald Tusk. During his speech, the head of the government amazed with the message of the request for "to act in terms of fighting democracy". What is simply a fighting democracy? 1 thing's for sure, Tusk's a German model.
Fighting democracy is the thought of a political strategy that takes active steps to defend against interior threats. The aim of this concept is to defend democratic values, even if it requires limiting certain rights and freedoms to counter authoritarian and extremist movements.
The concept of fighting democracy was created by German lawyer Karl Loewenstein in the 1930s, in consequence to the increasing threats of Fascism and Communism in Europe. Loewenstein noted that democracies can easy be utilized by totalitarian forces who search to gain power through democratic processes to then destruct these systems.
In order to prevent specified a scenario, he proposed protective measures, specified as a ban on political parties proclaiming anti-democratic ideas
Democracy fighting in modern debate
Today, the concept of fighting democracy arises in the context of defence against populism and violations of the regulation of law. An example is the discussion in Poland, where Donald Tusk, the leader of the opposition, pointed to the request to act in the spirit of democracy fighting against the reforms of the judiciary introduced by the United Right Government.
Tusk argued that certain legal steps may be seen as violating conventional regulation of law, but are essential to defend the democratic strategy against further weakening.
Defence mechanisms in a fighting democracy
A variety of protection measures for the strategy can be put in place as part of a fighting democracy, specified as:
- Prohibition of political parties promoting extremism.
- Restrictions on freedom of expression for groups seeking to destruct democracy.
- Monitoring mechanisms for media and electoral campaigns to prevent the promotion of anti-democratic ideas.
Such actions can be controversial due to the fact that they interfere with fundamental civilian liberties, specified as freedom of speech or association. However, supporters of this concept argue that these are essential preventive measures erstwhile democracy is threatened from the outside or from the inside.
Criticism and risks
However, the concept of fighting democracy is not risk-free. Critics inform that excessive usage of defence measures can lead to abuse of power and gradual transition to the authoritarian system. Democratic governments can begin to suppress legal opposition under the pretext of fighting a threat, which in the long word weakens democracy itself.
Read more: Do Tusk and Bodnar repeat methods from the times of PRL?
The Future of Fighting Democracy
In the 21st century, the concept of fighting democracy becomes peculiarly crucial in the context of a increasing wave of populism and political movements questioning liberal democratic norms. Democratic states, specified as Germany and France, implement different forms militant democracyto counter the emergence of utmost ideologies.
Nevertheless, it is crucial to keep a balance between the protection of the strategy and respect for fundamental civilian rights, so as not to fall into a paradox in which fighting democracy becomes a tool of oppression.
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