1. Advantages Of Participatory Democracy
Strategies for strengthening participatory democracy in India
Participatory democracy is the direct form of democracy where all citizens form an essential part of the decision–making process. It can also mean the
obligation of citizens to participate in the decisions made by their representatives in the government that would impact their lives.
Since independence, the Indian Government has been functioning as a responsible democratic institution. It has successfully adapted to the rocky
situations that have come in front of it time and again. There has been a smooth transfer of power unlike in neighbouring countries of Pakistan and
Bangladesh where the transfer of power has been done via military coups. People rekindle enormous expectations with a change of power.
Undoubtedly, India has changed a lot, yet there are various...show more content...
For instance – The elected minister can't be removed till their term ends. Therefore, there exists a Principal – Agent Problem in our country where the
agent, politicians try to maximize their gains instead of acting on behalf of the principal, voters.
Now, if there exists a problem definitely there are multiple ways to solve it. Local governance is something which can go a long way in a participatory
democracy.
E–governance as well as the motto of minimum government, maximum governance will be a big step in the same direction as that will ensure cutting
up of red tape and process flow can be made smooth.
Again, surveying and find the needs of each and every person at the grass root level will be both time consuming and expensive. Therefore most
decisions are made without taking the opinions of all sections of the society, which ends up in the failure of many social security schemes.
But where there is a will, there is a way! Participate with NGO's and grass root organizations to enhance service delivery at the local
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2. Indian Democracy
India's experiment with democracy has, through the years, proven to be a success. There is an established Constitution that is fair to all the people
living in the country, the power of the leadership is vested within the people, and the people are able to voice their opinions without fear. These factors
create the foundation on which a democratic nation can stand and continue to build on in. The early leaders of India knew of this, moreover they also
knew that it was even more important for India to have these qualities because of its extreme diversity and historical past.
After independence the writing of the Constitution was made the priority, after all, a country cannot survive and thrive unless it has a set of basic laws
that...show more content...
So the different political parties also include the symbol for the party on the ballot. Even if a voter is not able to read, he/she is still aware of what
is going in the country and in his/her respective region either through town meetings, radio, TV or even gossip. If the current party hasn't been
living up to the promises it made during the previous election, then the voter will know about it. And will know that he/she shouldn't vote for that
party again because it doesn't do what it says it will. In the voting booth, an illiterate voter will know the symbol that represents the party and will
either choose it or not. Historically, in other countries literacy has been used as a criterion to keep people from voting, but India values all of its
citizens and works to make sure that all of them are able to exercise their constitutional right, as long as they are of age and a citizen of India. Some
would say that India has failed or has not lived up to the expectations of a democracy. The reasons being that not all of its citizens are treated equally,
particularly those members of the scheduled castes, scheduled tribes and other backward classes. The Constitution explicitly states that any sort of
prejudice on the basis of caste is illegal, and the judicial system will state as such if a case of prejudice is brought to court. The problem with India
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3. Gender Equality In India
India is said to be the largest democracy in the world with its population of over one billion people. When coining the term democracy, one would
think of a society characterized by formal equality of rights and privileges. The largest gap of equality in Indian society is the inequality between
Indian women and Indian men. India is ranked 87th out of 144 in the Global Gender Gap Index, illuminating the need for change in Indian culture.
India has an immense way to go for its citizens to be given a true democracy. People of other countries would view India's mistreatment of women
worse in comparison to the rest of the world. Many films and works play on this notion, appealing to the West's view on India. Many westerners view
Indian women as slaves subjected to obey any command from the patriarchy. Many Hollywoodesque films and documentaries on India portray India as
lawless, with Indian women turning into vigilantes to achieve justice. Although these films do present truth on the issues of separation between gender
in India, they don't touch on the progression India has made towards gender equality. Films such as Bandit Queen and Born Into Brothels focus on this
idea that India's gender issue is unresolvable unless foreign intervention occurs, however India is making progression through the collective efforts of
many women, like Sampat Pal, and those involved in the Gulabi Gang illuminated in Pink Sari Revolution. India is not doomed to remain 87th in the
Global Gender Gap,
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4. Transition to Democracy Essay
Since the initiation of the Third Wave of Democracy, several countries have attempted to form a democratic system of governs. We take note that not
all have succeeded. At the dawn of this era, democracy was being applied to countries with no prior history of a governing body that was place by the
people for the people hence success of such a system could not be guaranteed because of the innumerous variables that existed in each country. People
being the highlighted factor of variance, it may become easier to understand how countries such as Pakistan and Nigeria, both countries prior to the
Wave had no local governing machinery. Pakistan further endured a partition from India which resulted in not only an instant religious and...show more
content...
The Spanish citizens were not always necessarily tormented by tyrants, whose political ideologies only reflected what benefited themselves. From
1931– 1936 , the second republic was formed in Spain where they established a free democratic setting and "For the first time a major breakthrough
was made in regional autonomy, indispensable for the development of a stable modern democracy in Spain" 1. Spain currently is a parliamentary
representative democratic constitutional monarchy. Its branch of powers is separated in to two, where the executive power lies with the
government and the legislative power is delegated to the Spanish parliament. Due to this structure it is very arduous for political figures in states
and governments to abuse their power. The executive power in Spain is given to the Council of Minister's, which is led by the Spanish prime
minister. The Prime Minister is initially nominated by the king where after he is required to obtain the vote of the lower house of parliament, and
finally the king appoints the prime minister. Spain's legislature is elected directly. The Spanish legislature branch consists of the congress of
deputies and the senate whom serve for a period no more than 4 years. The senate is elected through bloc voting at a provincial level. The congress
on the other hand is similar yet different, as it is at a provincial level as well. Two members are allocated for each province; the number of
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5. DOES MEDIA AS A FOURTH ESTATE OF INDIAN DEMOCRACY REGARDED A POWERFUL AND RELIABLE TOOL?
For, Argumentative essay
Abstract
India is a democratic country with media playing an essential role in spreading information through media channels. People in the country are
completely dependent on media either through news press medium or through online news. This is the reason why media as a fourth estate in India is
a powerful medium but definitely does not provide validity of information because news is now prepared simply to enhance viewership.
Introduction
Democracy can be explained as a government where discussions are made through debate in opposition to the arbitrary dictators. In order to debate,
individuals require right to speech and knowledge. Media is the medium by which right to speech and knowledge can be provided and this medium
has been used since the past several centuries (Sen 1999). Due to its century old historical perspective, media or press has gained a special status in the
society and are known as fourth estate of the realm of democracy. India as evident is a democratic country which uses the ideological state method and
a subtle manipulation incorporated in media to make the society understand the events taking place across the globe (Sussman 2001). This
argumentative essay has been developed to present arguments stating that media in Indian democracy is a fourth estate.
Indian Media as a Fourth Estate
The following graph provides
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6. India 's Development And Growth Essay
Background: India is one of the most popular countries in the world. Geographically, India is located at the south of the Asian continent. India's
development and growth has been one of the most significant accomplishments in recent times. India neighboring countries include Pakistan, Nepal,
Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, and Bhutan. The size of the population in India is 1,266,883,598 and the Territorial size of the country is 3, 287,
263 sq. km (The World Factbook, 2016). The prime minister of India is known as Narendra Modi who is the leader of the majority party in Lok
Sabha and is currently the head of the Council of ministers in India. India's political party that is in power right now is Bharatiya Janata Party. The
Bharatiya Janata Party, was first founded by Shyama Mukherjee in 1953 with the main purpose of safeguarding the Hindu interests in India (The
World Factbook, 2016). India is becoming more of an open market economy. While most emerging nations were have struggled mightily against the
strong U.S. dollar and falling commodity prices, India continues to lead. The view for India's long–term growth is positive due to the staggering young
population and corresponding low dependency ratio (World Factbook, 2016). For example healthy savings, investment rates, and increasing integration
play a role in the global economy. India being the 4th largest economy in the world, India has bought about a landmark agricultural revolution that has
changed the country
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7. Modernization Theory Of India 's Democracy
support their emergence of democracy.
The idea that economic development will lead to democratization and democratic consolidation generally holds for most cases. More often than not,
increasing economic development increases the probability that any given society will have democratic politics. Although this theory is widely spread
it does not seem to account for all cases, such as India. Due to the large population of India, the defying factors against modernization theory are not
easily overlooked. Many scholars have been analyzing the deviant case for years, trying to find out how they defied the modernization theory. India is
considered a deviant case because it only recently began to see notable economic development, and for most of the twentieth century the country was
profound poor. Looking through the modernization theory it would lead us to believe that India was ruled by an authoritarian regime due to their poor
economics. Because they defy this belief and have been a democratic country for a prolonged time it is evident that India does not conform to the
modernization theory. India's democracy emerged amidst severe poverty, widespread illiteracy, and a largely agrarian and rural population
characterized by vast linguistic and ethnic diversity. However, India was able not only to transition to but also consolidate a robust democratic system
that has survived for over sixty years. The historical process of Indian democratization challenges the central premise of
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8. Indian Political System
According to our Constitution, India is a "sovereign secular socialist democratic republic." It has 28 states and seven Union Territories. With a
population of approximately 112 crore, India happens to be the largest democracy in the world. Indian polity is a multi–party democracy, based on the
adult franchise system of voting. That is any Indian citizen of 18 and above, who is not debarred by law, can vote in the Indian elections, at national,
state and local levels.
India is a parliamentary democracy and a federal parliamentary representative democratic republic, where the Prime Minister is the head of
government. He or she should be chosen by the MPs (Member of Parliaments) of the ruling party or the coalition that comes to power, and...show more
content...
The Vice President has to temporarily assume the role of President in the event of the death, resignation, or removal of the President, until a new
President is chosen by the electoral college. The Vice President of India may also act temporarily as President, during the absence or illness of the
President. The Vice President of India is also the Ex–officio Chairman of the Rajya Sabha. Mohammad Hamid Ansari is the present Vice President of
India.
Executive, Legislature and Judiciary
With the Union Government and State Governments wrest the executive power, while the legislative power is vested on the Union Government and
the two houses of Indian Parliament– the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha– and also the State Government and two state legislatures–Vidhan Sabha and
Vidhan Parishad. However, here it deserves a mention that only five of India's 28 states have Vidhan Parishad or Legislative Council, which is also
known as the upper house of state legislatures, along with the Vidhan Sabha. The rest of the states don't have bicameral legislatures, and only have
Vidhan Sabha or Legislative Assembly. Each state also has a Governor, who is formally appointed by the President of India. The role of the Governor
is somewhat similar to that of President in the national level; he is a titular head of the state in normal circumstances, but can exercise some powers
when directed by the Union Government.
The judiciary is the third arm of the governance, which is
10. Indian Democracy at Crossroad
Avinash Shankar MAD12015
Politics Essay: 2
Topic
Can post–colonial India 's political experience be characterized as moving towards becoming more democratic
Democracy, the form of government where supreme power is directly or indirectly vested in people, has become a global discourse that can be gauged
from the fact that many post–colonial countries have adopted it with remarkable success. The dramatic global expansion of democracy in the last few
decades in post–colonial countries speak volume of this most popular form of representative government. The ever fluctuating political dynamics
coupled with...show more content...
Indira's regime, in my opinion, was the beginning of the stage when India started to show its meaningful presence internationally. Creation of
Bangladesh was the beginning of the India's assertiveness at international level. Nuclear test conducted in 1974 was the extension of this
assertiveness. Ironically Indira's regime will also go down in history for bringing disrepute to democracy by imposing emergency in the most
undemocratic manner. Perhaps it was the first blow to the essence of democratic model that India followed since independence. The manner in which
rights and liberties, the two important tenets of democracy, were suspended during emergency reminds us how an authoritarian regime can play havoc
in people's minds. The emergency perhaps was the turning point in the Indian democratic history because it paved the way for major political and
social shift. It was perhaps the trigger that led to the end of absolute majority era and ignited the undercurrent of regional politics played largely
around caste and religious lines. Easwaran Sridharan and M.V. Rajeev Gowda however believe that the end of Congress's dominance and fragmentation
of the party system have
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11. Democracy Vs. Indian Democracy
Democracy is elected that are representatives п»їп»ї, or eligible members of a state. Republic is a group that has elected a president and the power is
held by their elected representative. The system that the framers favored was the republic because they wanted the people to have a little bit of say
but in all honestly the upper class ruled more. The federalist wanted more of a republic and the democratic republicans wished for more of a democracy.
Most Americans would not classify each other or themselves by racial profiling, religion, or their ethics of that identity but how we are religiously free.
We are more opened and advanced in just about everything compared to the Indian culture sticks to its traditional customs, ritual, etc. but it
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12. India's Social Structure Of India
Around the world, there are a multitude of cultures and wherein these cultures are numerous rich and diverse religions that help create the foundations
of societies. With nearly 15% of people on Earth practicing Hinduism it among the most popular and oldest religions in the world and is the primary
religion followed in the nation of India (Johnson 2014). Historically, India's social structure is based upon the social teachings of Hinduism. The Caste
System plays an integral role in the daily lives of Indians as it's roots do not lie within only theological roots, but is a social structure that separates it's
followers into specific socio–economic groupings. The Hindu Caste System has been declared illegal in the nation of India, the tradition of living
within one's caste continues to hold its ties in India's social–economic culture and those among the lower castes continue to live in poverty. In order to
reverse the ramifications of the caste system of those who are born amongst the lower castes, the Indian government has provided social programmes to
provide these citizens with opportunities to break away from poverty. In the United States and United Kingdom, many Hindu–immigrants continue to
practice Hinduism, exclude the caste system from their practices. However, historically the caste system has played an integral role in the social
structure and culture of the Hindu people and its illegalization has not fully removed its effects. Hinduism took hold in the Indus River
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13. Jake Vertin
TA: Andrew Dial
HIST 211
Fall 2014
In what ways did the Indian Removal act under President Jackson help establish a new interpretation of democracy and a movement away from
revolutionary era republicanism?
Andrew Jackson: The Era of the Common Man at the Expense of the "Other"
The essential question of the Jacksonian period in American history should not be focused on slavery, nor on western migration of native tribes (as
important, relevant, and controversial as these topics are). It is true that his administration did try to hide and dismiss slavery, and it is also true that in
the manner of its execution the policy of Indian removal was a horror. However, the fundamental question surrounding his presidency revolves around
how the doctrines of democracy replaced the doctrines of republicanism. Indeed, Jackson had a powerful contribution to American political history. The
Jacksonian Era actually changed the goal of the Founding Fathers to put more power into the presidency rather than in congress. His commitment to
the federal structure, states' rights, and a severely limited central government, all accounted for in his policy of Indian removal are Jackson's greatest
contributions and resulted in the development of modern democracy in the United States.
The founding fathers envisioned and brought to life a system of checks and balances to prevent an over–concentrated power in a central government.
They wanted to preserve and protect American
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14. Democracy By Robert Dahl : Democracy
Democracy in India
Bisharo Hassan
1001638310
POL 100Y1
TA: Nick
Through the study of human history it is evident authoritative and monarch governments prevailed as legitimate authorities but with careful
considerations these political systems were seen as inaccurate by many. New political systems, functions and responsibilities soon began to surface.
Democracy was among these new political systems and argues for the influence of citizens in politics and the protection of rights (Dahl, 1998, p. 44).
Democracy can be found through many political systems around the world particularly in first world countries such as Canada and the United States
of America. Fortunately the notions of democracy can also be found in some developing countries such as India. ¬¬¬Although democratic views
and notions are found throughout Indian politics and its associated practices India does not prove to be completely democratic in relation to Robert
Dahl's criteria of democracy highlighted in his book, On Democracy. Robert Dahl, a political scientist and professor, sets up 5 criteria of democracy
that includes effective participation, voting equality, enlightened understanding, inclusion and control of agenda (Dahl, 1998, p. 36–7). He argues that
a sense of true democracy is founded when all 5 criteria of democracy are fulfilled (Dahl, 1998, p. 36). Unfortunately India is unable to accommodate
the criteria of voting equality and effective participation due to its
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15. Is India really a Democracy?
Is India really a Democracy?
To: The Times of India
Subject:Reflection on an article in TOI by CM Arvind Kejriwal, about India being democracy.
Dear Sir,
I am a student in New Delhi and recently came across one of your article on the TOI blog titled as "Is India really a Democracy". Firstly, I would like to
appreciate you Mr. Arvind Kejriwal for writing such an important, inspiring and a worth reading article. Before reading this article, I had gone
through some of your activities and credentials and I could gather that you are a man of actions who does not believe only on preaching or giving
lectures to others but actually is a go getter. It is also very inspiring to know that you have always been a first timer; you qualified through IIT, IRS
and the Civil Services Exam all in your first attempt and now you have made it possible as a Chief Minister as well in the very first attempt. You
resigned from a very lucrative job which could have given you a fat bank balance apart from a few lavish bungalows and started a drive against
bribery and corruption through your Organization "Parivartan". There is therefore no doubt that today you are the role model to us 'The Younger
Generation'.
I do agree with most of the flaws that you have stated about our current Indian Political System. From my limited knowledge about the Indian Polity
and what I acquired after reading your article is that the main problems that lie
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16. The partition of India left a lasting legacy on India politics. Although the British rule was exploitive, it did much to modernize India (Roskin 336).
This all began in 1947 when the British left India and the state was divided into two separate states. A mostly Hindu India and a mostly Muslim
Pakistan. This caused for massive immigrations on both sides. It also caused a large divide between the two states causing violence and hatred
between the two. There were over half a million lives lost during the partition (Roskin 331–8). The partition in India lead to Indian independence.
According to Roskin, India won its independence when British colonial rule ended on August 14th, 1947. This was after the British sent Lord
Mountbatten to negotiate, and the Muslin League insisted on a separate Pakistan. Although this partition was unplanned, bloody, and hasty, it lead to
Indian independence, something that is still celebrated today. This independence is what makes India have such a strong democracy today. "In the
biggest democratic election ever, Indians dumped a worn–out centrist party and gave a majority of parliamentary seats to a rightwing party and leader,
Narendra Modi" (Roskin 344). This democratic election resulting in a new leader for India would not be possible without the partition. This partition
lead to independence and democracy nationwide, and this is easily seen in India's elections. "Some say that India is one of the few countries where
religion is really alive;
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17. Indian Democracy
Abraham Lincoln, the 16th President of the United States of America, aptly defined democracy as a government of the people, by the people and for
the people.
Abraham Lincoln, the 16th President of the United States of America, aptly defined democracy as a government of the people, by the people and for
the people. This definition clearly underlines the basic tenet that, in this– form of government, people are supreme. The ultimate power is in their hands
and they exercise it in the form of electing their representatives at the time of elections. In modern times this type of democracy, which is representative
in nature, is most suitable. The other type, the direct democracy in which the people themselves enact and implement laws and run...show more content...
are preserved and further strengthened.
They help in the formation of public opinion as well. Thus, political parties see that there is nothing against the spirit of democracy, freedom, equality
and social justice. In the absence of political parties, we cannot think of smooth and effective functioning of a democracy. Different political parties
may have different ideologies but they all aim at the good of the people and the country. The party system inIndia has been a great factor in giving
meaning and life to democracy. With the passage of time, a new and healthy relationship has developed between the ruling party and the opposition
parties on the one hand and between the public and the political parties on the other. It is because of the enlightened Indian voters and political parties
in opposition that the government and the party in power have been more responsive and accountable to the people and their representatives.
Obviously, democracy is not a one–sided game and it needs two or more players in the form of ruling party, parties in opposition and the electorate.
Liberty, equality, justice and fraternity are the very cornerstones of democracy. They are not available under dictatorship and utilitarian forms of
government. Without freedom of speech, expression of faith, profession, and association, etc. democracy is meaningless. Similarly, right to own
property is one of the fundamental rights under democracy. The Indian Constitution offers all the
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18. Democracy, India, And South Africa
As the Economist article highlights, "democracies are going through a difficult time" and currently its forward momentum seems to be at a standstill in
the modern–day world (The Economist, n.d.), but the mere fact that democracy has the ability to have "taken root in the most difficult circumstances
possible" (the article noting Germany, India, and South Africa of major importance) should be a testament that the democratic ideal is effective and
perhaps more importantly, supported, amongst many citizens universally (The Economist, n.d.). One of the first actions towards reinstating and
balancing the effectiveness of current democracy is popular participation. Getting citizens to become fully engaged and passionate about participating
in politics is integral to a democracy's success, one that entails not having to compromise in order to achieve an effective yet limited government. As the
textbook highlights, without the participation of the public from the entirety of society, governments are less likely to respond to the people's needs
and put the people's interests at the forefront (Mintz, et al., 2013). A more effective government and a stronger display of democracy will be allowed
only when the majority of citizens participate in the voting process freely. In the 2011 Canadian election, the Conservative government found itself
obtaining a majority of seats in the House of Commons with only 25 percent of the potential electorate; to begin with, only 61 percent of the
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19. Is India A Successful Democratic Country?
Countries across the globe have been transitioning from authoritarian regimes to democratized nations over the course of the past century. Nations
look at the United States as an example of a successful democracy, which is not necessarily true. The United States does a better job at making sure it's
citizens are well aware of their individual rights and liberties. Although many countries claim to be democracies, not all fulfill the duties a democratic
nation has to its people and its society. The South Asian country ofIndia is an example of a nation that is a titled democracy, but fails at successfully
performing democratic responsibilities for its own citizens. The question being asked here is, why has India struggled since colonization post Great
Britain rule, to become a successful democratic country? India is known to be the "world's largest democracy"; in numbers, not by its origins. The
idea of having a democratic nation came from under the rule of Great Britain prior to gaining their independence. India has always been oppressed and
was constantly tossed back and forth from different religious and political regimes, up until the partition of 1947. From the beginning of its time, India
has undergone rule by the powerful Mughal Empire, the Sikh Empire and of course the British Raj. Having gone through different politically structured
empires, India didn't fully colonize until the British came in. The British Raj lasted in India for approximately over two hundred plus
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20. In his article, Democracy as a Universal Value, Amartya Sen asserts that democracy is a universal value. In order to develop his argument Sen needs
to state his definition of democracy and define what he means by universal value. In the course of Sen's argument he gives his view of the relationship
between democracy and the economy. He then defends his view of democracy as a universal value against a main argument that deals with cultural
differences between regions. Amartya Sen uses a maximum definition of democracy. Sen believes that a democracy has more qualities than just rule by
the majority. "Democracy is a demanding system, and not just a mechanical condition (like majority rule) taken in isolation" (Sen 5). Sen believes
...show more content...
Sen considers something a universal value if "people anywhere may have reason to see it as valuable" (6). Some people have argued that democracy
is not a universal value because not everyone agrees that democracy is valuable and important. However, according to Sen, complete, unanimous
approval by all people is not needed for something to be considered a universal value. Using this definition Sen successfully defends his claim that
democracy is a universal value, despite the fact that some people may not agree on the value of democracy. In his argument on the universal value of
democracy Amartya Sen discusses the relationship between democracy and economic development. He notes that it is often claimed that
nondemocratic systems are better at bringing about economic development than democratic ones. Sen disagrees with this claim. He asserts that this
hypothesis is based on "very selective and limited information" (3). He admits that it is true that some disciplinarian states, like South Korea, Singapore,
and postreform China, have had faster rates of economic growth than many less authoritarian ones, like India, Jamaica, and Costa Rica (3). However, he
points out that this very selective evidence cannot be used to establish the general hypothesis that nondemocratic systems are better at bringing about
economic development (3). "There is no convincing evidence that authoritarian governance and the suppression of political and civil rights are
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