[Lee Myung-ho's Future Preview] The Origin of Democracy, Reexamining the 'Autonomy Charter'

[Asia Economy Reporter Junhyung Lee] Concerns about the crisis of democracy are growing worldwide. Many countries established after World War II adopted democracy, but its establishment was not easy. Party politics and electoral systems failed to resolve political differences and reach consensus, causing social turmoil. Taking advantage of politicians' incompetence and political chaos, powerful military forces sometimes seized power. Dictators like Hitler emerged in several democratic countries, seizing regimes and causing democratic backsliding, leaving deep scars on humanity through war and mass genocide. Many countries have restored democratic systems amid suffering. South Korea also managed to leap from a dictatorship to a democratic government and an industrialized advanced nation.

However, democracy continues to face an unstable path. In the United States, the pioneer of democracy, a violent occupation of Congress occurred, and political factions and citizens show hostility toward each other, accusing one another of being deceived by fake news over political issues. There is an increasing tendency to deny elections and political systems and justify hostile and illegal acts. South Korea, ahead of its presidential election, is no exception.

The crisis of democracy is international. In response to the U.S.-led 'Summit for Democracy,' China countered by claiming that American-style democracy has failed and promoted Chinese-style 'People's Democracy.' China pointed out that democracy is a common value for all humanity but that there is no universal model. It argued that the essence and core of Chinese democracy is that the people are the masters, and democracy means solving what the people want. China criticized U.S. democracy as having become money-driven politics and that the one-person-one-vote system has degenerated into elite minority politics. The principle of checks and balances through the separation of powers, a core of democracy, has been distorted into what political scientist Francis Fukuyama called 'reject politics' (extreme partisan politics that unconditionally reject the opponent's policies and claims).

There are various definitions of democracy, but the most concise is Abraham Lincoln's "government of the people, by the people, for the people." China claims that the Communist Party governs on behalf of the people, but this is only one of the three essential elements of democracy. The procedural system of 'government by the people' through elections is a fundamental requirement of democracy, which China does not fulfill.

Among the three elements of democracy, what modern democratic countries lack is 'government of the people.' Although all national constitutions specify this, there is debate over whether it is implemented substantively beyond symbolic meaning. The crisis of democracy can be seen as a crisis of 'government of the people.' To clarify the ambiguous meaning of 'government of the people,' we look back to the origins of democracy.

The beginning of modern democracy is the United States. The U.S. Constitution, adopted after independence from British colonies, became the standard for democracy. The Constitution adopted at the Constitutional Convention held in Pennsylvania in 1787 includes the principles of fair trials by jury, governance by representatives elected by the people, and the separation of powers into legislative, judicial, and executive branches. Especially, governance by representatives elected by the people and the separation of powers ensuring checks and balances are the core of democracy. Rejecting the common sense of the era when kings or lords were the masters of the state and social classes were fixed, the system where the people elect the president and anyone can become president was a great victory for humanity. Based on this system, the U.S. became the world's strongest country amid various environmental advantages.

How did the American ancestors create such a system? The American continent was declared a colony of the then world superpower Britain, but some areas were inhabited by Native Americans, making it a vast prairie without a real owner. Pioneers who migrated to escape religious persecution and famine formed villages to live collectively and protect themselves from outsiders. To cultivate farmland, they had to elect leaders and create minimal rules and regulations for self-governance. For example, settlers in Connecticut in 1638 created a charter in which all free men participated in electing justices of the peace, used secret ballots, and defined individual rights and the authority of self-government. Although this charter was approved by the British king, in 1687 the king ordered the appointment of a governor for the colony and the seizure of the charter. This incident marked the beginning of the American independence movement to protect the independence and autonomy of the colonists.

William Penn, who settled in Pennsylvania, led 200 Quakers in 1677 to draft a Charter of Liberties. This charter laid the foundation for the U.S. Constitution, including governance by representatives elected by the people and the separation of powers. Penn, who rejected violence, sought to resolve conflicts with Native Americans through negotiation, creating a culture of tolerance, understanding, and restraint. Pennsylvania, governed by this charter, accepted immigrants of various Protestant denominations from several European countries and became the most economically prosperous region. Other states also adopted charters imitating the Charter of Liberties. Penn's charter expanded from a self-governing charter for about 200 residents to charters for each state. The Constitutional Convention held in Pennsylvania in 1787 adopted it as the basis for the U.S. Constitution. In just about 100 years, a single sheet of paper laid the foundation for the nation called the United States.

Democracy was invented as a solution for autonomous self-governance of communities composed of free individuals. Self-governance and autonomy for governance by residents and government by the people are the foundation of democracy. We generally equate democracy with individual freedom and equality, but these are principles of human rights. Democracy is a system for free individuals to form communities and govern themselves. At this time, mutual tolerance, understanding, and restraint among different individuals can operate. Exclusion and denial cannot coexist with self-governance, autonomy, and self-control. To overcome the crisis of democracy, we must return to the spirit of self-governance, autonomy, mutual tolerance, and restraint.