Democratic breakdown

Remember the FIFA World Cup scene when Kylian Mbappe ignored French President Emmanuel Macron when he tried to console him after France's heartbreaking penalty shootout loss to Argentina? Now, the French President has decided to implement highly debatable and controversial retirement reforms to address millions of French citizens' issues.

However, there is mounting pressure as violent demonstrations have occurred. Hundreds of security forces were injured, thousands of people were arrested, King Charles III's visit to France was postponed, and thousands of fires were lit around Paris a few days ago.

Macron unilaterally increased the retirement age from 62 to 64 using special presidential powers, which has resulted in his citizens' dissatisfaction with his decisions. Macron is also criticised for being the "president of the rich". A democratic system created to avoid another revolution has ironically resulted in the formation of conditions that could lead to a violent uprising.

 

The current system is based on a capitalist model designed to benefit the wealthy and powerful.
This system has created a large gap between the rich and the poor. The wealthy have access to resources and opportunities that the poor need access to. This inequality has led to injustice and frustration among the lower classes, who feel they are not treated fairly. The lack of economic opportunity and the feeling of being left behind have caused many people to become disillusioned with the current democratic process and system.

Political demonstrations include marches, rallies, sit-ins, or protests happening worldwide, not just in our country. Some Western countries are tired of mass immigration, economic shocks, dirty elections, the Ukraine war, low wages, and what they see as unnecessary lockdown controls.

Democratic breakdown and decline occur when there is no direct participation of the people, and issues are brought up top-down. In a democracy, any controversial idea or topic must go through a referendum, a bottom-up process. Constitutional reform should occur through the people's referendum instead of by presidential powers or amending top-down constitutions.

If we, the people, are unhappy about our current political set-up, we should ask for a people's referendum, which would result in constitutional reform. For example, suppose Nepal wants a king as a part of a democratic government. In that case, the people should decide from the bottom up, not by presidential powers or amending the constitution (topdown).

While some democratic and political experts have criticised referendums for disguising populism, they should still be included in decision-making. However, dictators like Hitler and Mussolini have used referendums to hide oppressive policies as populism.

Using militarised troops against citizens without gaining public support is antithetical to democracy, as demonstrated by Macron's handling of the Gilets Jaunes or Yellow Vests protests.

Published: The Himalayan Times
Nepal's leading daily newspaper