Civil Diplomacy
Political power, contract and civil society
The tendency today towards the emergence of totalitarian and fundamentalist regimes, establishment of neo-contract policies, to the appearance of wars in which a marked identity character is glimpsed on a local and global scale, to the crisis legitimacy of political, economic and social systems, among others, are
some of the most relevant phenomena that show the problems caused by which contemporary societies go through.
Hence we necessarily ask where political power lies and why has it not manifested itself as a way out of the problem.
Political or civil society
The argument about civil society allows citizens to exercise the right
to rebellion and acquire, before political power, a democratic function in the
public participation when defending their assets and the institutionality of the contract
that they have established.
According to the UN, civil society is the third sector of society, along with public powers and the private sector. It is made up of all associations of citizens who come together voluntarily with the intention of achieving a goal that is neither government nor personal enrichment.
This definition, therefore, excludes the Administration, the army, political parties and companies; but it could be applied to unions, professional associations, churches and NGOs as well as think tanks, cultural associations or social clubs.
On the other hand, the fact that an association does not aspire to government does not necessarily imply that it does not pursue political goals (in the sense of intervening in public affairs); Just as not having a profit motive does not mean that you should not earn income or have a solvent economy. To achieve their objectives, organizations need certain power and money.
The concept of civil is very broad and diffuse and has different meanings depending on the context or who handles it. In its origins, civil was everything that referred to the city and the citizens, to civilization. As time went by, civil also served to designate that which was neither military nor ecclesiastical, such as aviation, civil marriage or cemeteries.
What is currently understood as civil society comes from classical liberalism and is used to distinguish between what corresponds to the State and what it should not interfere with. According to Tocqueville, one of the conditions for a true democracy to exist is that there be a dense fabric of associations that is capable of reconciling the general interest with respect for individual freedoms.
What is clear is that, in this mutual control between powers, both the State and large corporations try to control or put civil associations at their service, subsidizing, financing or institutionalizing them.
As the State assumes more functions (whether they correspond to it or not), civil society weakens. Civil Diplomacy tries to avoid this, empower people and propose fair and democratic social changes for the future.
Distinguish between what corresponds to the State and what it should not interfere with
©Derechos de autor. Todos los derechos reservados.
Necesitamos su consentimiento para cargar las traducciones
Utilizamos un servicio de terceros para traducir el contenido del sitio web que puede recopilar datos sobre su actividad. Por favor revise los detalles en la política de privacidad y acepte el servicio para ver las traducciones.