Conflict, Legitimacy and Government Reform: Equitable Allocation of ...
Conflict, Legitimacy and Government Reform: Equitable Allocation of ...
Conflict, Legitimacy and Government Reform: Equitable Allocation of ...
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62 KPI Congress XI<br />
One common contention is many Thais are still poor <strong>and</strong> not<br />
educated well enough to know what’s right or what’s wrong. Therefore,<br />
they cannot make up their own minds <strong>and</strong> may be misled easily.<br />
However, as time goes by, such thinking is being criticized more <strong>and</strong><br />
more that it is used to justify preservation <strong>of</strong> existing inequality so that<br />
people will accept a government controlled by a few persons that has<br />
supreme power.<br />
Another criticism is the democratic system heeds opinions <strong>of</strong> the<br />
majority <strong>and</strong> will likely end up with mob rule. This issue has been taken<br />
up <strong>and</strong> a solution is there already. Most countries prescribe rules in their<br />
constitutions to prevent the majority from harming the minority <strong>and</strong><br />
adequately protect the minority.<br />
Some people criticize democracy by saying that it provides<br />
opportunities for vote-buying by politicians. Regarding this issue,<br />
experiences <strong>of</strong> developed countries can shed light on this. Once people’s<br />
income rose, 500 or 1,000 baht <strong>of</strong>fered to buy a vote would mean<br />
nothing to them. Eventually, vote-buying will disappear.<br />
Nevertheless, criticism still goes on <strong>and</strong> on, saying in a democratic<br />
system, before important matters are resolved, opinions <strong>of</strong> various groups<br />
must be heeded <strong>and</strong> an agreement must be reached before determining<br />
further action. This process is more time-consuming than under an<br />
authoritarian regime where power is in the h<strong>and</strong>s <strong>of</strong> one person.<br />
Consequently, democracy may deter economic development which<br />
requires quick decisions. Regarding this issue, available studies may not<br />
firmly conclude that democracy is detrimental to economic development<br />
while many countries that have grown dramatically do not have<br />
democracy.<br />
However, it is clearly evident that many countries in the world that<br />
have enjoyed satisfactory economic growth rates <strong>and</strong> stable political<br />
conditions have democratic governments.<br />
Even in our own experiences, Thail<strong>and</strong> enjoyed the fastest economic<br />
growth rate under a democratic regime. During 1986-1996, average