论政治文明中的民主概念和原则

民主的本来意义是多数人的统治,但不是多数人随心所欲的专横统治,而具有基本的规范和经验特征。按照多元论的观点,民主过程是一套基础规则,不同的社会团体可依据这些规则而追求自身的利益。民主与自由也是平衡的,被统治者定期自由表达同意、人民自由选择自己的经济等生活方式也是民主不可缺少的内容。民众主义的口号经常具有道义吸引力,但在实践中会演变成多数人的暴政,因而需要以程序民主和宪政主义下的法治来保障民主的真正实现。

Conceptions and Principles of Democracy in Political Civilization

Democracy is essentially the rule by majority, but it is not the arbitrary rule by many, rather, it has basic norms and empirical features. According to pluralist view, democracy process is a set of basic rules, by which various groups pursue their own interests. Democracy is balanced by freedom. People choose their own way of life including economic activities. This is also a part of democracy. The populist position often has moral attraction, but in reality, it develops into tyranny of the majority. Thus we need procedural democracy and the rule of law to guarantee the realization of democracy.