State, Democracy and Human Rights Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

State, Democracy and Human Rights - Term Paper Example The citizens can engage themselves in politics, by virtue of the democratic rights bestowed upon them, via a variety of ways. The first condition for democracy, also being the most significant role any individual citizen can play being an actor in a democratic state, is to comply by all standards of ‘citizenship’, which characterizes a full membership as the member of the state, and also as a member of the community. More often than not, theorists also constitute citizenship as the role of individuals in advocacy and institutionalization of human rights. Since democracy directly implies the will of the people being governed, thus ‘Elections’ can turn out to be the most reliable junction through which the citizens can play their part. This implies that the citizens, directly or indirectly, choose their representatives who would then be a legitimate source to follow the mandate of the citizens (Newton and Jan 2010). Civil society can also dominate the democrat ic spectrum by channelizing public opinion, nationally as well as on a transnational level, by mobilizing and advocating for causes which would then pressurize the governments and thus, empowering themselves to be a part of the decision making process (Goodhart 2008). Moreover, citizens can also be empowered and get involved in the decision making process in the democratic age by setting up transparent institutions to their advantage. The nature of these institutions may differ, depending on the needs and situations the citizens may find themselves in. The institutions are characterized by the vision and the mission statement, along with the actors involved in decision making process which then determines the relationship of the citizen`s involvement and the extent of their influence of decision making (Beeson and Bisley 2012).