- 18 Mar 2003 04:03
#197188
The treatment of minorities is perhaps the most recognised defect of democracies. Between the mid-1930's and the mid-1970's, the Swedish government forcibly sterilised thousands of women, because of 'mental defects', or simply because they were of 'mixed race'. Yet Sweden has been a model democracy for the entire period. The democracy worked, the problem is that democracy offers no protection to marginalised and despised minorities. The usual answer of democrats is that excesses can be prevented by constitutionally enforced individual rights.
First, no constitutional rights are absolute: President Bush showed how easy it is to overturn constitutional protections. Simply by redefining American citizens as 'enemy combatants', he was able to intern them. In Britain the Blair government plans to detain without trial anyone with a 'personality disorder'. The official diagnostic criteria for that include: being envious of others, spending money irresponsibly, unsafe sex, driving recklessly, and feeling lonely. Probably most of the population could be detained, but so long as only unpopular minorities are targeted, mass opposition is unlikely. The point is that such mental health detention powers do not usually conflict with constitutional rights, so they provide a back-door internment procedure.
Paul Treanor
Why Democracy is Wrong
First, no constitutional rights are absolute: President Bush showed how easy it is to overturn constitutional protections. Simply by redefining American citizens as 'enemy combatants', he was able to intern them. In Britain the Blair government plans to detain without trial anyone with a 'personality disorder'. The official diagnostic criteria for that include: being envious of others, spending money irresponsibly, unsafe sex, driving recklessly, and feeling lonely. Probably most of the population could be detained, but so long as only unpopular minorities are targeted, mass opposition is unlikely. The point is that such mental health detention powers do not usually conflict with constitutional rights, so they provide a back-door internment procedure.
Paul Treanor
Why Democracy is Wrong