alyze the strengths and limitations of Philippine democracy, particularly as related to the people of the Philippines. Finally, the paper will access the current democratic regime in the Philippines, and comment on future possibilities.
Before looking specifically at the Philippine experience, it is first necessary to establish the theoretical basis for democracy in the contemporary world. In the book Democracy and its Critics, Robert Dahl examines the historical justification for democracy by analyzing it as a political ideal.2 In basic terms, Dahl believes that modern democracy traces its intellectual roots to the notions _____________________
2 Robert Dahl, Democracy and its Critics, (New haven: Yale University Press, 1989). of personal autonomy established in the ancient world. In his view, the principles of democracy were established as early as the fifth century, B.C. in the ideals of Greece. Proceeding from the Greek ideal was a republican tradition from the Italian States in the Middle Ages and Renaissance, the anarchists of the 18th and 19th centuries which helped focus the idea and institutions of representative government, and the philosophical and logical impetus toward political economy.3
From the Greek perspective, the nature of the city state (polis) and the idea of a representative government, based upon rule by the good citizen, were inexorably tied. Of course, there were several limitations for participation in the idea of Greek democracy, but the ideological and philosophical seeds were sown in the writings and practices of, in particular, the city of Athens.4
After various embellishments in the ancient world, Greek democracy once again received a resurgence during the later Middle Ages and Renaissance, particularly in the Italian city states. It is often seen as ironic that once again, small political groupings, in this case in cities, were the bastion of democracy. With the renewed interest and ...