Democracy and Diversity: 10 Political Science

Question: ‘Overlapping social differences create possibilities of deep social divisions and tensions’. Explain.

Answer:

1. When one social difference overlaps another difference, it is known as overlapping social differences.
2. Overlapping social differences between Blacks and Whites became a social division in the United States. Overlapping social difference became the main factor for the Black Power Militant Movement.
3. Even in India, Dalits face discrimination and injustice. These kinds of situations produce social divisions which are harmful for democracy and weaken the basic foundation of democracy.

Question: ‘Social divisions of one kind or another exist in most countries.’ Explain.
Or
When does a social difference become a social division ? Explain any three situations.

Answer:

1. Most of the countries of the world are heterogeneous or multi-cultural. India is a vast country with many religions and communities living side by side.
2. Belgium, a small country is also a multi-cultural country.
3. Even those countries such as Germany and Sweden, that were once highly homogeneous, are undergoing rapid change with the influx of people from other parts of the world. Migrants bring with them their own culture, and tend to form a different social community.

Question: ‘In a democracy, political expression of social divisions is very normal, and can be healthy. ’ Explain.
Or
How is political expression of social divisions in democracy beneficial ?
Or
“Assertion of social diversities in a country need not be seen as a source of danger.” Explain.

Answer:

1. This allows various disadvantaged and marginal social groups to express their grievances, and get the government to attend to these.
2. Expression of various kinds of social divisions in politics often results in their cancelling one another out, and thus, reduces their intensity. This leads to the strengthening of a democracy
3. In certain case, countries like India tries to accommodate social division by providing political power to certain backward people.

Question: “History shows that democracy is the best way to fight for recognition and also to accommodate diversity”.Justify.

Answer:

1. India: India is a very diverse country. The real success of democracy in India is because our Parliament and government has tried to accommodate social diversities. Many changes have been brought in the Indian Constitution since independence.
2. Belgium: The experiment of Belgium also shows that democracy is the only way to accommodate differences. Between 1970 and 1993, they amended their Constitution four times so as to work out an arrangement that would enable everyone to live together within the same country.
3. Sri Lanka: In case of Sri Lanka, the government failed to respond to needs of the people and tried to follow the principle of majoritarianism. The distrust between the two communities turned into widespread conflict and lead to a Civil War.

Question: “Reaction of the government to the demands of different groups is a crucial factor in determining the outcome of social divisions”. Explain the statements.

Answer:

1. If the rulers are willing to share power and accommodate the reasonable demands of minority community, social divisions become less threatening for the country. But if they try to suppress such a demand with force and in the name of national unity, this can lead to civil war or division of country, and that is what happened in Sri Lanka.
2. According to our Constitution, the use of English for official purposes was to stop in 1965 but when many non-Hindi states demanded the use of English to be continued the Union Government responded in a positive way avoiding any conflict.
3. In Belgium, the government responded as per the needs of the people and amended the Constitution several time to avoid any conflict in the society.