现代国家构建与民主化浅析——欧洲经验及其启示

On the Relationship between Modern State-building and Democratization——Based on European State-building Experience

欧洲的经验表明,构建现代国家与民主化之间存在着复杂的关系。从过程的角度来说,欧洲现代国家构建内在包含着民族-国家构建和民主-国家构建的双重要素。在这个过程中,民族-国家基本制度框架的形成在时间上早于公共权力的民主化,在逻辑上优先于公共权力的民主化。从国家构建动力的角度来看,民主化抗争是现代国家构建的重要推动力,其不仅推动了欧洲国家的民主转型,而且促进了众多的民生制度建设。从国家能力与民主化的关系的角度来看,一方面,强国家能力是公共权力民主化的前提与基础,另一方面,公共权力民主化是增强国家能力的重要条件。欧洲现代国家构建的历史经验对当代中国政治发展实践的启示在于,现代国家构建与公共权力民主化两者不仅不矛盾,而且能够达到辩证统一,因此,中国应该把现代国家建设和发展民主政治有机结合起来。

Experience of Europe shows that the building of a modem country is complexly related to democratization. In terms of the process, the s.tate-building of modem European countries involves both nation-state building and democracy-state building. The framework of Nation-state took shape prior to the democratization of public power both in time＇and in logic. As far as the motives of national construction are concerned, struggle for democracy is a major force in building up a modem country, which not only enforces the democratization of European countries but also improves the systems of livelihood. In terms of the relationship between state capacity and democratization, the former is the presupposition and basis of the latter while the latter is a significant factor of the former. What can be learned from the European experience is that modem state-building and democratization are not in contradiction at all. Instead, they can be dialectically united.