基层民主建设的理论、意义和问题

The Theory, Meaning, and Problem of the Basic-level Democracy

民主首先是一种文化或生活方式,其次才是制度,制度是文化的一个方面。文化或生活方式的现代化,理性、平等、法制、宽容、非暴力、对人的基本权利和异类生活方式的尊重等,是民主建设的基础。民主不是物质文明发展之后所导致的精神需求,而是经济和社会不断分化过程中所导致的公共管理体制变革的一个结果。从公共管理的角度看,民主的本质是调整利益关系和建立公共管理的竞争机制。政治现代化要解决的问题可以分解为三个方面:尊重公民对公众生活的参与权首先是一个道义问题;其次是解决政治管理的合理性问题;第三才是政权的合法化问题。基层民主或自治建设是政治现代化的基础,同时也能够有效地增强由权力下放所削弱的中央政府权威。基层民主建设只不过提供一个新的解决问题的平台而已,它本身并不解决问题,相反,民主反而把解决问题的过程进行一种必要的复杂化。

Democracy is first a culture or way of living,then a system,which is a part of culture.The modernization of culture or way of living,reason,equality, legal system, lenience, nonviolence, respect to the basic rights of human and the different life style, etc.,are the foundation of democracy construction. Democracy is the competitive system of public administration.The construction of basiclevel democracy or autonomy is the foundation of political modernization and can strengthen the authority of the Central Government that has been weakened by transfering power to the lower level. The basiclevel democracy only provides a new platform of problem solving,it can not solve problems by itself. On the contrary, it makes the course of problem solving necessarily complicated.