Ausbuy

Democracy And Legal Activism

November 19th, 2007

The essence of democracy is that laws are passed by elected officials. People obey these laws through fear of punishment, but also because they, through their elected officials, feel part of the process. In a democracy the rulers govern with the consent of the people. This consent does not cover every decision and rulers often have to show leadership by taking decisions which are unpopular at that time. If the decision does not prove to be correct then, at a later date, the public can punish their leaders by voting them out of office. The judiciary is, in Australia, non-elected individuals paid by the state to enforce the law and interpret the complexities which arise out of this. It has long been accepted that the judgments are based on the laws that were passed and documented, not on the intentions expressed by the politicians in parliament at that time. However, in recent years we have seen the development of international law which is largely derived from international agreements. The courts have decided that these take precedence over our existing laws. This represents a departure from the democratic situation referred to above, as the public to not accept ownership of these new legal obligations. The above is an example of how decisions of the judiciary can overturn the will of the people and their elected representatives. The judicial system is also built around precedence, with judgments being binding in junior courts.

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