The Merely Marginal

Democracy is not an absolute value, but a procedure through which the power of decision-making can be allocated and the elected holders of that power controlled. As such, it and the institutions that represent it are inevitably imperfect. Human rights machinery has the function of emphasizing the need for improvement and settingout the principles of conduct that seek to achieve a balance between respect for individual rights and social stability. The author examines the accelerating trend towards self-determination through secession, demonstrated by the creation of Bangladesh and the internal pressures on Commonwealth states such as India, Sri Lanka, Cyprus, Nigeria and Papua New Guinea. The analogous question of indigenous peoples is also considered. While human rights institutions alone cannot resolve conflict, they remain valuable constraints on holders of power who are susceptible to a dislike of being shamed for alleged violations

Balance (ability · Balance of interests · Commonwealth · Democracy · Development economics · Economics · Human rights · Imperfect · Indigenous · Law and economics · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Power (physics · Bangladesh Politics, Society, and Development · Human Rights and Development · Law · Post-Soviet Geopolitical Dynamics