Hurrying Backwards
S. lit. Sir Hamish MacLaren's sweeping statements In his letter to the Spectator (April 9) surprised me greatly. When he stated: 'The 1961 constitution allows African votes on an educational standard, and thereby perpetuates an ever-increasing intelligent democracy . . . one-party states, be they in Europe, Asia or Africa, are a complete negation of democ- racy,' I could not believe that he would leave such statements unexplained.
According to the Oxford Dictionary, 'democracy' is 'government by the people; that form of govern- ment in which the sovereign power resides in the people, and is exercised either directly by them or by officers elected by them. In modern use, it denotes a social state in which all have equal rights.' Judging from this definition, the 1961 Rhodesian con- stitution is a negation of democracy. While, on the other hand, I do not know of any country cited as a one-party state in Africa—namely, Ghana, Kenya and Malawi—that restricts voting rights of any group to an 'educational standard' to gain 'an ever-increas- ing intelligent democracy.' As for the cry of 'one man one vote' being that of the 'mob,' I beg to disagree strongly. A 'mob' (Oxford Dictionary) is 'the disorderly and riotous part of the population, the rabble; a tumultous crowd bent on lawlessness.' The Africans in Rhodesia (and in the whole of that continent for that matter) who are advocating the very basic requirement in any democratic government are neither disorderly, tumultuous, nor bent on law- lessness.
One-party states in Africa can honestly say that their parties have mass followings and support without coercion or threat of any kind. Thus they are not a 'complete negation of democracy.' For this reason, Sir Hamish MacLaren's statement that all one-party states,.be they in Africa, Asia or Europe. are a complete negation of democracy does not stand. He should know that there are differences in the one-party systems in these three continents, surely.
R. NEKOSTA AYURU
44 Devonshire Place, Toronto 5, Ontario, Canada
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