It is vital for civil society to stand up and be counted
Posted on January 28, 2012, Saturday
WHAT is civil society? According to Wikipedia, civil society is the arena outside of the family, the state, and the market where people associate to advance common interests.
It is sometimes thought to include the family and the private sphere and then referred to as the ‘third sector’ of society, distinct from government and business.
Dictionary.com defines civil society as the aggregate of non-governmental organisations and institutions that manifest the interests and will of citizens or individuals and organisations in a society which are independent of the government.
Volunteering is often considered a defining characteristic of the organisations that constitute civil society.
I would include civil society as groups and institutions that are independent of the state, voluntary and self-reliant like independent mass media, think tanks, universities, as well as cultural, social and religious groups.
Whatever definitions they may be, civil society, in short, is YOU and ME, the private citizens of society.
With growing awareness among Malaysians of societal ills, principally brought about by bad politics, the role of civil society in the development of our democracy cannot be more vital and urgent.
We all know that every elected government must work in the best interests of its people, who are the source of the government’s legitimacy. Policies created by the government must necessarily be based upon diversity, respect, human dignity, tolerance and equal opportunity. And ordinary citizens must be engaged in the development and formulation of society so as to foster a clear sense of belonging.
In order to realise such goals, the government must never dominate businesses, unions and other establishments and institutions in the state but instead should welcome voices, even dissenting ones, from a responsible civil society. We expect a democratically elected administration to be transparent, responsible, accountable and respect the rights of the people to information. Only then is it possible to build a more humane society.
To create a more humane society, any conflict with the tenets of parliamentary democracy must be removed without hesitation and reservation. In this regard, the future and destiny of this country is in our hands and unless we engineer a change collectively, the people will remain powerless.
I posed the question on the role of civil society to three dear friends in an email interview for this column this week and here are their responses.
Dr Lim Teck Ghee, director of the Centre for Policy Initiatives, stressed that “civil society has to be vigilant watchdog, honest stakeholder and fearless voice in a democracy”.
“It has to continuously challenge the status quo, bringing together the best of professional and activist opinions and views, especially on behalf of the voiceless and powerless.
“We need honest governance by people who are there to serve the people and not for people to serve the rulers. For this to happen, transparency is a vital ingredient in government,” Lim added.
Next, I sought the views of an academician friend from Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM). Wishing to remain anonymous, the lecturer sees civil society activism and democratic participation in neutral terms, but in Sarawak, “we definitely need the mobilisation of people for civic actions”.
“If we want to further democratise Sarawak, we need to reach out to the rural folk and understand their cultural logic of politics,” my UKM friend concluded.
Sarawakian social scientist and ex-classmate Dr Richard Tan, who now resides in Hong Kong, sent me this lengthy response.
“Even in the best democracy, we need checks and balances. And civil society should help ensure that is in place.
“The community has a role to play in selecting the people to represent their needs and that of the nation. For example, we need to help ensure the existence of a truly independent judiciary with teeth and a free press, among others.
“People cannot just keep blaming others, the government, nature etc. They need to be educated, be informed, be more aware of things around them, how things work, why things do not work, human issues, medical issues, scientific issues, social issues, political issues — basically to be involved in life issues. Too many people just cruise through life and expect things to run smoothly for them. But that is back to the role of government to enable these things to happen.
“The hallmark of a good government is how it takes care of the weaker members of society. Failing which, we are not much better than animals. Surely we have evolved past the principle of survival of the fittest.
“In fact, sad to say, some in the animal kingdom have done much better than human beings and are more humane than humans in the way they live.
“I cannot think of many in the animal world that suffer from greed. They hunt and kill for survival and normally do what is enough to survive as a species, if only humans can learn from that.
“I believe that blind obedience to authority of any kind is the downfall of any society. Blind authority to parents included. Blind acceptance to doctors, teachers, business people and especially politicians.
“As an example, what do we normally do when we get a medical diagnosis? We doubt. We seek a second opinion and then a third or fourth opinion until we get one that we like, then we stop. Even then, how do we know that one is correct?
“Similarly with the many experts in many fields, how would we know what is the truth? For those who can, we should ‘educate’ ourselves more medically. Who knows our body better than ourselves? Surely, we do not need others to tell us what we need and want.
“At times, I think it is insulting how we are treated by elders and those in power in the culture we have. I’m sorry, age does not mean wisdom or to be more accurate, does not mean wisdom in doing the right thing! Otherwise, this would be a wonderful world as we could all grow old without effort.
“We should be free to do whatever we want but we must also be prepared to accept the responsibilities and consequences of our actions.
“The day we do the right thing in the interests of our fellow citizens voluntarily rather than because we had to because of imposed rules and laws, then the future looks bright. We’ll never get to that stage given the frailties of human beings but we can set up systems to help us along that path,” added Tan.
My sincere thanks to my three friends for their input.
That the government alone should not have to carry the responsibility of influencing public attitudes and opinion is an undisputed theory. To work the democratic system leadership at all levels in particular, non-political, functional or professional group leaderships should play a critical role in educating the people.
The creation of a climate in which difficult problems arising from changing circumstances can be accommodated and met with new solutions is vital. Let us all be consciously aware that unless we take the wider view and uphold the public interest responsibly and sincerely, any democratic system cannot endure let alone flourish.
In this regard, I find the words of Singaporean statesman Lee Kuan Yew, uttered in 1965 still relevant today.
Forty-seven years ago, Lee said: “If we keep still to the old ways of leaving the affairs of the country in the hands of government and its officers with the people concerned only with their own affairs and nothing else, our country would be in a sorry state. If people are interested only in business and in getting rich, and take no interest in national affairs, they and others will not survive should our country be invaded.”
So my fellow Sarawakians, my fellow Malaysians, you and I must understand how important it is to stand up and be counted when it matters.
Let us not live to regret later of the days we could have done something when we could but instead stood idly by.
Comments can reach the writer via columnists@theborneopost.com.
