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SHANNON BARTHOLOMEW

THE AUTHENTIC REPUBLIC Many nations today either call themselves a republic or is called a republic by others. The term republic is being used today in an almost generic sense much like the word nation, without any consideration as to the particular factors that makes a nation a republic. For instance you have the Peoples Republic of China, yet it is no secret that the Chinese government denies religious freedom to certain religious groups such as the Felon Gung movement. They also tightly control the media. The following is just one example, “The Central Propaganda Department of the Chinese Communist Party is the most important institution for monitoring media personnel and controlling the content of television, radio, newspapers, magazines, and film. The Central Organization Department selects the leadership of the Propaganda Department with guidance from the “Thought Work Small Group” (thought work is the term used in China to describe the task of shaping the views of the public) under the direct leadership of CCP chairman and PRC President Hu Jintao and the Politburo Standing Committee member responsible for the media, Li Changchun. Local branches of the Propaganda Department work with lower levels of the party-state hierarchy to transmit con-tent priorities to the media. For example, the Shanghai bureau of the Propa-ganda Department interacts with the Shanghai Municipal Party Committee, the provincial branches of General Administration of Press and Publications (GAPP), and State Administration of Radio, Film and Television (SARFT) to coordinate guidance for the Shanghai media”. Taken from Freedom At Issue, A Freedom House Special Report February 2006 (an organization that does surveys on political rights and freedoms, freedom of the press and religious lib-erty around the globe, www.freedomhouse.org). The nation that implements and adheres to the political doctrine of Republi-canism, protects the rights and freedoms of its citizens by law. The term ‘republic’ was used in the context of a moving away from tyrannical, anti-rights forms of governmental systems particularly during the constitutional develop-ment of America in the 1800s; hence the compounding of the two words ‘re’ and ‘public’ which means a making over of the public according to the rights of man. American constitutionalism was the answer to all past forms of anti-rights politi-cal systems, whether they be called despotism, monarchs, communism, divine rights of the kings, papalism, etc. The public under such harsh political systems was stifled by excessive control and limitations and needed to be re-made. Un-fortunately the world is currently witnessing an America with rulers that is mov-ing the country away from the Republican practices they worked so hard to es-tablish in their early history. Below is a listing of the essential principles of the doctrine of Republican-ism that constitute the criterion for becoming an authentic Republic. • Republican constitutionalism is the ultimate development of the rule of law, • A Republic is defined by the doctrine of Republicanism, • A Republic must have a constitution with a Bill of Rights that recognizes

and protects the natural rights and freedoms of the people. It must enlist declarations of the peoples’ rights and freedoms with clauses that define the legal limits to government’s authority to prevent encroachment and ensure protection to these said rights and freedoms,

• A Republic’s constitution defines the nature of the government and how it functions, its powers and limits of authority. It acknowledges preferably in the preamble that Human Rights are inalienable and inviolable; which is necessary to affirm government’s stance in relation to citizens’ rights i.e. that government cannot grant or withdraw, only recognize and protect them, and in the case of forfeiture of the rights to life or private property, due process must be followed.

• A Republic is chiefly defined by the fact that its constitution guarantees the free and full exercise of the Religious Freedom of the people given that it is a matter of an individual’s conscience and the Creator, and that religious doctrine, observance and expression are not subject to legal regulation and determination. Only instances where crimes or violations of persons’ rights are being committed in the name of God or Religion legitimizes the intervention of the law.

• A Republic must adhere to the principle of democratic elections as op-posed to non-electoral systems; which is a safeguard against perpetuating anti-rights leaders, and thus forms part of a variety of checks and balances in the system.

If the aforementioned principles are adopted and adhered to by any nation, that nation is an authentic republic. Some nations may adopt some of the principles of republicanism and are on their way to becoming a republic. Accordingly, they can be considered a partial republic on the way to full republicanism. Genuine Republics will have micro-governmental differences which are simply methodological differences in the application of republican principles due to the differences of circumstances, cultural and otherwise that vary from country to country. However the macro-governmental structure remains the same i.e. protection of the rights and freedoms of the people, democratic elec-tions, equality before the law, equal justice for all, etc. Republican governments are often tested in certain areas. They are: (1) wanting more power and control, (2) wanting to interfere with freedom of ex-pression and of the press because of criticism, and (3) wanting to regulate and control religious affairs. If a government face these tests and successfully past them, that government by such actions add sustainability to its republican status. When the rights and freedoms of the citizens are interfered with, the result is hindrance of the natural process of fulfillment, preservation and enjoyment of these said rights and freedoms. Republicanism is about creating a fair and just national environment that allows for the unhindered development, survival, happiness and redemption of the people.