Newsletter, December 2006 |
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Contents this month
Public participation in China
Some things come out of the blue. Dialogue by Design is off to
China to help some tentative moves towards greater public participation
in decision-making. Yes, you read that right: it seems that the
most populous nation on earth - and one of the most politically
rigid - is not quite as rigid as we all thought.
It seems that there is a growing awareness in the Chinese government
that with its surging economy will come increasing calls for political
pluralism. There is no suggestion that a Western-style democracy
at national level is on the cards yet, but recent State and Party
statements indicate an understanding that non-democracies survive
by allowing and engineering limited forms of public participation.
New laws, for example, allow public hearings on administrative
issues, and some local governments have even encouraged public
assessment of service providers.
Dialogue by Design's initial role will be to describe our experience
of public participation in the United Kingdom at a seminar in early
December. We may also be meeting government officials to explore
further the role of public participation in the delivery of good
government.
This is all very exciting, but it is also potentially awkward
for those of us who believe in public participation as an addition
and complement rather than as an alternative to a true democracy.
So while we will certainly be supportive, we will also be cautious
and wary of the dangers of being co-opted into endorsing something
that falls short of what democracy really means.
There is another edge to this foray into dangerous waters. In
western Europe and North America, where we do most of our work,
there is always the sense that the great epoch-making battles of
political ideas are largely done and dusted. In eastern Europe,
in Africa, Asia and South America, where our work takes us from
time to time, political ideas are still evolving and history is
still being written.
Who knows: maybe in China we will be able to make a tiny contribution
to history. We'll let you know what happens.
This article was followed up in the January 2007 newsletter
here.
