Politics, Governance, and Citizenship 3 - Lesson 1 PDF

# Politics, Governance, and Citizenship 3 ## Lesson 1: Understanding Politics and Political Science ### Learning Objectives When you finish this lesson, you will be able to: 1. Define Political Science and Politics as well as its key concepts 2. Internalize the importance of the study of Politic...

# Politics, Governance, and Citizenship 3 ## Lesson 1: Understanding Politics and Political Science ### Learning Objectives When you finish this lesson, you will be able to: 1. Define Political Science and Politics as well as its key concepts 2. Internalize the importance of the study of Political Science 3. Discuss the approaches and fields in the study of Political Science ### Keywords and Phrases * politics * theory * power * coercion * sanction * polis * legitimacy * scire * jurisprudence * authority ## Introduction * Politics derives from the Greek *politikos* "of, for, or relating to citizens". * Generally applied to the art or science of running governmental or state affairs, including behavior within civil governments, but also applies to institutions, fields, and special interest groups such as the corporate, academic, and religious segments of society. * It consists of "social relations involving authority or power" and to the methods and tactics used to formulate and apply policy. * Modern political discourse focuses on democracy and the relationship between people and politics. It is thought of as the way we "choose government officials and make decisions about public policy". [2] ## Basic Concepts ### Politics Defined * Aristotle's philosophy greatly influenced classical and contemporary definitions of politics. * In *The Politics*, Aristotle defined politics as the study of affairs of the city-state (polis). * Aristotle also focused on the task of acquiring and exercising power and influence with the purest of motives and with respect for responsibility since men inevitably and naturally possess them. ### Different Perspectives on Politics * **Politics as a struggle for power:** Bernard Crick's *In Defense of Politics* defines politics as a struggle for power among groups whose aim is to control the state. He explained that politics is simply the activity by which differing interests within a given unit of rule are conciliated by giving them a share in power in proportion to their importance for the welfare and survival of the community. * **Politics as conflict resolution:** Michael Sodaro's *Comparative Politics: A Global Introduction* describes politics as the process by which communities pursue collective goals and deal with their conflicts authoritatively by means of government. * **Politics as compromise:** Ernesto Maceda identifies politics as the study of compromise. It is the act of deciding who gets what, when, and how, as characterized by Harold Lasswell. * **Politics as a pursuit for the greater good:** Aristotle termed the art of good government as politics. This disposition is echoed by Former Senate President Jovito Salonga when he said that politics is saying No to what is bad for society. ## Key Concepts in Politics ### Power * The ability or the right to do something, or to influence others. * Implies a hierarchy of control of stronger over weaker. * Derived from the Latin verb *potere*, meaning "to be able". * **Implicit power:** A wants B to do something, and B does it simply because he or she realizes that A wants it done, and wants to accommodate those wishes. * **Manifest power:** It is directly observable; A acts in an evident way to make B do what A wants. * **In general:** The ability to cause others to do what one desires, using means ranging from influence to coercion. ### Bases of Social Power 1. **Expert Power:** Based on perceptions of the leader's knowledge or expertise 2. **Referent Power:** Based on the follower's liking, admiring, or identifying with the leader 3. **Reward Power:** Based on the leader's ability to mediate rewards for the follower 4. **Legitimate Power:** Based on the follower's perception that the leader has the legitimate right or authority to exercise influence over him or her 5. **Coercive Power:** Based on the follower's fear that non-compliance with the leader's wishes will lead to punishment. ### Sources of Power 1. **Authority:** The extent of the ruler's authority among subject is crucial for a leader's power. It derives from a voluntary acceptance of the right to command and direct, to be heard or obeyed by others. 2. **Human resources:** A ruler's power is affected by the number of people who obey him, cooperate with him, or provide special assistance, as well as by the proportion of those persons in the general population, and the extent and forms of their organizations. 3. **Skills and knowledge:** A ruler's power is also affected by skills, knowledge, and abilities and their relation to the needs of the person in question. 4. **Intangible factors:** Psychological and ideological factors such as habits and attitudes toward obedience and submission, and the presence or absence of a common faith, ideology, or sense of mission, affect the power of the ruler in relation to the people. 5. **Material resources:** A ruler's control of property, natural resources, financial resources, the economic system, means of communication, and transportation helps determine the limits of his/her power 6. **Sanctions:** The final source of a ruler's power is the type and extent of sanctions at their disposal, both for use against their own subjects and in conflicts with other rulers. ## Authority * Government's power to make binding decisions and issue obligatory commands. * Must be perceived by citizens as rightful or acceptable in order to be obeyed. ## Legitimacy * General belief that the state's powers to make and enforce rules are justified and proper. * A moral or ethical concept that involves perceptions of what is right. ## Political Science * The study of the state and government. * The word "political" comes from the Greek word *polis*, meaning "city-state," the only form of government known to ancient Greeks. * *Ciencia* means knowledge or study. * Political science began as early as the 14th century B.C. when Aristotle (384-322 BC) wrote *Politics*, the first systematic work on political affairs. * The book, written between 335-332 B.C., won for him the title of "Father of Political Science". ### Three Stages of Political Science 1. **Religious Stage (Prehistoric era – 18th century):** The government and its leaders and laws were considered as divinely inspired. 2. **Metaphysical Stage (Ancient Greeks – present):** The state was considered a human institution but was almost worshipped as a perfect institution. Aristotle and Plato thought that the state provided a means to develop the highest potential of the individual. Indeed, Aristotle claimed that “man is by nature a political animal", and the state was established for the greatest good of the greatest number of citizens. 3. **Modern stage (1469-1527 – present)::** The state was still considered a human institution; but it was deemed capable of being improved by rulers and subjects according to certain principles and laws. This stage was ushered in by Niccolo Machiavelli (1469-1527), a Renaissance writer of *The Prince*. Machiavelli is often credited as the "Father of Modern Politics”. ## Political Science as a Field of Study * Political Science first attained recognition as a separate field of study in 1856. * The significant innovation was done upon the request of Prof. Francis Lieber, a German-born American scholar who wrote the *Manual of Political Ethics (1838)*, the first systematic treatise in political science published in the United States. It was the Americans who first made the study of politics a separate course of study. ### Goals of Political Science 1. Education for citizenship 2. An essential part of liberal education 3. Knowledge and understanding of the government ### Importance of Studying Political Science 1. We are all part of the government, 2. It helps us know more about our rights and duties as citizens, the structure and functions of the different branches of government, and our relations with other states. 3. It broadens our cultural background by knowing the function of the state, law, diplomacy, public finance, etc. 4. It provides a strong foundation for careers in law, foreign service, public administration, business, education, and journalism, all of which are intimately linked with the affairs of government. ## Approaches in the Study of Political Science 1. **Traditional/Historical Approach:** Focuses on a legal/formal description of government. Employs history, chronology, and the development of government structures and institutions. 2. **Scientific/Behavioral Approach:** Concerns the scientific method through the use of methodology, variables, and hypotheses in theorizing political phenomena. Focuses on how individuals behave within political institutions and how behavior influences policymaking. 3. **General Theory Approach:** Attempts to identify all critical structures and processes of society, explaining their interrelationships with politics, and predicting a wide array of governmental outcomes. Considers politics as a commitment to explore and understand a given segment of empirical reality. 4. **Systems Approach:** Based on David Easton's comprehensive systems model, it is depicted by the interaction between the societal environment and an abstract political system. The approach entails the search for cyclical processes that govern political structures. 4. **Structural-Functional Approach:** Specifies the activities of a viable political system and explains how these functions must performed in order to maintain the stability of the political system. 5. **Political Economy Approach:** Focuses on the relationship between government and economics. Highlights the role of government concerning regulation, support or intervention in economic and social affairs. ## Branches of Social Science Related to Political Science * **History:** Study of past events * **Economics:** Study of the production, consumption, conservation, and distribution of a state's wealth. * **Philosophy:** Study of the underlying principles applied in the government * **Psychology:** Individual's behavior * **Sociology:** Group behavior * **Geopolitics:** Focuses on physical factors of a state such as population and sources of raw materials. * **Statistics and Logic:** Used in the treatment of data to yield a logical finding. * **Jurisprudence:** Analysis of existing law. ## Fields/Scope of Political Science 1. **Political Theory/Political Philosophy:** Concerned with questions about value judgments and the history and development of the ideas of great political thinkers. * **Political Philosophy** is sometimes called value or normative theory because it is concerned primarily with values, norms, and morality. It attempts to examine the connections among facts, values, and judgments. * **Theory** is an important part of all political science fields because it is used in the explanation and prediction of political phenomena. 2. **Political Dynamics:** Concerned with forces influencing the political process, such as political parties, public issues and opinions, and pressure groups (POs, NGOs, or civil society). 3. **Public Administration:** Concerned with how policies are formulated and implemented within the large bureaucratic structure of government. 4. **Public Law/Policy:** Analyzes and evaluates policies in areas such as defense, health, education, and resource development 5. **International Relations:** Focuses on the foreign policies of countries, international organizations, and international law in order to learn more about the interactions among states. 6. **Comparative Government and Politics:** A wide field with many subdivisions. Primarily concerned with comparing the politics and government of different states. It is the study of the macro-politics of states. # Lesson 2: Fundamentals of State ## Learning Objectives When you finish this lesson, you will be able to: 1. Understand the concept of nation and state. 2. Identify and discuss the essential elements of state 3. Distinguish state from nation and government. 4. Discuss the theoretical basis/origin of states 5. Understand the importance of one's citizenship and its effect to the exercise of their rights. 6. Differentiate natural-born and naturalized Filipino citizens 7. Identify the different forms of government 8. Determine the origin and growth of each government 9. Describe the general features of each government 10. Determine the advantages and disadvantages of each government 11. Realize the importance of having an appropriate form of government ## Keywords and Phrases * nation * terrestrial * aerial * evolution theory * fluvial domain * sovereignty * necessity/force theory * instinctive * instinctive theory * social contract theory * totalitarianism * federalism * naturalization * oligarchy * parliamentary * nationality * citizenship * dual allegiance * dual citizenship * citizenship by election ## Introduction * **State:** Defined by Quentin Skinner as a locus of power distinct from either the ruler or the body of the people. * Others argue the word "state" conveys both ruler and people, implying order and stability for the whole community, but also coercion by the power which does the ordering. **Notable definitions of the state include:** * St. Thomas Aquinas: formulated the concept of the state as the "set order of the rulers." * Martin Luther: Contributed to the evolution of the state, highlighting the division of spiritual (Church) and temporal (state) power, and emphasizing the ruler's responsibility to govern with respect to the nobles and the common good of the people. ## Key Concepts ### State * A community of people, more or less numerous, permanently occupying a definite portion of territory, independent of external control, and possessing a government to which a great body of inhabitants render habitual obedience (Collector of Internal Revenue v. Campos Rueda). ### Nation * A group of people bound together by certain characteristics such as common social origin, language, customs and traditions, and who believe that they are one and distinct from others (De Leon, Textbook on the Philippine Constitution). ### State vs. Nation vs. Government * **State:** A political concept. * **Nation:** An ethnic concept. * **Government:** The instrument through which the will of the state is expressed. * **States may consist of one or more nations.** Example: The United States of America is a melting pot of several nationalities. * **A single nation may be made up of several states.** Example: The Arab Nation is divided into several states such as Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, etc. (De Leon, Textbook on the Philippine Constitution). ### State vs. Government * A government can exist without the state while the state cannot exist without a government. * A government may change, its form may change, but the state, as long as its essential elements are present, remains the same. ## Inherent Powers of the State 1. **Police Power:** Promoting the public welfare by restraining and regulating the use of liberty and property (Freund). 2. **Power of Eminent Domain:** The government's coercive authority, upon just compensation, to forcibly acquire a property to devote it to public use. 3. **Power of Taxation:** The power to raise revenue. ## Comparison of the Inherent Powers of the State | Power | Compensation | Use of Property | Objective | What it Regulates | Who may Exercise | |---|---|---|---|---|---| | Police Power | None | Appropriated for public use | To destroy or restrain noxious use of property | Liberty and property | State | | Eminent Domain | Just compensation | Appropriated for public use | Property taken; not necessarily noxious | Property Rights | State and Private Entities | | Taxation | None | Appropriated for public use | Earn revenue for the government | Property rights | State | ## Elements of State 1. **People:** Must be composed of both sexes to allow continuity through reproduction. Adequate number for self-sufficiency and defense. 2. **Territory:** The portion of the earth's surface permanently inhabited by the people. Includes the terrestrial, fluvial, maritime, and aerial domains. ### National Territory of the Philippines (Art. 1) * The national territory comprises the Philippine archipelago, with all the islands and waters embraced therein, and all other territories over which the Philippines has sovereignty or jurisdiction. * Including its terrestrial, fluvial, and aerial domains; territorial sea, the seabed, the subsoil, the insular shelves, and other submarine areas (Section 1, Article I). * **Territory:** The fixed portion on the surface of the earth on which the State settles and over which it has supreme authority. Includes the terrestrial, fluvial, maritime, and aerial domains. ## Land Territory (Terrestrial Domain) * May be integrated or dismembered, or partly bound by water or consist of one whole island. * May also be composed of several islands, like the Philippines, which constitutes mid-ocean archipelagos as distinguished from the coastal archipelagos like Greece. ## Maritime Territory (Fluvial and Maritime Domain) ### UNCLOS (1982) * The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), also called the Law of the Sea Convention and the Law of the Sea Treaty, is the international agreement that resulted from the Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS III) from 1973 through 1982. * Defines the rights and responsibilities of nations in their use of the world's oceans, establishing guidelines for businesses, the environment, and the management of marine natural resources. * **Replaced four 1958 treaties:** * Convention on the Territorial Sea and Contiguous Zone (10 September 1964) * Convention on the Continental Shelf (10 June 1964) * Convention on the High Seas (30 September 1962) * Convention on Fishing and Conservation of Living Resources of the High Seas (20 March 1966) * **Came into force in 1994**, when Guyana became the 60th state to sign the treaty. * **Currently 155 countries and the European Community** have joined in the Convention. * The **United States signed the treaty** but the Senate has not ratified it. * **Regarded as a codification of the customary international law** on the issue. * **The Secretary General of the United Nations receives instruments of ratification and accession and the UN provides support for meetings of states party to the Convention.** * The **United Nations has no direct operational role in the implementation of the Convention.** * The **International Maritime Organization, the International Whaling Commission, and the International Seabed Authority** (the latter being established by the UN Convention) **play a role**. ### The Issue of Varying Claims of Territorial Waters * Introduced by Arvid Pardo of Malta to the UN in 1967. * The Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea was convened in New York in 1973. * **Consensus process** (rather than a majority vote) used to reduce the possibility of groups of nation-states dominating the negotiations. * More than 160 nations participated. * **Came into force on November 16, 1994**, one year after the sixtieth state, Guyana, signed the treaty. ### Provisions of the Convention * Setting limits * Navigation * Archipelagic status and transit regimes * Exclusive economic zones (EEZs) * Continental shelf jurisdiction * Deep seabed mining * Exploitation regime * Protection of the marine environment * Scientific research * Settlement of disputes ## Areas Covered by Maritime Territory 1. **Internal waters:** It covers all water and waterways on the landward side of the baseline. The coastal state is free to set laws, regulate use, and use any resource. Foreign vessels have no right of passage within internal waters. 2. **Territorial waters:** Out to 12 nautical miles from the baseline, the coastal state is free to set laws, regulate use, and use any resource. Vessels were given *the right of "innocent passage"* through any territorial waters. * **Strategic straits** allow *transit passage*, in that naval vessels are allowed to maintain postures that would be illegal in territorial waters. * **"Innocent passage" ** is defined by the convention as passing through waters in an expeditious and continuous manner, which is not "prejudicial to the peace, good order or the security" of the coastal state. Fishing, polluting, weapons practice, and spying are not "innocent", and submarines and other underwater vehicles are required to navigate on the surface and to show their flag. Nations can also temporarily suspend innocent passage in specific areas of their territorial seas if doing so is essential for the protection of its security. 3. **Archipelagic waters:** Defined in Part IV of the convention, which also defines how the state can draw its territorial borders. A baseline is drawn between the outermost points of the outermost islands, subject to these points being sufficiently close to one another. All waters inside this baseline will be Archipelagic Waters and included as part of the state's internal waters. 4. **Contiguous zone:** Extends 12 nautical miles (24 nautical miles from the territorial sea baselines limit) from the territorial sea baselines limit. Allows the state to continue to enforce laws regarding activities such as smuggling or illegal immigration. 5. **Exclusive economic zones (EEZs):** Extend 200 nautical miles from the baseline. The coastal nation has sole exploitation rights over all natural resources. * The EEZs were introduced to halt heated clashes over fishing rights, although oil was also becoming important. * The success of an offshore oil platform in the Gulf of Mexico in 1947 was soon repeated elsewhere in the world, and by 1970 it was technically feasible to operate in waters 4000 meters deep. * Foreign nations have the freedom of navigation and overflight, subject to the regulation of the coastal states. Foreign states may also lay submarine pipes and cables. 6. **Continental shelf:** Defined as the natural prolongation of the land territory to the continental margin's outer edge, or 200 nautical miles from the coastal state's baseline, whichever is greater. May exceed 200 nautical miles until the natural prolongation ends, but it may never exceed 350 nautical miles, or 100 nautical miles beyond 2,500-meter isobath. * Coastal states have the right to harvest mineral and non-living material in the subsoil of its continental shelf, to the exclusion of others. ### Other Provisions of the Convention * General obligations for safeguarding the marine environment and protecting freedom of scientific research on the high seas. * Created an innovative legal regime for controlling mineral resource exploitation in deep seabed areas beyond national jurisdiction, through an International Seabed Authority. * Landlocked states are given a right of access to and from the sea, without taxation of traffic through transit states. ### Part XI * Provides for a regime relating to minerals on the seabed outside any state's territorial waters or EEZ. * Establishes an International Seabed Authority (ISA) to authorize seabed exploration and mining and collect and distribute the seabed mining royalty. ### The Philippine Position * **Archipelago doctrine:** Articulated in the second sentence of Article I, Sec 1 of the 1987 Constitution. * Our islands (as many as 7,100) should be considered one integrated whole instead of being fragmented into separate units each with its own territorial sea. * In defining the internal waters of the archipelago, straight baselines should be drawn to connect appropriate points of the outermost islands without departing too radically from the general direction of one whole territory. * The waters inside these baselines shall be considered internal and thus not subject to entry by foreign vessels without consent of the local state. * The archipelago doctrine has been embodied in the 1982 Convention of the Law of the Sea, with the modification that archipelagic sea lanes shall be designated over the internal waters through which foreign vessels shall have the right of passage. ## Aerial Domains * The air space above the land and waters of the State. ### The Convention on International Civil Aviation (1944) * Also known as the Chicago Convention. * Established the ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organization), a specialized agency of the United Nations. * Charged with coordinating and regulating international air travel. * Establishes rules of airspace, aircraft registration and safety, and details the rights of the signatories in relation to air travel. * Exempts air fuels from tax. ### Key Elements of the Convention * **Article 1, Sovereignty:** Recognizes that every state has complete and exclusive sovereignty over the airspace above its territory. * **Article 2, Territory:** Defines the territory of a State as the land areas and territorial waters adjacent thereto under the sovereignty, suzerainty, protection, or mandate of such State. ### Outer Space * The rules governing the high seas also apply to outer space, which is considered *res communes*. * States have the right to launch satellites in orbit over the territorial space of other States. ### The Outer Space Treaty (1967) * Formally known as the Treaty on Principles Governing the Activities of States in the Exploration and Use of Outer Space, including the Moon and Other Celestial Bodies. * Forms the basis of international space law. * Opened for signature in the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Soviet Union on January 27, 1967. * Entered into force on October 10, 1967. **Key provisions:** * **Art. IV:** Bars States Parties to the Treaty from placing nuclear weapons or any other weapons of mass destruction in orbit of Earth, installing them on the Moon or any other celestial body, or to otherwise station them in outer space. Limits the use of the Moon and other celestial bodies to peaceful purposes and expressly prohibits their use for testing weapons of any kind, conducting military maneuvers, or establishing military bases, installations, and fortifications. * **Note:** The Treaty does not prohibit the placement of conventional weapons in orbit. * **Art. II:** States that "outer space, including the Moon and other celestial bodies, is not subject to national appropriation by claim of sovereignty, by means of use or occupation, or by any other means". * **Art. VI:** Deals with international responsibility, stating that "the activities of non-governmental entities in outer space, including the moon and other celestial bodies, shall require authorization and continuing supervision by the appropriate State Party to the Treaty" and that States Parties shall bear international responsibility for national space activities whether carried out by governmental or non-governmental entities. * **Art. IX:** A consultation clause was inserted in following discussions arising from Project West Ford: "A State Party to the Treaty which has reason to believe that an activity or experiment planned by another State Party in outer space, including the Moon and other celestial bodies, would cause potentially harmful interference with activities in the peaceful exploration and use of outer space, including the Moon and other celestial bodies, may request consultation concerning the activity or experiment." ### Legal Concepts Regarding Outer Space * **Res communes:** An area belonging to all. * **The Moon falls under the legal concept of *res communis*.** May be used by every member of the group, but cannot be appropriated by anyone (the concept is also applied to International Waters) * **The Outer Space Treaty's effect is to restrict control of private property rights.** * **The way that the law of the sea prevents anyone owning the sea is often disputed.** ## Modes of Acquiring Territory 1. **Discovery and Occupation:** A state may acquire territory through this mode by discovering a continent, island, or land with no inhabitants or occupied by uncivilized inhabitants, and thereafter, occupying it under its political administration. Discovery without subsequent occupation is not sufficient to acquire territory. 2. **Prescription:** Acquiring territory through continuous and undisputed exercise of sovereignty over it during such a period as is necessary to create under the influence of historical development the general conviction that the present condition of things is in conformity with international order. 3. **Cession:** The assignment, transfer, or yielding up of territory by one state or government to another. 4. **Accretion:** Adding territory by addition of portions of soil, either artificial (such as the reclamation in Manila Bay) or natural (by gradual deposition through the operation of natural causes such as the waves of the ocean). 5. **Subjugation and Annexation:** Acquiring territory belonging to a state by occupation and conquest made by another state in the course of war and by annexation at the end of the war. ## Government * The agency or instrumentality through which the will of the State is formulated, expressed and realized (US v. Dorr). ### Government of the Philippines Defined * The corporate governmental entity through which the functions of government are exercised throughout the Philippines, including, save as the contrary appears from the context, the various arms through which the political authority is made effective in the Philippines, whether pertaining to the autonomous regions, the provincial, city, municipal or barangay subdivisions or other forms of local government (Section 2 (1), Administrative code of 1987) ### Government Defined in General * Refers to the legislators, administrators, and arbitrators in the administrative bureaucracy who control a state at a given time. * Refers to the system of government by which they are organized. * The means by which state policy is enforced as well as the mechanism for determining the policy of the state. * A form of government, or form of state governance, is a set of political institutions by which a government of a state is organized. * Synonymns for the term “government” include "regime type" and “system of government”. ### Etymology of *Government* * Derived from the Latin infinitive *gubernare*, meaning "to govern” or “to manage". * In parliamentary systems, "government" refers to what in presidential systems would be the executive branch. It is composed of the prime minister and the cabinet. * In other cases, "government" refers to executive, legislative, judicial, bureaucratic, and possibly also devolved powers. ## Forms of Government 1. **Number of persons exercising sovereign powers** 2. **Extent of powers exercised by the central or national government** 3. **The relationship between the executive and the legislative branches of the government** ### Monarchy * The supreme and final power is in the hands of a single person and is classified as: * **Absolute Monarchy:** The king/queen holds absolute power. * **Limited Monarchy:** The king/queen's power is limited by a constitution or parliament. ### Aristocracy * Political power is exercised by a few privileged classes. * Sometimes called government by the best, due to the fact that access to the ruling aristocratic class is based not only on birth and wealth but upon physical, intellectual, and moral qualities. ### Oligarchy * A government whereby authority is vested in a few individuals or families. ### Democracy * Political power is exercised by a majority of the people and is further classified as: * **Direct or pure democracy:** People make decisions directly through voting. * **Indirect, representative, or republican democracy:** People elect representatives to make decisions on their behalf. ### Centralized/Unitary * A form of government where the control over national and local affairs is exercised by the central or national government. ### Federal Government * The powers of the government are divided fundamentally between two organizations, each having its own definite sphere of authority, and neither having the power to interfere with or destroy the other. ### Parliamentary Government * The head of government is dependent on the direct or indirect support of the parliament, often expressed through a vote of confidence. * Hence, no clear cut separation of powers. * Usually have a clear differentiation between the head of government and the head of state. ### Presidential Government * The offices of the head of the government and head of state are combined in a single man—the President. * The entire executive power is vested in the President, and all government action is his responsibility. * The presidential system provides for a Chief Executive who is elected for a definite term of office, who holds a wide public mandate as a result of his election, and who is largely independent of the legislative branch for the conduct of his administration His formal powers are defined in a documentary constitution. * Because he is both Chief of State and political leader of the government, his prestige and authority are doubly enhanced. ### Totalitarian Government * A government where the state controls every aspect of the people's life. * The state may have promised to extend certain rights to the people, but these rights exist only on paper. * In reality, there are no rights under a totalitarian state; they exist for the use of the state. ### Authoritarian Government * Its political power rests on some absolute authority, and it does not recognize the sovereignty of the people but at the same time allows them some civil rights, limited though those may be. ### De Jure Government * Has the legal recognition of the family of nations, but it may exist alongside a rival government which is de facto. ### De Facto Government * Has set itself up in the state; it has its own set of officials, laws, etc., but it does not have international recognition although it may want that. ## Sovereignty * The supreme, absolute, and uncontrollable power by which an independent state is governed. * The paramount control of the constitution and the frame of government and its administration. ### Internal Sovereignty * The power to control and direct the internal affairs of a country such as the authority to enact, execute, and apply laws. * Under international law, internal sovereignty is not a factor in determining whether an entity is a state. ### External Sovereignty * The power of an independent state to control and direct its external affairs such as the authority to enter into treaties with other states, to wage war, and to receive and send diplomatic missions. ### Recognition * An act which gives a state an international status. ## Theories of State Origin * Explains how states arose. 1. **Divine Right Theory:** Asserts that a state is of divine origin, for all political authority emanates from God. 2. **Paternalistic/Patriarchal Theory:** Views the state as an extension of the family. 3. **Social Contract Theory:** A dominant political creed of the 17th and 18th centuries, replacing the divine theory. This was done by a contract or compact among people whereby each one surrendered his natural liberty. 4. **Necessity/Force Theory:** Provides that the state has arisen through sheer force: a man dominating a tribe through brute strength and cunning; a tribe conquering other tribes to form a kingdom; this kingdom smashing other kingdoms to transform itself into an empire; and empires and kingdoms clashing against one another for supremacy. 5. **Instinctive Theory:** Holds that political institutions are but objective expressions of the instinct of men for association. 6. **Historical/Evolution Theory:** States that the state is the product of history, meaning that it is the gradual and continuous development of human society, out of a grossly imperfect beginning, through crude but improving forms of manifestation, toward a perfect and universal organization of mankind. 7. **Economic Theory:** The state was created primarily to take care of man's multifarious needs.