What did democracy really mean in Athens? - Melissa Schwartzberg

Šta je demokratija zaista značila u Atini? - Melisa Švorcberg (Melissa Schwartzberg)

Prevodilac: Milena Kocic Lektor: Mile Živković

Hey, congratulations!

Hej, čestitamo,

You've just won the lottery,

upravo ste dobili na lutriji,

only the prize isn't cash or a luxury cruise.

samo što nagrada nije novac ili luksuzno krstarenje.

It's a position in your country's national legislature.

Već pozicija u državnom zakonodavstvu u Vašoj zemlji.

And you aren't the only lucky winner.

A niste jedino vi srećni dobitnik.

All of your fellow lawmakers were chosen in the same way.

Sve vaše kolege zakonodavci izabrani su na isti način.

This might strike you as a strange way to run a government,

Ovo vam se možda čini kao čudan način upravljanja vladom,

let alone a democracy.

a kamoli demokratijom.

Elections are the epitome of democracy, right?

Izbori su ovaploćenje demokratije, zar ne?

Well, the ancient Athenians who coined the word had another view.

Pa vidite, stari Atinjani koji su stvorili ovu kovanicu, imali su drugačiji stav.

In fact, elections only played a small role in Athenian democracy,

U stvari, izbori su igrali samo malu ulogu u demokratiji Atine,

with most offices filled by random lottery from a pool of citizen volunteers.

gde su građani volonteri uz pomoć nasumične lutrije dolazili na pozicije.

Unlike the representative democracies common today,

Za razliku od predstavničkih demokratija današnjice,

where voters elect leaders to make laws and decisions on their behalf,

gde glasači biraju predvodnike koji donose zakone i odlučuju u njihovo ime,

5th Century BC Athens was a direct democracy

u petom veku pre nove ere, Atina je bila direktna demokratija

that encouraged wide participation

koja je podsticala široko učešće

through the principle of ho boulomenos, or anyone who wishes.

pomoću principa ho boulomenos, ili ko god želi.

This meant that any of its approximately 30,000 eligible citizens

To znači da je bilo ko od oko 30000 odgovarajućih građana

could attend the ecclesia,

moglo da prisustvuje Eklesiji,

a general assembly meeting several times a month.

narodnoj skupštini koja se sastajala nekoliko puta mesečno.

In principle, any of the 6,000 or so who showed up at each session

U načelu, bilo ko od njih oko 6000 koji su prisustvovali svakoj sednici

had the right to address their fellow citizens,

imao je prava da se obrati svojim sugrađanima,

propose a law,

da predloži zakon,

or bring a public lawsuit.

ili da podnese javnu tužbu.

Of course, a crowd of 6,000 people trying to speak at the same time

Naravno, grupa od 6000 ljudi koji pokušavaju da pričaju u isto vreme

would not have made for effective government.

nija mogla da sačinjava delotvornu vladu.

So the Athenian system also relied on a 500 member governing council

Tako da se sistem u Atini oslanjao i na 500 članova koji su upravljali savetom

called the Boule,

zvanim Bule,

to set the agenda and evaluate proposals,

gde su postavljali dnevni red i ocenjivali predloge,

in addition to hundreds of jurors and magistrates to handle legal matters.

uz još na stotine porotnika i sudija koji su se bavili pravnim pitanjima.

Rather than being elected or appointed,

Umesto da budu izabrani ili postavljeni,

the people in these positions were chosen by lot.

ljudi na ovim pozicijama birani su pomoću lutrije.

This process of randomized selection is know as sortition.

Ovaj postupak nasumičnog odabira poznat je i kao žreb.

The only positions filled by elections

Jedini koji su birani na izborima

were those recognized as requiring expertise,

bili su oni koji su vršili funkcije za koje je bilo potrebno znanje,

such as generals.

kao što su generali.

But these were considered aristocratic, meaning rule by the best,

Ali, smatralo se da su to aristokratije, odnosno vladavine najboljih,

as opposed to democracies, rule by the many.

za razliku od demokratija, vladavine većine.

How did this system come to be?

Kako je nastao ovakav sistem?

Well, democracy arose in Athens after long periods of social and political tension

Demokratija se javila u Atini nakog dugog perioda društvene i političke tenzije

marked by conflict among nobles.

obeleženog sukobima u plemstvu.

Powers once restricted to elites,

Moć koja je nekada pripadala eliti,

such as speaking in the assembly and having their votes counted,

kao što je govor u skupštini i uvažavanje glasova,

were expanded to ordinary citizens.

proširila se na obične građane.

And the ability of ordinary citizens to perform these tasks

A sposobnost običnih građana da izvrše ove zadatke

adequately became a central feature of the democratice ideology of Athens.

s pravom je postala centralno obeležje demokratske ideologije u Atini.

Umesto da bude privilegija,

Rather than a privilege,

civic participation was the duty of all citizens,

učešće građana bilo je obaveza svih građana,

with sortition and strict term limits preventing governing classes

uz žrebove i stroge odrednice koji su sprečavali formiranje

or political parties from forming.

vladajuće klase ili političkih partija.

By 21st century standards,

Po standardima XXI veka,

Athenian rule by the many excluded an awful lot of people.

atinska vladavina većine isključivala je veliki broj ljudi.

Women, slaves and foreigners were denied full citizenship,

Žene, robovi i stranci nisu mogli biti punopravni građani,

and when we filter out those too young to serve,

a kada isključimo one koji su premladi da bi služili,

the pool of eligible Athenians drops to only 10-20% of the overall population.

grupa odgovarajućih Atinjana spada na tek 10-20% ukupnog stanovništva.

Some ancient philosophers, including Plato,

Neki drevni filozofi, uključujući i Platona,

disparaged this form of democracy as being anarchic and run by fools.

omalovažavali su ovaj oblik demokratije, kao anarhiju kojom upravljaju budale.

But today the word has such positive associations,

Ali danas ova reč ima tako pozitivnu konotaciju,

that vastly different regimes claim to embody it.

da veoma širok spektar različitih režima polaže pravo na nju.

At the same time, some share Plato's skepticism about the wisdom of crowds.

Istovremeno, neki dele Platonovu sumnjičavost u vezi sa mudrošću gomile.

Many modern democracies reconcile this conflict

Mnoge moderne demokratije rešavaju ovaj problem

by having citizens elect those they consider qualified

tako što građani biraju one koje smatraju kvalifikovanima

to legislate on their behalf.

za donošenje zakona u njihovo ime.

But this poses its own problems,

Ali to sa sobom nosi probleme,

including the influence of wealth,

kao što je uticaj bogatstva,

and the emergence of professional politicians

i pojava profesionalnih političara

with different interests than their constituents.

sa interesovanjima koja se razlikuju od njihovih birača.

Could reviving election by lottery lead to more effective government

Da li bi oživljavanje izbora pomoću žreba moglo voditi ka efikasnijoj vladi

through a more diverse and representative group of legislatures?

uz veću raznolikost i reprezentativnost zakononodavnog tela?

Or does modern political office, like Athenian military command,

Ili da li moderna politička služba, kao što je atinska Vojna komanda,

require specialized knowledge and skills?

zahteva stručno znanje i veštine?

You probably shouldn't hold your breath

Verovatno ne morate držati palčeve

to win a spot in your country's government.

kako biste osvojili mesto u vladi svoje zemlje.

But depending on where you live,

Ali, u zavisnosti od toga gde živite,

you may still be selected to participate in a jury,

ipak možete bit izabrani za učešće u poroti,

a citizens' assembly,

skupštini građana,

or a deliberative poll,

ili savetodavnom telu,

all examples of how the democratic principle behind sortition

što su sve primeri toga kako je demokratski princip iza žreba

still survives today.

preživeo do danas.