Ideological diversity is a concept considered by the Constitution of the Russian Federation and regulated in our country by legal standards, laws.
The basis of the current order
Studying the Constitution, it can be noted that already in the first chapter all fundamental legal standards that are significant for our country are listed. Further regulation occurs, focusing on this base. Moreover, the rights and freedoms of a citizen are at the forefront. Also, the first chapter of the Constitution is devoted to the declaration of the power of the people, the declaration of a single economic space. There are certain clarifications regarding local self-government, property. Ideological diversity, multi-party system, distribution of power along the hierarchical ladder are considered.
The constitutional system assumes that there are some values of society, the state, recognized as basic. All must be respected unconditionally. There are no exceptions, the standards apply to individuals and groups united on some basis.
The basis of peace and prosperity
Constitutional norms can be compared with the skeleton, on the basis of which the legal regulation in the state is built. This framework is subject to all legal sectors. All legal acts of the country must comply with the Constitution and be devoted to the detailed disclosure of the main provisions. The principle of ideological diversity is no exception.
The Constitution declares the relationship between man and the state. In fact, it is the basis of the legal status of an individual citizen. The consolidation of the ideological diversity of the Russian Federation in this most important legal act has become clear evidence that the country has left socialism in the past. If we turn to the previous Constitution (adopted in 1977 in the Soviet Union), we can see that the basic document declared mono-ideology, namely, scientific communism. The country was under the control of the Communist Party, was forced to obey the teachings of Marx and Lenin in everything.
Freedom is important
How great is the significance of ideological diversity in the Russian Federation, you can understand, even if you just look around. Society includes an abundance of groups formed on the basis of faiths, political views, and social aspects. Their interests overlap, but not always. Universal values are recognized by some groups, rejected by others in whole or in part. All this diversity of worldviews was concentrated in the Constitution, and the right to one’s point of view was declared through the principle of ideological diversity in the Russian Federation.
The ideological postulates in the country are based on numerous concepts relevant to modern society. These are the rights of an individual, and the democratic structure of society, as well as local self-government, a market economy.
Theory and practice
The current Constitution was adopted in 1993. This period turned out to be sufficient to summarize certain statistics, and already today many scientists, sociologists, and politicians agree that the principles of ideological and political diversity proved to be much less effective than it was intended.
Initially, the idea was such that it is through diversity, a large number of parties, that you can set guidelines for the development of society. It was assumed that if a deviation from the given course occurs, the country will find itself in stagnation, which will affect not only political aspects, but also the economy, social sphere and other social systems.
Search for the culprits
At the same time, it must be recognized that this was assumed only by a certain group of persons. The text of the Constitution itself does not directly contain such a guideline. Therefore, to say that the main legal document is to blame for the lack of development of the country is incorrect.
Of course, the Constitution declares ideological and political diversity, but the actual implementation of the document specified in this document rests with various state institutions. Responsibility lies with executive and legislative bodies, including local government in the regions. But one cannot deny the fact that the constitutional foundations of ideological diversity are one of the instruments for uniting society into a single whole. That is, without ideology, the development of the state is impossible. Many experts agree that, given the current state of things, the normal development of the country is further impossible precisely because of the lack of unity in society.
Ideology: is it or not?
If the constitutional principles of ideological diversity are adopted in the country, there is no unambiguous ideology directed by the authorities, this is not a reason to speak about the absence of an ideological struggle as such. In fact, the Constitution simply declares that the government cannot support a particular ideology and impose it on citizens.
Some scholars are convinced that the effective development of ideological and political diversity over time will lead to the formation of an ideological concept. Its distinguishing feature will be the consideration of the interests of all nationalities of the state. It is assumed that such a development will help to integrate popular forces, due to which tasks that are important for society as a whole will be more effectively addressed.
Theoretical aspects
Ideological diversity has three significant aspects:
- the basis of the law declared in the Constitution;
- principle of law;
- institute of law.
Ideology includes concepts, theories, ideas formed by a collective or individual. They are formed in various spheres of social interaction, such as politics, religion, culture, society, and economy. That is, in fact, ideological diversity is a qualitative description of life in the context of society, the state. Ideologies can be formed freely, they enter into rivalry with each other and share, developing.
To be free is an inalienable right
This is what the Constitution in force in our country says. From the most important legal act it follows that every citizen has the right to think, say what he believes is right, true. In addition, ideological diversity implies media freedom.
It is impossible to forbid a person to think as he believes to be true. If a certain citizen has found for himself an ideology that seems to him the most fair, accurate, correct, no one from the outside can tell him that this is a wrong decision. But it is not necessary to join an existing ideology, you can create your own, unique postulates that reflect an individual view of the world, your own position. That is how various theories appeared. Some of them were soon forgotten, while others turned life on the planet upside down.
Freedom of Thought and Freedom of Speech
The main distinguishing features of these two freedoms are legal regulation. What a person says is to some extent controlled by laws, authorities, and the state. What a person thinks is subject only to him.
Freedom of thought is given to people by nature, it is a natural right and property, due to personality traits. Freedom of thought is directly related to the individual’s attitude to events, objects, and other things surrounding him. A person can himself formulate the beliefs that he will adhere to. The process takes place inside, it is closely connected with the personality, psyche, upbringing, education. Many people, taking advantage of the freedom of thought, do not show their convictions to anyone at all, but more than those who seek to express their own attitude to a certain object and share it with others in order to find supporters of their position. Here the freedom of speech, which ideally every citizen has, becomes an actual concept. This means that a person has the right to formulate his thoughts, pronounce them, write down.
Freedom and power
It follows from the Constitution that the authorities do not have the right to interfere in the process of forming beliefs, opinions of individuals. Moreover, the state is obliged to protect the right of a citizen to form his position. Violence, dictatorship, control by those in power regarding citizens are unacceptable phenomena.
Freedom of speech in our country is guaranteed by the provisions of the Constitution. From the main normative legal act it follows that every individual has the right to express his position on a certain issue. Such standards were included, as required by international standards in the field of respect for human rights. At the same time, many say that the freedoms of thought and speech are closely interconnected and represent a single whole. Any person should be able to think as he sees fit, and express his thoughts by sharing them with others. It is unacceptable that freedom of thought, freedom of speech provoke persecution both by other people and by the authorities.
Media and ideology
The media is one of the most important tools for the formation of ideology in society. It is through the media that one can convey to people the notion of democracy and the “correct” worldview. Therefore, freedom of speech and freedom of the media go to one of the first places in a society striving for real freedom.
Media is a method of ideologically orienting a citizen, one of the ways to socialize an individual. They are indispensable in a democratic society, as they provide an influx of fresh information about what is happening around - positive and negative events. But information is not the only thing an individual receives through the media. They give an idea of various ideologies. Under the conditions of ideological diversity declared by laws through the media, it is possible to convey to people all the abundance of different positions, but it is also possible to conduct campaigns in favor of a specific (usually the most beneficial for the authorities) direction. Ideally, through the media, free competition of opinions can be achieved, for which citizens are provided with access to information.
We are imposing a point of view: or is it still impossible?
So, theoretically, through the media, one can propagandize one or another ideology that is beneficial for managers who keep the country under control. But this question is extremely delicate: of course, the ruling party is interested in promoting an ideology favorable to it, but according to the law it does not have the right to commit such acts. It follows from the Constitution that in our country it is impossible to name a mandatory ideology or choose one and designate it as a state.
In fact, the said ban applies to all officials and politicians, including the President. “Games” are also unacceptable for executive and legislative authorities. Even individuals cannot impose some ideology on others if they want to. Through such a ban, it was possible to limit the power of state authorities and the state as such.
