Conceptualizing the STATE and the PEOPLE

Prof. Lourdes Veneracion-Rallonza, PhD

Department of Political Science

Ateneo de Manila University

Some philosophical constructs on the ‘state’…

PLATO: arises out of man’s lack of self-sufficiency

ARISTOTLE: man, a political animal, is intended to live in a state (polis)

ST. THOMAS AQUINAS: the state is given by God to aid man in his pursuits of eternal life

MACHIAVELLI: basically a power system, an instrument of the prince to have, maintain and expand power

HOBBES: a product of a contract and with the parties’ consent

LOCKE: an institution agreed upon by free, equal, independent, and rational men in order to secure the natural rights of men

ROUSSEAU: the only thing that can legitimize the chains that men have acquired, and it is only through the state that men could have true freedom

Historical Predecessors of the modern state…

CITY STATE: a small polity located in the Mediterranean

during the time of ancient Greece (e.g. Athens, Sparta)

EMPIRE: internally fragmented & ethnically

heterogeneous, being composed of numerous culturally

distinct tribal societies which converges on the center city

(e.g. Roman)

PATRIMONIAL STATE: organization of royal (i.e. ruled

by the king)household in w/c the structure of authority

developed w/ the territorial expansion of royal jurisdiction

MEDIEVAL STATE: transformation of feudalism into rule

by centralized, medieval states; power centers were the king

& the church

ABSOLUTIST STATE: transformation of political space

into the idea of territoriality (e.g. England, France)

LIBERAL CONSTITUTIONAL STATE: 19th century

development where the state is founded on the consent of

the rule; state’s power must be legitimated

The State…

After the institutionalization of the Treaty of

Westphalia in 1648, it became the dominant

political organization in international politics.

A legal concept; as a physical entity, its basically a

place that has the following elements:

People Territory

Government sovereignty

The importance of national interest…

Variable national interests

Fixed national interests:

existence

security

Well-being

What defines the ‘people’?

Culture or the sense of

belongingness/identity consciousness as

powered by religion, language,

customs/traditions and historicity.

Citizenship or the sense of valuing the people

in the society (rights) and the sense of

obliging them to return something back to

society (duties)

Citizenship as Rights: Human Rights are…

HR are inherent to or part of the human

person;

HR are inalienable, thus, they cannot be

taken away from anybody; and

HR are universal; they are not limited by

boundaries and are recognized by humankind

Basic Principles of Human Rights…

Equality – all persons are equal regardless of sex, religion, race, creed, political belief, etc.

Collective rights – HR enjoyed by the whole society

State guarantee – the government has the responsibility of protecting and defending HR

Classification

Civil rights or those granted to private

individuals for the purpose of securing the

enjoyment of their right to happiness

Social & Cultural rights pertain to a

person’s freedom to benefit from her/is

capacity for learning and transferring

knowledge to succeeding generations

Classification

Economic rights are intended to ensure the

well-being and economic security of the

individual

Political rights pertain to rights to

participate actively in governance

Citizenship as Duties: Basic duties of citizens…

Love of country

Defense of the (Philippine) state

Upholding the Constitution and obeying the laws

Contribution to the development and welfare of the country

Cooperation with duly-constituted authorities

Responsible exercise of rights and respect the rights of others

Election of good leaders in government

How is citizenship acquired?

Modern law recognizes three distinct ways of acquiring citizenship:

1. Jus sanguinis - or Law of the Blood. Under this principle, children acquire the citizenship of their parents.

2. Jus soli - or Law of the Soil. Under this principle, children acquire the citizenship of the place of birth.

3. Naturalization - the legal act of adopting an alien as a citizen.

Distinguishing between citizenship and nationality

Citizenship bound to territorial state

Implies symbiotic relationship between people and state

A practice, a form of belonging, resting on a set of legal, social & participatory entitlements (w/c may be conferred irregardless of nationality)

Nationality bound to a group of people

Implies the politico-cultural (historicity, language, tradition) relationship between state and the people

Serves as a legal identity from w/c no rights need arise but obligation might