Imagine this… Canada’s Prime Minister is killed in a plane crash. Police suspect terrorism. Media reports use hateful language and accuse one minority group of “murder”…in Parliament, rebels claiming to represent the majority seize control of the government. Chaos follows. Across the country, members of the minority group are hunted down and killed. Canada is engulfed in violence. Hundreds of thousands of Canadians are killed before it ends and no one knows if the peace will last. Nobody knows if law & order can be restored. The countries of the world do nothing……

Why is government necessary? Scenarios like the one on the previous slide are extremely unlikely in Canada today; however, similar events happened in Rwanda (a democratic country in Africa) in 1994 Government is a system by which a group of people makes the laws (principles and regulations) that enforced to guide the affairs of a community

(and attempts to answer the question of why government is necessary!) Civics! Civics (defined as the study of the rights and duties of citizenship), explores the ideas of: Citizenship – defined as the condition of having the rights, duties and responsibilities as a member of a state or nation Government Public decision making (and attempts to answer the question of why government is necessary!)

Role of Government To protect its citizens and provide services to people living within its borders Includes making decisions, debating new and existing laws

Comparing Governments Governments around the world differ and can be compared to one another by asking the following questions: 1. Who holds the power? 2. How do the leaders get in power? 3. What rights and freedoms do the people have?

Autocratic Government Autocracy = one person is the leader (known as a dictator) Leader has total power over the people and most aspects of their lives These rulers often have support of military, without the permission of the people; citizens have few rights & freedoms Ex. North Korea, Syria, Kazakhstan

Oligarchic Government Oligarchy = several people lead together Power rests in the hands of only a few people; usually come to power because of wealth or family connections Citizens have some rights and freedoms Ex. Saudi Arabia, Kuwait

Monarchic Government Monarchy = system of government where one person reigns, usually a king or queen Constitutional monarchies have a king or queen as head of state, not the head of the government; their powers are limited by legislation and the day to day running of the country is the responsibility of elected officials (Prime Minister, parliament, etc.) Ex. Sweden, Spain Absolute monarchies – are more traditional – kings or queens rule with complete power over the people; few or no elected or chosen representatives of the people and the rights and freedoms of the people are more limited Ex. Jordan, Malaysia

Theocratic Government Theocracy = god or deity is recognized as main civil ruler Government decisions made by religions leaders who are seen to be directly guided by god or deity Laws interpreted from religious writings by religious authorities and enforced by religious officials Ex. Iran, Vatican City

Democratic Government Democracy = power shared by all people All eligible citizens have a say in determining the government and have a voice through elected representatives People are meant to participate equally through free and fair elections, discussing issues openly Citizens have guaranteed rights and freedoms (right to vote, freedom of speech and expression) Ex. Canada, the United States, United Kingdom, Japan, Germany

Canada`s Government We have a parliamentary democracy We elect people to represent us in parliament and legislatures We are also a constitutional monarchy, which means that the monarch (the Queen) is our head of state The powers of the monarchy in Canada are limited by our Constitution; the Queen follows the decisions of the Canadian government, but she continues to play important ceremonial and symbolic roles

Quotations about Democracy ``I understand democracy as something that gives the weak the same chance as the strong`` (Mohandas Gandhi) `The best argument against democracy is a five-minute conversation with the average voter`` (Winston Churchill) ``I am a Canadian, free to speak without fear, free to worship in my own way, free to stand for what I think is right, free to oppose what I believe wrong, or free to choose those who shall govern my country. This heritage of freedom I pledge to uphold for myself and all of mankind.`` (John G. Diefenbaker)