Meritocratic Democracy: A Cross-Cultural Political Theory (Departmental Seminar)
Prof. Elena Ziliotti |
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10:00am-12:00pm HK Time |
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Room 220, Fung King Hey Building with synchronous online broadcasting on Zoom |
Joining the Seminar face-to-face:
Limited seats for face-to-face seminar. Registrations will be handled on a first come, first served basis.
Register by 4 November 2024: https://cloud.itsc.cuhk.edu.hk/webform/view.php?id=13698165
Joining the Seminar online:
No registration is required.
Link: https://cuhk.zoom.us/j/95177688589
Meeting ID: 951 7768 8589
Enquiries:
Tel: 3943 7135
Email: philosophy@cuhk.edu.hk
Abstract:
In this talk, I will introduce my newly published book, ‘Meritocratic Democracy: A Cross-Cultural Political Theory’ (OUP 2024). The book brings together insights from parallel debates in contemporary Western and Confucian political theories to offer a new perspective on the function of political leaders in contemporary societies.
Political leaders remain under-examined in mainstream contemporary political theory. However, the political parties’ crisis and new technological innovations in the media have led political leaders to consolidate unprecedented power in contemporary democratic societies. Most democracies resemble the so-called ‘leader democracy’ model, where political leaders play a central role in politics. The turn in democratic politics towards leader-centrism raises new normative questions. Granted that political leaders have become a central political agency in democratic societies, how can they contribute to democratic goals?
As a Confucian-inspired approach to political leadership, meritocratic democracy points to some of the preconditions that politicians of all political stripes must meet before occupying leadership positions within a democratic institutional framework. It argues that the Confucian ideas of virtue politics (dezhi, 德治) and benevolence (ren,仁) can inspire new institutional proposals to ensure that political leaders work for democracy (not against it). If ethical screenings were applied to the intra-party selection of future political leaders, they could enhance the moral quality of democratically elected political leaders. Intra-party ethical screenings do not oppose mechanisms of intra-party democracy but compensate for some of the shortcomings. They also present a compelling means for Confucian democrats to demonstrate that democracy is the optimal sociopolitical framework for realising the Confucian ideal of virtuous governance under the circumstances of modern politics.
Delivered in English.
All are welcome.