Militant Democracies in Europe

Since the end of the Second World War the discussion on the defensibility of democracies has become gradually more prevalent. This thesis sought to answer the question; To what extent are parties in Europe banned on basis of the concept of a militant democracy? First, the concept “militant democracy” was defined. This was done by analysing the aim, definition, measures and enemies of a militant democracy as outlined by five renowned academics in the field. Namely, Loewenstein (1937), Sajó (2004), Giovanni (2005), Thiel (2009) and Müller (2016/2018). Secondly, party ban cases in Germany, The Czech Republic, Latvia, The Netherlands and Spain were considered. First it was considered whether there were laws in place that aimed at protecting the democracy by targeting enemies of a militant democracy. Secondly, jurisprudence was analysed to see whether these laws were applied with the aim of protecting the democracy and targeting enemies of a militant democracy. If both were found to be...Show moreSince the end of the Second World War the discussion on the defensibility of democracies has become gradually more prevalent. This thesis sought to answer the question; To what extent are parties in Europe banned on basis of the concept of a militant democracy? First, the concept “militant democracy” was defined. This was done by analysing the aim, definition, measures and enemies of a militant democracy as outlined by five renowned academics in the field. Namely, Loewenstein (1937), Sajó (2004), Giovanni (2005), Thiel (2009) and Müller (2016/2018). Secondly, party ban cases in Germany, The Czech Republic, Latvia, The Netherlands and Spain were considered. First it was considered whether there were laws in place that aimed at protecting the democracy by targeting enemies of a militant democracy. Secondly, jurisprudence was analysed to see whether these laws were applied with the aim of protecting the democracy and targeting enemies of a militant democracy. If both were found to be the case; a party ban could be considered an act of a militant democracy. Thirdly, the political discourse around the party proscription was scrutinized to gather more information about the reasons for the ban. This was done by reviewing newspaper articles. The German and Czech cases were found to be examples of a militant democracy. Latvia indirectly acted as a militant democracy. The Dutch and Spanish cases were no examples of militant democracy. The political reasons for the party ban fell in line with the judicial reasons. In case of the Dutch and Spanish party ban, the government had additional motives for banning the party concerning the country’s future.Show less

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Militant Democracies in Europe