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Thank you for the question. We look at the democracy indices, have five
main attributes: representative government, fundamental rights, checks on
government, impartial administration, and participatory engagement; not
decentralization, not devolution of power as such. But under each of these sub-
attributes depending on looking at all the levels of government. If a country
would be a federal one, yes, then you would be assessed all these aspects of
the national, province, state and local level. If not, then, national and the local
level. It is not a topic or attribute as such, but, indeed, that applies to
whichever level required.
2TQHGUUQT 5GDCUVKCP 2C[PG
Thank you for your question. My point about local government falling out
of fashion to study was really because it mirrors in a way the decline of local
government. Clearly the risk local government have, much of it’s effective. But,
in the UK, but nonetheless, it has been weakened partly by the actions of
Margaret Thatcher and partly by financial constraints. And my point really, was
a local government is very important for the flourishing of democracy. What, in
the UK, has happened is that they’ve been put in place a number of mass
serve where the Greater London Council. We now have a rather weak body
with the mayor of London. This turn to presidential star politics, with what is
demonstratively, a certain vulgar populism in some of the previous mayors of
London, is bad news. So, I’m delighted to hear that local government is
flourishing in Asia.
&T 5QPCO -KPIC
Thank you, sir. I was not exactly sure what your question was if you’re
not satisfied with my response, we can chat over, but let me try to begin by
saying that, in Bhutan, far long before the establishment of the central
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government, local government wears the traditional features of village
communities. So, what I’m saying is the practice of local governance predates
centralization of authority. It is from this tradition that later modern governments
drew and built up institutions of providing goods and services to the
community. Another feature is local governments have largely been rural in
nature. We talk about municipal, town government. These are very recent in the
sense that urbanization began only in the 60s. So, today we have 205 village
assemblies, and four municipal governments. When we began in the 80s and
90s, this did not begin as local governments, but rather as local development
communities, where they have elected members, certain powers, and certain
resources are pumped in. Today, the possibility of local governments becoming
