[Gleriy SHIROKOV] Leading Fellow Institute of Oriental Studies Russian Academy of Sciences Ph. D. (Economics) Partly due to the dissolution of the Socialist camp, partly due to the reduction of the number of authoritarian regimes in developing countries, partly for political and ideological considerations, the term "democracy" was in an extraordinarily extensive usage at the turn of millennia. It is argued that democracy does not only mean individual freedom but also constitutes a basis of modern economic growth, leading to formation of a social state or a consumer society. The latter statement is, to say the least, inaccurate. There are a lot of states in the world (China, Iran, Malaysia, etc.), which no one calls democratic, yet they demonstrate a consistent and considerable economic growth, improvement of living standards, and expansion of civil liberties. стр. 40 Is it possible for this group of states to transfer to democracy? x x x Historical researches of antiquity and early Middle Ages demonstrate existence of different types of social evolution in the two parts of the planet we currently call the West and East. In the West, the State primarily emerged on a class basis. This basis, however, was unable to exist outside of a system of sufficiently complex social relations. On one hand, in the class society, this system of relationships had to take a form of antagonism between rulers and citizens, rulers and state slaves, citizens and non-citizens. A certain form of repressive apparatus was needed to enforce these relationships, which resulted in new contradictions. On the other hand, there also existed non-antagonistic relationships - family hierarchy, relationships within a clan, confessional and other relationships, which were regulated on the basis of informal agreements. All these relationships intermingled with one another and were often interdependent. In the East, the State emerged on not only class basis, but also on a tribal or confessio ... Читать далее