Why Freedom Is Favored by Secession and Subsidiarity (1/2)

Just divorced

If you love your fellow countrymen, let them break away.

by Fabio Andreotti

Majority voting inevitably alienates large parts of a population. As a Swiss citizen, I am all too aware of that fact, since we go to the polls as often as six times a year. This may be the necessary price of our more direct form of representative democracy. But in Switzerland, it has also led to a degree of emotional turmoil due to conflicting visions for society.

Of course, the US has a similar problem. The election of Donald Trump has not only raised discussions about the workings of the electoral college but also about a possible exit of California from the union. Since a considerable 61.5%-majority of Californians voted for Hillary Clinton, some of them have deemed a separation to be a necessary response to a Trump presidency. Such a devolution of power is actually quite worthy of support.

Subsidiarity and the Right of Secession

For centuries, legal scholars have acknowledged the importance of the right of secession based on natural law. The German Calvinist Johannes Althusius argued in his Politica (1603) that citizens have a right to forswear allegiance to the king in the case of an abuse of power. He considered this right to be derived from the general right of resistance. To Althusius, secession was a vertical check on the power of the early European absolutist states, but also a recourse that should not be undertaken on a whim. To Althusius and others, secession remained ultima ratio, i.e., a last resort. First and foremost, the state should be organized from the bottom in accordance with the broader “principle of subsidiarity,” of which secession is a part.

Althusius’s main insight was that the higher institutions should be required to rely on the consent of the more local levels and voluntary associations.

Subsidiarity is a principle of social, political and economic organization. It comes from the Latin subsidium and means “support” or “reserve.” Subsidiarity holds that society is primarily based on self-determination and the individual responsibility of each person, his or her family, and private associations of individuals (cooperatives).

According to this principle, local government should be involved in solving problems only if private organizations are unable to resolve them on their own. If government at the local level is unable to do so, the regional government takes over or assists the local government. And finally, the central government or the king steps in if the federated states struggle to resolve it amongst themselves.

Any higher level of societal organization is subordinate to any lower level. The main advantage of a multi-level order is that individuals make decisions that most affect their lives. Delegated decisions are made as closely to the citizens as possible so they can oversee the process more easily.

Subsidiarity better facilitates a process of “trial and error” in which regulation and governance "compete" with each other in a liberal framework. As Hayek said in The Constitution of Liberty,

“It is this flexibility of voluntary rules which in the field of morals makes gradual evolution and spontaneous growth possible, which allows further experience to lead to modifications and improvements.”

centrage photo

Paths taken that turn out to be successful can thus be adopted by any other territorial entity or authority. Only this type of “political fragmentation” can preserve cultural diversity in the long run and lead to institutions, such as the competition of ideas, which ultimately serve individual freedom.

Althusius’s main insight was that the higher institutions should be required to rely on the consent of the more local levels and voluntary associations. Because the powers of the higher levels are derived from the consent of the people, the people must retain the ability to revoke that power whenever necessary.

Althusius's views on political subsidiarity were quite radical for his time. Located in Emden, a German town at the crossroads of political and religious activity at that time, Althusius’s ideas should be interpreted in the light of the Calvinist Dutch Revolt against the Catholic King Philip II of Spain, which effectively ended in 1609 and resulted in the “Dutch Miracle,” a century-long period of economic, scientific, and cultural growth that helped lay the foundation for the rise of classical liberalism.

Two centuries later, these ideas found fertile ground on the North American continent with the revolt of the thirteen colonies against the British Crown. In 1848, Switzerland established a new constitution that also embodied the principle of subsidiarity, which remains in force to this day.

Unfortunately, the same people who are now in strong support of “CalExit” would probably think differently, if, say, Hillary was elected back in November. It also seems unlikely that they would be receptive to a declaration of secession by Northern California (which leans more Republican), or the city of Los Angeles. The irony in their opposition to such actions would likely escape them.

The "Reino de España" has seventeen autonomous regions. Each has ambitions to leave the Kingdom.

Human affairs should be entirely private. If government is going to be involved, autonomy at the local and state level should be as high as possible, meaning that all functions, excepting at most military defense, the supreme court and trade policy, should be pursued by local or state representatives.

Moreover, the tax system should be fully and exclusively devolved to the local and state level. Therefore, each state would be solely responsible for its revenues and expenditures. Only then would citizens have a reliable picture of the government’s service quality, and only then would they systemically be able to monitor the politicians in a sensible way.

Whenever someone disagrees with a policy or the advocated values a political system implies, they can vote with their feet by leaving their present domicile. Regulatory and tax competition would ensure an attractive environment for each and everyone. To provide a last resort, and to circumvent any undue burden set on people willing to move away, the constitution should formally grant the right to secede from the union and/or the respective state.

...

Fin de la 1° partie de l'article. La suite ici

Article original publié le 23 janvier 2017 sur fee.org
Repris sous Licence Creative Commons Attribution 4.0.



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