Political support arises when situations adversely affect the well-being of communities. Representatives who best engender the collective opinion of their society are chosen in a publicly recognised process affirming their legitimacy to perform specific roles on behalf of their constituents.
This theme is intimately related to the concept of casuistry, which depends on phronesis, the moral experience and reasoning of the individual. Some argue that one should decide according to their conscience in line with this principle but the danger lies with an immature or ideological approach. Human beings pining for the moral appropriateness of a decision rely on their perceptions which can be biased by propaganda and life experiences.
The other danger is hopelessness or lack of moral decisiveness. The most common phrase that comes to mind on social media is “live and let live” or “why bother”.
Why should I impose my vote on others with different views? This pedestrian approach reduces democracy and prevents phronesis from maturing. According to Matthias Kumm (2010), Platonic philosophy argues that allowing injustice to occur upon others rather than oneself is a worse injustice.
Kumm quotes further comparing “The life of the tyrant ... (as) more miserable than the life of those the tyrant persecutes”. One becomes complicit in the moral misdeeds one has allowed to occur or, worse, does not decide to engage in questioning a decision taken by the political elite. This phronetic apathy leaves citizens and leaders vulnerable to unreliable sources of information and arguments which ignore the scope of proper strategy and integrity.
Concerns arise when organisations outperform or clash with the authorities. The danger is that such actions display a breakdown of the chain of the rule of law. Demonstrating is one thing while active enforcement is something else. Authorities, as institutions, are organisations composed of members that best represent the societal interest they are tasked with fostering.
Authorities have a specific agenda set by the law and are legal machines with deontological frameworks. They have a role in surveying, discussing, representing and enforcing their duties in terms of regulation. The institution risks becoming an anachronism if these processes are hindered. This leaves the desperate and malevolent free reign to act without adequate oversight.
It is important for journalists and other news media to share reliable information and promote ethical information providers
The other vulnerability of democratic society is that of disinformation, especially when technically challenging concepts approach the public. Before the introduction of the latest in vitro fertilisation legislation, a professional appearing on the national broadcaster publicly stated that pre-implantation genetic diagnosis “cures” embryos with genetic defects when the basis of such a technology is the selection of embryos with certain characteristics in favour of others. There is currently no international consensus on a technology that can offer such a service safely.
Another episode was when a minister on a radio interview said that life was recognised as starting at two weeks since this was the norm used in other countries and that, before this, human life was not present. Peers ignore these statements but the rest of society depends on people with authority to relay accurate information.
Norman Ford inadvertently generated this excuse that allowed the instrumentalisation of human embryos when he expressed that human life is determined once the neural tube has formed two weeks from conception. The latter determines that a single human being will continue developing.
Given the fragile relationships holding cells together, this may be preceded by early embryonic cells splitting into twin embryos.
Ford then realised that this argument was used by parties interested in embryonic testing. He clarified his position in a later book, which compared twin formation to the division of a single flatworm into independent twin flatworms when dissected. One cannot refute that a single living organism existed before this event.
The previous examples show how important it is for journalists and other news media to share reliable information and promote ethical information providers. Newsreaders expect input from epistemic stakeholders such as media houses to be credible and covered by a code of ethics.
The Institute of Maltese Journalists provides domestic members with an ethical framework, is officially recognised by the government and has a role in self-regulating members of its profession.
Likewise, professionals are regulated by their respective associations and professional bodies.
The allure of believing a reality that escapes moral duties may be exploited by organisations or individuals to further their agenda. This may give rise to services that follow opposing societal principles in a deterministic approach. With the introduction of novel technologies, laws are updated to ensure that a prima facie safeguard for society exists, especially the vulnerable.
Republics can implement new laws proportionately by providing a collective justification for a legal act, allowing individuals to forward concerns that may impact their rights. In this manner, the law recognises the human vulnerability of the society it governs, allowing institutions to protect, and not determine, the lives, rights and opportunities persons have.
In parallel, human rights are innate to human dignity, not State-given. Laws that force themselves upon the dignity of the human person tend to be ideological and depicted as humanitarian at the expense of less advantaged persons.
Kumm promotes that the judiciary acts as a stand-alone institution, rather than a politically motivated individual, as the keystone upholding the constitution, ensuring that ideological imperatives are struck down.
Unfortunately, there will always be those denying a duty that does not suit them and persist in advocating solutions as civil rights.
Ian BaldacchinoIan Baldacchino is a family doctor pursuing a master’s in bioethics and an elected member of the Medical Council Malta.