The Formal and Structural Determinants of the Quality of Democracy in Pakistan

Abstract

The nature and character of a democratic system depends on two sets of factors – the politico-legal structures and the socioeconomic forces. The structures – constitution, rules, institutions, political parties, etc. – evolve in response to the needs, aspirations and interests existing in a society. Thus while assessing the quality of democracy in a society, reference to both, the domain of structures on the one hand, and the underlying social impulses and the consequent nature and character of the state and its policies on the other, is inevitable. In the present paper the first domain has been studied with respect to Pakistan. In this respect, three major areas have been identified which may, it is hoped, help provide necessary parameters for understanding the formal determinants of the quality of democracy in the country.