If we understand that the state of emergency is a state of crisis which strengthens the powers of civil authorities in matters of personal security , and which consequently limits freedoms , whether public or individual ; it is normal and legitimate to ask the question whether the exceptional powers of exceptional circumstances serve the interests of citizens or of the nebulas who use these circumstances to carry out shady agendas ?
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A Absolute power , absolutely corrupts , it cannot be said enough . “ The use of emergency regimes has a long tradition in the history of thought in political and legal philosophy . During Antiquity , as early as the Roman Republic , it was recognized that it is sometimes necessary to depart from the legal framework of common law in the interest of the state , its people and their survival . The military and judicial prerogatives of the executive are extended in situations of serious disturbance or imminent danger . This idea refers to fundamental principles such as the right of a State to its own survival , the imperative of protection it has towards its population or the protection of the rights and freedoms of citizens and the institutions that guarantee them ” . Law is noble , but humans can be deceitful in their thirst for domination over others . Therefore , it makes sense that we should always create a legal framework that can safeguard the rights of the people from the voracity of tyrants . When the law no longer exists , or when it is now the prerogative of a handful of men , it is normal for subversive movements to organize
Flashmag ! Issue 121 September 2021
themselves to restore social justice . However , in egalitarian demands can only meet violent opposition , from those in power , who often use the means of the State to repress , the citizens who , however , in principle , are those for whom the State of emergency would have been taken , but not against . Therefore , when used wrongly , or for an excessive length of time , a state of emergency can undermine individual freedoms and respect for the rule of law . And when the rule of law no longer exists then anarchy often settles in a monopoly of the strongest which arbitrarily crushes all those who want to stand in its way .
In France for the past 5 years , the state of emergency has been applied intermittently for a cumulative period equivalent to nearly 3 years . So , it is logical to ask the question of why in Western countries the state of emergency and the dictatorship it seems to promote , has become the miracle panacea for those in power ?
Without entering into the conspiracy , which accuses some of creating the cause which leads to certain e ects ; It is not trivial to note that the " ratchet e ect " occurs almost everywhere in the West once a freedom or a right has been restricted , it becomes di cult to regain it . Also , while some thought they had finally come out of the quarantine or confinement period , the threat of a new Virus came to dampen everyone ' s hopes of having a normal life again , while health passports and the like are logically a continuity of the restriction regime , which this time is hardened by the exclusion of some to have a normal life if they did not show bend to a rule that take away part of their free will . While it is obvious that the repression of freedoms in the West is an indisputable fact , it is nevertheless necessary to investigate why the state of emergency has become the essential way of governing .