Political and Economic freedom is not an easy task to examine but it's not a difficult idea to grasp. What is freedom? Freedom starts with the ability to have self-control. In a free society, everyone has legal control of their mind and body as there is "an equal distribution of legal rights and in which each and every person has as much legal rights as possible" (Hughes). The concept of freedom refers to a certain type of political empowerment such as equal empowerment. Freedom entitles political equality, as it involves as much rights with the same legal rights in others. For example, freedom does not include the legal right to enslave an individual because freedom includes the legal right to not be enslaved. This broad topic of freedom is going to be narrowed into two specific concepts. The two main concepts that are going to be viewed is Political freedom and Economic freedom.
Political Freedom are rights such as the rights to vote, the right of free association and the right of expression that helps individuals determine who the rulers would be and how they will be ruled. Political freedom is best appreciated in countries where those freedoms do not exist or are denied as people have a sense of global awareness. This freedom was prominent in western societies but it amounted to little except how the society will be organized in an order where individuals would be able to pursue their own happiness. This kind of freedom created the prosperity that we as individuals now enjoy. Milton Friedman says, "The preservation of freedom is the protective reason for limiting and decentralising governmental power. But there is also a constructive reason. The great advances of civilisation, whether in architecture, or painting, in science or literature, in industry or agriculture, have never come from centralised government” (Friedman). Freidman does not refer to the freedom of certain leaders but for this freedom to pursue one's own motives. The value of political freedom was considered for the political government to be limited and to protect individual’s self-governed country. However, there is a different political freedom in today's society compared to earlier. This political freedom is the power we force governments to provide the people in the society with benefits. "Pressure groups - especially those having strong media backing may successfully influence governments to provide their constituents with material and other benefits at the expense of the rest of the community (the vast majority)" (Cooray). This freedom is basically used to empower the government that run the society as a whole.
Economic Freedom is the freedom to be able to choose how to produce, sell and use your own resources while respecting others right to do the same. Economic freedom is the key to prosperity in the world and is the difference between why some societies thrive while others don't. As Adam Smith and Milton Friedman have stressed upon is the "freedom of exchange and market coordination that provides the fuel for economic progress. Without this exchange, coordinated through markets, modern living standards would be impossible" (Davis & Wu). An annual index of economic freedom measures the extent of economic freedom around the world. The idea behind this index is that people are allowed to engage in economic activity free from governmental control. Factors that would increase economic freedom are lowers tax rates and tariffs; less government spending and regulation; less inflation; and fewer controls over foreign investment, wages and prices. Some other factors that would increase this economic freedom are strong protection of private property rights, less black market activity and fewer restrictions on banking and credit. This index shows that nations with more economic freedom tend to be wealthier than nations with less economic freedom. There is no wealthy country with less economic freedom while there are some poor nations that obtain high economic freedom. These poor nations have recently embraced economic freedom as they are starting to rapidly grow. Despite the strong relationship between economic freedom and a nation’s prosperity, economic freedom is hard to attain and obtain. "Over the past year, measured economic freedom increased for seventy-three nations and decreased for fifty-three. Moreover, only seventy-one nations were classified as free or mostly free, while eighty-five nations were classified as unfree" ( Wagner).
Both Economic and political freedom are essential to the society lived in as the goal is to improve the well-being of a nation as it leads to a higher quality of life. Links between economic and political freedom have been well established as both standpoints are just "two sides of the same coin". In "Capitalism and Freedom" (1962) Friedman developed a strong argument about the importance of economic freedom being a vital component of total freedom, while it is also a necessary condition for political freedom. A main component of economic freedom is private property which is essential in supporting political freedom. Without any secure private property and independent wealth, then political rights and civil liberties aren't as effective as they should be. The importance of political rights on economic freedom is unclear at times. Friedman pointed out that "political freedom, once established, has a tendency to destroy economic freedom" (Freidman). He believes that the process of the political process may create policies that negatively affect economic freedom. Individuals who enjoy political rights use democratic government to redistribute wealth from others by interfering with the free market. This is done by restricting competition or limiting the sales through manipulation of the prices. In the long term, economic freedom leads to and sustains political freedom. A system for economic freedom is superior to any planning and planning government. The market process is an order where the resources will be located according to individuals needs. A free private market brings economic efficiency and greater social welfare. These wealth affects of economic freedom tend to create necessary social conditions for political freedom as well.
In Conclusion, Political and Economic freedom are essential to one another. As Friedman states, "economic freedom is a necessary condition for political freedom." (Friedman). Both these are essential to the well-being of a society as a whole. Political freedom refers to rights such as the rights to vote, the right of free association and the right of expression that helps individuals determine who the rulers would be and how they will be ruled. Economic freedom refers to the ability to choose how to produce, sell and use your own resources while respecting others right to do the same. Combined, both of these are powerful in the functioning of the society. The importance of economic freedom and political freedom can be unclear at times, as it is a complicated relationship to understand. Friedman believes that political freedom that is established could potentially destroy economic freedom. This stems from the believe that the political process may create potential polices that would negatively affect economic freedom. Taking the right steps forward in political and economic freedom could help enrich a nation with prosperity and well-being as this is one step closer to developing a successful economy worldwide.
Bibliography
Cooray, Mark. "5.1 Political And Economic Freedom - Two Sides Of The Same Coin Economic Freedom by Doctor Mark Cooray." Political And Economic Freedom. Web. 26 Mar. 2012. .
Davis, Otta A., and Wenbo Wu. Economic Freedom and Political Freedom. PDF."What Freedom Means to Me." Definition of Freedom. Web. 26 Mar. 2012. .
Hughes, Scott. "What Freedom Means to Me." What Is Freedom. Web. 26 Mar. 2012. .
Milton Friedman, "The relationship Between Economic Freedom and Political Freedom " from Capitalism and Freedom,40th edition, University of Chicago Press, 2002, 7-21.Reproduced with the permission of University of Chicago Press.
Wagner, Richard E. "Economic and Political Freedom: A Difficult Mixture." Virginia Institute for Public Policy. Web. 26 Mar. 2012. .
