Political Liberty

While thinkers have related civil liberty in the capacity of an individual person, economic liberty in the capacity of a worker, they associate political liberty in the capacity of a citizen. When the Greeks and the Romans speak of liberty or freedom of participation by citizens in public affairs of Greece and Rome respectively, they speak of political liberty. While Greeks meant civic freedom, in Rome, Cicero called it republican liberty. In contemporary times, this implies freedom of participation in political and public affairs, provision of participation for all in the sense of universal suffrage, existence of conditions to enable expression of freedom of participation such as free and fair elections, presence of healthy public opinion which requires education, freedom of thought and expression and discussion. Locke and Montesquieu talked about separation of different powers—legislative, executive and judicial, which is meant to provide checks and balances against each other. Locke talked about limited government also, which means the government as an agent of people. Blackstone feels that political liberty is a negative liberty, which is used to curb the government. Locke, Montesquieu and Blackstone would like to limit or curb government with checks and balances as guarantee of political liberty. Barker, however, feels that political liberty is not merely a means to curb the government but is the liberty of constituting and controlling the government by choice and election and discussion and sharing. In this sense, it is a positive right enabling political participation and self-development by discussion and sharing of opinion, etc.