“Lottery democracy” to prevent political distrust October 4, 14:21
"You were selected at random, so would you like
to attend the meeting?"
Currently, an initiative called “lottery democracy” is spreading.
Citizens selected at random, rather than elected members of parliament, hold discussions and reflect them in administrative decisions and policies.
You may be asking yourself, "Is it okay to think about policies through a lottery?"
, but it is attracting attention as a new form of democracy that does not rely solely on an elected parliament.
(Good Morning Japan Director Yuto Sakai)
Citizens are selected by “lottery”
In July, the first meeting of the "Climate Citizens Conference" was held in Musashino City, Tokyo, to create a specific city action plan for climate change countermeasures.
At first glance, it looks like a normal meeting scene, but the participants of this meeting are mainly residents who are randomly selected.
Information was sent to 1,500 citizens randomly selected from the Basic Resident Register, and 27 people who wished to participate in the public recruitment were added to the 41 people who agreed.
At that time, it is considered to approach the age group, gender ratio, and residence ratio of the entire Musashino City.
Participants range in age from teens to 70s, and the ratio of men to women is roughly 50:50.
There will also be time for expert lectures and question and answer sessions so that even people with no interest or knowledge can easily participate in the discussion.
In addition, city officials serve as facilitators in the discussions held by each group so that the opportunities to speak are not biased.
Diverse opinions due to random sampling
Musashino City says that the participation of a wide range of citizens through random sampling will make it easier to gather diverse opinions.
The theme of the meeting was "buying, using, and letting go of things" in order to think about citizens' consumption behavior and recycling.
At the venue, an elderly man and a young woman sat side by side in chairs and exchanged opinions.
The discussion between these two people from different generations is...
Woman : “I buy
old
clothes because they are eco-friendly because they can be reused, but I choose them because I just like that kind of thing.
” There is a little resistance to what people wear."
The difference in the way of thinking about each second-hand clothes was embossed.
Citizens with diverse backgrounds can easily come to each other's awareness through discussions.
Citizens of different generations, genders, and places of residence also engaged in lively discussions in other groups, and the venue was filled with such enthusiasm that the two-hour meeting seemed to go by in the blink of an eye.
A total of five meetings were held and summarized, and the city plans to formulate an action plan for climate change measures within this fiscal year based on the wide range of opinions expressed at the meetings.
The person in charge said the following about the purpose of selecting people by random sampling, including those who are not interested in environmental issues.
Mr. Shiraishi, Environmental Policy Division, Musashino City
“Since it is quite difficult to hear the opinions of the entire city, we will set up such a meeting by random sampling and create a microcosm of Musashino City, so to speak, a “mini Musashino City”. I would like to explore the consensus and trends of the city as a whole, what kind of opinions will come out of it.”
Ordinance formulation at the ``personalization meeting''
In some cities, more than 100 citizens have participated in the discussions, and the results of the discussions are summarized in proposals, which are used as the basis for new city ordinances.
In Nagaokakyo City, Kyoto Prefecture, a conference centered on citizens selected by random sampling was held.
The name of the conference is “Meetings of Personalization” to encourage participating citizens to think of local issues as their own.
Mao Fujino, a college student, was one of the citizens who was randomly selected to attend the conference.
Fujino said she was surprised when she received the invitation, but she decided to participate if she could do something for her hometown where she was born and raised.
At the conference, there were four subcommittees: environment, disaster prevention/crime prevention, the elderly, and children/child-rearing.
Although postponed due to the new coronavirus, it will be held seven times from December 2020 to July 2022.
He says that through repeated discussions with people from different positions and generations, he began to see things that he had not noticed before.
For example, Mr. Fujino is talking about the street in front of the station that he usually uses for shopping.
Mao Fujino
"I'm most worried about the narrowness of the sidewalk. There are other sidewalks that are slanted toward the road and there are sharp steps. I didn't notice it until now because I was young, but for example, I have bad legs. When I put myself in the shoes of the elderly, I began to feel that the sidewalks were difficult to walk on.”
Mr. Fujino says that through the conference, he came to think about regional issues from the perspective of someone different from his own.
Before joining the event, he was worried whether he would be able to do it on his own, but after the meeting he said:
Ms. Mao Fujino
"I'm glad that I had the opportunity to touch on regional issues that I hadn't touched before. It was a very useful meeting."
Participants who became interested in the region
Mr. Toshiyoshi Ikenaga, a company employee, has lived in Nagaokakyo City for about 20 years, but his life has been centered on work and family.
So far, he says, he hasn't been all that concerned about local issues.
He says that after attending the "He's Owned Conference", he feels more strongly about what he can do for the future of his children and the city.
Mr. Ikenaga participated in a breakout session on the theme of the environment, and learned that the separation of garbage and the manners of garbage storage areas in Nagaokakyo City are issues.
If citizens do not follow the garbage disposal rules, the garbage storage area will become dilapidated, and the burden on the government to collect and dispose of garbage will increase, which will eventually return to the citizens in the form of an increased tax burden and a decline in administrative services.
Mr. Ikenaga realized that the problem of garbage would affect the future of himself and his children, and made a small change in his daily life.
He seems to have become more aware of sorting, such as washing PET bottles and removing labels by himself, and buying labelless beverages that do not have labels in advance.
By participating in the conference, I came to see local issues as my own, and my way of thinking about administration and citizens changed.
Mr. Toshiyoshi Ikenaga
“Originally, we were trying to say what we wanted, but as we held more meetings, we began to think otherwise. I think it's not enough to just expect something from the government, and I think that the way citizens cooperate with each other will lead to the development of a good city."
Regulations based on proposals
We submitted a proposal to the city based on the results of the "Self-Assessment Conference" in which more than 100 citizens participated.
One of the most common requests was for information to be conveyed in an easy-to-understand manner about local issues and information held by the government.
Among the proposals were the following statements:
"It was a valuable opportunity to learn about local issues for the first time. Not everyone participates in such meetings, so it may be difficult to obtain information."
"The city asks people to consult with them if they have any problems, but this is not communicated to the citizens."
Based on the proposal, the city is preparing to make ordinances.
Among them, it is a policy to specify the improvement of information provision using SNS etc. as "administrative responsibility" in the ordinance.
A city official commented on the significance of the ordinance as follows:
Toshihiro Fujita, Director of Autonomy Promotion Office, Nagaokakyo City
"Because it is a random sampling, people who have never been involved in the area before, or who have no interest in it, came together and received their opinions to create an effective method. I think there was meaning in that."
Spread of lottery democracy
Regarding the spread of "lottery democracy," according to the "Citizens' Forum Promotion Network," which supports these efforts, since 2005, "Citizens' Forums," in which randomly selected citizens discuss, have been held. It is estimated that about 600 events are held nationwide.
In Japan, it is only at the level of local governments, but there are cases where it is introduced at the national level overseas.
For example, in France, a conference was held from 2019 to 2020 at which 150 randomly selected citizens from all over the country discussed climate change countermeasures.
The bill based on the proposals at this conference passed in July last year.
It was decided to display environmental impacts such as greenhouse gas emissions on products and services, and to abolish short-haul flights.
Issues and Significance of Lottery Democracy
Although “lottery democracy” is attracting attention worldwide, it also has its “weaknesses”.
Professor Toru Yoshida of Doshisha University points out:
▽There may be themes that are difficult for citizens to discuss, such as those related to state secrets.
▽
It is difficult to reflect opposing opinions on the themes and methods of discussion that have been set.
Unclear
In addition, Professor Yoshida says that social changes are behind the current focus on lottery democracy.
Professor Yoshida
: “There are global problems that cannot be solved by a single country, such as climate change, and problems such as bioethics where values are so diverse that even experts cannot find a single answer. Lottery democracy has the potential to complement traditional parliamentary democracy in the sense that it dispels even a little distrust and gives political decisions a sense of satisfaction.”
Through the interviews, I was impressed by the changes in the awareness and behavior of those who participated in lottery democracy.
Opportunities to discuss with people who meet by chance beyond the framework of everyday relationships such as work, school, family and friends are valuable and stimulating.
Many people may be surprised when they hear the word “lottery,” but it is said that its origins date back to ancient Greece.
In addition, systems that incorporate the opinions of randomly selected citizens, such as the lay judge system, are slowly permeating our society.
While it is sometimes pointed out that democracy is dysfunctional, such as low voter turnout, lottery democracy has potential as one of the measures to improve it.
Director of Ohayo Japan
Yuto Sakai Joined
in 2021 Responsible
for news production and planning at Ohayo Japan Majored
in political philosophy in graduate school Covering
a wide range of topics such as the state of democracy and the protection of cultural properties