Class 9 Civics Extra Question Answers - Democracy in the Contemporary World (Old Syllabus)

76) Name the present President of Myanmar.
Ans: The in Se in is the present President of Myanmar.  

77) Write about the recent political activity of Aung San Suu Kyi.
Ans: On 1st April, 2012, the National League for Democracy (NLD) won 43 out of 45 vacant seats in the lower house of the Burmese Parliament. Being the Chairperson and General Secretary of NLD, Aung San Suu Kyi became the leader of the opposition in the lower house. 

78) Which leader of Myanmar got the Nobel Peace Prize for democracy?
Ans: Aung San Suu Kyi of Myanmar has got the Nobel  Peace Prize. 

79) What is the UN Security Council?
Ans: The UN Security Council is an organ of the United Nations which is responsible for maintaining peace and security among countries. It can put together an international army and take action against wrong doers. 

80) Who was the President of Ghana after its independence?
Ans: Kwame Nkrumah was the first President of Ghana after its independence. 

81) Who was the first UN Secretary General?
Ans: Trygve Lie of Norway was the first UN Secretary General.

82) What is the main objective of the World Health Organisation?
Ans: The main objective of the World Health Organisation (WHO) is to improve facilities for healthcare throughout the world. 

83) Write five arguments why democracy is better than other alternative governments.
Ans: The circumstances and political conditions of the 20th century helped in spreading the idea of democracy all over the world.
(i) After the Second World War (1945), the world witnessed a wave of democratisation. Democracy evolved through popular struggles. It has been established in countries where deep-rooted socio-economic inequalities have existed. Countries like India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, etc did not only want to get rid of their colonial masters, they also wished to choose their future leaders.
(ii) In many democracies, people shared power in die decision making process through their representatives.
(iii) After the collapse of the Soviet Union (USSR) many East European countries like Hungary, Bulgaria, East Germany, Czechoslovakia, Romania, etc abolished communism and adopted democracy.
(iv) In a democracy, government is formed through Universal Adult Franchise.
(v) Public opinion played a pivotal role in spreading nationalism and democracy throughout the world. Thus, we can say democracy is better than other alternative governments.

84) Why did President Allende address himself mainly to worker's? Why were the rich unhappy with him?
Ans: (i) President Allende addressed himself mainly to the worker's because he was a socialist and had taken several policy decisions to help the poor and the workers.
(ii) President Allende was opposed to foreign companies taking away natural resources like copper from the country. He implemented the policy of the redistribution of land to the landless farmers and free education and free milk for the poor children. The landlords, the rich and the church opposed his policies and were unhappy with him for supporting the poor. 

85) Did the army have any legal right to arrest the Defence Minister of the country? Should the army have the power to arrest any citizen? 
Ans: No, the army did not have any legal right to arrest the Defence Minister of the country (Chile) because the primary duty of the army is to protect the country from outside threats and obey the orders of the government. The Defence Minister is an important member of the government. The army will not act against its own government and ministers. No, the army should not have the power to arrest any citizen its main work is to defend the country from foreign threats from not the army. It is the duty of the police to arrest the citizens if there is need to do so. 

86) Locate and shade Chile on the map, which state in our country has a shape similar to Chile?
Ans: Chile is located along the pacific coast in the continent of South America. In our country, Kerala has a shape similar to Chile. 

87) President Michelle Bachelet addressing her supporters after her victory in the presidential election in January 2006. From this photograph do you notice any difference between an election rally in Chile and in India?
Ans: The difference between an election rally in Chile and in India is that, in India no election rally is held during presidential election and after his/her victory. In India, President is not elected directly by the people. All the Members of Parliament (MPs) and Members of State Legislative Assemblies (MLAs) elect her. So the President in India does not directly address his/her supporters. 

88) Poland is famous for its poster art. Most of the posters of solidarity carried this special way of writing 'Solidarnose'. Can you find similar examples of poster art on wall writing in Indian politics?
Ans: Yes, there are similar examples of poster art on wall writing in Indian politics. It is mostly found in West Bengal.

89) Locate Poland on the map. Write down the names of the countries that surround it.
Ans: Poland is surrounded by Germany, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Ukraine, Belarus and Lithunia. It is a Central European country. 

90) Which other East European countries were ruled by the communist parties in the 1980s? Shade them on the map.
Ans:  The East European countries ruled by the communist parties in the 1980s were Belarus. Ukraine, Moldova, Romania, Russia etc. 

91) Make a list of political activities that you could not have done in Poland in 1980s but you can do in our country.
Ans: The political activities that we could not have done inpoland in 1980s but we could do in our country are listed below
Poland
1. We could not form any association or organisation.
2. Those who spoke against the government, party or leader were put in prison.
3. No other political party was allowed to function.
4. Even people could not freely choose the leaders of the Communist Party.
India
1. We could form association or organisation.
2. In our country, freedom of press or freedom of speech in respected and tolerated.
3. In India, we have multi-party system, i.e., various political parties are allowed to function.
4. In our country, the people can freely choose the leaders of their party.

92) Anita made a list of the features of all the governments that we have discussed so far. But somehow the list got mixed up. Now she has a list of many features but she does not remember which feature applies to which government. Can you help her by writing the correct feature under the name of the government in the table below? Remember, some of these features may apply to more than one government and would need to be written separately under each these  
Ans:

93) On the basis of these maps identify up to three countries (in some cases you won't find three countries) that were democratic in there continents for the given years and make a table as given below.    

(i) Identify some countries from map the that became democratic between 1900 and 1950. 
(ii) Identify some countries from map 1 and 2 that were democratic in 1950 and 1975. 
(iii) Identify some European countries from map 2 and 3 that were democratic in 1975 and 2000. 
(iv) Identify some countries in Latin America that became democratic after 1975. 
(v) Make a list of big countries that were not democratic in 2000.

Ans: 

94) Looking at these maps (given in Q. 30), which period do you find most important in the expansion of democracy? Why?
Ans: Most important period in the expansion of democracy
(i) Looking at these maps given on text book pages 8 and 9, we find the period 1975-2000 is the most important period in the expansion of democracy.
(ii) During this period, most of the colonies  of  the  world  gained independence. Thus, in this period a number of countries have marched towards democracy.

95) Why was an independent trade union so important in Poland? Why are trade unions necessary?
Ans: In Poland, the trade unions were controlled by the ruling party, there could be no trade unions independent of the party. When the workers of the Lenin Shipyard in Gdansk went on strike, the strike was considered illegal because it was called by an independent group of workers and not an authorised trade union. In order to have justice,  the workers must have an independent trade union. Trade unions are necessary because they can take up the cause of the workers in a better and organised manner and get their demands fulfilled. 

96) Why were women given voting rights much later than men in most countries? Why did this not happen in India?
Ans: In most countries, the society was male dominated and traditionally there was sexual division of labour. Men worked outside the homes and earned for the family while the women stayed at home and did the household work and looked after the children. They were not encouraged to join public life so voting rights were denied to them in most countries and societies. Women in India got voting rights along with men because after becoming independent from the British rule in 1947, the Constitution of Independent. India provided the Universal Adult Franchise which did not discriminate between men and women. 

97) Locate Ghana in an atlas and then spot it in the three maps in the previous section. Was Ghana a democracy in 2000?   Do you think it is good to elect someone President for life? Or is it better to hold regular elections after every few years? 
Ans: Ghana was a democracy in 2000. 

98) Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park in Accra, the capital of Ghana. This park was commissioned in 1992, twenty years after Nkrumah passed away. What might have caused this delay?
Ans: No, it is not good to elect someone president for life time. It means there will be no elections for that post, till the person is alive. Then he will enjoy absolute power which can make him corrupt and autocrat. This is not good for a country. So, it is better to hold regular election after every few years. 

99) This cartoon appeared in 2005, when Aung San Suu Kyi turned 60. What is the cartoonist saying here? Will the army rulers feel happy with this cartoon? 
Ans: Ghana became independent in 1957. Kwame Nkrumah became the first Prime Minister. In 1966, he was over thrown by the military coup. Ghana could not remain democracy for long. After two decades, on May 1992, the ban on party politics was lifted in preparation for multiparty elections in Ghana. In this changed political scenario, Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park was commissioned in 1992.

100) What should be the policy of the Government of India towards the military rulers of Myanmar?
Ans: (i) The cartoonist wants to say that Aung San Suu Kyi is still under house arrest at her 60th birthday.
(ii) No, the army rulers will feel ashamed of their act of keeping Aung under house arrest, after seeing this cartoon.