Class 9 Civics HOTS Questions - Democracy in the Contemporary World (Old Syllabus)

129) Who is Aung San Suu Kyi?
Ans: Aung San is a democratic leader of Myanmar who led The National League for Democracy Military leaders put her under house arrest and did not accept the election procedure of the country.

130) Why has Aung San Suu Kyi been awarded Noble Prize?
Ans: Despite being under house arrest, Suu Kyi continued to campaign for democracy. Her struggle has won international recognition and also Noble Peace Prize.  

131) What do you know about UN?
Ans: UN is a global association of nations of the world to help cooperation in International law, security, economic development and social equity. 

132) What is the role of UN Security Council?
Ans: It is an organ of UN, is responsible for maintaining peace and security among countries. 

133) Who lends money to government when they need it?
Ans: The International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.

134) What is the role of General Assembly of UN?
Ans: The General Assembly is like the parliament where all the discussions take place. 

135) Name the five Permanent members of the Security Council.
Ans: The five permanent members of Security Council are: US, Russia, UK, France and China.

136) What does 'Veto Power' mean?
Ans: Each permanent member has veto power. It means that the council cannot take a decision if any permanent member says no to that decision. 

137) Who is the President of the World Bank usually?
Ans: The President of the World Bank has always been a citizen of the US conventionally nominated by the Treasury Secretary (Finance Minister) of the US government. 

138) When did Iraq become independent form colonial rule?
Ans: Iraq became independent from Britain in 1932. 

139) Who came to power in Iraq after a military coup in 1968?
Ans: Saddam Hussein, leader of Arab Socialist Baath Party came to power in 1968.  

140) How did Saddam Hussein come to power?
Ans: After becoming the President of Iraq in 1979, Saddam ran a dictatorial government and suppressed any dissent or opposition to his rule. 

141) What happened when US and its allies invaded Iraq?
Ans: The US and its allies invaded Iraq, occupied it and removed Saddam Hussain from power in 2003 and installed an interim government of its preference. 

142) Who said that US war on Iraq was illegal? 
Ans: Kofi Annan, the UN Secretary General said the above statement. 

143) What were the main features of Allende, the founder leader of the Socialist party of Chile?
Ans: (i) Allende introduced reforms in the educational system; provided free milk to the poor children and redistributed land to the landless farmers.
(ii) He opposed the idea of foreign companies taking away natural resources like copper from their country.
(iii) The landlords, the rich and the church opposed his policies. 

144) How did Pinochet establish army rule in Chile after a successful coup?
Ans: (i) Pinochet's government tortured and killed people who didn't support him but supported democracy.
(ii) A military dictatorship was established.
(iii) From a government that was elected by the people, the power shifted to military offices. 

145) How was democracy restored in Chile?
Ans: (i) Pinochet's military dictatorship came to an end after he decided to hold a referendum in 1988.
(ii) Political freedom was restored and General Bachelet's daughter, Michelle Bachelet was elected President of Chile in 2006.
(iii) The elected governments that came to power ordered inquiries into Pinochet's rule, which showed that his government was not only very brutal but also very corrupt. 

146) How was the government of Poland run in 1980?
Ans: (i) Poland was ruled by the Polish United Workers' Party, a communist party. (ii) At that time, in all the Eastern European countries, no other political party was allowed to function.
(iii) The government in Poland was supported and controlled by the government of the Soviet Union, a vast and powerful Communist State. 

147) What was the role of 'Solidarity' (a trade union) in establishing democracy in Poland?
Ans: It was the first time that an independent trade union was formed in any of the communist states.
(i) Solidarity had about 1 crore members in Poland.
(ii) It had revealed the widespread corruption and mismanagement of the government with the result that the government imposed the martial law and put thousands of Solidarity members into jail.
(iii) Again in 1988, Solidarity sruck again when the Polish government grew weak and the economy of the Soviet Union was in decline. In April 1989, free elections were held. 

148) How were the three democratic governments of Allende's Chile, Walesa's Poland and Michelle's Chile different in their approach towards social and economic matters?
Ans: (i) Allende preferred government control on all big industries and the economy.
(ii) Walesa wanted the market to be free of government interference.
(iii) Michelle stood somewhere in the middle on this issue.

149) How was military rule established in Myanmar and'who made an effort to introduce democracy in the country?
Ans: (i) Myanmar gained independence in 1948 and became a democracy; but in 1962 democracy ended with a military coup.
(ii) In 1990, elections were held for the first time after 30 years. The National League for Democracy led by Aung San Suu Kyi won the elections.
(iii) But the military leaders refused to step down and did not recognise the election results. Instead, they put Aung San Suu Kyi under house arrest. Instead of house arrest, Suu Kyi continued to campaign for democracy and does so till today. 

150) What happens when a country attacks another country in an unjust manner?
Ans: (i) The UN Security Council, an organ of the UN is responsible for maintaining peace and security among countries.
(ii) It can put an international army and take action against the country which is wrong.
(iii) It tries to bring truce between those two countries through negotiations. 

151) Who lends the money to the governments at the international level, why do they need it?
Ans: (i) The International Monetary Fund lends monetary help to the country which needs it.
(ii) The World Bank also gives loans to the government.
(iii) Before lending, they ask the concerned government to show all its accounts and directs it to make changes in its economic policy. 

152) What is the role of the General Assembly in the UN?
Ans: (i) It meets once in a year, under a President, elected among from member- countries.
(ii) It is like the Parliament, where all the discussions take place.
(iii) It discusses general international issues like peace, security, environmental degradation, etc. 

153) Is it true that the real powers lies in the hands of the permanent members of the Security Council?
Ans: (i) The Council has five permanent members.US, Russia, UK, France and China. Ten other members are elected by the General Assembly for a two-year term.

(ii) But the real power lies with the five permanent members.

(iii) Each permanent member has a veto power, i.e., the power to say no. It doesn't make the Security Council democratic. The SC cannot take a decision if any permanent member says no to a decision.

154) Why were the rich and the landlords unhappy with President Allende?
Ans: After being elected the President, Allende had taken several policy decisions to help the poor and the workers. He had introduced reforms in educational system, distributed lands to the landless farmers and provided free milk to the poor children. Since rich people were dealing with copper trade, with other countries of the world, Allende was opposed to the foreign companies taking copper, an important natural resource. That is why the rich and the landlords opposed his policies. 

155) How were Allende's supporters treated under Pinochet's dictatorial rule?
Ans: Pinochet's government tortured and killed several of those who supported Allende and those who wanted democracy to be restored. Alberto Bachelet, General of Chilean Air Force and many other officers along with General's wife and daughter were put in prison and tortured, since they refused to join the coup. More than 3,000 people were killed by the military. Many more were reported missing. No one knows what happened to them. 

156) What do you know about Michelle Bachelet?
Ans: Michelle Bachelet was elected President in Chile in January 2006. A medical doctor and a moderate socialist, Michelle became the first woman to be the Defence Minister in Latin America. In the presidential elections, she defeated one of Chile's richest men. She was the daughter of General Bachelet and remained imprisoned  for several years. 

157) Discuss how the end of colonialism led way to democracy.
Ans:  People of colonised countries had to wage struggles to achieve independence. They not only wanted to get rid of their colonial masters, but also wished to choose their future leaders. Many of these countries became democracies after they gained independence from the colonial rule. It was a journey to transform themselves from a subject country to a democracy.

158) What is democracy? Give its characteristics.
Ans: Democracy is a form of government that allows people to choose their rulers.
(i) In a democracy, only leaders elected by people rule the country.
(ii) In a democracy, people have the freedom to express views, freedom to organise and freedom to protest. 

159) What were the common features between Poland and Chile?
Ans: Common features between Poland and Chile were:
(i) The people of both the countries could not choose or change their rulers.
(ii) There was no real freedom to express one's opinions in both the countries.
(iii) People could not form political associations and organise protests and political action. 

160) What major changes took place in India's neighbouring countries, Pakistan and Nepal in 1990s?
Ans: (i) In Nepal, the king gave up many of his powers to become a constitutional monarch to be guided by elected leaders.
(ii) In 1999, General Musharraf brought back army rule in Pakistan.
(iii) In 2005, the new king of Nepal dismissed the elected government and took back political freedoms that people had won in the previous decade. 

161) How are powerful countries like USA promoting democracy in the world? 
Ans: The United States of America has taken on the task of democracy promotion in the rest of the world. They say that propagating the values of democracy is not enough. Existing democracies should directly intervene in countries that are non-democratic to establish democracy there. In some cases powerful countries have launched armed attack on non-democratic countries to set up democratic system like Iraq. 

162) Give two differences and two similarities between Pinochet's rule in Chile and the communist rule in Poland.
Ans: Differences: 
(i) Chile was ruled by a military dictator.
(ii) Poland was ruled by a political party. -
(iii) The government of Poland claimed that it was ruling on behalf of the working classes.
(iv) Pinochet's rule in Chile made no such claim and openly favoured big capitalists.
Similarities: 
(i) In both the countries, people could not choose or change their rulers.
(ii) In both the countries, there was no real freedom to express one's opinion, form political associations and organise protest and political action. 

163) Explain how Ghana became a democracy but later on was taken over by the army.
Ans: (i) Ghana, a West African country was a British colony.
(ii) It became independent in 1957 and was among the first countries in Africa to gain independence.
(iii) Kwame Nkrumah, son of a goldsmith was active in the independence struggle and after independence, he became the first Prime Minister and then the President of Ghana.
(iv) He got himself elected as the President for life. Soon after in 1966, he was overthrown by the military.
(v) Like Ghana, most countries that became democracies after gaining independence had a mixed record. They could not remain democracies for long. So, Ghana too could not remain a democracy for long. 

164) What do you know about shipyard workers' strike in Poland and its effects?
Ans: On 14th August 1980, the workers of Lenin Shipyard in the city of Gdansk went on a strike. The strike began with a demand to take back a crane operator, a woman worker, who was unjustly dismissed from service. This strike was illegal, because trade unions independent of the ruling party were not allowed in Poland. As the strike continued, a former electrician of shipyard (Lech) joined the strikers. He was dismissed from the service in 1976 for demanding higher pay. Walesa soon emerged as the leader of the striking workers. The strike began to spread across the whole city. Now the workers started raising larger demands. They wanted the right to form independent trade unions. They also demanded the release of political prisoners and an end to censorship on press. 

165) How did the end of Soviet Control on East Europe and breaking of Soviet Union lead to a big change in the map of the world?
Ans: The disintegration of Soviet Union accelerated the process of reviving of democracies in several countries. Soviet Union controlled many of its neighbouring communist countries in Eastern Europe. Poland and several other countries became free from the control of the Soviet Union during 1989-90. They chose to become democracies. Finally, the Soviet Union itself broke down in 1991. It comprised of 15 Republics. All these republics emerged as independent countries. Most of them became democracies. Thus the end of Soviet control on East Europe and the break-up of the Soviet Union led to a big change in the political map of the world. 

166) What is the role of Aung San Suu Kyi in establishing democracy in Myanmar?
Ans: San Suu Kyi formed the National League for democracy. In 1990, elections were held for the first time after 30 years of military rule and she won the elections also. But military leaders refused to leave the rule and put the elected pro-democratic leaders including Suu Kyi under house arrest. Despite being in house arrest, Suu Kyi continued to campaign for democracy. She feels that quest for democracy in Burma is the struggle of the people to live whole meaningful lives as free and equal members of the world community. Her struggle has won international recognition. She has also been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

167) How does the International Monetary Fund (IMF) work?
Ans: IMF is one of the biggest moneylenders for any country in the world. Its 185 member states do not have equal voting rights. The vote of each country is weighed by how much money it has contributed to the IMF. Nearly half of the voting power in the IMF is in the hands of only 10 countries. Some of them are?US, Japan, France, UK, Saudi Arabia, China and Russia. The remaining 175 countries have very little say in how this international organisation takes decisions. 

169) What happened to Iraq, after getting independence from British?
Ans: Iraq is a country in Western Asia. It became independent from British rule in 1932. Three decades later there was a series of coups by military officers. Since 1968, it was ruled by Arab Socialist Ba'th Party. Saddam Hussein, a leading Ba'th Party leader, played a key role in the 1968 coup that brought the party to power. This government abolished traditional Islamic law and gave women the right to vote and several other freedoms that were not granted in other Western Asian countries. After becoming the President of Iraq in 1979, Saddam ran a dictatorial government and suppressed any opposition to his rule. He was known to have got a number of political opponents killed and persons of ethnic minority massacred.

170) Explain how US interference in Iraq brought an end to Saddam Hussein.
Ans: The US and its allies like Britain alleged that Iraq possessed secret nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction, which posed a great threat to the world. But when a UN team went to Iraq to search for such weapons, it did not find any. Still the US and its allies invaded Iraq, occupied it and removed Saddam Hussein from power in 2003. The US installed an interim Government of its own preference. The war against Iraq was not authorized by the UN Security Council as Kofi Annan, the UN Secretary General, said that the US war on Iraq was illegal. 

171) How was military dictatorship established in Chile in 1973?
Ans: In September 1973, there was a military coup in Chile. General Augusto Pinochet, an army general, led the coup. The government of USA was unhappy with Allende's rule and is known to have supported and funded activities that led to the coup. Pinochet became the President of the country and ruled it for next 17 years. From a government that was elected by the people, the power shifted to the military officers. They could do as they wished and no one could question them. Thus, a military dictatorship was established in Chile. 

172) Discuss how has democracy expanded throughout the world. 
Ans: (i) The French Revolution of 1789, established a secure and stable democracy in France. After that, democracy in France was overthrown and restored several times. Yet they inspired many struggles for democracy all over Europe.
(ii) In Britain the progress towards democracy started much before the French Revolution, but the progress was very slow. By 18th and 19th centuries, the right to vote was granted to more and more people.
(iii) Around the same time, the British colonies in North America declared themselves independent in 1776. These colonies then came together to form the United States of America and adopted a democratic constitution in 1787.
(iv) Many European countries that were becoming more democratic did not initially allow all people to vote. Often women did not have right to vote. In US, the blacks did not have right to vote until 1965.
(v) Those struggling for democracy wanted "universal adult franchise" to be allotted to all. By 1900, New Zealand was the only country where every adult had voting rights.  

173) Salvador Allende was the President of: 
(a) USSR 
(b) Chile 
(c) Poland 
(d) Uganda
Ans: B 

174) Who amongst the following was elected as the President in Chile in 2006? 
(a) Pinochet 
(b) Michelle Bachelet 
(c) Walesa 
(d) Alberto Bachelet
Ans: B 

175) By 1900, which was the only country in the world where every adult had voting rights? 
(a) USA 
(b) New Zealand 
(c) Britain 
(d) Germany
Ans: B 

176) The UN Security Council has the following number of permanent numbers. 
(a) Six 
(b) Fifteen 
(c) Five 
(d) Ten
Ans: C 

177) Which one of the following does not lead to the spread of democracy? 
(a) Struggle by the people 
(b) Invasion by foreign countries 
(c) End of colonialism 
(d) People's desire for freedom     
Ans:  B   

178) What steps were taken to restore democracy in Chile?
Ans: (i) Pinochet's military dictatorship came to an end after he decided to hold referendum in 1988, which he lost unexpectedly.
(ii) The people of Chile had not forgotten their democratic traditions, that is why they did not want to vote for Pinochet, a dictator.
(iii) This led to Pinochet losing first his political power and then his military power.
(iv) Felony, cowardice and treason were finally punished and political freedom was restored.
(v) Since then, Chile has held four presidential elections in which different political parties have participated.
(vi) Slowly, the army's role in the country's government has been eliminated.
(vii) The elected government that came to power ordered inquiries into Pinochet's rule.
(viii) These inquiries showed that his government was not only very brutal but also very corrupt. 

179) How some of the powerful democratic countries of the world are promoting democratic system in the world? 
Ans: (i) Recently, many powerful countries in the world, particularly the USA have taken on the task of democracy promotion in the rest of the world.
(ii) They say that propagating the values of democracy is not enough.
(iii) Existing democracies should directly intervene in countries that are non-democratic to establish democracy there.
(iv) In some cases, powerful countries have launched armed attack on non-democratic countries.