And the law is inextricably linked. Law is a set of rules of conduct that are beneficial to the state and approved by it through the adoption of legislation. The state cannot do without law, which serves its state and ensures its interests. In turn, the law cannot arise apart from the state, since only state legislatures can adopt generally binding rules of conduct requiring their compulsory execution. The state introduces enforcement measures to comply with the rule of law.

The study of state and law should begin with the concept and origin of the state.

The state is a special organization of political power, which has a special apparatus (mechanism) for managing society to ensure its normal activities. The main features of the state are the territorial organization of the population, state sovereignty, tax collection, lawmaking. The state subordinates to itself the entire population living in a certain territory, regardless of the administrative-territorial division.

Under form of government means the organization of the highest bodies of state power (the order of their formation, relationships, the degree of participation of the masses in their formation and activities).

Form of government

By form of government distinguish monarchy and republic.

In a monarchical form of government, the head of the state is a monarch (king, emperor, king, shah, etc.), whose power can be unlimited (absolute monarchy) and limited (constitutional, parliamentary monarchy).

An example of an absolute monarchy is the monarchy in Oman, the United Arab Emirates, and Saudi Arabia. Limited monarchies exist in Great Britain, Sweden, Norway, Japan and other countries.

Signs of a monarchical form of government are:

the power of the monarch is for life, the hereditary order of succession is in effect (history knows exceptions: the regicide becomes the king), the will of the monarch is unlimited (he is considered the anointed of God), the monarch is not responsible.

Republican the form of government has the following features: the election of the head of the republic by an elected body (parliament, federal assembly, etc.) for a certain period, the collegial nature of the government's power, the legal responsibility of the head of state under the law.

In modern conditions, the republics differ: parliamentary, presidential, mixed.

TO anti-democratic regimes include fascist, authoritarian, totalitarian, racist-nationalist, etc. The regime in Nazi Germany was both fascist and racist.

In a democracy, there is a desire to create a state governed by the rule of law. The rule of law is a form of organization and activity of state power, which is built in relationships with individuals and their various associations on the basis of the rule of law *

*Cm.: Khropanyuk V.N. Theory of Government and Rights. - M .: IPP. "Fatherland", 1993. S. 56 ff.

The presence and operation of legislation does not yet testify to the existence of legal statehood in society. The Russian state has a goal of becoming legal. Russia is a democratic federal state with a republican form of government.

The signs of the rule of law in a democracy are considered in the legal literature in different ways. So, S.S. Alekseev refers to them: the implementation of legislative and control functions by representative bodies; the presence of state power, including the executive branch; the presence of municipal self-government; subordination of all departments of power to the law; independent and strong justice; assertion in society of inalienable, fundamental human rights and freedoms *

V.A. Chetvernin opposes the concept of "rule of law" and "state of legality", believing that the rule of law cannot but restrict subjective rights *.

* Cm.: V.A. Chetvernin The concept of law and state. - M .: Ed. Delo, 1997, pp. 97-98. * See: Fundamentals of Law of the Russian Federation. / Under the editorship of V.I. . Zueva. - M.: MIPP, 1997.S. 35.

The theory of the rule of law in the Russian legal literature has not yet been finally formed. To a large extent, foreign theory and practice of the concept of the rule of law are used.

The rule of law should be characterized by the rule of law, the separation of powers into legislative, executive and judicial, subordination to the law of the state itself and its bodies, mutual responsibility of the state and the individual, the development of local self-government, etc.

Krylova Z.G. Law basics. 2010

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THE STATE AS A SPECIAL POLITICAL ORGANIZATION

state political coercion social

The concept of the state, its signs and functions

The state can be defined as the all-encompassing political organization of the ruling class, serving as the main instrument for ensuring its interests.

The formed definition of the state refers to the state in the proper sense of the word. These are primarily the slaveholding and feudal state.

Revealing the content of the concept of the state, we first of all bring it under such an ordinary concept as a political organization. Thus, we transfer the features inherent in the general concept to the defined concept of "state". Therefore, there is no need to list them. It remains only to indicate the main features of the state as a special political reality. These will be: 1) the all-encompassing nature of the state; 2) the existence of the state as a political organization of the ruling class; 3) his official role.

The state, being the main political institution, is called upon to manage society, protect economic and social structures, maintain public order and the functioning of all social institutions.

The state is a product of the internal evolution of a society that objectively needs organizational design. In different eras, in different conditions, the state acts as an organization for the management of society, as a mechanism of ruling. The state does not have an eternal nature, it did not exist in a primitive society, but appeared only at the final stage of its development due to various reasons, primarily associated with the new organizational and labor norms of human existence.

The state, its mechanism (the system of state bodies) do not remain unchanged, frozen.

The state changes along with society as a political form of its organization. We can talk about the peculiarities of the state mechanism of slaveholding, feudal, bourgeois society, etc. This is one approach to the classification of states, there are others. For example, authoritarian, totalitarian, democratic states can be distinguished.

Consequently, the state can be defined as a special organization of the political power of society, which has a special coercive apparatus that expresses the will and interests of the ruling class, another social group, or the entire people.

If we talk about a democratic type of state, then its formation and development in European countries refers to the end of the 18th-19th centuries. The construction of the quality of a democratic state has begun today by Russia. The development of Russia as a legal democratic state presupposes that:

1) the bearer of sovereignty and the only source of state power of the Russian Federation is its multinational people;

2) democracy (democracy) is carried out on the basis of political and ideological diversity, a multi-party system;

3) the state, its bodies, institutions and officials serve the whole society, and not any part of it, are responsible to a person and a citizen;

4) a person, his rights and freedoms - the highest value;

5) the system of state power is based on the principle of separation of legislative, executive and judicial powers, as well as the delineation of the subjects of jurisdiction and powers (competence) between the Russian Federation, its constituent republics, territories, regions, autonomous okrugs and local self-government bodies;

6) the rule of law or connection with the law based on the will of society.

In the concept of "the state in general", they fix the general features characteristic of any state, regardless of its nature.

We can talk about the signs that distinguish the state from the primitive organization of society, and we can talk about the signs due to which it differs from any social organization, association, movement.

The state differs from the social organization of primitive society in the following features.

First, it has political power, that is, organized, concentrated coercion from one part of society to another.

Secondly, it is characterized by the distribution of the population by administrative-territorial units.

The territorial division of the population characteristic of the state:

a) consolidates the rupture of blood ties of the former clan, the rupture caused by the mobility and variability of the place of residence of the population, and ties with the developed exchange of goods, a change in occupation and the alienation of land property;

b) makes the generally accepted organization of people only at the place of residence, regardless of their family ties;

c) transforms all people, regardless of their position, into subjects of the state;

d) clearly defines the external borders of the state, as well as its internal administrative-territorial structure.

Thirdly, the state establishes taxes, thanks to which its apparatus is maintained.

The state differs from other public organizations, associations and movements in the following main features.

First, the state covers the entire population living within its territory. Public organizations, associations and movements cover only a certain part of society.

Secondly, the state is distinguished by the presence of a special category of persons - officials, a special apparatus endowed with powers of authority.

Thirdly, the state acts as the official representative of the whole society, is its concentrated expression and embodiment.

Fourth, the state differs from other organizations in the presence of sovereignty.

State sovereignty should be understood as the independence and independence of state power in solving the tasks facing it.

These signs of the state have received universal recognition in the legal literature. They are essential.

And in order to unmistakably establish a social sign, one must be guided by the position according to which there is an inalienable two-sided relationship between a phenomenon and its main sign, namely: the absence of the indicated sign inevitably entails the absence of the phenomenon of which it is a sign. In turn, such a sign cannot exist without a phenomenon.

An intermediate conclusion - the essential features of the state are:

1. The presence of public power, which, being embodied in state bodies, acts as state power. It is carried out by a special layer of people performing the functions of control and coercion. This special layer of people is the apparatus of the state, which is endowed with state-power powers, that is, the ability to issue binding acts, to resort to state influence, if necessary, in order to subordinate people's behavior to the will, which found its expression in decisions made by state bodies.

2. Territorial organization of the population. State power is exercised within a certain territory and extends to all people living here. In primitive society, the subordination of people to power was due to their belonging to the clan, that is, by blood kinship. The sign of the state is characterized by the extension of its power to all people in the territory of the given state.

3. State sovereignty, that is, the independence of state power from the new other power inside the country and outside. State sovereignty, which gives the state the right to independently and freely decide its affairs, distinguishes the state, along with its other features, from other organizations of society (for example, political parties), territorial entities.

4. The activities of all state bodies are based on the rule of law. The state is the only organization that carries out lawmaking, that is, creates laws and other legal acts that are binding on the entire population.

5. The existence of a system of compulsory levied taxes and other mandatory payments.

The social purpose of the state, the nature and content of its activities are reflected in the functions of the state, which are associated with the main directions of its activities.

The classification of functions is based on the spheres of activity of the state, that is, those areas of social relations that it affects. Depending on this, the functions of the state can be subdivided into internal and external.

1. Internal functions are the main directions of the state's activity within a given country, which characterize the internal policy of the state. These include protective and regulatory.

The implementation of protective functions presupposes the activities of the state to ensure and protect all social relations enshrined and regulated by law. To this end, the state takes care of:

a) on the defense of the rights and freedoms of citizens, on the observance of law and order;

b) on ensuring civil harmony in society;

c) on equal protection of all forms of ownership;

d) on environmental protection, etc.

In accordance with the Constitution of the Russian Federation, the recognition, observance and protection of human and civil rights and freedoms is the duty of the state. Rights and freedoms are recognized as inalienable, belonging to a person from birth. The state guarantees everyone judicial protection of his rights and freedoms. The rights of victims of crime and abuse of power are protected by law. Everyone has the right to compensation for harm caused by illegal actions (or inaction) of public authorities or their officials.

In the Russian Federation, private, state, municipal and other forms of ownership are recognized and protected in an equal manner.

Regulatory functions characterize the role of the state in organizing social production, developing the country's economy, in creating the necessary conditions for the formation of an individual. For these purposes, the state regulates the economic environment of life in the interests of individuals and society, taking care of the material well-being and spiritual development of people. The regulatory functions include economic, social functions, the function of taxation and tax collection, and others.

The economic function of the state is reduced to:

a) development of economic policy;

b) management of state enterprises and organizations;

c) establishing the legal framework for the market and pricing policy.

In the Russian Federation, the unity of economic space, free movement of goods, services and financial resources, encouragement of competition, freedom of economic activity are guaranteed (Article 8 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation).

The implementation of the social function of the state presupposes the creation of conditions that ensure a dignified life and free development of a person. In accordance with the Constitution of the Russian Federation, labor and health of people are protected in the Russian Federation, state support for family, motherhood, fatherhood and childhood, disabled people and elderly citizens is established, a system of social services is developing, state pensions and benefits are established (Article 7).

Taxation and collection of taxes is the most important function of the state. This is due to the fact that the state budget consists of various kinds of taxes, fees, duties and other obligatory payments. In 1992, the Law on the Fundamentals of the Tax System in the Russian Federation was adopted, which regulates the rights, obligations and responsibilities of taxpayers and tax authorities. A tax service and a tax police of the Russian Federation have been established and are operating in the Russian Federation. In accordance with Art. 57 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation, everyone is obliged to pay legally established taxes and fees.

2. External functions are manifested in the foreign policy of the state, its relations with other countries. External functions include: mutually beneficial international cooperation, ensuring the defense of the state against attacks from outside, and others. International cooperation is carried out in two directions:

a) foreign policy activities;

b) foreign economic activity and cooperation in the humanitarian sphere, the field of environmental protection, etc.

The foreign policy activity of the Russian Federation is based on the principles of recognition and respect of state sovereignty and sovereign equality of all countries, equality and non-interference in their internal affairs, respect for territorial integrity and inviolability of existing borders, refusal to use force and the threat of force, economic and any other methods of pressure, respect human rights and freedoms, including the rights of national minorities, fulfillment of obligations in good faith and other generally recognized principles and norms of international law. The Russian Federation is a member of the UN, a permanent member of the UN Security Council. She interacts with many other international organizations.

The defense function of the Russian Federation is based on the principle of maintaining a sufficient level of the country's defense capability that meets the requirements of Russia's national security, ensuring the integrity and inviolability of its territory. In 1992, the Law of the Russian Federation on Defense was adopted, which defines the principles underlying the organization of the country's defense, and in 1993 the Decree of the President of the Russian Federation was issued on the main provisions of the military doctrine of the Russian Federation.

External and internal functions of the state are closely interrelated and interdependent.

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    The state is a political structure, a central institution of power, a classification of its functions. Characteristics of theories of the origin of the state. Mechanisms, forms and methods of exercising state power. The concept and principles of the rule of law.

This is a single political organization of society that extends its power to the entire territory of the country and its population, has a special administrative apparatus for this, issues decrees that are binding on everyone and has sovereignty. The reasons that caused the establishment of the state were the disintegration of the primitive communal system, the emergence of private ownership of the instruments and means of production, the division of society into hostile classes - exploiters and exploited. The main reasons for the emergence of the state were as follows:

The need to improve the management of society associated with its complication. This complication, in turn, was associated with the development of production, the emergence of new industries, the division of labor, a change in the conditions for the distribution of the total product, an increase in the population living in a certain territory, etc.

The need to organize large-scale public works, to unite large masses of people for these purposes. This was especially evident in those regions where the basis of production was irrigated agriculture, which required the construction of canals, water lifts, maintaining them in working order, etc.

The need to maintain order in society that ensures the functioning of social production, the social stability of society, its stability, including in relation to external influences from neighboring states or tribes. This is ensured, in particular, by maintaining law and order, using various measures, including coercive ones, so that all members of society comply with the norms of emerging rights, including those that are perceived by them as not meeting their interests, unfair.

The need to wage wars, both defensive and aggressive.

Religion had a significant influence on the process of state formation. She played a big role in uniting separate clans and tribes into single peoples, in primitive society, each clan worshiped its pagan gods, had its own totem. During the period of the unification of the tribes, the dynasty of new rulers strove to establish general religious canons. The emergence of the state is characterized by the fact that a group of people is formed, engaged only in management and using this special apparatus of coercion. Lenin, giving a definition of the state, said that the state is a machine for the suppression of one class by another. When such a special group of people appears, which is only occupied with that in order to govern, and which for management needs a special apparatus of coercion, the subordination of someone else's will to violence - in prisons, special detachments of people, troops, etc. - then the state appears. The state, in contrast to the social organization of the primitive communal system, was distinguished by the following features:

1. Division of the submitted state into territorial units.

2. The establishment of a special public authority, which no longer coincides directly with the population.

3. Collecting taxes from the population and obtaining loans from them to maintain the apparatus of state power.

Digressing from a meaningful analysis of the common features of the state, highlighted and substantiated by representatives of various scientific directions, in general, we can say that they do not formally contradict each other. Leading public thought came to the conclusion that the state, in contrast to the pre-state organization of power, is characterized by a single territory, the population living on it and the power that extends to the population living in this territory.

Simultaneously with the state, other, non-governmental political organizations (parties, unions, social movements) are formed in society, which also have a significant impact on the picture of public life. In this regard, it is important to identify the most characteristic features of the state that distinguish it from non-governmental organizations of society both in the past and in the present. This makes it possible to restrict the state from other elements of the political system of society, to typify the characteristics of states of different historical periods, to resolve the issue of the continuity of former state institutions in modern conditions. The state in reality is a state at a certain stage of social development, which differs from states that are at an early or late stages of development. But all states of history and modernity have common features. What are these signs?

First, the state is a single territorial organization of political power throughout the country. State power extends to the entire population within a given territory. The territorial division of the population, in contrast to kinship ties between members of society, gives rise to a new social institution - citizenship or nationality, foreigners and stateless persons. The territorial feature determines the nature of the formation and activity of the state apparatus, taking into account its spatial division. The exercise of power on the territorial principle leads to the establishment of its spatial limits - the state border. The territorial feature is also associated with the federal structure of the state, within the boundaries of which the population belonging to different nations and nationalities lives. The state has territorial supremacy within its borders. This means the unity and completeness of the legislative, executive and judicial powers of the state over the population. The territory is not public, but the natural condition for the existence of the state. Territory does not create states. It forms the space within which the state extends its power. That. both the population and the territory are the necessary material prerequisites for the emergence and existence of the state. There is no state without territory, there is no state without population.

Secondly, the state is a special organization of political power, which has a special apparatus for managing society to ensure its normal life. The mechanism of the state is the material expression of state power. Through the system of its organs, the state exercises leadership over society, consolidates and implements the regime of political power, and protects its borders. Important state bodies that were inherent in all historical types and varieties of the state include legislative, executive and judicial. Of particular importance in the mechanism of the state were the bodies exercising compulsory, punitive functions.

Thirdly, the state organizes public life on a legal basis. The legal forms of organizing the life of society are inherent in the state. Without law, legislation, the state is unable to lead society, to ensure the implementation of its decisions.

Fourthly, the state provides itself with a sovereign organization of power. Sovereignty states are the properties of state power, which is expressed in the supremacy and an independent state in relation to other authorities within the country, as well as in the spheres of interstate relations in strict observance of generally recognized norms of international law.

Secondly, the state is a special organization of political power, which has a special apparatus (mechanism) for managing society to ensure its normal life. The mechanism of the state is the material expression of state power. Through a whole system of its organs and institutions, the state exercises direct control over society, consolidates and implements a certain regime of political power, and protects the inviolability of its borders.

Parts of the state mechanism, diverse in their structure and tasks, are united by a common purpose: to ensure the protection and functioning of society and its members in accordance with the law. The most important state bodies, which in one way or another were inherent in all historical types and varieties of the state, include legislative, executive and judicial. A special place in the mechanism of the state has always been occupied by bodies exercising compulsory, including punitive functions: the army, police, gendarmerie, prison and correctional labor institutions.

The mechanism of the state is not constant. At different stages of social development, the organs of the state change structurally and solve tasks that are different in their specific content. However, these changes and differences do not exclude common elements that are inherent in the mechanism of any state.

Thirdly, the state organizes public life on a legal basis. The legal forms of organizing the life of society are inherent in the state. Without law, legislation, the state is unable to effectively manage society, to ensure the unconditional implementation of the decisions made. Among the many political organizations, only the state, represented by its competent authorities, issues decrees that are binding on the entire population of the country. As the official representative of the whole society, the state, when necessary, enforces the requirements of legal norms with the help of its special bodies (courts, administrations and others).

Fourthly, the state is a sovereign organization of power. In this it differs from other political formations of society.

State sovereignty- this is such a property of state power, which is expressed in the supremacy and independence of a given state in relation to any other authorities within the country, as well as in the field of interstate relations with strict observance of generally recognized norms of international law.

Sovereignty is a collective feature of the state. It concentrates all the most essential features of the state organization of society. The independence and supremacy of state power is specifically expressed in the following:

in universality - only decisions of state power apply to the entire population and public organizations of a given country;

in the prerogative - the possibility of canceling and invalidating any illegal manifestation of other public authority;

in the presence of special means of influence that no other public organization has at its disposal.

The supremacy of state power does not at all exclude its interaction with non-state political organizations in solving various issues of state and public life. In the sovereignty of the state, the sovereignty of the people finds its political and legal expression, in whose interests the state exercises leadership over society.

Under certain conditions, the sovereignty of the state coincides with the sovereignty of the people. The sovereignty of the people means the supremacy of the people, their right to decide their own destiny, fundamental issues of state and social development, to form the direction of the policy of their state, the composition of its bodies, to control the activities of state power.

The concept of state sovereignty is closely related to the concept of national sovereignty. National sovereignty means the right of nations to self-determination up to secession and formation of an independent state. In multinational states formed by the voluntary unification of nations, the sovereignty exercised by this complex state cannot be the sovereignty of the nation alone.

These are the most general features of the state that characterize it as a specific organization of society. The signs themselves do not yet give a complete picture of the essence and social purpose of the state in its historical development. With the improvement of social life, the person himself, with the growth of his social, political and moral maturity, the state also changes. Its general features, in principle remaining unchanged, are filled with new, more rational content. The essence of the state is enriched, obsolete ones die off and more progressive functions and forms of its activity appear, corresponding to the objective needs of social development.

The essence of the state as a social phenomenon is, figuratively speaking, a multifaceted core, which consists of a multitude of interconnected internal and external sides that give it a qualitative definiteness of a universal governing system. To reveal the essence of the state means to reveal the main thing that determines what determines its objective necessity in society, to understand why society cannot exist and develop without the state.

The most important, qualitatively constant feature of the state is that it, in all its varieties, always acts as the only organization of political power governing the whole of society. In the scientific and practical sense, all power is management. State power, on the other hand, is a special type of government characterized by the fact that, along with colossal organizational capabilities, it also has the right to use coercive coercion for the execution of state orders.

The state emerges as a class organization of political power. This position has been directly or indirectly proven by world science and historical practice. Indeed, the slave state was essentially a political organization of the slave owners. Although to some extent it protected the interests of all free citizens. The feudal state is an organ of political power, primarily of the feudal lords, as well as other wealthy estates (merchants, artisans, clergymen). The capitalist state at the first (classical) stages of its development acted as an organ for expressing the interests of the bourgeoisie.

Analysis of certain economic and social patterns of the emergence and functioning of the state, mainly from class positions, made it possible to give a "universal" definition of the essence of the state, covering all historical types of states, including modern ones.

The peculiarity of the historical types of states that preceded modernity is that they mainly expressed the economic interests of the minority (slave owners, feudal lords, capitalists).

Thus, for objective reasons, the state turns primarily into the organizing force of society, which expresses and protects the personal and common interests of its members.

Private property, which has become an objective factor in the emergence of the state, is also a constant companion in the process of its development. As social life improves, the forms of ownership, including private ownership, become more diverse. The property of the minority is gradually becoming the property of the majority. As a result of the revolutionary and evolutionary transformations of property relations, the socio-economic essence of the state, its goals and objectives, also change. With the formation of state, collective, joint-stock, cooperative, farm, individual and other forms of ownership, private property, that is, the property of an individual, began to acquire new qualitative features.

The social purpose of the state follows from his entities. What is essence state, such is the nature of its activities, such are the goals and objectives that it sets for itself. We can talk about the social purpose of the state in general, abstracting from those historically transient tasks that it solved at one stage or another of the development of society. Attempts to determine the social purpose of the state in the historical perspective were undertaken by thinkers of different eras and different scientific directions. So, Plato and Aristotle believed that the purpose of any state is assertion of morality. Later, this view of the social purpose of the state was supported and developed by Hegel. Representatives of the contractual theory of the origin of the state saw in its existence common good(Grotius); general safety(Hobbes); general freedom(Russo). Lassalle also saw the main task of the state in development and realization of human freedom

So, views on the social purpose of the state are determined by those objective conditions that are characteristic of a given level of development of society. With their change, the views on the social purpose of the state also change.

At the same time, the content of the state's activity in certain historical periods is also significantly influenced by subjective factors. These include, first of all, the truth of a certain theory, its universality, the ability to foresee the historical perspective, possible changes in social life, its implementation in the practice of state building.

While still the main governing system of society, the state is increasingly turning into a body for overcoming social contradictions, taking into account and coordinating the interests of various groups of the population, implementing decisions that would be supported by various social strata. In the activities of the state, such important general democratic institutions as the separation of powers, the rule of law, publicity, pluralism of opinions, and the high role of the court are beginning to come to the fore.

The role of the state in the international arena and its external activities, which require mutual concessions, compromises, and reasonable agreements with other states, are changing significantly.

All this gives grounds to characterize the modern civilized state as a means of social compromise. (by content) and as a rule of law (in form).

State - the organization of political power that manages society and ensures order and stability in it.

The main signs of the state are: the presence of a certain territory, sovereignty, a broad social base, a monopoly on legitimate violence, the right to collect taxes, the public nature of power, the presence of state symbols.

The state fulfills internal functions, among which - economic, stabilization, coordination, social, etc. There are also external functions, the most important of which are the provision of defense and the establishment of international cooperation.

By form of government states are divided into monarchies (constitutional and absolute) and republics (parliamentary, presidential and mixed). Depending on the forms of government distinguish unitary states, federations and confederations.

State

State - This is a special organization of political power, which has a special apparatus (mechanism) for managing society to ensure its normal activities.

V historical plan, the state can be defined as a social organization that has ultimate power over all people living within the boundaries of a certain territory, and has its main goal to solve common problems and ensure the common good while maintaining, above all, order.

V structural plan, the state appears as a ramified network of institutions and organizations that personify three branches of government: legislative, executive and judicial.

Government is sovereign, that is, supreme, in relation to all organizations and individuals within the country, as well as independent, independent in relation to other states. The state is the official representative of the whole society, of all its members, called citizens.

The loans taken from the population and received from them are directed to the maintenance of the state apparatus of power.

The state is a universal organization, distinguished by a number of unparalleled attributes and signs.

State signs

  • Coercion - state coercion is primary and priority in relation to the right to coerce other subjects within a given state and is carried out by specialized bodies in situations determined by law.
  • Sovereignty - the state has the highest and unlimited power over all individuals and organizations operating within historically established boundaries.
  • Universality - the state acts on behalf of the entire society and extends its power to the entire territory.

State signs are the territorial organization of the population, state sovereignty, tax collection, lawmaking. The state subordinates to itself the entire population living in a certain territory, regardless of the administrative-territorial division.

State attributes

  • Territory is defined by the boundaries dividing the spheres of sovereignty of individual states.
  • The population is the subjects of the state to which its power extends and under whose protection they are.
  • Apparatus - a system of organs and the presence of a special "class of officials" through which the state functions and develops. The publication of laws and regulations binding on the entire population of a given state is carried out by the state legislative body.

The concept of the state

The state emerges at a certain stage in the development of society as a political organization, as an institution of power and management of society. There are two main concepts of the emergence of the state. In accordance with the first concept, the state arises in the course of the natural development of society and the conclusion of an agreement between citizens and rulers (T. Hobbes, J. Locke). The second concept goes back to the ideas of Plato. She rejects the first and insists that the state arises as a result of the conquest (conquest) of a relatively small group of militant and organized people (tribe, race), which is significantly superior in number, but less organized population (D. Hume, F. Nietzsche). Obviously, in the history of mankind, both the first and the second methods of the emergence of the state took place.

As already mentioned, in the beginning the state was the only political organization in society. Later, in the course of the development of the political system of society, other political organizations (parties, movements, blocs, etc.) arise.

The term "state" is usually used in a broad and narrow sense.

In a broad sense the state is identified with society, with a certain country. For example, we say: “UN member states”, “NATO member states”, “India state”. In the examples given, the state refers to entire countries together with their peoples living in a certain territory. This view of the state dominated in antiquity and in the Middle Ages.

In a narrow sense the state is understood as one of the institutions of the political system that has supreme power in society. This understanding of the role and place of the state is substantiated during the formation of civil society institutions (18th - 19th centuries), when the political system and social structure of society become more complex, and it becomes necessary to separate state institutions and institutions from society and other non-state institutions of the political system.

The state is the main socio-political institution of society, the core of the political system. Possessing sovereign power in society, it controls the life of people, regulates relations between various social strata and classes, and is responsible for the stability of society and the safety of its citizens.

The state has a complex organizational structure, which includes the following elements: legislative institutions, executive and administrative bodies, the judicial system, public order and state security bodies, the armed forces, etc. All this allows the state to perform not only the functions of managing society, but also the functions of coercion (institutionalized violence) against both individual citizens and large social communities (classes, estates, nation). So, during the years of Soviet power in the USSR, many classes and estates were virtually destroyed (bourgeoisie, merchants, prosperous peasants, etc.), whole peoples were subjected to political repression (Chechens, Ingush, Crimean Tatars, Germans, etc.).

State signs

The state is recognized as the main subject of political activity. WITH functional From the point of view, the state is the leading political institution that manages society and ensures order and stability in it. WITH organizational From the point of view, the state is an organization of political power that enters into relations with other subjects of political activity (for example, citizens). In this understanding, the state is seen as a set of political institutions (courts, social security system, army, bureaucracy, local authorities, etc.), responsible for organizing social life and financed by society.

Signs that distinguish the state from other subjects of political activity are as follows:

Presence of a certain territory- the jurisdiction of the state (the right to rule the court and resolve legal issues) is determined by its territorial boundaries. Within these boundaries, the power of the state extends to all members of society (both those who have the citizenship of the country and those who do not);

Sovereignty- the state is completely independent in internal affairs and in the conduct of foreign policy;

Variety of resources used- the state accumulates the main power resources (economic, social, spiritual, etc.) for the exercise of its powers;

Striving to represent the interests of the whole society - the state speaks on behalf of the whole society, not individuals or social groups;

Monopoly on legitimate violence- the state has the right to use force to enforce laws and punish violators;

Right to collect taxes- the state establishes and collects various taxes and fees from the population, which are used to finance state bodies and solve various administrative problems;

The public nature of power- the state ensures the protection of public interests, not private ones. In the implementation of public policy, personal relations usually do not arise between the authorities and citizens;

The presence of symbols- the state has its own signs of statehood - a flag, coat of arms, anthem, special symbols and attributes of power (for example, a crown, scepter and orb in some monarchies), etc.

In a number of contexts, the concept of "state" is perceived as close in meaning to the concepts of "country", "society", "government", but this is not the case.

The country- the concept is primarily cultural and geographical. This term is usually used when talking about area, climate, natural zones, population, nationalities, religions, etc. The state is a political concept and designates the political organization of that other country - the form of its government and structure, political regime, etc.

Society- the concept is broader than the state. For example, society can be above the state (society is like all mankind) or pre-state (such are the tribe and the primitive clan). At the present stage, the concepts of society and the state do not coincide either: the public authority (say, the layer of professional managers) is relatively independent and isolated from the rest of society.

Government - only a part of the state, its highest administrative and executive body, an instrument for exercising political power. The state is a stable institution, while governments come and go.

General signs of the state

Despite all the variety of types and forms of state formations that arose earlier and exist at the present time, it is possible to distinguish common features that, to one degree or another, are characteristic of any state. In our opinion, these features were most fully and reasonedly presented by V.P. Pugachev.

These signs include the following:

  • public power, separated from society and not coinciding with social organization; the presence of a special layer of people exercising political control over society;
  • a certain territory (political space), outlined by boundaries, to which the laws and powers of the state apply;
  • sovereignty - the supreme power over all citizens living in a certain territory, their institutions and organizations;
  • monopoly on the legal use of force. Only the state has "legal" grounds to restrict the rights and freedoms of citizens and even take their lives. For these purposes, it has special power structures: army, police, courts, prisons, etc. P.;
  • the right to levy taxes and fees from the population, which are necessary for the maintenance of state bodies and material support of state policy: defense, economic, social, etc .;
  • compulsory membership in the state. A person receives citizenship from the moment of birth. Unlike membership in a party or other organization, citizenship is a necessary attribute of any person;
  • a claim to represent the whole of society as a whole and to protect common interests and goals. In reality, however, no state or other organization is able to fully reflect the interests of all social groups, classes and individual citizens of society.

All functions of the state can be divided into two main types: internal and external.

By doing internal functions the activities of the state are aimed at managing society, at harmonizing the interests of various social strata and classes, at maintaining their powers of power. By implementing external functions, the state acts as a subject of international relations, representing a certain people, territory and sovereign power.