Resumen

PARKER, Dick. What do We Mean When We Talk About Democracy?. Revista Venezolana de Economía y Ciencias Sociales [online]. 2006, vol.12, n.1, pp.89-99. ISSN 20030507.

This article takes as its starting-point the fact that, within the context of a Venezuelan society that is politically polarized, the two groups in conflict proclaim their own democratic credentials and accuse their opponents of being anti-democratic. In the December 2005 election campaign, there are two clearly differentiated ways of understanding what is meant by “democracy” and the author tries to explore the political logic and the inherent tensions of the two: that of an opposition which emphasizes formal and procedural problems; and that of the pro-government forces which defend the notion of a participatory democracy.

Palabras clave : Democracy; Participatory Democracy; Political Polarization; Parliamentary Elections; Venezuela.