modern democratic principle states that each person , no matter who they are ( with exceptions as to age ), will get one vote and one vote only to cast to elect their leader . Impartiality in democracy and the equality in voting power is seen as “ a public symbol of our common humanity ” ( Nathan , 1989 ). It ensures that the people within society have the power to select their own leaders , thus having significant influence over their own way of life . Democratic institutions , in most cases , are effective safeguards against tyranny and oppression . Given that modern societies in general avoid tyranny and the fact that all forms of tyranny are regarded as immoral , the principle of impartiality in the democratic system allows us to conduct politics in a reasonably ‘ moral ’ fashion . The relevance and importance of impartiality to our modern way of life does not end at the carrying out of democratic justice , it also underpins the modern legal system . When thinking of ‘ justice ’, it would be difficult to imagine how we could reach the ideal form of justice without the help of a principle
George Gulliver
116 of impartiality . It could even be argued that justice itself is a form of impartiality and not the vice versa where we would see impartiality as a form of justice , or it could be argued that the statement ‘ impartiality is justice ’ is just a truism . The carrying out of justice in modern judicial systems relies on impartiality to deliver just sentences . A judge must essentially be trained in the art of being impartial and free of prejudice in order to be considered worthy of the position . When we see public outcry for the miscarriage of justice it is often the case where people in a privileged societal position have received a sentence that is significantly lesser than what they should have received . When viewed in comparison to an individual in a minority group who receives a disproportionately large sentence for a lesser crime , it is painfully obvious as to where impartiality is needed in order to create a judicial system that is truly just .
It is obvious that the job of a court judge is to play the part of a benevolent impartial spectator who does not take arbitrary differences into account