Ubi societas, ibi ius: Ideals and Reality

Abstract

This article is an attempt to reflect on specific issues related to searching for the optimal shape of the system of law in modern society. Democratic Europe, diverse in many ways though it is, takes pride in its commonly shared core ideas that constitute the normative foundation for all the citizens of the continent. These are primarily the principles of the Roman law and the principal element of humanism. In the European socio-legal reality, these rights and ideas do not always find their full implementation. In particular, the general idea of human rights is subjected to a number of interferences, intrusions and restrictions. This is not a mere “ailment” exclusively endemic to the legal culture typical of democracies. The legal culture of Islam, having distinct religious and social roots (for instance, Turkey or Iran) stresses the importance of the quest for the ideal of the state and law as an equally essential area of political and civic activity. Obstacles and setbacks arising on the way to achieving this goal result in serious social consequences. The most pressing of these are associated with the decrease in social trust, subsequently with the degradation of the culture of trust, and eventually with the reduction of the social capital of any given community.