The ILG Logo

 

 

 

The globe represents the universality of Liberal values. Liberals believe that Freedom is a universal value - the right of every individual everywhere.

The five arrows circling the globe are the five elements that make up the spirit of freedom.

These five elements that strengthen the spirit of Freedom are :

Freedom itself
Responsibility
Tolerance
Social Justice
Equality of Opportunity

Freedom : Liberals believe that Freedom is an end in itself. It is in fact at the centre of the Liberal’s universe.

Responsibility : At the same time, Freedom has to be exercised with a sense of responsibility. This is an important restraint. Simply put, my freedom ends where another’s begins. Without this restraint, it is not freedom but licence and could result in confusion and chaos - a situation that inevitably leads to authoritarianism or dictatorship.

Tolerance : People are really free only when even a minority (of any kind and not necessarily religious) is able to live without fear and as equal citizens.

Social Justice : Freedom without social justice is illusory - if a large number of people in a free country, as in India, lead a sub-human existence then they are not really living in freedom. They are not really free. At the same time, social justice in a Liberal society is to be achieved, not by the State forcing a bogus equality on citizens through high levels of taxation or through confiscatory legislation but by creating conditions which ensure the fifth element viz.,

Equality of Opportunity : Liberals believe that to expect equality per se is not a rational belief. No two human beings are equal, physically or mentally. What a Liberal society tries to do is to ensure that they get fair opportunities for self-advancement irrespective of caste, status at birth or such other considerations.

Hence ‘Freedom with Responsibility’.

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