home » Style » A special organization of political power that exercises. The concept and characteristics of the state

A special organization of political power that exercises. The concept and characteristics of the state

General theory State and law is a general theoretical legal science. The state and law are 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, law cannot arise outside of the state, since only state legislative bodies can adopt generally binding rules of conduct requiring their enforcement. The state introduces enforcement measures to comply with the rules 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 that has a special apparatus (mechanism) for managing society to ensure its normal functioning. The main features of the state are the territorial organization of the population, state sovereignty, tax collection, and lawmaking. The state subjugates the entire population living in a certain territory, regardless of administrative-territorial division.

State power is sovereign, i.e. supreme in relation to all organizations and individuals within the country, as well as independent and independent in relation to other states. The state acts as the official representative of the entire society, all its members, called citizens.

Taxes collected from the population and loans received from them are used to maintain the state apparatus of power. The publication of laws and regulations binding on the population of a given state is carried out by the state legislative body.

The emergence of the state was preceded by a primitive communal system, in which the basis of production relations was public ownership of the means of production. The transition from self-government of primitive society to public administration lasted for centuries. In different historical regions decay primitive communal system and the emergence of the state occurred in different ways depending on historical conditions.

The first states were slaveholding. Along with the state, law also arose as an expression of the will of the ruling class.

There are several historical types of states and law - slave, feudal, bourgeois. A state of the same type can have different forms of government, government structure, and political regime.

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

State - an organization of political power that governs society and ensures order and stability in it.

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 are economic, stabilization, coordination, social, etc. There are also external functions, the most important of which are ensuring defense and establishing 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 There are unitary states, federations and confederations.

State

State - this is a special organization of political power that has a special apparatus (mechanism) for managing society to ensure its normal functioning.

IN historical In terms of 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 as its main goal the solution common problems and ensuring the common good while maintaining, above all, order.

IN structural In terms of government, the state appears as an extensive network of institutions and organizations representing three branches of government: legislative, executive and judicial.

Government is sovereign, i.e. 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 entire society, all its members, called citizens.

Loans collected from the population and received from them are used to maintain the state apparatus of power.

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

Signs of the state

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

Signs of the state are the territorial organization of the population, state sovereignty, tax collection, lawmaking. The state subjugates the entire population living in a certain territory, regardless of administrative-territorial division.

Attributes of the state

Territory is defined by the boundaries separating the spheres of sovereignty of individual states.
The population is the subjects of the state, over whom its power extends and under whose protection they are.
The apparatus is 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 that are binding on the entire population of a given state is carried out by the state legislative body.

Concept of state

The state appears at a certain stage of 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) by a relatively small group of warlike and organized people (tribe, race) of a significantly larger but less organized population (D. Hume, F. Nietzsche). Obviously, in the history of mankind, both the first and second methods of the emergence of the state took place.

As already mentioned, at first the state was the only political organization in society. Later, during the development political system 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: “states that are members of the UN”, “states that are members of NATO”, “the state of India”. In the examples given, the state refers to entire countries along with their peoples living in a certain territory. This idea of the state dominated in antiquity and 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 institutions civil society(XVIII - XIX centuries), when the political system becomes more complex and social structures s of society, there is a need 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 lives 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, 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) in relation to both individual citizens, and large social communities (classes, estates, nations). Thus, during the years of Soviet power in the USSR, many classes and estates were virtually destroyed (bourgeoisie, merchant class, wealthy peasantry, etc.), political repression entire peoples were subjected (Chechens, Ingush, Crimean Tatars, Germans, etc.).

Signs of the state

The state is recognized as the main subject of political activity. WITH functional point of view, the state is the leading political institution that manages society and ensures order and stability in it. WITH organizational 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 considered as a set of political institutions (courts, system social security, army, bureaucracy, local authorities, etc.) responsible for organizing social life and publicly funded.

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

Availability of a certain territory— the jurisdiction of a state (the right to hold court and resolve legal issues) is determined by its territorial borders. Within these boundaries, the power of the state extends to all members of society (both those who have 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.) to exercise its powers;

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

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

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

Public nature of power— the state ensures the protection of public interests, not private ones. When implementing public policy Usually there are no personal relations between the authorities and citizens;

Availability of symbolism- the state has its own signs of statehood - a flag, coat of arms, anthem, special symbols and attributes of power (for example, a crown, a scepter and an 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 so.

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

Society- a concept broader than the state. For example, a society can be above the state (society as all of humanity) or pre-state (such as a tribe and a primitive clan). On modern stage the concepts of society and the state also do not coincide: public power (say, a layer of professional managers) is relatively independent and isolated from the rest of society.

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

General characteristics of the state

Despite all the variety of types and forms state entities that arose previously and currently exist, we can distinguish general signs, which to one degree or another are characteristic of any state. In our opinion, these signs were presented most fully and convincingly 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 of society;
a certain territory (political space), delineated by borders, to which the laws and powers of the state apply;
sovereignty - 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 for limiting the rights and freedoms of citizens and even depriving them of their lives. For these purposes, it has special power structures: army, police, courts, prisons, etc. P.;
the right to collect taxes and fees from the population that are necessary for the maintenance of government bodies and material support of state policy: defense, economic, social, etc.;
mandatory membership in the state. A person acquires citizenship from the moment of birth. Unlike membership in a party or other organizations, citizenship is a necessary attribute of any person;
a claim to represent the entire society as a whole and to protect common interests and goals. In reality, 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 coordinating the interests of various social strata and classes, and at preserving their powers of power. Carrying out external functions, the state acts as a subject of international relations, representing a certain people, territory and sovereign power.

This is a unified political organization of society that extends its power over the entire territory of the country and its population, has a special administrative apparatus for this, issues orders binding on everyone and has sovereignty. The reasons that caused the establishment of the state were the decomposition of the primitive communal system, the emergence of private ownership of tools and means of production, and the division of society into hostile classes - exploiters and exploited. The main reasons for the emergence of the state were the following:

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, changes in the conditions of distribution of the total product, the growth of the population living in a certain territory, etc.

The need to organize large public works, uniting 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 condition, etc.

The need to maintain order in society, ensuring 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, to ensure that all members of society comply with the norms of emerging rights, including those that they perceive as not meeting their interests and 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 individual clans and tribes into single peoples; in primitive society, each clan worshiped its own pagan gods and had its own totem. During the period of unification of tribes, the dynasty of new rulers sought to establish common religious canons. The emergence of the state is characterized by the formation of a group of people engaged only in management and using this special apparatus of coercion. Lenin, defining the state, said that the state is a machine for suppressing one class by another. When does one like this appear? special group people who are only occupied with governing, and who, in order to govern, need a special apparatus of coercion, the subordination of someone else’s will to violence - in prisons, special detachments of people, the army, 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 state's filings into territorial units.

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

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

Disregarding the substantive analysis of the general characteristics of the state, identified and substantiated by representatives of various scientific directions, in general we can say that formally they do not contradict each other. Advanced social thought has come to the conclusion that the state, in contrast to the pre-state organization of power, is characterized by 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-state political organizations (parties, unions, social movements) are formed in society, which also have a significant influence on the picture public life. In this regard, it is important to identify the most characteristic features states, which distinguish it from non-state organizations of society both in the past and in the present. This makes it possible to limit 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 previous state institutions in modern conditions. A state in reality is a state at a certain level social development, different from states that are at early or late stages of development. But all states of history and modernity have common characteristics. What are these signs?

Firstly, the state is a single territorial organization of political power throughout the country. State power extends to the entire population within a certain territory. The territorial division of the population, in contrast to consanguineous ties between members of society, gives rise to a new social institution - citizenship or nationality, foreigners and stateless persons. The territorial attribute determines the nature of the formation and activity of the state apparatus, taking into account its spatial division. Exercising power over territorial principle leads to the establishment of its spatial limits - state border. The territorial feature is also associated with the federal structure of the state, within whose borders live populations belonging to various nations and nationalities. 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. Territory is not social, but a natural condition for the existence of the state. Territory does not give rise to states. It forms the space within which the state extends its power. That. both population and territory are necessary material prerequisites for the emergence and existence of a 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 functioning. The mechanism of the state is the material expression of state power. Through the system of its bodies, the state manages society, consolidates and implements the regime of political power, and protects its borders. Important government bodies that were inherent in all historical types and varieties of state include legislative, executive and judicial. Special meaning The mechanism of the state was occupied by bodies exercising coercive and punitive functions.

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

Secondly, the state is a special organization of political power that has a special apparatus (mechanism) for managing society to ensure its normal functioning. The mechanism of the state is the material expression of state power. Through a whole system of its bodies and institutions, the state directly manages 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 government bodies, which to one degree or another were inherent in all historical types and varieties of the state, include legislative, executive and judicial. Special place The mechanism of the state has always been occupied by bodies that carry out coercive, including punitive functions: the army, police, gendarmerie, prisons and correctional labor institutions.

The mechanism of the state is not a constant. At various stages of social development, state bodies change structurally and solve problems 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. Legal forms of organizing the life of society are inherent specifically in the state. Without law and legislation, the state is unable to effectively lead society and ensure the unconditional implementation of decisions made. Among the many political organizations, only the state, through its competent authorities, issues decrees that are binding on the entire population of the country. Being the official representative of the entire society, the state necessary cases implements requirements legal norms with the help of its special bodies (courts, administration and others).

Fourthly, the state is a sovereign organization of power. This distinguishes it from other political formations of society.

State sovereignty- this is a property of state power that 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 sphere of interstate relations in strict compliance with generally accepted norms of international law.

Sovereignty is a collective sign of a 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 another public power;

in stock special means influences that no other public organization has.

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

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 shape the direction of the policy of their state, the composition of its bodies, and 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 and including secession and the formation of an independent state. In multinational states formed through the voluntary association 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, characterizing it as a specific organization of society. The signs themselves do not yet provide a complete picture of the essence and social purpose of the state in its historical development. With the improvement of social life, of man himself, with the growth of his social, political and moral maturity, the state also changes. Its general features, while remaining unchanged in principle, are filled with new, more rational content. The essence of the state is enriched, obsolete ones die out and more progressive functions and forms of its activity appear, corresponding to the objective needs of social development.

The essence of the state as social phenomenon is, figuratively speaking, a multifaceted core, which consists of many interconnected internal and external sides, giving it the qualitative certainty of a universal control system. To reveal the essence of the state means to identify the main thing that 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 that governs the entire society. In a scientific and practical sense, all power is management. State power is a special type of management, characterized by the fact that, along with colossal organizational capabilities, it also has the right to use violent coercion to carry out state orders.

The state arises 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 in its essence was a political organization of slave owners. Although to some extent it protected the interests of all free citizens. The feudal state is a body of political power primarily of feudal lords, as well as other wealthy classes (merchants, artisans, clergy). The capitalist state in 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 a class position, 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 preceding modernity is that they mainly expressed the economic interests of the minority (slave owners, feudal lords, capitalists).

Thus, due to objective reasons, the state turns primarily into the organizing force of society, which expresses and protects the personal and general 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, forms of property, including private property, become more diverse. The property of the minority gradually turns into the property of the majority. As a result of revolutionary and evolutionary transformations of property relations, the socio-economic essence of the state, its goals and objectives also changes. With the formation of state, collective, joint-stock, cooperative, farmer, individual and other forms of ownership, private property, that is, individual property, began to acquire new qualitative features.

Social purpose of the state flows from it essence. 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 transitory tasks that it solved at one or another stage of the development of society. Attempts to determine the social purpose of the state from a historical perspective were made by thinkers of various eras and various scientific directions. Thus, Plato and Aristotle believed that the purpose of any state is affirmation of morality. Later, this view of the social purpose of the state was supported and developed by Hegel. Representatives contract theory the origin of the state was seen in its existence common good(Grotius); general security(Hobbes); general freedom(Rousseau). Lassalle main task states also saw in development and implementation 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. As they change, views on the social purpose of the state also change.

At the same time, the maintenance of state activities in certain historical periods have a significant impact and subjective factors. These include, first of all, the truth of a certain theory, its universality, the ability to foresee a historical perspective, possible changes in social life, and its implementation in the practice of state building.

While still the main governing system of society, the state is beginning to increasingly turn into an organ for overcoming social contradictions, taking into account and coordinating the interests of various groups of the population, and 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, transparency, pluralism of opinions, and the high role of the court begin to come to the fore.

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

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

Send your good work in the knowledge base is simple. Use the form below

Students, graduate students, young scientists who use the knowledge base in their studies and work will be very grateful to you.

Posted on http://www.allbest.ru/

THE STATE AS A SPECIAL POLITICAL ORGANIZATION

state political coercion social

The concept of the state, its characteristics and functions

The state can be defined as an 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 slave and feudal states.

Revealing the content of the concept of state, we first of all subsume it under such an ordinary concept as a political organization. Thus, we transfer the characteristics inherent general concept, on 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 political organization 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 operate all social institutions.

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

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

The state changes along with society as a political form of its organization. We can talk about the features of the state mechanism of slave-holding, feudal, bourgeois society, etc. This is one approach to the classification of states, there are others. For example, we can distinguish authoritarian, totalitarian, and democratic states.

Therefore, a state can be defined as special organization 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 the democratic type of state, then its formation and development in European countries refers to end of XVIII-XIX centuries Today, Russia has also begun building the quality of a democratic state. The development of Russia as a legal democratic state assumes 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, multi-party system;

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

4) a person, his rights and freedoms are 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 delimitation of jurisdiction and powers (competence) between the Russian Federation, its constituent republics, territories, regions, autonomous districts and local governments;

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

The concept of “state in general” captures the general characteristics characteristic of any state, regardless of its nature.

We can talk about the features that distinguish the state from the primitive organization of society, and we can talk about the features that make it different from any social organization, association, or movement.

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

Firstly, it has political power, that is, organized concentrated coercion of one part of society over another.

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

The territorial division of the population characteristic of the state:

a) consolidates the severance of blood ties former family, the gap caused by the mobility and changeability of the place of residence of the population, and connections with the developed exchange of goods, changes in occupations and alienation of land property;

b) makes it generally accepted to organize people only at their place of residence, regardless of their family ties;

c) turns 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 and territorial structure.

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

The state is different from others public organizations, associations and movements have 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 power.

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

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

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

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

And in order to accurately establish a social characteristic, one must be guided by the principle that there is an integral two-way dependence between a phenomenon and its main characteristic, namely: the absence of the specified characteristic inevitably entails the absence of the phenomenon of which it is a sign. In turn, without a phenomenon such a sign cannot exist.

Interim conclusion - the essential features of a state are:

1. The presence of public power, which, 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 constitutes the state apparatus, which is endowed with state powers, that is, the ability to issue binding acts, resort to state influence in necessary cases in order to subordinate the behavior of people to the will that is expressed in the 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 there. In primitive society, the subordination of people to power was due to their belonging to the clan, that is, blood-related ties. The attribute of a state is characterized by the extension of its power to all people located on the territory of a given state.

3. State sovereignty, that is, the independence of state power from new and different authorities within 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 characteristics, from other organizations of society (for example, political parties), territorial entities.

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

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

The social purpose of the state, the nature and content of its activities are expressed in the functions of the state, which are related to 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 on which it influences. Depending on this, the functions of the state can be divided into internal and external.

1. Internal functions are the main directions of state activity within a given country, characterizing domestic policy states. These include protective and regulatory.

The implementation of protective functions presupposes the activities of the state to ensure and protect all social relations established and regulated by law. For these purposes, the state takes care:

a) on upholding the rights and freedoms of citizens, on maintaining law and order;

b) on ensuring civil harmony in society;

c) on equal protection of all forms of property;

d) about protection environment etc.

In accordance with the Constitution Russian Federation recognition, observance and protection of human and civil rights and freedoms is the responsibility of the state. Rights and freedoms are recognized as inalienable, belonging to a person from birth. The state guarantees everyone judicial protection of their rights and freedoms. The rights of victims of crimes and abuses 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 property are equally recognized and protected.

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

The economic function of the state comes down to:

a) development of economic policy;

b) management of state enterprises and organizations;

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

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

The implementation of the social function of the state involves the creation of conditions that ensure a decent life and free development of people. In accordance with the Constitution of the Russian Federation, the labor and health of people are protected in the Russian Federation, it is established governmental support family, motherhood, paternity and childhood, disabled people and elderly citizens, a system of social services is being developed, state pensions and benefits are being established (Article 7).

Taxation and collection of taxes - most important function states. This is due to the fact that the state budget consists of various types 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, the tax police of the Russian Federation, has been created and operates 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 activities of the state, its relations with other countries. External functions include: mutually beneficial international cooperation, ensuring the defense of the state from external attack and others. The international cooperation carried out in two directions:

a) foreign policy activities;

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

The foreign policy activities of the Russian Federation are based on the principles of recognition and respect for state sovereignty and sovereign equality of all countries, equality and non-interference in their internal affairs, respect for territorial integrity and the 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, conscientious fulfillment of obligations 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. It 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 national security Russia, 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, a Decree of the President of the Russian Federation was issued on the main provisions of the military doctrine of the Russian Federation.

The external and internal functions of the state are closely interconnected and interdependent.

Posted on Allbest.ru