653. Duty to ensure pluralism.

The state is the ultimate guarantor of pluralism1, without which there can be no democracy2. In this context3 'pluralism' means the participation of a plurality of political parties representing the different shades of opinion to be found within a country's population4. Among other things, the obligation on states to take positive measures to secure pluralism requires it to ensure opposition parties have access to the political arena on terms which allow them to represent their electorate, draw attention to their preoccupations and defend their interests