# Rights as foundation of democracy Rights are a ubiquitous feature underpinning democratic life. Most simply imagined, Democracy (etymologically **"rule of the people"**) is **a system** of government, of collective decision-making by the people, rather than a set of actions a government takes towards its people. Yet evolving from its ancient Athenian origins, shaped by Enlightenment philosophy and forged through revolution, democracy came to also enshrine a set of fundamental freedoms and rights.
> Robin Asby's extension of Stafford Beer's Viable System Model to a metasystem of nested recursive governances systems is critical. It is based upon recurring conversations within and among political institutions.