State

Introduction
The State as a politically organized community, has existed in human history since very early times. The
ancient Greeks called it ‘polis’, which means a politically organized city-community or ‘city-state’ as we now
call it. (From ‘polis’ is derived the English term ‘politics’).
The word ‘state’ is derived from the Latin word ‘status’, meaning ‘condition, or circumstances’. The word had
associations with Roman ideas about the ‘status rei publicae’, the ‘condition of public matters’. In time, the
word lost its reference to particular social groups and became associated with the legal order of the entire
society. The Latin term ‘status’ became ‘state’ in English in the Middle Ages.
The early 16th-century works of Machiavelli (especially The Prince) played a central role in popularizing the
use of the word ‘state’ in something similar to its modern sense.
Definition
Article 1 of the Montevideo Convention on the Rights and Duties of States, 1933 lays down the most widely
accepted formulation of the criteria of statehood. It notes:
“The State as a person of International Law should possess the following qualifications: (a) a permanent
population; (b) a defined territory; (c) a Government; and (d) a capacity to enter into relations with other States.”
The most commonly used definition is by Max Weber who describes the State as:
“A compulsory political organization with a centralized government that maintains a monopoly of the legitimate
use of force within a certain territory.”
Woodrow Wilson defines it simply as:
“The people organized for law within a definite territory.”
Elements of the State
From the definitions of the State, given above we learn that it is composed of four essential elements or
attributes:

1. Population
Aristotle, an astute Greek philosopher, said, “Man is by nature a social animal.” The State is an association of
men living together. The population of a state comprises all individuals who inhabit the territory in a permanent
way. They must not wander from country to country, like the nomadic tribes. Wandering tribes do not form a
state The people living in the State are the citizens of the State. They enjoy certain rights and perform several
duties towards the State. When citizens of another State are living in the territory of the State, they are called
aliens.
The question, which has occupied the attention of ancient as well as modern thinkers, is: How large should be
the population of a State? Plato believed that an ideal State should have a population of 5040 persons. Aristotle
laid down a general principle that the number should neither be too large nor too small. It should be large
enough to be self-sufficient and small enough to be well governed. Rousseau, who also did not like large States,
put the figure at 10,000.
In modern times, the States consist of large populations. China, for instance, has a population of 1.4 billion.
However, there still exist small States e.g. Vatican City has a population of 801 as of January 2022. No limit,
theoretical or practical, can be placed on the population of a State. Only one thing can be said. The population
should be so much as would be sufficient to perform all the needs of culture, arts, learning, industry, agriculture,
defense, and civilized life. It should not exceed the natural and human resources of the country.
2. Territory
A modern sovereign state must have a defined territory i.e. geographically identifiable and recognizable. The
territory of the state comprises the land territory, internal waters, territorial sea and the superjacent
airspace. The state exercises its sovereignty over this territory and it is inviolable. As regards the limits of the
air-space of the State, a very interesting question has arisen in the present days due to the invention of the
artificial satellites which spin around our planet thousands of kilometers up in the cosmic space. This problem of
the territorial limits of the ‘cosmic space’ is yet to be solved by international law.
Like the population, the territory of modern States varies greatly. There are small States, like Luxembourg and
big continental States, like Russia and Australia. Political writers differ regarding the size of the territory of the
State. Formerly, they generally declared that the territory must be small enough to be well administered. On the
contrary, in modern times, the tendency is towards large States, because the means of communication and
transport have become so fast and cheap that vast areas can make a compact State.
3. Government
A government is the political organization of the state. People without a government are a mere assemblage of
human beings and not a politically organized community. The state exercises its sovereignty through its
government. Government is the machinery or agency through which the will of the State is formulated
and expressed. The State plans and acts through the government. It is the government that administers the
State, keeps law and order, formulates the policy of the State, and organized the people dwelling within its
territory. If the people are the limbs of the State, the government is the head of the State.
Each government has three organs:
a. Legislature formulates the laws of the State.
b. Executive enforces and implements the laws.
c. Judiciary interprets the laws and applies the laws to specific cases and settles the disputes.

4. Sovereignty
“Sovereignty is the absolute, unlimited and indivisible authority of the state in all domestic matters,
independent of every outside power.”
It is the soul of the State. The State alone is the sovereign association. It has two aspects: internally the State is
supreme over all person and associations; and externally it is independent of all foreign control of power.
Sovereignty implies that states should not interfere in the internal affairs of other states.
The father of the modern theory of sovereignty was the sixteenth century French political philosopher, Jean
Bodin. His work Les Six Livres de la République, published in 1576, contained the first systematic presentation
of his theory. According to Bodin, “Sovereignty is the supreme authority over citizens and subjects,
unrestrained by law.”
Other Features of the State
Although the State is composed of the four essential elements, described above, it is also characterized by
certain other features. They are as under:
1. Unity
It simply means that the population and territory of the State are organized and united under a single supreme
power. If a state is not united, it is marred by insurgency or belligerency which disrupts the peace within the
State.
2. Continuity or Permanence
It means that the State continues to exist for all times. Theoretically, the State is immortal. Governments may
change, but the State continues to exist; the king dies, but the kingdom lives on. However, it may be noted that
the actual States have frequently changed in history, at times by slow evolution and at times, by forcible
revolution. One State can be conquered and annexed by another State. So, in practice, State are not continuous
and immortal, as they are claimed to be in theory.

3. Equality
It means that all States, whether big or small, are equal in the eyes of International law. It is an attribute of
external sovereignty. The United Nations, as proclaimed by the Article 2 of the Charter, “is based on the
principle of the sovereign equality of all its members.”
4. Nationalism
Nationalism is loyalty and devotion to one’s nation. Nationalism has consistently served as an important
resource for the congealment of these burgeoning states. In the present world, almost every state of the world
came into being under the notion of nationalism. It is the key factor that is holding the entire system of states.

Muhammad Umar Aman