The political exclusion and commodification of women - Environmental and Human Security in the Arctic - page 257

argument I am developing here, it is useful to view liberalism as embedded
within the principle of the freedom of the individual (Carter and Stokes
1998). With a departure point in the freedom of the individual, it is impor-
tant to explore related concepts that help us understand what this means, in
this case 'negative' and 'positive' freedom. 'Negative freedom' implies the
necessity of protecting the individual from the interference of the state in
personal life. 'Positive freedom' means that an individual can be subordinate
to a whole community.
The link between negative and positive liberty is the democratic will
to enable those who are subordinate and dependent to act freely and to
discuss rights and guarantees on equal terms with those who possess eco-
nomic, political, and cultural resources .
(Touraine 1997:11)
It also means that both freedoms are interconnected and that it is not possible
to prioritize one or the other. There are areas of social action where public
authority is needed, and in addition the individual should have the possibility
to act freely and to contribute to the design of legislation, which might be
needed for the protection of individual rights.
With the collapse of the Soviet Union, that negative perception of freedom
became most important. This impacted the perceptions and practices sur-
rounding prostitution. Suddenly it was out in the open, as opposed to hidden
like it was during the period of the Soviet Union. Using the argument that
the right for self-expression is essential, prostitution was liberated from any
moral connotations. It became 'just a profession' equal to any other, and was
explained in terms of self-expression, liberation from the state suppression
and triumph of sexuality in the post-Soviet space. The necessity for any pub-
lic control and state action in regard to the situation was not present in the
dominant discourses.
As Doyle states, there is one important aspect that is often missing from
theories of democracy, in that while debating the importance of the freedom
of the individual, it is necessary to remember that there is 'the importance of
moral freedom, of the right to be treated and a duty to treat others as ethical
subjects, and not as objects or means only' (Doyle 1996:4). Thus, the focus
should be shifted to not just liberty and rights but also duties. The principle
of responsibility, or duty, was developed by such philosophers as Immanuel
Kant and Adam Smith. Kant noted that the human being is essentially able
to freely make rational and morally good choices because man is led by the
concept of duty: 'When we talk about duty we must presuppose that the
required action is possible. It is illogical to say that something is obligatory
according to ethical theory, but yet impossible to realize in action … Ought
implies Can' (Airaksinen and Siitonen 2004:317). Adam Smith developed the
idea of the role of commerce for democratic development and promotion of