Açıklama
The principle that states that no legitimate interference with an individual’s freedom is permissible except to prevent harm to others. According to this principle, “the only purpose for which power can be rightfully exercised over any member of a civilized community, against his will, is to prevent harm to others.” Thus, the scope of legal and social coercion is limited to actions that cause harm to others or that carry a reasonably foreseeable risk of causing harm. Mill’s theory of liberty and all of his arguments concerning the balance between public authority and individual freedom are shaped around the interpretation of this principle.