Abstract
In village development, the community is directly involved through participation, starting from development planning meetings and through implementation. This makes the community feel valued as citizens, and the democratic values that are evident and truly felt are evident. The village development program in Kutukulon Village, Jetis District, Ponorogo, strives to implement development activities using procedures that involve the entire village community. However, not all residents are willing to participate in the initial preparatory meetings for development in the village. However, some do so or are indifferent. Some residents feel they have no business being involved in the various development programs in Kutukulon Village. They believe that village development programs are the government's responsibility and funding, and the community simply enjoys them. This situation sometimes makes efforts to implement democracy in villages difficult. The research findings indicate that, first, the mechanism for implementing community participation in village governance begins with the development planning process, conducted through the Village Development Planning Meeting (Deliberation) to determine priorities, programs, activities, and village development needs. This is then followed up at the village level and used as the basis for developing the Village Medium-Term Development Plan (RPJMdesa). Second, community participation in governance is realized through direct interaction with village government programs or through village-level representatives (BPD). Third, Law No. 6 of 2014 concerning Villages prioritizes participation through representation. This will have implications for the formulation of the Village Medium-Term Development Plan (RPJMdes) and the form of community participation in governance that better accommodates community presence through representative organizations or groups.
Keywords: Rural Development, Implementation of Democratic Values