POWER SHARING

POWER-SHARING

  • Power-sharing MEANS the sharing or division of power.
  • IN POWER SHARING POWER can be SHARED between governments, various political parties, INSTITUTIONS, and various sections of society.

FORMS OF POWER-SHARING

  • Power is shared among different organs of government, such as the legislature, executive, and judiciary.
  • Power can be shared among different levels OF GOVERNMENT– a general government for the entire country and governments at the provincial or regional level. Such STATE GOVERNMENT.
  • general government for the entire country is usually called the federal government.
  • Power may also be shared among different social groups, such as the religious and linguistic groups. ‘Community government’ in Belgium is a good example of this arrangement.
  • Power-sharing arrangements can also be seen in the way political parties, pressure groups, and movements control or influence those in power.

PROBLEM OF BELGIUM-

  • Belgium is a small country in Europe.
  • Smaller in area than the state of Haryana.
  • It has borders with the Netherlands, France, and Germany.
  • It has a population of a little over one crore, about half the population of Haryana.
  • The ETHNIC composition of this small country is very complex.

the country’s total population

  • 59 % live in the Flemish region and speak the Dutch language.
  • 40 % of people live in the Wallonia region and speak French.
  •  1 % of the Belgians speak German.

In the capital city Brussels,

  • 80 % of people speak French while
  • 20 % are Dutch-speaking.
  • The minority French-speaking community was relatively rich and powerful. This was resented by the Dutch-speaking community who got the benefit of economic development and education much later.
  • This led to tensions between the Dutch-speaking and French-speaking communities during the 1950s and 1960s.
  • The tension between the two communities was more acute in Brussels.
  • Brussels presented a special problem: the Dutch-speaking people constituted a majority in the country, but a minority in the capital.

ACCOMMODATION IN BELGIUM-

  • The Belgian leaders took a different path TO SOUGHT OUT THIS PROBLEM.
  • They recognised the existence of regional differences and cultural diversities.
  • they amended their constitution four times BETWEEN 1970 AND 1993,
  • This arrangement would enable everyone to live together within the same country.
  • ACCORDING TO THE Constitution the number of Dutch and French-speaking ministers shall be equal in the central government.
  • IN THIS WAY no single community can make decisions unilaterally.
  • Many powers of the central government have been given to state governments of the two regions of the country.
  • The state governments are not subordinate to the Central Government.
  • Brussels has a separate government in which both the communities have equal representation.
  • The French-speaking people accepted equal representation in Brussels.
  • the Dutch-speaking community has accepted equal representation in the Central Government.
  • Apart from the Central and the State GovernmentS, there is a third kind of government KNOWN AS ThE ‘community government’.
  • COMMUNITY GOVERNMENT is elected by people belonging to DUTCH, FRENCH, AND GERMAN-SPEAKING communities.
  • This government has the power regarding cultural, educational, and language-related issues. NO MATTER WHERE THEY LIVE.

PROBLEM IN SRI LANKA

  • Sri Lanka is an island nation, just a few kilometers AWAY FROM the southern coast of Tamil Nadu.
  • It has A POPULATION OF about 2 crore people, about the same as Haryana.
  • Like other South Asian COUNTRIES, Sri Lanka ALSO has a diverse population.
  • The major social groups IN SRI LANKA are-
  • the Sinhala speakers 74 %
  • the Tamil speakers 18 %.
  • Among Tamils, there are two subgroups.
  • Tamil natives of the country are called ‘Sri Lankan Tamils’ (13 %).
  • OTHERS, whose forefathers came from India as plantation workers during the colonial period, are called ‘Indian Tamils’.  
  • Sri Lankan Tamils are concentrated in the north and east of the country.
  • Most of the Sinhala-speaking people are Buddhist,
  • while most of the Tamils are Hindus or Muslims.
  • There are about 7 % of Christians, who are both Tamil and Sinhala.

MAJORITARIANISM IN SRI LANKA

  • Sri Lanka BECAME an independent country in 1948.
  • The leaders of the Sinhala community sought to secure dominance over the government by virtue of their majority.
  • the democratically elected government adopted a series of MAJORITARIAN measures to establish Sinhala supremacy.

MAJORITARIANISM STEPS IN SRI LANKA

  • In 1956, an Act was passed to recognise Sinhala as the only official language.
  • The governments followed preferential policies that favored Sinhala applicants for university and government jobs.
  •  A new constitution stipulated that the state shall protect and foster Buddhism.

EFFECTS ON INDIAN TAMILS-

  • All these government measures gradually increased the feeling of alienation among the Sri Lankan Tamils.
  • They felt that none of the major political parties led by the Buddhist Sinhala leaders were sensitive to their language and culture.
  • the constitution and government policies denied them equal political rights.
  • THEY discriminated against them in getting jobs and other opportunities and ignored their interests.
  • As a result, the relations between the Sinhala and Tamil communities WORSHNED over time.

RESULT OF MAJORITARIANISM IN SRI LANKA-

  • The Sri Lankan Tamils launched parties and struggled for the recognition of Tamil as an official language,
  • THEY demand regional autonomy and equality of opportunity in securing education and jobs.
  • their demand for more autonomy in provinces populated by the Tamils was repeatedly denied.
  • By the 1980s several political organisations were formed demanding an independent Tamil Eelam (state) in northern and eastern parts of Sri Lanka. 
  • The distrust between the two communities turned into widespread conflict. It soon turned into a CIVIL WAR.
  • As a result, thousands of people from both communities have been killed.
  • Many families were forced to leave the country as refugees and many more lost their livelihoods.

WHY POWER SHARING IS DESIRABLE

prudential reasons-

  • power-sharing is good because it helps to reduce the possibility of conflict between social groups.
  • social conflict often leads to violence and political instability.
  • power-sharing is a good way to ensure the stability of political order.
  • Imposing the will of the majority community over others may look like an attractive option in the short run.
  • but in the long run, it undermines the unity of the nation.
  • Tyranny of the majority is not just oppressive for the minority; it often brings ruin to the majority as well.

moral reasons

  • Power-sharing is the very spirit of democracy.
  • A democratic rule involves sharing power with those affected by its exercise, and who have to live with its effects.