POWER SHARING

CASE STUDY: BELGIUM

Ethnic Composition of Belgium-
● 59% live in the Flemish region and speaks Dutch.
● Another 40% people live in the Wallonia region ans speaks French.
● Remaining 1% speaks German.
● In the capital Brussels, the Dutch speaking community constituted majority in the count
but a minority in the capital.
– In Brussels, 80% were French-speaking while 20% were Dutch-speaking.
Accomodation in Belgium-
● Belgium leaders took a different path. They recognised the existence of regional and
cultural differences.
● Between 1970-93, they amended their constitution 4 times so as to workout an
arrangement that would enable everyone to live together within a small country.
● Constitution prescribes that number Dutch and French speaking ministers shall be equal in
number in the central government.
– Thus, no single party can make decisions unilaterally.
● Many powers of the central government have been given to the state government of the
two regions of the country. The state government are not subordinate to the central
government.
● Brussels has a special government in which both the communities have equal
representation.
– The French-speaking accepted equal representation in Brussels because the Dutch-
speaking community accepted equal representation in the central government.
● Apart from the central and state government, there is a third kind of government.
– 'Community Government' is elect by the people belonging to one language community-
Dutch, French and German-speaking - no matter where they live. This government has the
power regarding cultural, educational and language related issues.
● They helped to avoid civic strike between the two groups and a possible division of the
country on linguistic lines.
Note- when many countries of Europe came together to form the European Union, Brussels was
chosen its headquarters.

CASE STUDY: SRI LANKA

Ethnic Composition of Sri Lanka-
● Sri Lanka has a diverse population.
● The major social groups are the Sinhala-speaker and Tamil-speakers.
 ● Among Tamil there are two subgroups:
– The natives of the country are called Sri Lankan Tamil's.
– The rest, whose forefathers came from India as plantation workers during the colonial
period are called Indian Tamil's.
● there are about 7% of Christians, who were both Tamil and Sinhala speakers.
Majoritarianism in Sri Lanka-
● Sri Lanka got independence in 1948.
● Sinhala speaking community had majority. So, they sought to secure dominance over
government by virtue of their majority. (MAJORITARIANISM)
● Steps taken to establish Sinhala supremacy are-
– In 1956, an act was passed to recognise Sinhala as the only official language. Thus,
disregarding Tamil's.
– The government followed preferential policies that favoured Sinhala applicants for
university positions and government jobs.
– A new constitution stipulated that the state shall protect and foster Buddhism as majority
of Sinhala speakers follow Buddhism.
● As a result, the relation between the Sinhala and Tamil communities strained over time.
● Sri Lankan Tamil's launched parties and struggles for recognition of Tamil as an official
language for regional autonomy and equality of opportunities in securing education and
jobs.
● By 1980s several political organisation was formed demanding an independent Tamil
Eelam (state) in northern and eastern parts of Sri Lanka.
● Their distrust between the two communities turned into widespread conflict leading to a
civil war.
● People were killed on large scale of both the communities.
● The civil war has caused a terrible setback to the social cultural and economic life of the
country.

WHY POWER SHARING IS DESIRABLE?

Prudential Reasons-
● social conflicts often leads to violence and instability, power-sharing is a good way to
ensure the stability of political order.
● Imposing the will of majority community over the 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.
 ● 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.
● People have the right to be consulted on how they are to be governed.
● A legitimate government is one where citizens, through participation acquire a stake in the
system.
While Prudential reasons stresses that power-sharing will bring out better outcomes, moral
reasons emphasises the very act of power-sharing as valuable.

FORMS OF POWER SHARING

. Horizontal Distribution of Power-
● Power shared among different organs of government-Executive, Legislature, and Judiciary.
● Such separation ensures that none of the organs can exercise unlimited power.
● Each organ check the other. Thus, it is also known as the system of checks and balances.
. Vertical Form of Power Sharing-
● Power shared among different levels of government-Central, State, and Local.
● Also called federalism..
● The Constitution has defined the power and functions of each level is in the form of lists
such as union list, state list, concurrent list and residuancy.
. Power Shared Amoung Different Social Groups-
● Power is shared to reduce inequality in the society.
● Eg.1 Community government in Belgium.
● Eg.2 reservation of seats for economically and socially backward classes.
. Powers Shared Amoung Different Political Parties, Pressure Groups and Movements-
● Political parties: ensures elections (BJP, INC)
Forms government (collation government)
Make laws
● Pressure Groups are formed for a specific task or by a group having a common interest.
Eg- worker unions, teachers association, traders association etc.
Note- They do not contest elections but only pressurises the government for their interests.
● Movements are joined by a large group of people for a common cause. The aim is to bring
attention to their agenda.