POWER SHARING

Belgium
 Belgium is a small country in Europe , smaller in area than the state of Haryana.
 Belgium shares borders with France, Netherlands, Germany and Luxembourg.
 Population of Belgium one crore, about half the population of Haryana.
 The ETHNIC composition of Belgium is as follow :
1. 59 % lives in the Flemish region and speaks Dutch language.
2. 40 % people live in the Wallonia region and speaks French language.
3. 1% of the Belgians speak German.
 The capital city of Belgium is Brussels. The ETHNIC composition of Brussels is as follows :
1. 80% people speak French language..
2. 20% people are Dutch language.
 If the % of people is less , it is called minority population and If the % of people is more , it is called
majority of population.
 In Belgium ,The minority French-speaking community was relatively rich and powerful.but Dutch-speaking
community who got the benefit of economic development and education much later.so there was a
tensions between the Dutch-speaking and French-speaking communities during the period of 1950s and
1960s.
 In, Brussels the tension between the two communities was more acute.
 The problem in Brussels is “ Dutch-speaking people constituted a majority in the country, but a minority
in the capital”. ( vice versa for French speaking )
Sri-Lanka
 Sri-Lanka is an island nation, just a few kilometres off the southern coast of Tamil Nadu.
 Sri-Lanka has about two crore Population about the same as in Haryana.
 The ETHNIC composition of Sri-Lanka is as follow :
1. 74% people speak Sinhala.
2. 18% people speak Tamil.
 Among Tamils there are two sub- groups.
(1) ‘Sri Lankan Tamils’ (13%).
(2) ‘Indian Tamils’ ( 5%).
 Tamil people who are the natives of Sri-Lanka, are called Sri-Lankan Tamils.
 Tamil people whose forefathers came from India as plantation workers during British period are called
‘Indian Tamils’.
 Sri Lankan Tamils are concentrated in the north and east of the country.
  Religious are followed by Sri Lankans are :
1. Most of the Sinhala speaking people are Buddhists.
2. Most of the Tamil speaking people are Hindus or Muslims.
3. 7 % Christians, who are both Tamil and Sinhala.
Majoritarianism in Sri Lanka
 Sri Lanka was independent in 1948.

 As the Sinhala speaking people are major in Sri Lanka, so the leaders of the Sinhala community dominance

over government by virtue of their majority. As a result, the democratically elected government adopted a
series of MAJORITARIAN measures to establish Sinhala supremacy.
 In 1956, an Act was passed to recognise “Sinhala” as the only official language and disregarding Tamil .

after that act the following benefits are got by the Sinhala speaking people in Sri Lanka ,
1. The governments followed preferential policies that favoured Sinhala applicants for university
positions and government jobs.
2. Buddhism was favored and special protection constitutionally.
 A new constitution stipulated that the state shall protect and foster Buddhism.

 The above facilities and benefits were suitable for only Sinhala speaking people, as a result Tamil speaking

people felt the government denied them. Followings point in which the Tamil speaking people felt.
1. They felt that, the constitution and government policies denied them equal political rights, discriminated
against them in getting jobs and other opportunities and ignored their interests.
 Due to all this, the relations between the Sinhala and Tamil communities got strained

 Tamil launched struggles against Sinhala, In 1980s several political organisations were formed demanding

an independent Tamil Eelam (state) in northern and eastern parts of Sri Lanka.
 Civil war means the war which happened inside the citizen of that country.

 As a result of “civil war” thousands of people of both the communities have been killed . Many families

were forced to leave the country as refugees and many more lost their livelihoods.
Accommodation in Belgium
 The Belgian leaders recognised the existence of regional differences and cultural diversities.
 Between 1970 and 1993 they amended their constitution four times, because everyone to live together
within the same country.
 The work arrangement of Belgian leaders were different from any other country and was very
innovative.
What are the elements of the Belgian model
 Belgium Constitution prescribes that the number of Dutch and French-speaking ministers shall be equal in
the central government.
  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 because the Dutch-speaking
community has accepted equal representation in the Central Government.
 “Community government” was the third kind of government established in Belgium. The ‘community
government’ is elected by people belonging to one language community – Dutch, French and German-
speaking ,no matter where they live.
 “Community government” was the power regarding cultural, educational and language-related issues.
 The new arrangements of the government helped to avoid civic strife between the two major communities
and a possible division of the country on linguistic lines.
 When many countries of Europe came together to form the European Union, Brussels was chosen as its
headquarters.
 The similarity between Belgium and Sir Lanka is that both are democracies.
 In Belgium, the leaders have realised that the unity of the country is possible only by respecting the feelings
and interests of different communities and regions. Such a realisation resulted in mutually acceptable
arrangements for sharing power.
Why power sharing is desirable?
 Two different sets of reasons can be given in favour of power sharing. Such as :
1. PRUDENTIAL REASON
2. MORAL REASON

PRUDENTIAL REASON :
➢ Power sharing is good because it helps to reduce the possibility of conflict between social groups.
➢ Since social conflict often leads to violence and political instability, power sharing is a good way to ensure
the stability of political order.
➢ Tyranny of the majority is not just oppressive for the minority; it often brings ruin to the majority as well.
➢ The above set of reasons is called PRUDENTIAL REASON.
➢ Prudential reasons stress that power sharing will bring out better outcomes,
MORAL REASON:

➢ 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 a 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.
➢ The above set of reasons is called moral reasons.
➢ Moral reasons emphasise the very act of power sharing as valuable.

 In a good democracy government, due respect is given to diverse groups and views that exist in a society.
Everyone has a voice in the shaping of public policies.
 Basic principle of democracy is that people are the source of all political power. In a democracy, people
rule themselves through institutions of self-government.

Forms of power-sharing
 In modern democracies power sharing arrangements can take many forms. The below points are the
form of power sharing in modern democracies.
1. Power sharing among different organs of government.
2. Power sharing among different levels of governments.
3. Power sharing among different social groups.
4.Power sharing among different political parties pressure groups and movement.
1.Power is shared among different organs of government, such as the
# Legislature,
# Executive,
# Judiciary
Such types of power sharing is called horizontal distribution of power.
➢ It is called horizontal distribution of power because it allows different organs of government placed at the
same level to exercise different powers.
➢ Such a separation ensures that none of the organs can exercise unlimited power. Each organ checks the
others.
➢ This results in a balance of power among various institutions.
➢ Ministers and government officials exercise power, they are responsible to the Parliament or State
Assemblies.
➢ Judges are appointed by the executive, they can check the functioning of executive or laws made by the
legislatures. This arrangement is called a system of checks and balances.
2.Power can be shared among governments at different levels.

➢ A general government for the entire country is usually called federal government. In India, we refer to it
as the Central or Union Government.
➢ The governments at the provincial or regional level are called by different names in different countries. In
India, we call them State Governments. This system is not followed in all countries.
➢ Federal division of power where power is share among different levels of government such as Central,
State , municipality and panchayats form such a structure.
➢ Belgium followed federal government ,but Sri Lanka refused federal system. This is called federal division
of power as well as vertical division of power.
➢ The same principle can be extended to levels of government lower than the State government, such as the
municipality and panchayat.
3.Power may also be shared among different social groups, such as
# Religious groups
# Linguistic groups
This types of power share is called “Community government”.
 # Belgium and French countries are the good example of this arrangement.
# socially weaker sections and women are also represented in the legislatures and administration.
4.Political parties, pressure groups and movements control or influence those in power by taking part in coalition
govt. or participation in political committees.UPA and NDA union government are a form of power sharing
among various political parties in India.