Power Sharing- Democratic Politics

1. Define Power Sharing. (3Mark)

power sharing is the distribution of powers/subjects among the organs of the
government like -legislature, executive and judiciary.it is an intelligent step to ensure
the stability of political order. besides, power sharing also includes sharing at the
different levels like union, state and local.

2. What is the ethnic composition of Belgium? (5 Mark)

a) The ETHNIC composition of Belgium is very complex.
b) 59 per cent lives in the Flemish region and speaks Dutch language.
c) Another 40 per cent people live in the Wallonia region and speak French
d) Remaining one per cent of the Belgians speak German.
e) In the capital city Brussels, 80 per cent people speak French while 20 per cent are Dutch
speaking.

3. Explain the Accommodation principle followed by the Belgian government.

(5Mark)
a) Constitution prescribes that the number of Dutch and French-speaking ministers shall
be equal in the central government.
b) Many powers of the central government have been given to state governments of the
two regions of the country.
c) The state governments are not subordinate to the Central Government.
d) Brussels has a separate government in which both the communities have equal
representation.
e) Apart from the Central and the State Government, there is a third kind of
government. This ‘community government’ is elected by people belonging to one
language community.

4. What is the ethnic composition of Sri Lanka? (5 Mark)

a) Sri Lanka has a diverse population.
b) The major social groups are the Sinhala-speakers (74 per cent)
c) The Tamil-speakers (18 per cent).
d) The Tamil-speakers (18 per cent) are called ‘Sri Lankan Tamils’ (13 per cent).
e) The rest, whose forefathers came from India as plantation workers during
colonial period, are called ‘Indian Tamils’.

5. Explain the Majoritarianism concept followed by Sri Lankan government. (5 Mark)

a) The leaders of the Sinhala community sought to secure dominance over
government by virtue of their majority.
b) The democratically elected government adopted a series of MAJORITARIAN
measures to establish Sinhala supremacy.
 c)The act was passed to recognise Sinhala as the only official language, thus
disregarding the Tamils.
d)The governments followed preferential policies that favoured Sinhala
applicants for university positions and government jobs.
e)A new constitution stipulated that the state shall protect and foster Buddhism.

6. Why do you think power Sharing is desirable? (3 Mark)

a) Firstly, power sharing is good because it helps to reduce the possibility of
conflict between social groups.
b) 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.
c) Power Sharing is Prudential and Moral. Prudential will bring better outcome
and Moral Power Sharing is valuable.

7. Enumerate the power Sharing arrangements followed in different parts of the

World. (5 Mark)

A. HORIZONTAL POWER SHARING:

i) Power is shared among different organs of government, such as the legislature,
executive and judiciary is horizontal distribution of power.
ii) Such a separation ensures that none of the organs can exercise unlimited
power. Each organ checks the others.
iii) This results in a balance of power among various institutions.

B. Vertical Power Sharing:

I) Power can be shared among governments at different levels such as
Union government, State government and regional government.
II) In India, the constitution clearly lays down the powers of different levels
of government.
III) This system of power sharing is called federal division of power.

C. Power shared among different social groups:

I) Power shared among different social groups such as the religious and
linguistic groups.
II) In some countries, socially weaker sections and women are represented
in the legislatures and administration.
III) This method is used to give minority communities a fair share in power.

D. Power shared among political parties, pressure groups and movements:

i) In contemporary democracies, competition exists among different
parties. Such competition ensures that power does not remain in one
hand.
ii) Power is shared among different political parties that represent different
ideologies and social groups.
iii) we find interest groups such as those of traders, businessmen,
industrialists, farmers and industrial workers share in governmental
power, either through participation in governmental committees or
bringing influence on the decision-making process.