Federal Politics Research Articles

Forms and Limits of Accommodation in the Case of Catalonia: What Difference Can Shared Rule Make?

The growth of secessionist movements in multinational states in general and in Catalonia in particular has put into question the ability of regional autonomy to accommodate secession. This is largely because the literature on federalism and territorial politics overwhelmingly focuses on a one-sided perspective of self-rule and autonomy when analysing the territorial distribution of power and neglects the other equally crucial aspect of shared rule. This paper questions the validity of this one-sided perspective, conceptualises different types of shared rule and their causes and consequences, and illustrates the difference that shared rule can make in dealing with the secessionist movement in Catalonia. It is suggested that shared rule can be regarded as an integrative mechanism for the accommodation of Catalan aspirations for secession. Autonomy cannot be guaranteed and cannot stunt self-determination impulses without shared rule. Creating a well-functioning intergovernmental system will be a serious challenge, but without such a system, it will be difficult to accommodate Catalonia.

Introduction: A Research Agenda for Federalism Studies

This book conveys current and original reflections of 16 leading scholars from five continents on the past, present, and future of federalism research. They analyze the state of research on key facets of federalism worldwide and present ideas for new research to further understanding of federalism as a principle and mode of governance. Although only about 28 countries are arguably federal, more than 40 per cent of the world’s people live in federal systems, making federalism a leading mode of governance, potential basis for democracy, and means to accommodate diverse, territorially based national, linguistic, ethnic, racial, and/or religious communities in a single polity. Federalism is a very important principle of governance, one that is, in many cases, the only viable means to achieve unity peacefully and democratically in the face of human diversity. The contributors address research gaps, needs, and directions in normative political theory, constitutionalism, comparative governance, fiscal systems, gender, territorial diversity, nationalism, conflict resolution, shared rule, and federalism challenges in Africa, Asia, and the European Union.

Rethinking Women’s Empowerment: Insights from the Russian Arctic

This article examines women’s political empowerment in the Russian Arctic as an example of progress towards gender equality. In contrast to women’s severe underrepresentation in Russian federal politics, a strong trend towards women’s political empowerment can be observed in the Arctic regions of the country. Using the Nenets Autonomous Region as a case study, this article is aimed at narrowing the research gaps in women’s leadership by examining the representation of female deputies in both the regional and local levels of government/self-government. Research on women’s numerical representation indicates that women’s participation and political empowerment in decision-making processes are manifested most vividly in predominantly indigenous communities. Placing a special focus on these Arctic communities, this study describes the historical and institutional roots that impact shifts in traditional gender role and contribute to a phenomenon of indigenous women’s empowerment. Along with this positive pattern of women’s leadership, this study also reveals an alarming trend of “reverse gender disparity” concerning men’s severe underrepresentation in positions of power in indigenous communities of the North. The study results suggest that to achieve gender equality, a holistic approach to women’s empowerment requires taking into account socio-cultural and historical contexts, as well as regional and territorial disparities.

Лингвополитическая персонология (метафорический ракурс исследования)

The article was accomplished at the intersection of such relevant areas of modern linguistics as political linguistics, linguistic personology and linguistic metaphorology. The purpose of the article is to provide an overview of the work of foreign and domestic linguists for 2009-2019, devoted to the analysis of metaphorical models in the idiolics of politicians, to identify the main trends in research of this kind. The analysis showed that linguistic-personal research on metaphorics in political communication is carried out in a cognitive, pragmatic, stylistic, rhetorical, semiotic, psycholinguistic perspectives. It was revealed that according to the criterion “object of analysis” they can be characterized in territorial, status, ideological, gender, chronological, temporal and comparative aspects. The analytical review presented in the article demonstrates that there is a research asymmetry in modern linguistic-political personology: the work on federal politicians predominates over the work on regional politicians, the work on representatives of the political elite over the work on political opposition, the work on male politicians over the work on politicians - women, work on existing politicians - on work on the great politicians of the past. The authors believe that due to the indicated asymmetry in the objects of research, the task of linguopolitical personology should be to fill in the existing gaps.

Vaccination, Autonomy, Complexity, Solidarity - Ethical analyses of a German policy discourse

Abstract Background Currently, measles immunization is high on the agenda of academic and public discourses - on both sides of the Atlantic. In Germany, the discussion of mandatory (measles) immunization was intensively publicly discussed in Spring 2019. Many stakeholders, including federal politicians, plea for mandatory measles immunization. In our paper we analyse the discourse from an ethical point of view. Methods Statements and arguments from German stakeholders in the public debate in 2019 are analysed (among them statements of the federal minister of health, the German Medical Association, NGOs and the National Ethics Council). A vaccination ethics framework and a public trust framework are applied in the analysis. Results Politicians and other public stakeholders debate (measles) immunization and increasingly demand mandatory (measles) vaccination. However, frequently it is unclear which vaccinations or immunization programmes they refer to. They often do ignore the epidemiological situation of immunization rates in Germany, regional differences, relevant target groups and implementation mechanisms, including potential sanctions. This way they simplify the complex problem and offer (populist) simplistic solutions. Normative arguments of stakeholders repeatedly use conceptions of ’autonomy’ and ’harm’; but sometimes also ’solidarity’ is mentioned. Conclusions The call for mandatory measles immunization of school and kindergarten children is offering no adequate and sufficient solution to the problem of elimination of measles. Nevertheless, it contributes to reducing infection risks for the children in care and schooling facilities. Rather, the problem has to be understood in its complexity before discussing the ethical challenges and making effective policy recommendations. When discussing ways to increase immunization rates, ethical values like public trust and solidarity have to be in the foreground - not (only) the debate of autonomy and its restriction. Key messages In German policy discourses 2019, the discussion of “mandatory (measles) vaccination” often shows inaccuracies regarding definitions and facts. These have to be clarified before ethical analysis. Ethical issues regarding the voluntariness of measles vaccination relate also to the ethical concepts of solidarity and public trust and not only to autonomy.

The two solitudes of Canadian nativism: Explaining the absence of a competitive anti‐immigration party in Canada

AbstractCanada has been celebrated in popular and academic work for its relative immunity to nativist populism. No competitive nativist party has recently emerged in federal politics that challenges the mainstream consensus around mass immigration, unlike virtually every other postindustrial democracy. This paper argues that existing explanations for this “exceptionalism” are lacking. In particular, they fail to appreciate the importance of Quebec nationalism in contributing to this outcome. Quebec nationalism fractured the stronger anti‐immigration sentiment found in rural and smaller urban areas in both Quebec and Anglophone Canada and thereby prevented right‐wing parties from mobilising that sentiment in a way that could feasibly win elections. This forced such parties to moderate their message and court “ethnic voters” in suburban ridings around Toronto and Vancouver. We illustrate this argument using novel data which permit a comparison of the Canadian experience with nativist politics in Australia and New Zealand.

Fragmented Democracy: Medicaid, Federalism, and Unequal Politics, by Jamila Michener

Fragmented Democracy: Medicaid, Federalism, and Unequal Politics, by Jamila Michener

An ideological asymmetry in the diffusion of moralized content on social media among political leaders.

Online social networks constitute a major platform for the exchange of moral and political ideas, and political elites increasingly rely on social media platforms to communicate directly with the public. However, little is known about the processes that render some political elites more influential than others when it comes to online communication. Here, we gauge influence of political elites on social media by examining how message factors (characteristics of the communication) interact with source factors (characteristics of elites) to impact the diffusion of elites' messages through Twitter. We analyzed messages (N = 286,255) sent from federal politicians (presidential candidates, members of the Senate and House of Representatives) in the year leading up to the 2016 U.S. presidential election-a period in which Democrats and Republicans sought to maximize their influence over potential voters. Across all types of elites, we found a "moral contagion" effect: elites' use of moral-emotional language was robustly associated with increases in message diffusion. We also discovered an ideological asymmetry: conservative elites gained greater diffusion when using moral-emotional language compared to liberal elites, even when accounting for extremity of ideology and other source cues. Specific moral emotion expressions related to moral outrage-namely, moral anger and disgust-were impactful for elites across the political spectrum, whereas moral emotion expression related to religion and patriotism were more impactful for conservative elites. These findings help inform the scientific understanding of political propaganda in the digital age, and the antecedents of political polarization in American politics. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

South Sudan's Entry into the East African Community: Prospects and Challenges

On July 09, 2012, the Republic of South Sudan celebrated its first year anniversary. The previous year, on November 11, 2011, it submitted an application to formally join the East African Community (EAC), a regional organization consisting of Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Uganda, and Tanzania. South Sudan, a landlocked country in East Africa, emerged from four decades of war that cost the lives of more than two-and-half million people. It has an estimated population of 8,260,490 with the majority (83 percent) constituted by rural peasants, nomadic communities, pastoralist and farmers. Citizens of South Sudan depend on farming and animal husbandry for their livelihood. The Government of the Republic of South Sudan (GRSS) is attempting to build a developmental state in the face of ethnic violence that poses an existential threat and undermines the process of nation-building. Amidst the many outstanding challenges and aspirations facing the new Republic, is a campaign to include South Sudan in the EAC. The task of reviewing the case of South Sudan was delegated to the Council of Ministers, the decision-making body of the EAC,responsible for determining whether a country complies with the requirements. This essay analyzes prospects and development challenges facing South Sudan and exposes the problems embedded in its quest for membership in the EAC. The issues that will constrain EAC’s attempt to build a common monetary union and political federation will be discussed. In particular, two issues will be highlighted: the relationships between the market and society, and between land and citizenship. In order to become an EAC member state, a country must adhere to a series of standards such as principles of good governance, democracy, rule of law, social justice, and respect for human rights. The development challenges facing South Sudan include at least the following: the “absence of good infrastructure and skilled labor, heavy dependency on oil revenues, and corruption.” In addition, the majority of civil servants lack formal education and training as a result of decades of war. Institutional weakness is furthermore exacerbated by problems of violence, unemployment, illiteracy, extreme poverty affecting predominantly women and youth and an inflow of refugees and internally displaced persons. A report by the African Development Bank (AfDB) noted that “Infrastructure services are virtually non-existent in many parts of South Sudan. Its dilapidated infrastructure constitutes a formidable barrier to economic development and hinders economic diversification, inclusive private sector-led growth and productive employment.

Reconceptualizing Canadian Federal Political Culture: Examining Differences between Quebec and the Rest of Canada

AbstractWhile the concept of federal political culture has been attractive to federalism scholars, Canada has proved to be a puzzling case and generated contradictory results across studies. We test a new definition of Canadian federal political culture using original survey data and find that Canadians have moderate levels of federal political culture driven by a utopian view of federalism in which the promotion of diversity should be achieved without any negative consequences for the unity of the polity. We also find that Quebecers and other Canadians have similar levels of federal political culture and that the results are consistent when survey questions are altered to take out country-specific references.

Women in Australian Politics: Maintaining the Rage against the Political Machine

Women in Australian Politics: Maintaining the Rage against the Political Machine

Towards a new era of regionalism in Italy? A comparative perspective on autonomy referendums

ABSTRACT Referendums on regional autonomy are rare events in European politics, but are likely to produce important political and institutional effects. This paper provides the first systematic account of the autonomy referendums held in October 2017 in Lombardy and Veneto (Italy), and seeks: (1) to explore the origins of autonomy referendums, placing them within a wider comparative framework of similar exercises across Western European countries; (2) to explain their political, economic, social and cultural roots; (3) to analyze the campaigns and the results, assessing variations across and within the two regions; and (4) to reflect on the political and institutional implications of the referendums, and to evaluate the extent to which they could lead to a new era of regionalism in Italy, characterized by further asymmetries and fragmentation at both political and institutional levels. Far from being an isolated case, Italy can provide useful insights into the new politics of regionalism and federalism in Western Europe. It is also suggested that a more nuanced approach to the study of regionalism should not only focus on regional–central relations but also account for tensions existing within regions (e.g., regional versus local levels and cities versus provinces).

Designing a General Anti-Avoidance Rule for the East African Community – A Comparative Analysis

The East African Community (EAC) is a regional integration project working towards the formation of a political federation. As a grouping of developing states, most EAC Partner States have legislated their own general anti-avoidance rules (GAARs) as a means to prevent base erosion and profit shifting. This article argues that the EAC federation, once formed, should continue this practice and legislate its own GAAR to protect its corporate tax base – one of the most important tax bases for African countries. This article further proposes a GAAR for the EAC that builds on the existing GAARs in the EAC Partner States and draws from international best practice through a comparative analysis of the GAARs in the EU Anti-Tax Avoidance Directive, the Income Tax Act in Canada and the Income Tax Act in South Africa. In so doing, the author proposes a GAAR for the EAC that is in keeping with international developments while adapting such developments to the EAC context.

“Made in Yugoslavia”: Struggles with Self-Management in the New Art Practice, 1965–71

In September 1978, Zagreb's Gallery of Contemporary Art staged the first survey exhibition of conceptual and performance art in Yugoslavia: The New Art Practice, 1966–78. Forty years on, the phenomenon continues to attract a substantial amount of scholarly and curatorial attention, largely because of its globally-renowned affiliates, such as Marina Abramović, Sanja Iveković and Mladen Stilinović, among others. But academic work has been hesitant to address the deeper political, economic and institutional factors that underpinned the New Art's emergence and secured its prolific development. This article proposes that the New Art both came out of, and responded to, a complex and contradictory moment in Yugoslavia's history, when the country began to integrate itself deeper into the Western capitalist world system. It follows the emergence of the OHO group in Ljubljana and two particular episodes in the youth centers of Zagreb and Novi Sad alongside a brief, but decisive, period of liberalization, which began with a massive economic reform in 1965 and was briefly interrupted by a crisis in federal politics in 1971/2. To this end, it examines how artists addressed the impact of these developments on Yugoslav “self-managing” socialism, and its promises of grassroots participation and a more experimental political culture. While stressing the absolute importance of situating the New Art Practice in its precise historical context, the article seeks to provide a new model for a transnational study with a Pan-Yugoslav focus – by mapping how artistic ideas circulated in the Yugoslav cultural space, it provides a glimpse into the tightly woven networks of exchange that enabled the New Art scenes to thrive.

English

In his book on, “Pan-Africanism or Pragmatism? Lessons of Tanganyika-Zanzibar Union”, Shivji presents an account of issues, dramas, and politics surrounding the Union of Tanganyika and Zanzibar. He also includes an account of the January 1984 Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM)’s Conference held in Dodoma that toppled President of Zanzibar, then Aboud Jumbe Mwinyi. This book brings back the debate on Pan-Africanism. Throughout the six chapters, the author emphasized that the stresses and tensions in the union of Tanganyika and Zanzibar since its formation 54 years ago are not showing any sign of abating. He also argues that, imperialism under new forms and labels continues to bedevil the continent in ever-aggressive, if subtle, ways. The political federation of East Africa, which was one of the main spin-offs of the Pan-Africanism of the nationalist period, is reappearing on the political stage, though in a distorted form of regional integration. In his words, Shivji argue that, “the Union of Tanganyika and Zanzibar was born in the midst of debates on Pan-Africanism and in the thick of cold war. To this day, the Union carries its birthmarks, more of the latter than the former. The Union is the only surviving example of a political association of African sovereign states. Friends and foes alike often cite it as an exemplar of Pan-Africanist unity or an illustration of its failure” (P xv).

Die hessische Landtagswahl vom 28. Oktober 2018: Fortsetzung der schwarz-grünen Wunschehe mit starken Grünen und schwacher CDU

Federal politics has often influenced elections to the Hesse state parliament . This was also true for the election 2018, which was not only decisive for the future of the incumbent black-green coalition government led by Prime Minister Volker Bouffier (CDU), but also for the fate of the federal party chairs of CDU and SPD, Angela Merkel and Andrea Nahles, at the federal level . Compared to previous election campaigns in Hesse, the 2018 campaign was less polarized, visible also in the openness of CDU, SPD, Greens and FDP in terms of forming coalition governments . The election result continued the transformation of the German party system into one with six parliamentary parties . After some vote counting problems, the incumbent coalition, which won a small parliamentary majority, was - in line with established theories of government formation - renewed . As a result of their gains in votes, the Greens’ position was stronger than five years ago, which led to more offices and to a stronger bargaining power in the coalition negotiations .

Evaluating Bill C-76: The Elections Modernization Act

Bill C-76, the Elections Modernization Act, was a landmark piece of election law in Canada. It was passed by Parliament in time to be in force for the October 2019 federal election. It is the second major set of amendments to Canadian election law in recent years, after the passage of the controversial Fair Elections Act2 in 2014. C-76 had multiple goals. It was designed to undo many elements of the Fair Elections Act, especially around voter identification and election administration. It was also the primary legislative vehicle for updating election law to account for extensive online political advocacy, the emerging role of social media platforms as conduits for advertising, and new digital threats. It addressed many of the concerns prevalent in democracies globally that arose from the 2016 U.S. presidential election, such as foreign interference and hacking. It also engaged with the realities of the permanent campaign in Canadian politics, by updating the treatment of third parties and introducing for the first time in federal politics a spending limit in a regulated pre-writ period prior to the start of the official election campaign. Any one of these objectives and the accompanying amendments would have been significant in their own right. Collectively, the amendments represent a key moment in the ongoing attempt to ensure electoral integrity in Canada. This article sets out the major elements of C-76, seeks to provide the context for the most significant amendments, and provides critical commentary as to the desirability of the changes and their likelihood of enhancing the values that underpin Canadian election law. The article groups the amendments into five overarching themes, which I address in turn: 1) online politics; 2) the campaign period; 3) voting rights; 4) foreign interference; and 5) election administration.

State of Cartographic Services among the East African Community Member States

The East African Community is a regional block that brings together Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi and South Sudan into various forms of economic partnership, the eventual dream being to achieve political federation. The current activities within this community, plus the block’s further development, require the generation and sharing of much geo-information to support the attendant decision-making. Such geo-information can be best served through a harmonized cartographic service with common standards. Such a harmonized service is not only lacking, but even the status of the current national services is also largely unknown. This paper reports on a study undertaken to establish this status, as represented by twelve elements of a cartographic service that the authors are able to establish. Results of the study have shown that the present national services are characterized by inadequate basic datasets that remain largely analogue. In addition, there are non-uniform spatial reference systems, inadequate cartographic human resources and lack of common mapping standards; further, funding for mapping activities remains low in national budgets. Given that over 80% of decisions are influenced by geo-spatial data, these findings point to an urgent need to improve, harmonize and digitize these services as the way forward, if the East African Community is to remain globally competitive.

The Impact of Different Ethnicities in the Realization of Political Federalism in Iraq, from Post Saddam to 2018

The Impact of Different Ethnicities in the Realization of Political Federalism in Iraq, from Post Saddam to 2018

The Politics of Secular Federalism and the Federal Governance of Religious Diversity in Asia

A secular approach has dominated federal studies, perhaps because there seems a natural fit between federalism and secularism. However, the federal systems or practices of Asia bring that close association into question, and the federal accommodation of religious demands has not been examined fully. This article focuses on how religion has been approached, accommodated or resisted in federal and quasi-federal states in Asia. We select India, Malaysia, Pakistan, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Nepal as cases. We first explore the relationship between federalism, secularism and religion, and find that secular values at the point of federalisation played an important role in federalism's establishment, but that they were later modified in the practice of federal accommodation of religion. We also identify and examine the federal governance of religious diversity, which features three types of accommodation—centrally-based, unit-based and group-based accommodation—with accommodative practices sometimes being for the benefit of a majority religion, and sometimes for a minority one.