Political union of partially self-governing territories under a national government
A
federation
(also called a
federal state
) is a
political entity
characterized by a
union
of partially
self-governing provinces, states, or other regions
under a
federal government
(
federalism
). In a federation, the self-governing status of the component states, as well as the division of power between them and the central government, is
constitutionally
entrenched and may not be altered by a unilateral decision, neither by the component states nor the federal political body.
[
citation needed
]
Alternatively, a federation is a form of government in which sovereign power is formally divided between a central authority and a number of constituent regions so that each region retains some degree of control over its internal affairs.
[1]
It is often argued that federal states where the central government has overriding powers are not truly federal states. For example, such overriding powers may include: the constitutional authority to suspend a constituent state's government by invoking gross mismanagement or civil unrest, or to adopt national legislation that overrides or infringes on the constituent states' powers by invoking the central government's constitutional authority to ensure "peace and good government"
[
citation needed
]
or to implement obligations contracted under an international treaty.
[
citation needed
]
The governmental or constitutional structure found in a federation is considered to be
federalist
, or to be an example of
federalism
. It can be considered the opposite of another system, the
unitary state
.
France
and
Japan
, for example, have been unitary for many centuries.
The
Austrian Empire
was a unitary state with
crown lands
, after the transformation into the
Austria-Hungary
monarchy the remaining crown lands of so-called
Cisleithania
became federated as
Lander
of the
Republic of Austria
through the implementation of
its constitution
.
Germany
, with its 16
states, or
Lander
, and
Nigeria
, with its 36
states
and
federal capital territory
, are examples of federations. Federations are often
multi-ethnic
and cover a large area of territory (such as
Russia
, the
United States
,
Canada
,
India
,
Brazil
,
Pakistan
or
Australia
), but neither is necessarily the case (such as
Saint Kitts and Nevis
or the
Federated States of Micronesia
).
[
citation needed
]
History
[
edit
]
Several ancient chiefdoms and kingdoms, such as the 4th-century-BCE
League of Corinth
,
Noricum
in
Central Europe
, and the
Iroquois Confederacy
in
pre-Columbian North America
, could be described as federations or
confederations
. The
Old Swiss Confederacy
was an early example of formal non-unitary statehood.
[
citation needed
]
Several colonies and dominions in the
New World
consisted of autonomous provinces, transformed into federal states upon independence such as the
United States
, and various countries in
Latin America
(see
Spanish American wars of independence
). Some of the New World federations failed; the
Federal Republic of Central America
broke up into independent states less than 20 years after its founding. Others, such as
Argentina
, have shifted between federal,
confederal
, and unitary systems, before settling into federalism.
Brazil
became a federation only after the fall of
the monarchy
, and
Venezuela
became a federation after the
Federal War
.
Australia
and
Canada
are also federations.
Germany
is another
nation-state
that has switched between confederal, federal and unitary rules, since the
German Confederation
was founded in 1815. The
North German Confederation
, the succeeding
German Empire
and the
Weimar Republic
were federations.
Founded in 1922, the
Soviet Union
was formally a federation of
Soviet republics
,
autonomous republics
and other federal subjects, though in practice highly centralized under the
government of the Soviet Union
. The
Russian Federation
has inherited a similar system.
India
,
Pakistan
, Nigeria and
Malaysia
(then
Federation of Malaya
) became federations on or shortly before becoming independent from the
British Empire
.
In some recent cases, federations have been instituted as a measure to handle
ethnic conflict
within a state, such as
Bosnia and Herzegovina
, and
Iraq since 2005
as well as
Somalia since 2012
With the
United States Constitution
having become effective on 4 March 1789, the
United States
is the oldest surviving federation, while the newest federation is
Nepal
, after its
constitution
went into effect on 20 September 2015.
Federations and other forms of state
[
edit
]
Federations
[
edit
]
The component states are in some sense sovereign, insofar as certain powers are reserved to them that may not be exercised by the central government. However, a federation is more than a mere loose alliance of independent states. The component states of a federation usually possess no powers in relation to foreign policy and so enjoy no independent status under
international law
. However,
German Lander
have that power,
[2]
which is beginning to be exercised on a European level.
Some federations are called
asymmetric
because some states have more autonomy than others. An example of such a federation is
Malaysia
, in which
Sarawak
and
Sabah
agreed to form the federation on different terms and conditions from the states of
Peninsular Malaysia
.
[3]
A federation often emerges from an initial agreement between several separate states. The purpose can be the will to solve mutual problems and to provide for mutual defense or to create a
nation-state
for an ethnicity spread over several states. The former was the case with the United States and Switzerland. However, as the histories of countries and nations vary, the federalist system of a state can be quite different from these models. Australia, for instance, is unique in that it came into existence as a nation by the democratic vote of the citizens of each state, who voted "yes" in referendums to adopt the
Australian Constitution
. Brazil, on the other hand, has experienced both the federal and the unitary state during its history. Some present-day states of the Brazilian federation retain borders set during the Portuguese colonization (before the very existence of the Brazilian state), whereas the latest state,
Tocantins
, was created by the
1988 Constitution
for chiefly administrative reasons.
Seven of the top eight
largest countries by area
are governed as federations.
Unitary states
[
edit
]
A
unitary state
is sometimes one with only a single, centralized, national tier of government. However, unitary states often also include one or more self-governing regions. The difference between a federation and this kind of unitary state is that in a unitary state the autonomous status of self-governing regions exists by the sufferance of the central government, and may be unilaterally revoked. While it is common for a federation to be brought into being by agreement between a number of formally independent states, in a unitary state self-governing regions are often created through a process of devolution, where a formerly centralized state agrees to grant autonomy to a region that was previously entirely subordinate. Thus, federations are often established voluntarily from "below" whereas devolution grants self-government from "above".
Confederation
[
edit
]
A
confederation
, in modern political terms, is usually limited to a permanent union of sovereign states for common action in relation to other states.
[4]
The closest entity in the world to a confederation at this time is the
European Union
. While the word
confederation
was officially used when the Canadian federal system was established in 1867, the term refers only to the process and not the resulting state since Canadian provinces are not sovereign and do not claim to be. In the case of
Switzerland
, while the country is still known officially as the Swiss Confederation, this is now a misnomer since the Swiss cantons
lost their sovereign status
in 1848.
[5]
In Belgium, however, the opposite movement is underway.
[6]
Belgium was founded as a centralized state, after the French model, but has gradually been reformed into a federal state by consecutive constitutional reforms since the 1970s. Moreover, although nominally called a federal state, the country's structure already has a number of
confederational traits
. At present, there is a growing movement to transform the existing federal state into a looser confederation with two or three constitutive states and/or two special regions.
[7]
A confederation is most likely to feature three differences when contrasted with a federation: (1) No real direct powers: many confederal decisions are externalized by member-state legislation; (2) Decisions on day-to-day-matters are not taken by simple majority but by special majorities or even by consensus or unanimity (veto for every member); (3) Changes of the constitution, usually a treaty, require unanimity.
Over time these terms acquired distinct connotations leading to the present difference in definition. An example of this is the United States under the
Articles of Confederation
. The Articles established a national government under what today would be defined as a federal system (albeit with a comparatively weaker federal government). However, Canadians, designed with a
stronger
central government than the US in the wake of the Civil War of the latter, use the term
"Confederation"
to refer to the formation or joining, not the structure, of Canada. Legal reforms, court rulings, and political compromises have
decentralized
Canada in practice since its formation in 1867.
Empire
[
edit
]
An
empire
is a multi-ethnic state,
multinational state
, or a group of nations with a
central government
established usually through
coercion
(on the model of the
Roman Empire
). An empire often includes self-governing regions, but these will possess autonomy only at the sufferance of the central government. On the other hand, a political entity that is an empire in name, may comprise several partly autonomous kingdoms organised together in a federation, with the empire being ruled over by an
emperor
or senior king (
great king
,
high king
,
king of kings
...). One example of this was the
German Empire
(1871?1918).
Comparison with other systems of autonomy
[
edit
]
Federacy
[
edit
]
A
federacy
[8]
is a unitary state that incorporates one or more self-governing
autonomous areas
. It is distinguished from a federation in that the constitutional structure of the state is still unitary, but incorporates federalist principles. Some federacies, notably
Aland
, were established through
international treaty
.
Devolution
[
edit
]
A federation differs from a
devolved state
, such as
Indonesia
and the United Kingdom, because, in a devolved state, the central government can revoke the independence of the subunits (
Scottish Parliament
, the
Senedd
and the
Northern Ireland Assembly
in the case of the United Kingdom) without changing the constitution. In some cases, such as the
autonomous communities of Spain
, devolution has led to federation in all but name, or "federation without federalism".
[9]
Crown dependencies
[
edit
]
The relation between the
Crown Dependencies
of the
Isle of Man
and the bailiwicks of
Guernsey
and
Jersey
in the
Channel Islands
and the United Kingdom is very similar to a federate relation: the Islands enjoy independence from the United Kingdom, which, via The Crown, takes care of their foreign relations and defense ? although the UK Parliament does have overall power to legislate for the dependencies. However, the islands are neither an incorporated part of the United Kingdom nor are they considered to be independent or associated states. The islands do not have a monarch,
per se
; rather in the Isle of Man the
British Monarch
is,
ex officio
,
Lord of Mann
, and in the Bailiwicks of Guernsey and Jersey, the
British Monarch
rules as the
Duke of Normandy
.
Dependent territories
[
edit
]
Dependent territories
, such as the
British overseas territories
, are vested with varying degrees of power; some enjoy considerable independence from the sovereign state, which only takes care of their foreign relations and defense. However, they are neither considered to be part of it nor recognized as sovereign or associated states.
De facto
federations
[
edit
]
The distinction between a federation and a unitary state is often quite ambiguous. A unitary state may closely resemble a federation in structure and, while a central government may possess the theoretical right to revoke the autonomy of a self-governing region, it may be politically difficult for it to do so in practice. The self-governing regions of some unitary states also often enjoy greater autonomy than those of some federations. For these reasons, it is sometimes argued that some modern unitary states are
de facto
federations.
[10]
De facto
federations, or quasi-federations, are often termed "
regional states
".
Spain
[
edit
]
Spain
is suggested as one possible
de facto
federation
[11]
as it grants more self-government to its
autonomous communities
[12]
[13]
than are retained by the constituent entities of most federations.
[14]
For the
Spanish parliament
to revoke the autonomy of regions such as
Galicia
,
Catalonia
or the
Basque Country
would be a political near-impossibility, though nothing bars it legally. The Spanish parliament has, however, suspended the autonomy of
Catalonia
in response to the
Catalan declaration of independence
, in the lead-up to the
2017 Catalan election
.
[15]
Additionally, some autonomies such as
Navarre
or the Basque Country have full control over taxation and spending, transferring a payment to the central government for the common services (military, foreign relations, macroeconomic policy). For example, scholar Enrique Guillen Lopez discusses the "federal nature of Spain's government (a trend that almost no one denies)."
[16]
Each autonomous community is governed by a
Statute of Autonomy
(
Estatuto de Autonomia
) under the
Spanish Constitution of 1978
.
South Africa
[
edit
]
Although South Africa bears some elements of a federal system, such as the allocation of certain powers to provinces, some nevertheless argue that it is functionally a unitary state.
[17]
On the other hand, if federation is defined as the constitutional entrenchment of the powers of subcentral units (provinces, etc.) that is not unilaterally changeable or revocable by the central authority, South Africa does qualify, formally, as a federal state.
[18]
European Union
[
edit
]
| Parts of this article (those related to the three pillars) need to be
updated
.
Please help update this section to reflect recent events or newly available information.
(
June 2011
)
|
The
European Union
(EU) is a
sui generis
political union
or confederation (the assemblage of societies or an association of two or more states into one state).
[19]
Robert Schuman
, the initiator of the European Community system, wrote that a
transnational
Community like the founding of the
European Coal and Steel Community
lay midway between an association of States where they retained complete independence and a federation leading to a fusion of States in a
super-state
.
[20]
The
Founding Fathers of the European Union
wrote the
Europe Declaration (Charter of the Community)
at the time of the signing of the
Treaty of Paris
on 18 April 1951 saying that Europe should be organized on a transnational foundation. They envisaged a structure quite different from a federation called the
European Political Community
.
[
citation needed
]
The EU is a three-pillar structure of the original supranational
European Economic Community
and the nuclear energy cooperation and non-proliferation treaty,
Euratom
, plus two largely
intergovernmental
pillars dealing with External Affairs and Justice and Home Affairs. The EU is therefore not a
de jure
federation, although some
[
who?
]
academic observers conclude that after 50 years of institutional evolution since the
Treaties of Rome
it is
becoming
one.
[21]
The European Union possesses attributes of a federal state. However, its central government is far weaker than that of most federations and the individual members are sovereign states under international law, so it is usually characterized as an unprecedented form of supra-national union. The EU has responsibility for important areas such as trade, monetary union, agriculture, and fisheries. Nonetheless, EU
member states
retain the right to act independently in matters of foreign policy and defense, and also enjoy a near-monopoly over other major policy areas such as criminal justice and taxation. Since the
Treaty of Lisbon
, the Member States' right to leave the Union is codified, and the Union operates with more
qualified majority voting
(rather than unanimity) in many areas.
[
citation needed
]
By the signature of this Treaty, the participating Parties give proof of their determination to create the first supranational institution and that thus they are laying the true foundation of an organized Europe. This Europe remains open to all nations. We profoundly hope that other nations will join us in our common endeavor.
?
Europe Declaration
, signed by Konrad Adenauer (West Germany), Paul van Zeeland, Joseph Meurice (Belgium) Robert Schuman (France) Count Sforza (Italy) Joseph Bech (Luxembourg) and Dirk Stikker, J. R. M. van den Brink (The Netherlands).
[22]
Europe has charted its own brand of constitutional federalism.
Those uncomfortable using the "F" word in the EU context should feel free to refer to it as a quasi-federal or federal-like system. Nevertheless, for the purposes of the analysis here, the EU has the necessary attributes of a federal system. It is striking that while many scholars of the EU continue to resist analyzing it as a federation, most contemporary students of federalism view the EU as a federal system. (
See, for instance, Bednar, Filippov et al., McKay, Kelemen, Defigueido and Weingast
)
A more nuanced view has been given by the German Constitutional Court.
[23]
Here the EU is defined as 'an association of sovereign national states (
Staatenverbund
)'.
[24]
With this view, the European Union resembles more of a
confederation
.
People's Republic of China
[
edit
]
Constitutionally, the power vested in the
special administrative regions
of the People's Republic is granted from the
Central People's Government
, through a decision by the
National People's Congress
. However, there have been certain largely informal grants of power to the provinces, to handle economic affairs and implement national policies, resulting in a system some have termed federalism "
with Chinese characteristics
".
[25]
Myanmar
[
edit
]
Constitutionally a
unitary state
, the political system in Myanmar bears many elements of federalism. Each
administrative division
has its own cabinets and chief ministers, making it more like a federation rather than a unitary state.
Wallis and Futuna
[
edit
]
The
French
overseas collectivity
Wallis and Futuna
maintains some quasi-federation attributes. The territory is divided into three traditional chiefdoms:
Uvea
,
Sigave
, and
Alo
. The chiefdoms are allowed to have their own
legal system
which have to be implemented along with
French legal system
.
Comoros
[
edit
]
Under the terms of the Fomboni Accords,
[26]
signed in December 2001 by the leaders of all three islands, the official name of the country was changed to the Union of the
Comoros
; the new state was to be highly decentralised and the central union government would devolve most powers to the new island governments, each led by a president.
Internal controversy and conflict
[
edit
]
Certain forms of political and constitutional dispute are common to federations. One issue is that the exact division of power and responsibility between federal and regional governments is often a source of controversy. Often, as is the case with the
United States
, such conflicts are resolved through the judicial system, which delimits the powers of federal and local governments. The relationship between federal and local courts varies from nation to nation and can be a controversial and complex issue in itself.
Another common issue in federal systems is the conflict between regional and national interests, or between the interests and aspirations of different ethnic groups. In some federations the entire jurisdiction is relatively homogeneous, and each constituent state resembles a miniature version of the whole; this is known as 'congruent federalism'. On the other hand,
incongruent federalism
exists where different states or regions possess distinct ethnic groups.
The ability of a federal government to create national institutions that can mediate differences that arise because of linguistic, ethnic, religious, or other regional differences is an important challenge. The inability to meet this challenge may lead to the secession of parts of a federation or to civil war, as occurred in the United States (southern states sought to protect the institution of slavery while northern states opposed it, with a catalysis occurring in the then?
Kansas Territory
), in
Nigeria
and in
Switzerland
. In the case of
Malaysia
,
Singapore
was expelled from the federation because of rising racial tension. In some cases, internal conflict may lead a federation to collapse entirely, as occurred the
Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland
, the
Gran Colombia
, the
United Provinces of Central America
, and the
West Indies Federation
.
Federal governments
[
edit
]
The federal government is the common government of a national or
supranational
federation. A federal government may have distinct powers at various levels authorized or delegated to it by its member states. The structure of federal governments varies. Based on a broad definition of a basic
federalism
, there are two or more levels of government that exist within an established territory and govern through common institutions with overlapping or shared powers as prescribed by a constitution.
The federal government is the government at the level of the sovereign state. Usual responsibilities of this level of government are maintaining
national security
and exercising international diplomacy, including the right to sign binding
treaties
. Basically, a modern federal government, within the limits defined by its constitution, has the power to make laws for the whole country, unlike local governments. As originally written, the
United States Constitution
was created to limit the federal government from exerting power over the states by enumerating only specific powers. It was further limited by the addition of the
Tenth Amendment
contained in the
Bill of Rights
and the
Eleventh Amendment
. However, later amendments, particularly the
Fourteenth Amendment
, gave the federal government considerable authority over states.
Federal government within this structure are the government ministries and departments and agencies to which the ministers of government are assigned.
[27]
Contemporary
[
edit
]
There are 26 federations in the world, with 6 each in
Asia
and
Europe
, 5 in
Africa
, 4 in
North America
, 3 in
South America
and 2 in
Oceania
.
Current federations
Year est.
|
Federation
|
Type
[t 1]
|
Structure
|
Top-level subdivisions (federated and other)
|
Major federated units
|
Minor units
[t 2]
(federated or other)
|
1853
|
Argentine Republic
|
R
|
Presidential
|
Provinces of Argentina
|
23 provinces
|
1 autonomous city
|
1901
|
Commonwealth of Australia
|
M
|
Parliamentary
|
States and territories of Australia
|
6 states
|
3 internal territories (of which 2 are self-governing) and 7 external territories
|
1920
|
Republic of Austria
|
R
|
Parliamentary
|
States of Austria
|
9 states
(
Lander
or
Bundeslander
)
incl. the city-state of
Vienna
|
|
1993
|
Kingdom of Belgium
|
M
|
Parliamentary
|
Divisions of Belgium
|
3 communities, 3 regions
|
3 communitarian commissions
|
1995
|
Bosnia and Herzegovina
|
R
|
Parliamentary
|
Divisions of Bosnia and Herzegovina
|
2 entities, one of which is itself a federation of 10 cantons
|
1 district
[t 3]
|
1889
|
Federative Republic of Brazil
|
R
|
Presidential
|
Federative units of Brazil
|
27
federative units
(of which one is a
federal district
and the others are
states
)
[t 4]
|
|
1867
|
Canada
|
M
|
Parliamentary
|
Provinces and territories of Canada
|
10 provinces
|
3 territories
|
1995
|
Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia
|
R
|
Parliamentary
|
Regions and chartered cities of Ethiopia
|
12 regions
[28]
|
2 chartered cities
|
1949
|
Federal Republic of Germany
|
R
|
Parliamentary
|
States of Germany
|
16 states
(
Lander
or
Bundeslander
)
incl. the city-states of
Berlin
,
Hamburg
, and
Bremen
|
|
1947
[t 5]
|
Republic of India
|
R
|
Parliamentary
|
States and union territories of India
|
28 states
|
8
union territories
, including a
national capital territory
|
2005
|
Republic of Iraq
|
R
|
Parliamentary
|
Governorates of Iraq
|
19 provinces (governorates)
|
|
1963
|
Malaysia
|
M
|
Parliamentary
|
States of Malaysia
|
13 states
|
3 federal territories
|
1824
|
United Mexican States
|
R
|
Presidential
|
States of Mexico
|
32 federal entities, which are 31 states and its capital
Mexico City
|
|
1979
|
Federated States of Micronesia
|
R
|
Presidential
|
Administrative divisions of Micronesia
|
4 states
|
|
2015
|
Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal
|
R
|
Parliamentary
|
Provinces of Nepal
|
7 provinces
|
|
1960
[t 6]
|
Federal Republic of Nigeria
|
R
|
Presidential
|
Subdivisions of Nigeria
|
36 states
|
1 federal capital territory
|
1947
[t 7]
|
Islamic Republic of Pakistan
|
R
|
Parliamentary
|
Provinces and territories of Pakistan
|
4 provinces
|
2 autonomous territories and 1
federal capital territory
|
1992
[t 8]
|
Russian Federation
|
R
|
Semi-presidential
|
Federal subjects of Russia
|
46
oblasts
, 22 republics, 9
krais
, 4 autonomous
okrugs
, 3 federal-level cities, 1 autonomous
oblast
[29]
[30]
|
|
1983
|
Federation of Saint Christopher and Nevis
|
M
|
Parliamentary
|
The islands
St. Kitts
and
Nevis
|
1 federal unit (the island of Nevis)
|
The island of Saint Kitts (directly administered by the federal government)
|
2012
|
Federal Republic of Somalia
|
R
|
Parliamentary
|
Federal Member States of Somalia
|
7 states
[31]
|
|
2011
|
Republic of South Sudan
|
R
|
Presidential
|
States of South Sudan
|
10 states
|
3 administrative areas (which one of them has special administrative status)
|
1956
|
Republic of the Sudan
|
R
|
Military junta
|
States of Sudan
|
18 states
|
|
1848
|
Swiss Confederation
|
R
|
Directorial
|
Cantons of Switzerland
|
26 cantons
[t 9]
|
|
1971
|
United Arab Emirates
|
M
|
Semi-constitutional monarchy
|
Emirates of the UAE
|
7
emirates
|
|
1776
[t 10]
|
United States of America
|
R
|
Presidential
|
US states and territories
|
50
states
|
1 federal district
; 16
territories
[t 11]
|
1863
|
Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela
|
R
|
Presidential
|
States of Venezuela
|
23 states
|
1 federal district
,
1 federal dependency
|
- ^
R =
Federal republic
; M = Federal monarchy (in the loose sense).
- ^
That is, first-level subdivisions possessing less autonomy than the major federated units.
- ^
Br?ko District
is
de jure
part of both entities, and
de facto
administered separately from either.
- ^
20 provinces during the
Empire of Brazil
1822?89
- ^
As an
independent Dominion
; republic declared in 1950
- ^
As the
Federation of Nigeria
; republic declared in 1963
- ^
As an
independent Dominion
; republic declared in 1956
- ^
After the
dissolution of the Soviet Union
, a new
Treaty of Federation
was signed in 1992, which did not include all of the same components as the Soviet Union.
- ^
Three pairs of cantons have less power at federal level than the other 20 cantons, but the same degree of internal autonomy.
- ^
The
United States Constitution
, which replaced the
Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union
, was drafted in 1787 and was ratified in 1788. The
first Congress
and
President
did not take office until March 1789.
- ^
Of the 5 territories that are permanently inhabited, all are
unincorporated
, two are
commonwealths
and a third is formally
unorganized
. Of the other 11, one is incorporated and all are unorganized; together they form the
United States Minor Outlying Islands
. The term
insular area
includes both territories and places with a
Compact of Free Association
.
Defunct
[
edit
]
Some of the
proclaimed Arab federations
were confederations
de facto
.
See also
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
"Federalism and Federation"
.
The Princeton Encyclopedia of Self-Determination
. Retrieved
24 January
2024
.
- ^
Leonardy, U. (1992). "Federation and Lander in German foreign relations: Power-sharing in treaty-making and European affairs".
German Politics
.
1
(3): 119?135.
doi
:
10.1080/09644009208404305
.
- ^
Harding, Andrew (25 January 2021).
"Asymmetric Federalism and Protection of Indigenous Peoples: The Case of Sabah and Sarawak in Malaysian Federalism"
.
50 Shades of Federalism
. Retrieved
24 January
2024
.
- ^
"confederation"
.
Oxford English Dictionary
(Online ed.).
Oxford University Press
.
(Subscription or
participating institution membership
required.)
- ^
CH: Confoederatio Helvetica - Switzerland - Information
Archived
30 March 2015 at the
Wayback Machine
. Swissworld.org. Retrieved on 2013-07-12.
- ^
One of the most important recent books about the Belgian institutions, written by one of the leading French-speaking jurists
[
who?
]
concludes:
Vers le confederalisme
(Toward a Confederation). See: Charles-Etienne Lagasse,
Les Nouvelles institutions politiques de la Belgique et de l'Europe
, Erasme,
Namur
2003, p. 603
ISBN
2-87127-783-4
- ^
Many Flemings would prefer two states, Flanders and Wallonia, and two special regions, Brussels and the German-speaking region. In Wallonia, there is wider support for three states: Flanders, Wallonia and Brussels.
- ^
Some dictionaries, such as the Webster's Encyclopedic Unabridged Dictionary of the English Language (1989 ed.), state that federacy is synonymous with confederacy ("by aphesis"). In French, the English words federacy, confederacy, and confederation are all translated by "confederation".
- ^
The Federal Option and Constitutional Management of Diversity in Spain Xavier Arbos Marin, page 375; included in 'The Ways of Federalism in Western Countries and the Horizons of Territorial Autonomy in Spain' (volume 2), edited by Alberto Lopez-Eguren and Leire Escajedo San Epifanio; edited by
Springer
ISBN
978-3-642-27716-0
,
ISBN
978-3-642-27717-7
(eBook)
- ^
Sahadzic, Maja.
"Federal Theory on Constitutional Asymmetries: revisited"
(PDF)
.
Queen Mary Law Journal
: 135?147. Archived from
the original
(PDF)
on 27 February 2019
. Retrieved
26 February
2019
.
- ^
"Is Spain a federation?"
.
Eupedia.com
. 8?25 May 2010.
- ^
Mallet, Victor (18 August 2010).
"Flimsier footings"
.
Financial Times
.
Archived
from the original on 10 December 2022
. Retrieved
25 August
2010
.
(
registration required
)
- ^
"A survey of Spain: How much is enough?"
.
The Economist
. 6 November 2008
. Retrieved
25 August
2010
.
(subscription required)
- ^
Moreno, Luis.
"Federalization in multinational Spain"
(PDF)
. Unidad de Politicas Comparadas (CSIC). Working Paper 07-04. Archived from
the original
(PDF)
on 22 September 2021
. Retrieved
26 February
2019
.
- ^
"Rajoy cesa al Govern, disuelve el Parlament y convoca elecciones para el 21 de diciembre"
.
eldiario.es
. 27 October 2017
. Retrieved
10 August
2018
.
- ^
Enrique Guillen Lopez
Archived
11 October 2009 at the
Wayback Machine
, JUDICIAL REVIEW IN SPAIN: THE CONSTITUTIONAL COURT, 41 Loyola of Los Angeles Law Review 541, 544 (2008).
- ^
Wright, Jonathan Haydn Faure (31 March 2014).
"The type of government in the Republic of South Africa - Examining the presence of federal and unitary state elements in the republic"
.
www.researchgate.net
. Retrieved
8 November
2016
.
After careful research and analysis of various sources and the constitution, it can be confirmed that the government system in the Republic of South Africa is a unitary system. Observance of the government in action, as well as analysis of the constitution, has contributed to this confirmation. Despite the delocalization enjoyed within the republic, the federal principle is not evident enough and it failed Wheare's very simple federal test right in the beginning
- ^
van Staden, Martin (Fall 2021).
"The Potential for Constitutional Devolution in South Africa"
.
Cato Journal
.
- ^
"Federalist Paper No. 9", p. 70 Alexander Hamilton
- ^
La Communaute du Charbon et de l'Acier
, p7 Paul Reuter with a preface by Robert Schuman. Paris 1953.
- ^
Josselin, J. M.; Marciano, A. (2006). "How the court made a federation of the EU".
The Review of International Organizations
.
2
: 59?75.
doi
:
10.1007/s11558-006-9001-y
.
S2CID
153687230
.
- ^
Schuman or Monnet? The real Architect of Europe.
p 129. Bron 2004
- ^
"Federal Constitutional Court Press Release No. 72/2009 of 30 June 2009. Judgment of 30 June 2009: Act Approving the Treaty of Lisbon compatible with the Basic Law; accompanying law unconstitutional to the extent that legislative bodies have not been accorded sufficient rights of participation"
. Archived from
the original
on 22 October 2012
. Retrieved
17 November
2012
.
Due to this structural democratic deficit, which cannot be resolved in an association of sovereign national states (Staatenverbund), further steps of integration that go beyond the status quo may undermine neither the States' political power of action nor the principle of conferral. The peoples of the Member States are the holders of the constituent power. The Basic Law does not permit the special bodies of the legislative, executive and judicial power to dispose of the essential elements of the constitution, i.e. of the constitutional identity (Article 23.1 sentence 3, Article 79.3 GG). The constitutional identity is an inalienable element of the democratic self-determination of a people.
The original German uses the word
Staatenverbund
, which they translate as "association of sovereign states", rather than the word
Staatenbund
(confederation of states) or
Bundesstaat
(federal state).
- ^
BVerfG, 2 BvE 2/08 vom 30.6.2009, Absatz-Nr. (1?421)
- ^
Economic Warlords by Gregory H. Fuller
- ^
"Accord cadre pour la reconciliation aux Comores (Accord de Fomboni)"
.
UN Peacemaker
(in French). 17 February 2001
. Retrieved
1 May
2024
.
- ^
"Guidebook to the Somali Draft Provisional Constitution"
. Archived from
the original
on 20 January 2013
. Retrieved
2 August
2012
.
- ^
Ethiopia: Upper House votes to form 12th regional state
- ^
Federal structure of Russia
, Article 65 of Russian Constitution.
- ^
see
Political status of Crimea
.
- ^
"Federal Member States (FMS)"
. 13 April 2018. Archived from
the original
on 18 June 2022
. Retrieved
25 January
2022
.
- ^
Whaley, Joachim
(2002). "2: Federal Habits: the Holy Roman Empire and the continuity of German Federalism". In Umbach, Maiken (ed.).
German Federalism: Past, Present and Future
. New Perspectives in German Political Studies. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. p. 15.
ISBN
9780230505797
. Retrieved
19 November
2017
.
Few would query the proposition that German federalism has deep historical roots. Indeed discussion of its contemporary manestation in the Federal Republic routinely refer to the federal traditions of the Holy Roman Empire -...].
- ^
Gained independence in 1957, joined with
Sabah
,
Sarawak
, and Singapore to form
Malaysia
in 1963.
- ^
Became
Czech and Slovak Federative Republic
through a constitutional change in 1990.
- ^
"Accord cadre pour la reconciliation aux Comores (Accord de Fomboni)"
.
UN Peacemaker
(in French). 17 February 2001
. Retrieved
1 May
2024
.
- ^
TOWARDS A MORE UNITED & PROSPEROUS UNION OF COMOROS (Page 31)
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