Power Sharing in belgium and sri lanka class 10

for class 10

1. Power Sharing Arrangement in Belgium and Sri Lanka

2. What is Power Sharing? Power Sharing is the distribution of decisive powers at different levels. Power can be shared among: Different Organs of Government Governments at Different Levels Different Social or Ethnic Groups Political parties, pressure groups or movements

3. Ethnic Composition of Sri Lanka Sinhalese: 73.8% Sri Lankan Moors: 7.2% Tamils: 18.5% Sri Lankan Tamils: 70% Indian Tamils: 30% Others: 0.5%

4. Ethnic Composition of Belgium Flemings (Dutch) : 59% Walloons (French): 40% Others (German): 1%

5. Past Political Setup of Sri Lanka Sri Lanka was ruled by a strong native dynasty from 12 th century but was successively dominated by the Portuguese, Dutch and British from the 16 th century; It was finally annexed by British in 1815. It became independent republic in 1972.

6. Past Political Setup of Belgium Belgium became independent from the Netherlands after a nationalist revolt in 1830. Occupied and devastated during both world wars. Flemish is spoken mainly in the north and French and Walloon are spoken in south.

7. Rights of the People and The role of Government in Sri Lanka The Government of Sri Lanka adopted Majoritarionism . In 1956, Sinhala was recognised as the only official language of Sri Lanka; thus, disregarding Tamil. A new constitution stipulated that the state shall protect and foster Buddhism .

8. Policies of the Government in Sri Lanka The governments followed preferential policies that favoured Sinhala applicants for university positions and government jobs. This in result denied equal Political Rights to the Tamils in the country. A feeling of alienation was seen among the Sri Lankan Tamils. The Parliament of Sri Lanka

9. Struggle for Power: Demanding for Tamil Eelam By 1980s, several political organizations were formed demanding an independent Tamil Eelam (state) in northern and eastern parts of Sri Lanka . One of them was LTTE. These differences in the two different communities pushed Sri Lanka into the state of civil war.

10. Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam was a major separatist militant organisation that was based in northern Sri Lanka. LTTE Leaders at Sirumalai Camp

11. LTTE was Founded in May 1976 by Velupillai Prabhakaran , it waged a secessionist nationalist campaign to create an independent state in the north and east of Sri Lanka for Tamil people. This campaign evolved into the Sri Lankan Civil War, which ran from 1983 until 2009, when the LTTE was defeated by the Sri Lankan Military. Vellupillai Prabhakaran

12. Effect of the Civil War on Sri Lanka The war was finally over in 2009 with a decisive victory if the Sri Lankan Government. For over 25 years, the war caused significant hardships for the population, environment and the economy of the country, with an estimated 80,000-100,000 people killed during its course . It caused a great loss to the nation.

13. Struggle for Power in Belgium The Minority French were rich and powerful with political influence. The tensions between the communities of Belgium arose around a struggle between the two main language communities of the country, Dutch and French. This resulted in extensive language legislation, but which did not solve the conflicts between Flanders and Wallonia, the two main regions of the country. Due to the then widespread discrimination against Flemings, symbolized by the bad treatment of Flemish soldiers during World War I, the Flemish organized themselves against the mostly French-speaking government . This system later evolved giving equal rights to all the communities whether it is major or minor.

14. Rights of the People and Role of Government in Belgium After 4 Amendments, The current Political system of Belgium is so evolved and innovative. It shares Power among different sectors of the society thus reducing possibility of social conflict. Belgium has recognised the existence of regional differences and cultural diversities. Parliament of Belgium

15. Power Sharing in Belgium The constitution of Belgium prescribes that the number of French speaking and Dutch speaking ministers should be equal in central government. State government are not the subordinate to the central govt. Brussels have a separate government which have both communities representation equally. Other than state and central government they made new form of government called community government which have powers regarding cultural, educational, and language related issues. All The communities of Belgium, minor or major enjoy equal rights everywhere in the society.

16. Solutions for existing problems There are many solutions to settle the disputes between ethnic communities in Sri Lanka. Just as the Belgium, Sri Lanka can adopt vertical power sharing and there should be reservation for the Tamils and Tamil Language should be recognised by the government. This will settle the ethnic disputes among the people. Tamils Should get equal rights which are given to sinhalas .

17. Comparing Power Sharing Arrangements Belgium They adopted a policy of power sharing. They gave equal powers to all communities . minor or major doesn't matter. It solved all the disputes. Sri Lanka They adopted a policy of Majoritarionism . They gave preferences to the majority Sinhala group alone, disregarding the minority. It led a civil war lasting 25 years.

18. Conclusion Belgium and Sri Lanka are democratic countries having diverse social setups. Yet, both took completely different approaches when it came to sharing of power. Belgium accommodated the interests of its two main ethnic groups i.e., Dutch and French by formulating a power-sharing arrangement that gave both an equal opportunity in the working of the government. The Belgians realized that the only way of securing the country's political stability and unity was by giving both the communities an equal representation in the government. In this manner, feelings of resentment towards the other community were not allowed to flourish in Belgium. The power-sharing arrangement in Belgium, although complex, has been running smoothly over the years.

19. Sri Lanka, on the other hand, took a different stand with respect to power sharing. The government in Sri Lanka was completely dominated by the majority Sinhala-speaking population, thereby ignoring the Tamil people. Power was concentrated in the hands of only one community, thereby undermining the interests of the others. This approach proved catastrophic for the unity of Sri Lanka. Over the years, Sri Lanka has been riddled with civil wars and political instability. Refusal to share power has resulted in the weakening of the country.