Cheat Sheet — Power Sharing

🇧🇪 Belgium — Accommodation

Ethnic composition: 59% Dutch (Flemish, north), 40% French (Walloon, south), 1% German (east)

Brussels (capital): 80% French + 20% Dutch — in a Dutch-speaking region — creating tension

Solution: 4 constitutional amendments (1970–1993) transforming Belgium into a federal state

Central cabinet: equal Dutch & French ministers by constitutional law

3 levels: Federal + Regional (Flanders/Wallonia/Brussels) + Community Govts (cultural/education)

Result: Peaceful coexistence — Belgium is headquarters of the EU today

🇱🇰 Sri Lanka — Majoritarianism

Ethnic composition: Sinhala 74%, Sri Lankan Tamil 11%, Indian Tamil 7%, Moors 7%

1956: Sinhala Only Act — declared Sinhala the only official language; Tamil excluded

University quotas & government jobs heavily favoured Sinhala; Buddhism made state religion

1976: LTTE founded — Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam; demanded independent "Eelam"

Civil war 1983–2009 — 26 years, 70,000–100,000 dead, millions displaced

Lesson: Majoritarianism alienates minorities and ultimately destroys the nation

⚖️ Belgium vs Sri Lanka

Aspect	Belgium	Sri Lanka
Approach	Accommodation	Majoritarianism
Language	Both Dutch & French equal	Sinhala only (1956)
Cabinet	Equal community reps	Sinhala dominant
System	Federal (3 tiers)	Unitary state
Outcome	EU HQ, peaceful	Civil war (26 yrs)

💡 Why Share Power?

🧠 Prudential Reasons (practical): Sharing power reduces conflict and ensures political stability. Civil wars are costly for everyone — even the majority loses. Social peace enables economic development.

⚖️ Moral Reasons (principled): Democracy = rule by ALL the people, not just 50%+1. Every citizen has a right to participate. Majoritarianism is tyranny — anti-democratic in spirit.

Power sharing is the very spirit of democracy — it respects the dignity of ALL citizens

🏛️ Form 1 — Horizontal (Organs of Govt)

Power shared among Legislature, Executive, Judiciary — the 3 organs — at the same level

Each organ can check and balance the others — no single organ can dominate

India examples: Judiciary can strike down unconstitutional laws (judicial review) · President cannot make laws · Parliament cannot deliver verdicts

Also called Separation of Powers

🗺️ Form 2 — Vertical (Levels of Govt)

Power divided among Central, State, and Local governments — federalism

Level	India Example
Central	Union List — defence, foreign affairs, currency (97 subjects)
State	State List — police, agriculture, health (66 subjects)
Both	Concurrent List — education, forests, trade unions (47 subjects)
Local	Panchayats & Municipalities (73rd & 74th Amendments, 1992)

🫂 Form 3 — Social Groups

Power shared with religious, linguistic, and other minority communities

Prevents social exclusion and ensures marginalised groups have a voice in governance

India: Reserved seats for SC/ST in Parliament & State Assemblies · 1/3 reservation for women in Panchayats · Minority Commission · Right to run own educational institutions

Belgium: Equal French & Dutch representation in cabinet | Lebanon: President = Christian, PM = Sunni, Speaker = Shia

🗳️ Form 4 — Political Parties & Movements

Multi-party system prevents monopoly — parties must compete and negotiate

Coalition government: two or more parties share power — example: most Indian govts since 1989 (NDA, UPA)

Pressure groups — trade unions, farmers' bodies, student unions — influence govt decisions

Civil society & free media — keep government accountable; 4th estate

Even within parties, different factions ensure power is not concentrated in one person

📖 Key Definitions

Majoritarianism: majority community rules however it wants, ignoring minority wishes

Ethnic group: social group with common cultural tradition, language, history, or religion

Civil war: armed internal conflict between govt and a section of its own people

Coalition govt: government formed by 2+ parties agreeing to cooperate and share power

Federalism: power divided between central authority and constituent state/regional units

Decentralisation: transfer of power from central/state to local bodies (Panchayats, Municipalities)

📋 Four Forms — Quick Summary

FORM 1 · HORIZONTAL

Among organs of govt Legislature + Executive + Judiciary · Checks & Balances

FORM 2 · VERTICAL

Among levels of govt Central + State + Local · Federalism + Decentralisation

FORM 3 · SOCIAL GROUPS

Among communities Reservations + Minority rights + Community representation

FORM 4 · POLITICAL PARTIES

Among parties & movements Multi-party + Coalition + Pressure groups + Media

📅 Important Dates & Numbers

Year/Number	Significance
1956	Sri Lanka — Sinhala Only Act
1970–1993	Belgium — 4 constitutional amendments
1976	LTTE founded in Sri Lanka
1983–2009	Sri Lanka civil war — 26 years
1992	India — 73rd & 74th Amendments (Local self-govt)
59% / 40%	Dutch / French composition in Belgium
74% / 18%	Sinhala / Tamil composition in Sri Lanka
97 / 66 / 47	Union / State / Concurrent List (India)

🧠 Memory Tricks

4 Forms = HVSP

Horizontal (organs) · Vertical (levels) · Social groups · Political parties

Belgium's 3 Govts = FRC

Federal (central) · Regional (Flanders/Wallonia/Brussels) · Community (language-based)

Belgium = B for Better outcome; Sri Lanka = S for Suppression → Suffering

Accommodation vs Majoritarianism — completely different outcomes

Prudential = Practical · Moral = Principle

Prudential: sharing power prevents conflict (outcome-based) · Moral: it is simply right and just (principle-based)

Coalition: C = Cooperate + Compromise

Two or more parties must cooperate and compromise — this IS power sharing in practice