The Baltic Sea Region
Cultures, Politics, Societies
Editor Witold
Witold Maciejewski
Maciejewski
Editor
A Baltic University Publication
21
Territorial
power distribution
1. Federations, Confederations and Unitary States
The most clarifying usage of the word “federalism”, as we see it, is to let it denote the general
idea of organised co-operation between states. The word “federation” could then be reserved
for the notion of a constitutional structure of a particular kind. When we let the word “federalism” denote the general idea of international co-operation, most peoples of the world seem
to be oriented towards federalism as a general attitude. “Federation” in the strict sense of
constitutional law is much less common. Most states in the world take part in all sorts of
international co-operation, but only some fifteen of them are “federations”, in the sense of
Germany or the USA, for example.
Comparing a federation with the alternative constitutional constructs of a unitary state on
the one side, and that of a confederation on the other, is a way of illuminating the fundamental
issues. By comparison, the different constructs are looked upon in the perspective of alternative
solutions to the same problem. A unitary state as one basic alternative, however decentralised
it may be, is so organised that every piece of legislation and taxation at the central level has a
direct effect, together with the fact that every citizen gets equal representation. Countries like
Denmark, Finland, France, Norway and Sweden are clear examples of unitary states. A confederative structure, as the other basic alternative, is so organised that every piece of legislation and
taxation has to be confirmed and transformed into national law and taxation by the legislature
of the member-state. Furthermore, another important aspect of a confederative structure is that
the basic representative principle is one-state-one-vote and not one-man-one-vote. In practice
this means that very little can be achieved by all the member-states in common action. In practice all confederative structures give veto powers to each of their member states. An example of
a confederative structure is The League of Nations between 1919 and 1939.
A federation has mainly three characteristic traits. The first is that central government can legislate and tax with direct effect on the citizens of the member-states. The second characteristic trait is the element of primacy of federal legislation in cases where
it comes into collision with the legislation of a member-state. The third characteristic is the standardised representational compromise between the idea of one-man-onevote in the lower chamber of the national parliament, on the one hand, and the idea of
one-state-one-vote in the upper chamber, on the other.
The Federal Republic of Germany works fairly close to the ideal type of a federation. A bicameral assembly ensures representation in the legislature for the member states. In the lower chamber, the Bundestag, the principle of representation is strictly
one-man-one-vote, while in the upper chamber, the Bundesrat, the principle of one-stateone-vote is applied, although somewhat modified. Less populous member states like Hamburg
296
Democracy
Territorial power distribution
or Mecklenburg-Schwerin are being favoured compared to heavily populated states like Bavaria
or Nordhein-Westphalia, but not up to the point of equality. Russia is the second example of
a federation in the Baltic region, with an upper chamber, the Council of Federation, consisting
of two representatives from each of the federal units. However, the Russian constitution is
unclear regarding the appointment of these representatives, and the federal structure of the
country as a whole is as yet rather ambiguous, even though the regions have developed into
stronger entities.
From the point of view of a strictly one-man-one-vote representational and unitary state,
the construct of a federation means a constitutionally fixed over-representation of the less
populated member-states. Politically speaking, that is part of the basic bargain. For historical
reasons the smaller states demand and are guaranteed over-representation in order to stay
loyal to the constitutional idea that legislation and taxation can be accomplished with majority rule at the federal level, have direct effect in relation to the citizens of the member-states,
and primacy in relation to their legislation. Realistically speaking, the balance of power and
initiative between a federation and its member-states depends heavily upon the smooth running of the revenue-raising powers and redistributing capabilities within the constitutional
structure as a whole. Redistributing resources is the means by which constitutional cohesion
and adherence is achieved.
2. Local Self-Government
The local government plays a very important role in a modern state. In many societies it
provides numerous services essential for welfare policies. In a democracy, the basic difference
in local government is between dual and fused systems. Under a dual system, local government operates separately from the centre. In a fused system, on the other hand, the central
and local government are joined in one office – such as the prefect, a central appointee who is
charged with overseeing the administration of a particular locality. France is the most influential example of a fused, centralised system of prefects. All of the countries of the Baltic region
either have, or are moving towards, the dual system with local units of self-government.
As regards the history of local government, however, we must divide the Baltic Region
in two parts: the West-Baltic (Scandinavia and Germany), with a history of local selfgovernment going way back in history, and the East-Baltic (Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia
and Russia), with democratic local government implemented only a few years ago. This difference is rooted much further back in history than the legacy of Communist rule. Even long
before the years of Communism, the territorial systems of a major part of Poland, as well as
the three Baltic States, were strongly influenced by the centralist traditions of the Russian
empire.
But still, it is important to remember that local self-government systems were impossibilities during the Communist regime. According to the socialist model, local authorities
were regulated in accordance with the doctrine of “homogenous state power”. This doctrine
assumed that systems of local self-government, being sensitive to the interests of the locality,
might divide the country. Egoistic or particularistic local interests were seen as harmful to the
process of satisfying “the needs of the whole working class”. These “needs” could only be met
by the policies of the Communist Party and central authorities. Consequently, local decisionmaking was to be responsive to central policies rather than the local electorate. As a result,
local self-government became a chimera.
Democracy
Territorial power distribution
297
The size of the local units of government has a crucial impact on local politics and economic life. With some simplification one could say that arguments for both sides regard
political and economic size. On the one hand, units large enough to imply economy of scale in
service administration are needed. On the other hand, both theoretical and practical evidence
suggest that the smaller the size of the unit, the better the citizen satisfaction and participation in public life. The trade-offs between these arguments generally result in some kind of
compromise. With the exception of Germany, the municipalities of the Baltic Region are
relatively big. This is the effect of an amalgamation process in several of the countries during
the last 25 years.
The Scandinavian countries have highly consolidated systems of local self-government.
The scope of their local functions is very broad, and the municipalities and counties play a
decisive role in implementing public policies. In the East-Baltic countries, the systems of local
government are still developing. Typical municipal functions in the Baltic region include:
child-care, pre-school and primary education, basic health service, public utilities (gas, water
supply, sewage, street cleaning, waste collection), and public transport. As a rule, the counties
are responsible for higher education, hospital and planning. There are of course exceptions to
these general characteristics.
3. Local elections
Generally speaking, only municipalities enjoy autonomous self-governmental structures
(Sweden and Denmark being exceptions, however, even with self-governmental units at the
county level). The most obvious way for local citizens to participate is to vote in local elections.
In Scandinavia the local electoral systems are proportional, while in Germany and Poland the
systems are mixed. In Poland, for example, the small municipalities use the majority system,
while cities with over 40,000 of population use the proportional formula. The rationale for
this division is that contacts between voters and politicians are closer in small rural areas,
thus working in favour of a system allowing the choice of an individual candidate, while the
more informal contacts in cities make proportional party elections more suitable. The highest
authority in the municipality is the local council. Its size varies from 10 to 101 elected representatives, depending on the size of the local unit. A common feature in the Baltic Region is
the relatively weak position of the mayor, who is generally elected indirectly. Local politics in
Scandinavia, as well as in Germany, are essentially party dominated. After the Second World
War, about 60-65% of the local representatives were elected on a partisan basis, but now this
figure is 90% or higher. However, this does not necessarily imply a highly polarised political situation, because there is a tradition of local consensus deeply rooted in the area. The
activity level of political parties in the new democracies has developed since independence,
even though party organisation is weak. As local elections were introduced, the
participants in local elections
have been equal to those in
national elections. However,
a demanding, while at the
same time passive, attitude of
Figure 93. Three basic forms of territorial power distribution.
the citizens – accustomed to a
Ill.: Karin Hallgren
298
Democracy
Territorial power distribution
centralised and strongly hierarchical political system – is one of the most important problems
facing local governments in post-communist countries today, in combination with corruption,
which has followed in the footsteps of privatisation of land and industries.
Citizenship and suffrage in Estonia
Priit Järve
In a democratic state, there is a very clear link between suffrage and citizenship. An individual without citizenship usually
also has no right to vote. Thus, non-citizens are generally assigned to the same category of non-voters as children, criminals
and the mentally incompetent. In most democracies, this category is fairly small – although, historically speaking, the
nearly “universal” suffrage is a relatively modern phenomenon.
Citizenship and suffrage in Estonia has been an internationally debated issue since 1992 – in addition to the political
discussions at home – due to the large Russian-speaking minority residing in the country. According to the population
census of 2000, this minority makes up almost 30 percent of the population of 1,37 million, or more than 400,000 people.
The majority of these Russian-speakers were not granted Estonian citizenship under the citizenship legislation of 1992
because they or their parents were not citizens of the pre-1940 Estonian Republic.
The rules that now apply, under the new Citizenship law of 1995, prescribe that non-citizens can acquire Estonian citizenship through a “naturalisation” process, i.e., a language and constitution test, a loyalty oath sworn to the state of Estonia,
and permanent residency of five years (plus one year for the process of application). Some 30 percent of the non-citizens
have acquired Estonian citizenship since 1992, while approximately the same amount, or almost 100,000 people have
applied for and received the citizenship of the Russian Federation instead. However, the remaining 200,000 Russian-speakers reside in Estonia with the right to vote only in local (not national) elections and without the right to run for political
office. The same applies to the citizens of Russia living in Estonia.
Basically, there are two conflicting approaches to the issue of suffrage and citizenship in Estonia. They can be described as
the historic and the contemporary approach respectively. The first approach, more characteristic of the Estonian side, draws
heavily on history and underlines the changes claimed to be negative or dangerous for the survival of the Estonian nation.
Here the rapid change in ethnic composition of the Estonian population comes to the fore with the share of Estonians
falling from 90% to almost 60% during one generation (from 1944 to 1989). Rejection of the so-called zero-option, i.e.,
refusal to grant Estonian citizenship to all applicants automatically, and establishing certain requirements for those seeking
citizenship instead, is generally believed to be an appropriate reaction to what has happened to the Estonian population
during the Soviet years.
There is also another argument supporting this view: comparisons with citizenship laws in other countries show that the
Estonian requirements for citizenship are quite liberal by current international standards. Hence, the Estonian side maintains that, from a legal point of view, there is no problem with the country’s citizenship legislation.
The second approach, clearly that of the Russian-speaking minority and of many of the international bodies, maintains
that history and nation do not matter as much as the Estonians think they do. Rather, one should start with the present multi-ethnic situation and think about individuals. As a characteristic example of this view, the Helsinki Watch has
pointed out that it “rejects the argument that all those who came to Estonia after 1940 did so illegally and therefore were
never citizens. Their residency was legally established under the applicable law at the time they entered the territory of
Estonia. Those who settled in Estonia after 1940 must be treated as individuals, not as instruments of state policy, however
reprehensive that policy may have been”. (Helsinki Watch, “Integrating Estonia’s Non-Citizen Minority”, October 1993,
vol. 5, Issue 20, p. 14.)
According to the proponents of this view, a large number of people without citizenship is a security risk for Estonia, since
the interests of these individuals are not properly represented at the state level, and their behaviour can be unpredictable.
The underlying implication of this argument is usually that Estonia should grant citizenship more generously by further
simplifying its conditions, especially the language requirements. Yet, the two largest language communities (Russians and
Estonians) are facing each other with different interpretations of what is going on.
In the context of the accession to the European Union, the Estonian Government set the course in 1998 to integrate
Estonian society, i.e. to lower barriers, which interfere with the naturalisation of Russian-speakers and their full participation in life. If this effort is successful, Estonia will make an important step towards being a fully democratic society.
Democracy
Territorial power distribution
299
LITERATURE AND REFERENCES
Aage, Hans, 1997. Public Sector De­velopment:
Difficulties and Restric­tions. Chap. 4, pp 96118 in: Haavisto, T. (ed.): The Tran­sition to a
Market Economy. Transformation and Reform in
the Baltic States. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar
Aage, Hans, 1998. Institutions and Performance in
Transition Economies. Nordic Journal of Political
Economy 24 (No. 2, 1998) 125-144
Almond, Gabriel & Verba, Sidney, 1963. The Civic
Culture. Political Attitudes and Democracy in
Five Nations. Princeton: Princeton University
Press
Anticorruption in Transition. A Contribution to the
Policy Debate, 2000. Washington D.C.: World
Bank
Ash, Timothy Garton.1990. We the People: The
Revolution of 1989. Cambridge: Granta Books
Åslund, Anders. 1992. Post-Communist Political
Revolutions: How Big A Bang? Washington,
D.C.: Centre for Strategic and International
Studies
Bennich-Björkman, Li, 2001. Är de baltiska staterna
redo för ett EU-medlemsskap? In: (red) Bernitz,
Ulf, Gustavsson, Sverker, Oxelheim, Lars,
Europaperspektiv. Ostutvidgning, majoritetsbeslut
och flexibel integration. Göteborg: Santérus förlag
Berglund, Sten & Dellenbrant, Jan-Åke (eds),
1994. The New Democracies in Eastern Europe:
Party Systems and Political Cleavages. Aldershot:
Edward Elgar
Berglund, Sten & Lindström, Ulf, 1978.
The Scandinavian Party Systems. Lund:
Studentlitteratur
Berman, Russel A., 1998. Enlightenment or Empire:
colonial discourse in German culture. Lincoln,
Neb.: University of Nebraska Press
Burgess, Michael & Gagnon, Alain-G. (eds), 1993.
Comparative Federalism and Federation. New
York & London: Harvester & Wheatsheaf
Chabal, Patrick & Daloz, Jean-Pascal, 1999. Africa
Works. Disorder as Political Instrument. London:
James Currey
Chryssides, G. D., Kaler , J. H., 1993. An
Introduction to Business Ethics. London:
Chapman and Hall
368
Dahl, Robert, 1971. Polyarchy: Participation and
Opposition. New Haven: Yale University Press
Dahl, Robert. 1989. Democracy and its Critics. New
Haven: Yale University Press
Decalo, Samuel, 1998. The Stable Minority: Civilian
Rule in Africa, 1960-1990. Gainsville, Fla:
Florida Academic Press
Dellenbrant, Jan Åke. 1993a. Democracy and
Poverty: The Implementation of Social Reforms
in the Countries of Central and Eastem Europe,
Scandinavian Journal of Social Welfare, no. 3
Dellenbrant, Jan Åke, 1993b. Parties and Party
Systems in Eastem Europe, in Stephen White et
al. (eds), Developments in East European Politics.
London: Macmillan.
Diamond, Larry, 1999. Developing Democracy
towards Consolidation. Baltimore: Johns
Hopkins
Dreifelds, Juris, 1996. Latvia in Transition.
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
EBRD: Transition Report 2000. London: European
Bank for Recon­struction and Development
2000
ECE: Economic Survey of Europe 2000 No. 2/3.
Geneva: UN Economic Commission for
Europe 2000
Ekholm-Friedman, Kajsa & Friedman, Jonathan,
1994. Big business in small places. In: Hasager,
Ulla & Friedman, Jonathan (eds.): Hawai’I:
Return to Nationhood. Copenhagen: IWGIA
Gregory, P.R. & Stuart, R.C., 1992. Comparative
Economic Systems. 4th ed. Boston: Houghton
Mifflin
Hadenius, Axel, 1992. Democracy and Development.
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
Hague, Rod, Harrop, Martin & Breslin, Shaun,
1992. Comparative Government and Politics.
Third Edition. London: Macmillan
Hall, Thomas & Wijkman, Per Magnus,
2001. “De baltiska staternas kapplöpning
mot EU-medlemsskap”. In: Bernitz, Ulf,
Gustavsson, Sverker & Oxelheim, Lars, (Eds)
Europaperspektiv. Östutvidgning, majoritetsbeslut
och flexibel integration. Göteborg: Santérus förlag
Democracy
Literature and references
Huntington, Samuel P., 1991. The Third Wave.
Democratisation in the Late Twentieth Century.
Norman & London: University of Oklahoma
Press
Hussain, A. & Stern, N., 1993. The Role of the
State, Ownership and Taxation in Transition
Econo­m­ies. Economics of Transition 1 (January
1993, No. 1) 61-88
Jubulis, Mark, 1996. “The External Dimension
of Democratisation in Latvia”, International
Relations, vol XIII no 3, December 1996
Keane, John, 1991. The Media and Democracy.
Cambridge: Polity Press
Kołodko, G.W., 2000. From Shock to Therapy. The
Political Economy of Postsocialist Transformation.
Oxford: Oxford University Press
Kolstoe, Paul, 1995. Russians in the Former Soviet
Republics. London: Hurst & Co
Lauristin, Marju & Vihalemm, Peeter (eds),
1997. Return to the Western World. Cultural
and Political Perspectives on the Estonian PostCommunist Transition, Tartu: Tartu University
Press
Lieven, Anatol, 1993. The Baltic Revolution. Estonia,
Latvia, Lithuania and the Path to Independence.
New Haven: Yale University Press
Linz, Juan & Stepan, Alfred, 1996. Problems of
Democratic Transition and Consolidation,
Baltimore: Johns Hopkins Press
Micheletti, Michele, 1993. Sweden: Interest Groups
in Transition and Crisis, in Clive, Thomas (ed),
First World Interest Groups: A Comparative
Perspective. New York: Greenwood Press
Misiunas, Romuald & Taagepera, Rein, 1993. The
Baltic States: Years of Dependence 1940-1980.
Berkeley: University of California Press
Monroe, Kristen Renwick (with Kristen Hill Maher)
1995, “Psychology and Rational Actor Theory”
Political Psychology vol 16 no 1, 1995
Monroe, Kristen Renwick, 1996. The heart of
Altruism. Perceptions of a Common Humanity.
Princeton: Princeton University Press
Nissinen, Marja, 1999. Latvia’s Transition to a
Market Economy. Political Determinants of
Economic Reform Policy. London: Studies in
Russia and East Europe
Norgaard, Ole (ed), 1994. De Baltiske lande efter
uavhengigheten. Hvorfor så forskjellige?. Århus:
Politica
Nugent, Neill, 1991. The Government and Politics
of the European Community. Second edition.
London: Macmillan
Pettai, Vello & Kreutzer, Marcus, 1999. “Party
Politics in the Baltic States: Social Bases and
Institutional Context”, East European Politics
and Societies, vol 13 no1, winter 1999
Przeworski, Adam, 1991. Democracy and the Market.
Political and Economic Reforms in Eastern Europe
and Latin America. Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press
Rau, Z. (ed), 1991. The Re-Emergence of Civil Society
in Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union. London:
Westview Press
Rauch, Georg von, 1970. The Baltic States. The
Years of Independence. Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania
1917-1970.
London: Hurst & Company
Raun, Toivo, 1997. “Estonia: Independence
Redefined” (ed) Bremmer, Ian, Taras, Ray,
New States, New Politics. Building the Post-Soviet Nations, Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press
Sartori, Giovanni, 1976. Parties and Party Systems: A
Framework for Analysis. Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press
Sartori, Giovanni, 1987. The Theory of Democracy
Revisited. Chatham, N.J.: Chatham House
Shugart, Matthew Soberg & Carey, John M.,
1992. Presidents and Assemblies. Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press
Steen, Anton, 1997. “The New Elites in the Baltic
States: Recirculation and Change”, Scandinavian
Political Studies, vol 20 no 1
Stenlund, Annika, 1994. The Role of Resistance
Movements in the East European Revolutions.
University of Umeˆ, forthcoming dissertation
Taagepera, Rein & Shugart, Matthew S., 1989. Seats
and Votes. New Haven: Yale University Press
Vogel, Ezra F., 1991. The four little dragons:
the spread of industrialization in East Asia.
Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press
World Bank: World Development Report 1996: From
Plan to Market. New York: Oxford University
Press 1996
World Bank: World Development Report 1997: The
state in a Changing World. New York: Oxford
University Press 1997
World Bank: World Development Report 2000/2001:
Attacking Poverty. New York: Oxford University
Press 2000
Democracy
Literature and references
369