This is the first-ever comparative study of federalism in India, Pakistan and Malaysia. These three countries were formally the only and surviving postcolonial federations in Asia; this book examines the successes and failures of the various federal institutional measures that they adopted for the political accommodation of diversity, and assesses their significance for other ethnically diverse countries in the world.
India, Pakistan and Malaysia are marked by a diversity of religions, languages, cultures, regional and ethnic identity, and consequently a high degree of ethno-national conflict. Federalism was adopted by the countries founding political lites as a method of uniting disparate elements for political unity and integrity, but it did not work well in all three. This book argues that although federalism offers solutions to problems raised by diversity, federal institutional measures (if not adequately designed and safeguarded) may in fact help reinforce the dominant ethno-nationalist group/s, as happened in Pakistan and Malaysia.
Bhattacharyya then assesses federalism in relation to other ethnically diverse Asian countries. He examines the growing tensions between nation- and state-building in ethnically plural societies; modes of federation-building in Asia; persistent ethno-nationalist tensions in federations, and the relationship between federalism and democracy; and federalism and decentralization. Since ethno-nationalist conflict remains unresolved in most countries of Asia, this book should be of interest to those seeking long-term solutions of problems of order and stability in ethnically diverse countries in Asia.
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