As the world comes closer in the wake of information explosion and gobalisation, the idea of ¿Cooperative Federalism¿, which is seen as a tool to resolve conflicts, is gaining increasing relevance and acceptance. Inspired by this development, a two-day International Conference on ¿Co-operative Federalism and Management of Diversity¿, has been organized from November 2-3, 2004, under the auspices of Observer research Foundation (ORF) , New Delhi, and Forum of Federation (FoF), Canada.
As the world comes closer in the wake of information explosion and gobalisation, the idea of 'Cooperative Federalism', which is seen as a tool to resolve conflicts, is gaining increasing relevance and acceptance. Inspired by this development, a two-day International Conference on "Co-operative Federalism and Management of Diversity", has been organized from November 2-3, 2004, under the auspices of Observer research Foundation (ORF) , New Delhi, and Forum of Federation (FoF), Canada.
Speakers examined the working of federal models in different countries and deliberated upon possibly suitable alternative(s) for India and other developing societies. Inaugurating the Conference, Mr Manishankar Aiyar, India's Union Minister for Panchayati Raj, drew the attention of foreign as well as Indian participants to the nuances of federalism inherent to India's culture, tradition and ethos. He drew examples from the Mahabharat and the Bhagvat Gita.
Mr Aiyar said "India was never a true federation" and attested that "it is a Union State". It was the Union which has created the States and it still holds the powers to redraw the boundaries of any State. He felt that co-operation acquires greater importance between the various States and their respective local governments on the issues of economic development, social justice, equity and efficiency.
Mr R.K.Mishra, Chairman, Observer Research Foundation, in his opening remarks said it was an irony that the Constitution of India which we gave to ourselves has been amended more than 90 times in its short existence of 54 years. He said that the current tensions between the Center and the States could be attributed to faulty arrangements of federal relations in the Constitution which gave overriding powers to the Center and promotesd a situation of competition among States on the one hand, and between the States and the Center, on the other. Citing two major regions of tension in India, the Northeast and the State of Jammu and Kashmir, Mr. Mishra made it clear that the time has come to think in terms of 'creative federalism' based on co-operation and mutual trust than merely adhering to an armed solution which even the mightiest power like the US was finding difficult as a method to resolve conflicts.
Mr. Bob Rae, President of the Forum of Federations, Canada, in his presentation on cooperative federalism disagreed with the remarks of Mr. Aiyar that "India was never a federation". He felt that "the very idea of India is federal itself". He further explained that increasing levels of identity consciousness and the impact of globalisation have made the idea of federalism more relevant and attractive than earlier. Market forces have accorded greater impetus top the demand for decentralization and have reduced the capacity of nation-states to address local issues. He said the principal challenges before today's federal order are: how to build elements of conflict resolution mechanism under a stable Union and how to accommodate several sovereignties under one Union. Under such circumstances, he noted, the co-operative tools of federalism, with appropriate modification to suit particular cases, would be enormously helpful.
After preliminary observations by the principal speakers, the Conference analysed case studies from of some of the troubled zones of the world where questions of identity and autonomy have led to bitter conflict and violence. Sri Lanka, Iraq and India's Northeast formed leading examples of such conflicts. The successful cases of South Africa, India and Canada were discussed at length and an attempt was made to draw lessons from the federal arrangements being practiced in those three countries for the other regions of the world where negotiations are currently taking place on the best federal arrangement that would help resolve conflicts.
In the concluding session, participants at the Conference made unanimous recommendations on the adaptations that could be made to the idea of federal system to suit the realities of the 21st century. The speakers were of the unanimous opinion that there was a need to review the working of federal principles and acknowledge the fact that federal relations require new modes of thinking in the wake of globalisation and heightened identity consciousness.
The participants noted that there was the need to explore various options on the federal system through engaging the constituents at the bottom and, thereby, understand their aspirations about preserving their identity and autonomy under one Union. The Federal system must be open to asymmetrical federal models, particularly in the case of ethno-lingual conflicts. Besides, it was empahsised that, without developing shared values and a strong belief in common destiny, the idea of federalism would remain unsustainable. Finally, the Conference agreed unanimously that there was a need to develop stable institutions such as an independent and credible judiciary, electoral mechanism and civic institutions in order to preserve and maintain the idea of federalism based on cooperation and mutual trust.
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