Power-sharing democratic models, such as consociationalism, are becoming a fundamental solution for divided societies. Consociationalism aims to divide power between the majority segments of a plural society using four characteristics: grand coalition, segmental autonomy, proportionality, and mutual veto. Bosnia and Herzegovina has used this to end the three-and-a-half-year war, which resulted in dividing the balance of power between the country’s three constituent peoples. One of the biggest downfalls of consociationalism can be attributed to its focus on group rights over individual rights. This thesis aims to understand the relationship between consociationalism and human rights, specifically minority political rights, by using Bosnia and Herzegovina as a case study. The relationship is established with the help of the Dayton Peace Agreement and cases from the European Court of Human Rights. The results demonstrate a distinct connection between the right to political participation for minorities and consociationalism, leading to a human rights violation.

This thesis considers the extent to which decentralisation in the Republic of Macedonia between 2005 and 2012 has been effective in reducing ethnic inequalities that exacerbate social divisions and can lead to conflict. Guided by the concept of horizontal inequalities, it identifies the factors which influenced the decision to devolve responsibilities to the municipalities after 2001. It examines the particular institutional design that Macedonian decentralisation took, and demonstrates how its use of local power-sharing mechanisms was intended to address the concerns of the Albanian and Macedonian communities simultaneously. This thesis takes an integrative approach to studying the political, administrative, and fiscal dimensions of decentralisation¿s implementation, and considers whether the reform has indeed contributed to the reduction of inequalities between Macedonia¿s ethnic groups. Where decentralisation¿s potential has not been reached, obstacles to its successful implementation are identified. While decentralisation alone may be unable to address all of the grievances raised by the Albanian community prior to 2001, this thesis argues that the reform has the potential to address many of the horizontal inequalities that were responsible for raising inter-ethnic tensions during the 1990s. However, decentralisation in Macedonia between 2005 and 2012 has only been partial, and advances in the administrative and political aspects of the reform have been undermined by limited progress in its fiscal dimension. Attempts to solve self-determination conflicts through decentralisation will fail if local self-governance exists only in form but not in substance.

The purpose of this thesis is to investigate to what extend consociationalism has been adopted in post-war, post-conflict countries that suffer from deep division within their societies. Despite criticisms on whether the mechanism is beneficial in less democratic societies, the tool is strongly recommended for divided multi-ethnic societies as an attempt to solve the tension between conflicted actors. The aim of this thesis is to explore what we can learn from the Somalian and Iraqi experience, both of which have adopted this mechanism. To be able to answer these questions our primary research question guiding this thesis is: How does power sharing exhibit the advantages that it is claimed to have for peaceful democratic post-conflict development in Iraq and Somalia? This thesis is hinged on two theories, Consociationalism theory and Path Dependency theory. An abductive method as structured focused comparison has been used. The data collection was done by purposive sampling method, using primary sources of data. Structured interviews were carried out with six key informants from Somalia and six from Iraq, representing a unique perspective of the clans and ethnicities in each country. To triangulate the data, secondary sources were conducted as empirical data. The study established that consociationalism as a power- sharing mechanism has increased identity conflicts, raised sectarian values in Iraq and empowered clannism in Somalia. The study also showed that consociationalism as a power-sharing tool has not been fully adopted in either of the two countries, rather a semi-consociationalism has been practiced. This has resulted into the exclusion of marginalized groups such as young people, women and minorities in both countries. The mechanism has led to the post-conflict elite perceiving themselves as heroes of the new system rather than finding a solution for common interest in post-conflict reconstruction. Furthermore, factors such as security gap, presence of extremist groups, corruption and external interventions have impacted the efforts of consolidating peace and development in Iraq and Somalia.

The use of federalism as an integral component in post-conflict statebuilding processes is becoming increasingly common (e.g. Iraq, Yemen & Sri Lanka). The current academic literature, however, is divided between those that argue that federalism in such fragile environments will increase the likelihood of secession and ‘balkanisation’ and that those that argue that only federalism can provide the periphery with constitutionally protected rights against the centre. However, currently there is little empirical evidence to support either view. This research seeks to contribute to this gap by assessing whether the recent introduction of federalism in Somalia since 2013 has led to the delivery of tangible governance and peacebuilding outcomes. This thesis specifically focuses on the federalism process in Jubaland, a state which formed in 2013. Data was gathered across the region using a statistically significant perception survey and was supplemented by Key Informant Interviews. The surveys were designed to assess public opinion towards federalism and understand how its introduction was perceived to have impacted local governance and conflict dynamics. This analysis was further extended to assess the impact of federalism in other federal member states including Puntland, Galmadug and Southwest based on a review of available secondary literature. An analytical framework assessed the strength of Federal Government-Federal Member State, intra-state and inter-state relations and the extent to which a particular state had undertook tangible governance reforms. The key findings of the research indicate that the population in Jubaland is strongly supportive of federalism in principle and the manner in which it has been implemented. Federalism was seen by the majority of the population as a way of maintaining Somali unity whilst protecting local interests and meeting ocal needs. The approach of the Jubaland authorities to adopt a consociational approach to governance led to the establishment of a sustainable political settlement and the inclusion of minority groups for the first time. However, these successes have not been experienced more widely across Somalia. Other federal member states have experienced poor relations with the federal government. Internally, some states also have weak and violent relations with groups who are competing for influence and poor external relationships with other federal member states. In general, there is a low commitment to governance reform at federal-state level. These findings underpin the final conclusion that whilst federalism in Somalia has enabled improved governance and peacebuilding outcomes in Jubaland, it is the manner of how federal governance has been implemented in other federal states that explains the disparity in results across the country as a whole. More widely, this research suggests that federalism in post-conflict contexts is neither a panacea for peace and stability, or in of itself, a catalyst for inevitable fragmentation.

Frågan om ett enat Irak har sedan en tid tillbaka diskuterats av såväl irakiska som utländska politiker, inte minst efter att de USA-ledda militära trupperna avtog och lämnade landet under 2011. Däremot har det varit svårt att uppnå ett enat irakiskt samhälle, sett till det faktum att landet består av många olika religiösa och etniska fraktioner som driver olika politiska agendor. Denna uppsats ämnar att jämföra hur en del utvalda villkor (avseende regerinsbildning, autonomi och representation) från Arend Lijpharts teori om konsociationalism har förändrats i Irak före och efter den kurdiska självständighetsomröstningen den 25:e september 2017. Det är en jämförande fallstudie med en kvalitativ metod. Resultatet visar att villkoret "maktbalans" inte var uppfyllt mellan 2005-2017, men att det delvis uppfylls från 2017 och framåt. Villkoret "flerpartisystem och representation" möttes till viss del mellan 2005 och några år framåt, dock inte från 2017 och framåt. Slutligen är villkoret "segmentell autonomi" uppfyllt under båda tidsperioderna, men efter det kurdiska referendumet har omständigheterna och relationerna mellan KRG och centralregeringen i Baghdad förändrats. / The issue of a united Iraq has for some time been discussed by both Iraqi and foreign politicians, not least after the US-led military troops declined and left the country during 2011. However, it has been difficult to achieve a united Iraqi society, considering the fact that the country consists of many different religious and ethnic groups that run different political agendas. This essay intends to compare how some selected conditions (regarding government formation, autonomy and representation) from Arend Lijphart’s theory of consociationalism have changed in Iraq before and after the Kurdish independence referendum the 25th of September 2017. It is a comparative case study with a qualitative approach. The result shows that the condition ”balance of power” was not fulfilled between 2005-2017, but that it is partly fulfilled from 2017 and onwards. The condition ”multi- party system and representation” was met to some extent between 2005 and a few years ahead, though not from 2017 and onwards. Lastly, the condition ”segmental autonomy” is fulfilled during both time periods, however after the Kurdish referendum, the circumstances and relations between KRG and the central government in Baghdad have altered in some ways.

Résumé Les conflits font partie intégrante de toutes les activités de la société. Ces conflits, cependant, deviennent indésirables lorsqu'ils parcourent la ligne de destruction élargie des biens et des personnes. La démocratie est un mécanisme visant à réglementer les opinions dissidentes et à harmoniser les intérêts multigrades pour une coexistence réussie et un développement national. La littérature suggère que la démocratisation est très difficile, sinon impossible, dans les sociétés pluralistes ou à clivage multiple. Pour surmonter cette difficulté, le consociationalisme a été suggéré comme une panacée qui permet un partage équitable formel du pouvoir et des ressources publiques parmi les facettes reconnues de la société plurielle. Sans cela, on suppose que toute tentative de démocratie est susceptible de s'effondrer et d'échouer. Le Ghana est un pays multiethnique avec au moins 92 groupes ethniques différents qui défie apparemment le raisonnement fondamental de la démocratisation consociative, parce qu'il a pratiqué la démocratie avec succès depuis plus de 25 ans sans nécessairement adopter des modèles consociatifs formels. Cette thèse situe le Ghana dans ce contexte théorique et examine les raisons de son succès malgré l'écart théorique par rapport au consociationalisme. L'approche de la méthode mixte a été adoptée dans l'étude, et 542 répondants ont été choisis à dessein pour l'observation. Les données recueillies par l'administration des questionnaires des entrevues ont révélé que le Ghana n'a pas connu de conflits violents à l'échelle nationale malgré les conflits ponctués à travers le pays en raison de la nature même de ses conflits internes; donc circonscrits par les circonstances géographiques, les causes des conflits, et les l'acteurs impliqués. Deuxièmement, l'étude révèle que, malgré l'existence de multiples clivages sociaux au Ghana, l'interaction sociale entre les personnes met plus d’accent sur les liens transversaux qui existent parmi les individus que sur les clivages qui les divisent, même s’il existe une prise de conscience du clivage élevée dans la société ghanéenne. En outre, la disposition constitutionnelle pour la démocratisation au Ghana englobe préalablement l'intérêt national au-dessus des intérêts de clivage. Elle interdit aussi les organisations politiques basées sur les clivages sociales. L'étude recommande qu'une plus grande attention soit accordée à l'éducation à la paix dans tout le pays, en impliquant formellement dans ce processus les pertinentes institutions traditionnelles et modernes, toutes formelles qu’informelles, au niveau de base de la société. Il est également impératif d'aborder d'urgence les causes profondes de la myriade de conflits qui couvrent la longueur et l'étendue du pays pour leur résolution durable afin d'améliorer la démocratisation pacifique. Les politiciens devraient éviter de s'immiscer dans les conflits locaux et permettre aux dispositions institutionnelles établies par le système démocratique ghanéen de traiter de manière décisive avec les questions de conflit. / Abstract Conflicts are part and parcel of every societal endeavour. These conflicts however, become undesirable when they travel along the widening line of destruction of property and persons. Democracy is one mechanism aimed at regulating dissenting views and harmonising multi-group interests for successful, peaceful coexistence and national development. There is growing establishment in the literature that democratisation is very difficult, if not impossible, in pluralistic or multi-cleavage societies. To surmount this difficulty, consociationalism has been suggested as a panacea which allows formal equitable sharing of power and public resources among recognised facets of the plural society. Without this, it is assumed any attempt at democracy is most likely to crumble and fail. Ghana is a multi-ethnic country with at least 92 different ethnic groups which is seemingly defying the basic reasoning of consociational democratisation because it has successfully practised democracy for over 25 years without necessarily adopting formal consociational models. This thesis situated Ghana within this theoretical context and examined the reasons behind Ghana’s democratic success despite the theoretical deviation from consociationalism. Mixed-method approach was adopted in the study, and 542 respondents were purposefully selected for observation. Data gathered through interview and questionnaire administration revealed that Ghana has not experienced nation-wide violent conflicts in spite of the dotted conflicts across the country due to the very nature of its internal conflicts; thus circumscribed by the geographical, issue, and actor-based circumstances. Second, the study found that despite the existence of multiple social cleavages in Ghana, social interaction among the people places emphasis on crosscutting ties that exist among them, than on the cleavages that divide them even if cleavage awareness is high in Ghanaian society. In addition, constitutional framework for democratisation in Ghana formerly enshrines national interest above cleavage interests and prohibits political organisations based on cleavages. The study recommends that more attention be paid to peace education across the country by formally involving both relevant formal and informal traditional and modern institutions at the basic level of society in this peace education process. It is also imperative to address as a matter of urgency the root causes of the myriad of conflicts that span the length and breadth of the country for their sustainable resolution to enhance peaceful democratisation. Politicians should avoid meddling in local conflicts and allow the institutional frameworks established by the Ghanaian democratic system to deal decisively with conflict issues

O modelo consociativo de democracia parlamentar reflete a necessidade de prevenção de conflitos comunais em sociedades segmentadas e visa proporcionar-lhes estabilidade democrática. O Líbano e suas 18 seitas oficiais foi considerado por Arend Lijphart como um caso de sociedade multiétnica profundamente dividida por clivagens sobrepostas, país no qual o consociativismo e a capacidade de acomodação das elites seriam viáveis. No entanto, o país tem enfrentado rupturas institucionais constantes e intensificação de tensões sectárias mesmo após o fim da guerra civil (1975-1990). As crises de governança em 2005 e 2008, o vácuo presidencial de Maio de 2014 à Outubro de 2016 e as persistentes crises de energia, água e lixo são exemplos de tais eventos. Além disso, o Líbano tem um Estado nação frágil e inoperante, abrindo uma lacuna em termos de defesa militar, promoção de serviços sociais e provisão de bens públicos. Ao mesmo tempo, contudo, as crises sugerem não demonstrações de falta de governança, mas ajustes de representação para inclusão de elites não tradicionais no poder (como é o caso da xiita e sua obtenção do poder de veto através da figura do Hezbollah em 2008). E, sobretudo, o sistema confessional teve continuidade histórica significativa ao longo dos séculos XX e XXI. Em razão desta falta de consenso na literatura, será objetivo do presente trabalho indicar e refletir sobre os limites, decorrências e contribuições do consociativismo à realidade libanesa em sua modalidade confessional. Através do estudo de caso proposto apontaremos de que modo, de forma problemática, falta na literatura consociativa o entendimento de que a institucionalização rigorosa das diferenças religiosas não promove mais democracia e representatividade, mas, ao contrário, enfraquece o Estado nacional e engendra práticas de clientelismo sectário. Os resultados obtidos reforçam a necessidade de revisão teórica do modelo de Lijphart de modo a afastar do mesmo arranjos consociativos altamente institucionalizados tais como os do tipo confessional. Na medida em que tal prescrição está ausente na teoria consociativa clássica, identificamos uma anomalia no modelo original de Lijphart que precisa ser revista e sanada. / The consociational model of parliamentary democracy reflects the need to prevent communal conflicts in segmented societies and aims to provide them with democratic stability. Lebanon and its 18 official sects was considered by Arend Lijphart as a case of multi-ethnic and deeply divided society, a country where consociationalism and elites\' compromising would be feasible. However, the country has been facing constant institutional disruption and intensification of sectarian tensions even after the end of the civil war (1975-1990). Governance crisis in 2005 and 2008, presidential vacuum from May 2014 to October 2016 and the persistent energy, water and waste disposal crisis are examples of such events. In addition, Lebanon has a fragile and ineffective nation state, deficient in terms of its military defense, promotion of social services and provision of public goods. At the same time, however, these crisis suggest not lack of governance demonstrations, but representation and power adjustments to include non-traditional elites (as it is the case for the Shia sect and its veto power obtainment through Hezbollah in 2008). Utmost, the confessional system has had significant historical continuity throughout the 20th and 21st centuries. Due to the literatures lack of consensus revolving this issue, the present work intends to present and reflect over consociativisms limits, consequences and contributions to the Lebanese reality in its confessional form. Through the here proposed case study, it will be problematically pointed out that the consociational literature misses the point by not understanding that the rigorous institutionalization of religious differences does not promote more democracy and representation; but, rather, weakens the national state and engenders clientelist sectarianism. The results obtained reinforce the need for Lijpharts model theoretical revision in order to except from it highly institutionalized consociational arrangements (such as the confessional one). To the extent that such prescription is absent in classic consociational theory, we have identified an anomaly in Lijpharts original model that needs to be reviewed and amended.

By comparing the post-conflict reconstruction patterns of Cyprus and Sri Lanka, it is possible to evaluate what was or was not effective in the Cyprus case and how these lessons may be applied to Sri Lanka. Considering the underlying similarities of the two islands’ respective conflicts, the focus determining the best course of action for Sri Lanka, so that it does not face the same stalemate situation as Cyprus. The recommended policy contrasts with the consociationalist models proposed for Cyprus, and is instead based on the unique Basque model of autonomy.

O modelo consociativo de democracia parlamentar reflete a necessidade de prevenção de conflitos comunais em sociedades segmentadas e visa proporcionar-lhes estabilidade democrática. O Líbano e suas 18 seitas oficiais foi considerado por Arend Lijphart como um caso de sociedade multiétnica profundamente dividida por clivagens sobrepostas, país no qual o consociativismo e a capacidade de acomodação das elites seriam viáveis. No entanto, o país tem enfrentado rupturas institucionais constantes e intensificação de tensões sectárias mesmo após o fim da guerra civil (1975-1990). As crises de governança em 2005 e 2008, o vácuo presidencial de Maio de 2014 à Outubro de 2016 e as persistentes crises de energia, água e lixo são exemplos de tais eventos. Além disso, o Líbano tem um Estado nação frágil e inoperante, abrindo uma lacuna em termos de defesa militar, promoção de serviços sociais e provisão de bens públicos. Ao mesmo tempo, contudo, as crises sugerem não demonstrações de falta de governança, mas ajustes de representação para inclusão de elites não tradicionais no poder (como é o caso da xiita e sua obtenção do poder de veto através da figura do Hezbollah em 2008). E, sobretudo, o sistema confessional teve continuidade histórica significativa ao longo dos séculos XX e XXI. Em razão desta falta de consenso na literatura, será objetivo do presente trabalho indicar e refletir sobre os limites, decorrências e contribuições do consociativismo à realidade libanesa em sua modalidade confessional. Através do estudo de caso proposto apontaremos de que modo, de forma problemática, falta na literatura consociativa o entendimento de que a institucionalização rigorosa das diferenças religiosas não promove mais democracia e representatividade, mas, ao contrário, enfraquece o Estado nacional e engendra práticas de clientelismo sectário. Os resultados obtidos reforçam a necessidade de revisão teórica do modelo de Lijphart de modo a afastar do mesmo arranjos consociativos altamente institucionalizados tais como os do tipo confessional. Na medida em que tal prescrição está ausente na teoria consociativa clássica, identificamos uma anomalia no modelo original de Lijphart que precisa ser revista e sanada. / The consociational model of parliamentary democracy reflects the need to prevent communal conflicts in segmented societies and aims to provide them with democratic stability. Lebanon and its 18 official sects was considered by Arend Lijphart as a case of multi-ethnic and deeply divided society, a country where consociationalism and elites\' compromising would be feasible. However, the country has been facing constant institutional disruption and intensification of sectarian tensions even after the end of the civil war (1975-1990). Governance crisis in 2005 and 2008, presidential vacuum from May 2014 to October 2016 and the persistent energy, water and waste disposal crisis are examples of such events. In addition, Lebanon has a fragile and ineffective nation state, deficient in terms of its military defense, promotion of social services and provision of public goods. At the same time, however, these crisis suggest not lack of governance demonstrations, but representation and power adjustments to include non-traditional elites (as it is the case for the Shia sect and its veto power obtainment through Hezbollah in 2008). Utmost, the confessional system has had significant historical continuity throughout the 20th and 21st centuries. Due to the literatures lack of consensus revolving this issue, the present work intends to present and reflect over consociativisms limits, consequences and contributions to the Lebanese reality in its confessional form. Through the here proposed case study, it will be problematically pointed out that the consociational literature misses the point by not understanding that the rigorous institutionalization of religious differences does not promote more democracy and representation; but, rather, weakens the national state and engenders clientelist sectarianism. The results obtained reinforce the need for Lijpharts model theoretical revision in order to except from it highly institutionalized consociational arrangements (such as the confessional one). To the extent that such prescription is absent in classic consociational theory, we have identified an anomaly in Lijpharts original model that needs to be reviewed and amended.

Lebanon is seen as a failed state by the international community and this study aims to look at the causes that have made Lebanon dysfunctional. The study uses Andrej Lijpharts consociational power sharing model and the international relations theory realism to analyse the internal and external causes that have made Lebanon a failed state. The study is based on interviews from the three major sects in Lebanon and a text analysis. The study shows that Lebanon is suffering from a corrupt elite that uses the state institutions to benefit their own families. The elite uses clientelism by manipulating consociational power sharing to make the ethnoreligious groups dependant on the elite’s own success. Different regional and international powers use Lebanon in their struggle for power and dominance over the Middle East. The external actors support different ethnic and religious groups by financing and arming them. That in turn deepens the divide between the sectarian groups and hinders the political progress.