Defunct Federalisms: Critical Perspectives On Federal Failur

Description:
Since the end of the Cold War the global arena has become a place for dynamic change, in particular for federal political units. The focus on defunct federalisms draws attention not only to the difference between state-making and nation building, it also points to the fact that state-making does not necessarily lead to the creation of a national identity.This comparative volume looks at the track record of several defunct federalisms to identify options that have been overlooked and decisions that precipitated the collapse. Bringing together insights from the study of state failure and federal collapse, it examines the ways in which parallel assessment is crucial for suggesting the complex structures of identity accommodation in federal entities.The volume is ideal for advanced undergraduates and graduate students as well as university lecturers and researchers working on the issues related to contemporary federalism, history of federal units and the questions of national identity.

Table of Contents:
Approaching the phenomenon of federal failure, Emilian Kavalski and Magdalena Zolkos; Dwelling separately: the Federation of the West Indies and the challenge of insularity, Amanda Sives; The Pyrrhic victory of unitary statehood: a comparative analysis of the failed federal experiments in Ethiopia and Indonesia, Thomas Goumenos; Partnership and paternalism: the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland (1953-1963), Tony King; The games elites play: notes towards an elite-focused understanding of the failure of the Federal Republic of Cameroon (1961-1972), Cyril Feague; The failed experiment with federalism in Pakistan (1947-1971), Farhan Hanif Siddiqi; The demonization of federalism in republican China, Steven Phillips; The strategic roots of Arab federalism and its failure: transnational sovereign power issues, military rule, and Arab identity, Corri Zoli; The failure of the socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (1945-1991): a story of contradictions, weaknesses, and tensions, Matt McCullock and Silvia Susnjic; From the 2nd best option to dissolution: utility and identity in the Czechoslovak federalism, Jan Ruzicka and Kamila Stullerova; The Soviet people: the rise and fall of an ideological federalism, Ivan Gololobov; Conclusions: whither defunct federalisms, Emilian Kavalski and Magdalena Zolkos; Bibliography; Index.

Author Biography:
Emilian Kavalski is the Izaak Walton Killan Postdoctoral Fellow at the Department of Political Science, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada. Magdalena Zolkos is also based at the Department of Political Science, University of Alberta, Canada.