Lecture XI: THE PROBLEMS OF FEDERALISM IN RUSSIA

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Lecture XITHE PROBLEMS OF FEDERALISMIN RUSSIA

• In the framework of the course Crucial Issues of
  Russian Political History from the early XXth
  century up the present time
• Sergey Verigin, Ass. Prof.
• Petrozavodsk State University

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Contents list

• Historical roots of federalism in Russia
• Federative treaty of Russian Federation of 1992
• The problems of units in Federation
• Federalism as the principle of state and the
  method of state government

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I. Historical roots of federalism in RussiaThe
principle of federalism in the Constitution of
the Russian Federation

• March 31, 1992 - singing Federative Treaty in
  Moscow on the principle of federalism.
• The principle of federalism was consolidated by
  the Constitution of the Russian Federation of
  1993.
• The first Article of it proclaims the Russian
  Federation or Russia to be democratic, federal,
  legal state with the republican form of ruling.
• Federalism - is the political philosophy that
  underlines a system of government in which power
  is constitutionally divided between a central
  governing authority and constituent partially
  self-governing political units (like states or
  provinces), creating what is often called a
  federation. The two levels of government are
  interdependent, and share sovereignty.

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The history of Federalism."Declaration of Rights
of Peoples of Russia"

• The federal structure of Russia was directly
  begun to talk about at the beginning of the 19-th
  century, however at that time it was set aside.
  (Reforms of Aleksander I).
• It is well-known that Bolshevist leadership
  headed by Vladimir Lenin did not see either
  possibility or necessity of federal state system
  in Russia before seizing the power. They
  considered it to be a large centralised state.
• But after the October Revolution having got torn
  to pieces the country, they had to give up the
  idea of "united" and "indivisible" Russia. It
  resulted in the "Declaration of Rights of Peoples
  of Russia", the first document in the field of
  the State Constitution, adopted on November 2,
  1917.
• It declared equality and sovereignty of peoples
  in Russia, their right to self-determination,
  separation and formation of independent states.

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"Declaration of rights of working and exploited
people"

• To prevent concrete breaking apart of the state,
  the Bolsheviks had to announce theoretical and
  legal principles it could be based on.
• January 1918 - the "Declaration of rights of
  working and exploited people" was passed, and
  Russia was called the Russian Soviet Federative
  Socialist Republic.
• The principle of Federalism was proclaimed as the
  basis of the state formation.
• Federation was believed to be a free union of
  free nations within the Russian Soviet Republic.
• The main provisions of the "Declaration of rights
  of working and exploited people" were included by
  the Constitution of the RSFSR (July 1918). It
  said that autonomous regions formed the Russian
  Soviet Federative Socialist Republic on the basis
  of the Federation.

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The principles of autonomy. The formation of
Soviet Republics

• In the 1920-s - it began to be built up on the
  principles of autonomy. As a rule, autonomous
  formations such as republics, regions, communes,
  i.e., were made up in accordance with Decrees
  from above.
• Example - formation of Karelian Autonomy.
• In 1918-1920 on the territory of the former
  Russian Empire few Soviet Republics came into
  being instead of the former Russian Empire.
  Besides RSFSR, they were Ukrainian, Byelorussia
  and Caucasian Republics (Armenia, Georgia,
  Azerbaidjan). During the Civil War they concluded
  political alliance with each other, combining
  their military forces and main departments
  financial, economic, labour and transport once.

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The USSR formation. The main features of the
state structure of the USSR

• December 30, 1922 - the Treaty and Declaration of
  the USSR Formation were approved by the 1-st
  Congress of Soviets of the USSR. The new state
  was being built on the principle of federalism.
  The Constitution of the USSR of 1924 confirmed
  the same. It contained the terms of joining the
  USSR for Soviet Republics such as voluntariness,
  equality and the right to be free secession from
  the Union.
• However analysing the state structure of the USSR
  one can see the interlacing of 3 features
  unitarism, federalism and confederalism.
• Unitarism manifested itself in strong
  centralisation of power carried out by Communist
  Party leadership
• Federalism - in the existence of contractual
  basis of the state and sovereign republics
• Confederalism - in the right to free exit from
  the union, though legal gear of it wasn't worked
  out.

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The substitution of the principles of federalism
by administrative centralisation system

• All following Soviet Constitutions of Stalin 1936
  and Brezhnev 1977 also proclaimed the USSR to be
  founded on the principle of federalism.
• Only the 1920-s can be referred to as the period
  of federalism development.
• In the 1930-s - administrative and management
  system based on administrative ruling of economy,
  culture and political pressure upon Union
  republics numbered 15 by 1940, was formed.
• It was Stalin who deformed ideas of federative
  construction of the USSR. He managed to fulfil
  his plan of the "Autonomisation".
• In the 1930s - during the process of
  administrative centralisation both systems of
  local and national self-government were
  eliminated, so national regions and village
  Soviets were abolished.
• In the 1950s-1970s - under Khrushchev and
  Brezhnev general tendencies in state and national
  formation of the USSR were left without changes.
• During this period administrative and management
  system continued to become stronger, negative
  influence of central Ministries and bodies on
  sovereignty of Union and Autonomous republics and
  other national and state formations gaining
  ground.
• In the middle of the 1980s - 85-90 Union
  republics main funds of production were under the
  supervision of the Union Ministries and bodies,
  in Karelia this figure was 98.

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The crisis of national relations

• The policy of merging nations under the Communism
  construction prevailing in the 1950s-1980s
  affected state and national formation in a
  negative way as well.
• It ended in the crisis of national relations in
  the USSR during "Perestroika".
• In the late 1980s - President of USSR
  M.Gorbachev offered the union republics to sign a
  new union treaty and promised to give more power
  for centre to union and autonomic republics.
• March 17, 1991 - in a Union-wide referendum 78
  of all voters voted for the retention of the
  Soviet Union in a reformed form. But the Baltics,
  Armenia, Georgia and Moldova boycotted the
  referendum. In each of the other nine republics,
  a majority of the voters supported the retention
  of the Soviet Union.
• But the attempts of M.Gorbachov to save the
  situation by signing a new Union Treaty between
  the centre and republics failed and the USSR
  broke apart in December 1991.

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The deduction

• Some specialists in Russia tried to prove the
  break-up of the USSR to be the collapse of the
  principles of federalism. But it is not true, for
  theses ones have not actually come into
  existence.
• Such terms as "federal government" and "federal
  parliament' were not even written in the Soviet
  Constitutions of 1936 and 1977, and it was not by
  chance.
• Due to this, Union or central authorities seized
  the right to decide all questions of the State
  life. The leadership of the Union republics just
  carried out the directions of the Centre on its
  territory. It is known to be a characteristic
  feature rather of unitary than federal state.

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II. Federative treaty of Russian Federation of
1992The principles of federalism.

• The principles of federalism
• 1) to determine statehood as federative
• 2) to exercise the state power on a contractual
  basis and constitution distribution of the power
  between federal authorities of the State Power
  and the authorities of the State Power of the
  units of the RF
• 3) the sovereignty of the federative units in
  realization their responsibilities
• 4) formal equality of the federative units
  towards the federal authorities of state power
• 5) the right of federative unit to choose a form
  of its political structure
• 6) to admit indisputable monopoly of the
  federation to join bigger unions
• 7) the units of the Federation can't join any
  state unions outside Federation's border.

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Features of Federation

• Federation - is a united state, in which its
  units have no right to break up its territorial
  integrity without mutual consent.
• Features of Federation
• Federative character of the Russian state is
  guaranteed by the Constitution of RF
• Russia must be built on the contact delimination
  of powers. Strictly speaking, there is Federative
  Treaty already, but it doesn't all the job
• This statement is guaranteed by the present-day
  Treaty, however it is often violated
• Formal equality is looked upon as judicial here.
  In fact, providing a unit of the Federation hands
  over some of its rights to the Federation it
  turns out to be unequal to another unit. However
  the unit wished it itself, realizing its formal
  right to equality
• It means that republics, regions, territories,
  provinces and so forth can be the subjects of the
  Federation
• It involves the necessity of keeping the unity of
  Federation
• It means that any unit of the Federation can't
  join any political, military, or economic union
  outside the borders of Federation.

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Federative relations in Russia after the collapse
of the USSR

• March 31, 1992 - the Supreme Soviet of Russia did
  its best to work out and sign Federative Treaty.
• Its main goal - to bring interactions within the
  RF in order, so it concerned former autonomous
  republics, regions, territories, cities of Moscow
  and Sent-Petersburg.
• Two republics - Tatarstan and Chechnya - were
  left outside the treaty in March 1992.
• February 1994 - an agreement between the bodies
  of State power of RF and Tatarstan was signed.
• This bilateral agreement was a new concept for
  federative relations in Russia, but in whole it
  originated from the conception of the 1992
  Federative Treaty.
• At present stage only one unit of RF - Chechnya -
  has not signed Federative Treaty. But it is
  included into the constitutional field of RF as
  well. Federative Treaty points out that the
  republics can resolve questions of
  differentiating the units jurisdiction and power
  either on the basis of the Treaty or in
  accordance with the Constitutions either federal
  or republican.

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III. The problems of units in FederationTypes of
federative units

• The term "unit of the Federation" designates a
  part of the union state. And as a rule the bodies
  participating in agreement are supposed to be the
  units of federative relations.
• 3 types of federative units in Russia according
• with the Federative Treaty
• National - state units (republics) 21 republics.
• 2. Administrative and territorial units
  (territories, regions and cities of federal
  meaning) 6 krais, 51 oblasts and Moscow and
  St.-Petersburg.
• 3. Autonomous (autonomous regions and autonomous
  districts) 11 autonomous okrugs.
• Three variants of Federative Treaty were signed
  though a single term Federative Treaty is
  adopted.
• All units of RF have the right to sign agreement
  with each other and the Federation and units can
  in addition five each other powers.

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National self-determination

• Problem of the right of nations for
  self-determination exists in Russia.
• In the history of the formation of Russia as a
  state the elements of free-will
  self-determination of nations interlaced with
  those of violence. History is going on and
  present day generation (especially national) is
  not eager to follow the way chosen by their
  ancestors.
• National and state formations appeared in the
  history of Russia are not monoethnic!
• There is not such region in Russia that would be
  populated with a single nation on 100.
• Example - Tatars and Russians live in the
  republic of Tatarstan, and in Karelia several
  ethnic groups (Russians the largest) live under
  the "title-nation" of Karels.
• So, self-determination - the unit must be not
  only the "title-nation", its population should
  consist of a prevalent ethnic group. In this
  occasion speaking about the population of a
  republic in an official document should be
  written, for example, the peoples of Karelian
  republic instead of Karelians, the people of the
  republic of Bashkirstan instead of Bashkirs.
• Self-determination of people, but not nations, is
  a less painful way for Russia. It neutralizes
  ethnic sources and preserves nationality. And it
  guarantees equal rights for people of different
  ethnic groups better.

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Importance of federalism in Russia

• Serious expected conflicts on the basis of
  self-determination in Russia has not burst out
  with the exception of Chechnya.
• Reasons for it
• 1) aspiration for self-determination appeared to
  have both the "title-nations" and citizens of
  other ethnic groups living in republics.
• 2) "title nations" seem to understand them.
• 3) the process of self-determination was taking
  place parallel to the process of federalization
  in Russia.
• 4) Federative Treaty was worked out
  simultaneously with the Union Treaty. And it was
  Federative Treaty that prevented the collapse of
  Russia. Due to the principle of federalism two
  tendencies the aspiration of people for
  self-determination and preserving the state
  united were reconciled.
• Thus, Federation involves new possibilities for
  Russia to harmonize national, regional and
  republican relations within the state.

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Separatist question

• The 1993 constitution of Russia - strengthens
  the official status of the central government in
  relation to the various regions, although Moscow
  has made significant concessions in bilateral
  treaties. Finally, most of the differences at the
  base of separatist movements are economic and
  geographic rather than ethnic.
• By mid.1990s most experts believed that the
  federation would hold together, although probably
  at the expense of additional concessions of power
  by the central government. The trend is not
  toward separatism so much as the devolution of
  central powers to the localities on trade, taxes,
  and other matters.

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Separatist question

• Some experts observe that the Russia's Autonomous
  Republics pressing claims for greater subunit
  rights fall into three groups
• The first group - composed of those jurisdictions
  most vociferous in pressing ethnic separatism,
  including Chechnya and perhaps other republics of
  the North Caucasus, and the Republic of Tuva.
• The second group - consists of large,
  resource-rich republics, including Karelia, Komi,
  and Sakha (Yakutia). Their differences with
  Moscow center on resource control and taxes
  rather than demands for outright independence.
• The third group - mixed group consists of
  republics along the Volga River, which straddle
  strategic water, rail, and pipeline routes,
  possess resources such as oil, and include large
  numbers of Russia's Muslim and Buddhist
  populations. These republics include
  Bashkortostan, Kalmykia, Mari El, Mordovia,
  Tatarstan, and Udmurtia.

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Separatist question

• In he mid. 1990s eight regional cooperation
  organizations have been established, covering all
  subnational jurisdictions except Chechnya
• the Siberian Accord Association
• the Central Russia Association
• the Northwest Association
• the Black Earth Association
• the Cooperation Association of North Caucasus
  Republics, Territories, and Oblasts
• the Greater Volga Association
• the Ural Regional Association
• the Far East and Baikal Association.
• Regional and ethnic conflicts have encouraged
  proposals to abolish the existing subunits and
  rebirth the tsarist-era guberniya, or large
  province, which would incorporate several smaller
  subunits on the basis of geography and population
  rather than ethnic considerations. Russian
  ultranationalists such as Vladimir Zhirinovsky
  have been joined in supporting this proposal by
  some officials of the national Government and
  oblast and territory leaders who resent the
  privileges of the republics.

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IV. Federalism as the principle of state and the
method of state governmentFederalism, Russian
Constitution and the problems of federal state
system

• According to the Constitution of the Russian
  Federation (Chapter 3, "Federative system") old
  former administrative system of RSFSR (a republic
  in the USSR) was replaced by the a new federative
  system which defines "national and state,
  administrative and territorial system of the
  Russian Federation".
• It does not mean that the Russian Federation has
  lost the features of a united state.
• The chapter 3 in Constitution states that
  provinces and regions have the status of equal
  units of the Federation and became its parts. In
  the Constitution the term "Federative system"
  simply explains a federative character of the
  statehood.

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Federalism, Russian Constitution and the problems
of federal state system

• A new RF Constitution does not contain the
  Federative Treaty, but the federative character
  of the state is reflected in chapter 1 "the Basis
  of Constitutional System" and chapter 3
  "Federative System".
• Article 5 of Chapter 3 says "Federative system
  of the Russian Federation is based on the
  division of powers between the bodies of State
  Power, differentiation of the subjects of
  jurisdiction and power between the bodies of
  State power of the units of the Russian
  Federation, equality and self-determination of
  the peoples of the Russian Federation.
• It is essential that this article contains the
  aspects of Federalism which define the principles
  of the state system. On the one hand the
  principle of federalism provides the state's
  integrity, on the other hand it differentiates
  the units of jurisdiction and powers between the
  bodies of State Power.

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Federalism, Russian Constitution and the problems
of federal state system

• As to the unity of the state power system we can
  say that in a real federative state such kind of
  unity can't be completed.
• State system must be organized in such a way
  that it can provide the functioning of a single
  system of federal bodies of the state power on
  those questions under the power of the
  Federation.
• System unity of the bodies of state power of the
  subjects of the federation is not compulsory. And
  between the units of the Federation and federal
  level it can't exist at all, for the powers are
  differentiated and the right to establish the
  bodies of power belongs to the units of the
  Federation.

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What does federalism mean as a state government?

• Federative Treaty signed on March 31, 1992 let us
  suppose federalism to become the method of state
  government in Russia.
• Federalism was regarded to be the basis of the
  constitutional system of Russia. Secondly, the
  power between federal bodies of state power and
  those of the units of RF were differentiated in
  the Treaty.
• The Constitution of RF adopted in 1993 also has
  such elements of federalism as division of the
  units of jurisdiction and power.

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New Russian Constitution and federalism

• Article 71 defines the units of jurisdiction of
  the federal authorities.
• Article 72 defines the units of mutual
  jurisdicion of federal and local authorities.
• Article 73 defines the units of jurisdiction of
  local authorities.
• So, it has been done much later in Russia on the
  level of Federative Treaty and Constitution to
  transfer state government onto a new basis of
  federalism..

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Literature to the topic 11

• Wallich, Christine. Russia and the challenge of
  fiscal federalism. Washington, 1994.