ABSTRACT
Federalism and democracy have several elements in common. A federation provides for some power to be exercised by the national government and some by its subnational governments, while a democracy expects power to be exercised by elected officials with a residue of power remaining in the hands of an electorate capable of replacing those officials. Mere existence of a federation, however, implies a concept that derived from democracy, namely, self-determination. The fact that subnational governments share power, interact, and grow can foster hubris in those governments manifested as nationalism. Implementation of democracy in the former Soviet republics can allow for remarkable transformations or provide only continuity with minimal changes. Although Russia “lacks an effective multiparty system”, it “has made major strides toward the establishment of representative institutions”. The taxonomy of ethnic conflict regulation places “cantonization and/or federalization” among four methods for managing differences.
