Chapter Four

Society, State, Government and

Citizenship

Ayenew Birhanu(PhD)
 Understanding Society
Conceptual Approach: Defining Society
 The term "society" came from the Latin word societas
“friendly association with others” which in turn was derived
from the noun socius ("comrade, friend and ally"; adjectival
form socialis) used to describe a bond or interaction between
parties that are friendly, or at least civil.
 Those who are unfriendly or uncivil to the remainder of society in this
sense may be deemed to be "antisocial".
 The term society could be understood both from a narrower
and broader sense.
 In a narrower sense, society refers to a group of people
 In a broader sense it refers to the whole human society
 The concept of society related to the totality of humanity or the
largest human group.
 Understanding Society
 A society is a group of people involved in persistent social
interaction by sharing the same geographical or social territory,
typically subject to the same political authority and dominant
cultural expectations.
 A society must have population. Without a group of people no
society could be formed.
 Of course, society refers not to a group of people but to a system of
social relationships.
 But for the establishment of social relationships a group of people is
necessary.
 Society is characterized by patterns of relationships (social
relations) between individuals who share a distinctive culture
and institutions; a given society may be described as the sum
total of such relationships among its constituent members.
 Understanding Society

 There have been debates as to the exact concept of society.

 Some defined society as collection of individuals living in a certain country
for the longer period of time
 For others, society is more than collections of individuals
 Accordingly, there are two contending views i.e. atomistic and
organic view towards society.
 Atomistic view of society is based up on an individualist conception of
society.
• This view stated that society is a human artifact that constructed by individuals
to serve their own purpose.
• In other word, all social and political behavior can be understood in terms of the
choices made by self interested individual without references to collective entities
such as society.
• It defined society as nothing more than a collection of individual units or atoms.
This view does not ignore the fact that individual pursue their interest through
formation and association of business trade union, clubs and others which holds this
society together
 Understanding Society

 An organic view of society: is based up on an

organic analogy.
 Instead of being constructed by rational individual to
satisfy their personal interest, society may operate as an
organic whole, exhibiting properties more normally
associated with living organism a human being or plant.
 This suggests a holistic approach to society, emphasizing
that society is complex networks of relationship that
ultimately exist to maintain the whole
 The whole is more important than its individual parts
 This is similar to the functionalist view of society
 This assumes that all social activities play some part in
maintaining the basic structure of societ
 Understanding Society
Attributes of Society
 Society is something more than mere collection of individuals
 Accordingly, Society has the following characteristics or attributes:
 Likeness: Without a sense of likeness, there could be no mutual recognition of'
belonging together' and therefore no society.
 Differences: Sense of likeness is not always sufficient but there is a need of recognition
of diversity and variation
 Interdependence: Famous Greek Philosopher, Aristotle remarked that 'Man is a social
animal'. As a social animal he/she is dependent on others
 Cooperation and conflict If the members of the society do not work together for the
common purposes, they cannot lead a happy and comfortable
 Social relationships: Sociologist remarked that society is a network of social
relationship
 Permanency: Society is not a temporary organization of individuals; Society continues
to exist even after the death of individual members
 Dynamic and changeable: Society changes from its traditional nature to modern nature
 Comprehensive Culture: Culture is comprehensive because it fulfills the necessities of
social life
 Understanding Society

Major Theories on the Origin and Development of Society

a). Structural Functionalism
 Structural functionalism theory make analogy between society and an
organism i.e. as an organism can be best understood by determining
its various parts (structure) and determining how they work
(function), a society can be best under stood by identifying its parts
(structure) and how they function.
 According to the advocators of this theory, Durkheim and Spencer,
evolution accounts for the development of social as well as natural
life
 They viewed society as similar to giant organism, just as its various parts
work together to sustain the life of the organism, so that parts of society
work together to maintain the society
 The structural functional theorists assert that the working together of
individual on various structures (positions) gave rise to the society
 Understanding Society
b). Economic Determinism
 This theory was proposed by Karl Marx
 As opposed to the natural evolutionary proposition on the
origin of society by Spencer, Marx views the emergence of
society as a social product
 According to Marx, a society’s origin is determined by
economic relationships.
 The mode of production (economic relationships) grounds the
foundations on which all other social and political arrangements
are built
 The origin of society for him is stemming ultimately from the
economic system, the economic relationships (mode of
production), which determines who owns what, and why.
 Understanding Society

c). The Dialectic or Conflict Theory

 This theory, advocated by Karl Marx, asserts that society emerges
out of contradictions and conflicts among its parts.
 Marx derived this theory from the dialectic model of Georg
Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (1770-1831), German idealist
philosopher, which says that when an idea (thesis) emerges, it
always has an opposing idea (antithesis)
 The contradiction between the thesis and antithesis gives rise for a new
idea (synthesis)
 The synthesis intern will become thesis and have an antithesis and then
the contradiction between the two gives rise for a new idea (synthesis).
 The process of contradiction then continues on giving rise for new ideas
 In short, for the dialectic theory the origin of society is in the
conflict and resolution rather than in evolution.
 Understanding State
Defining State: A Conceptual Approach
 Greeks political system was constantly nourished by
philosophers one of whom was Aristotle whose work
contributed much to theories and practices of state systems.
 State can be defined as the politically organized society or a political
system
 If we take society as a system, the state represents one of the sub-
systems of the society i.e. the political system.
 The state can also be understood as the most supreme organ or
institution of the society
 The state refers to all institutions, agencies and agents that operate
within a given territorial space, have legitimate power and authority
over us, and can legitimately utilize force as a ultimate sanction against
us if we fail to accept its rules or orders or resist its actions or act
against it
 Understanding State
 In addition to possessing the power and authority to employ violence
legitimately, the state can be characterized as consisting of a number
of agents and offices.
 Thus, within the state a whole range of offices and agents-government
ministers, judiciary, bureaucrats, army, police, education and local
government-can be identified.
 In this sense the state is an umbrella term that covers all offices that make
and enforce the collective decisions and rule of a society.
 The terms state and nation are commonly used as synonymous terms.
But they are different and convey varied meanings.
 A nation is a large group of people who bound together; and recognize a
similarity among themselves, because of a common culture, language,
ethnicity etc.
 A state on the other hand is a political unit that has ultimate sovereignty.
 A nation is a cultural and especially linguistic grouping of people who feel
that they belong together. But, state is a political unit with sovereignty.
 Understanding State
Elements of the State
a). Population: The following are some of these characteristic features
of Population
• Homogeneity
• Heterogeneity
• Socio-economic diversity
b). Government: The reason for governments to differ from one state to
another.
• Legitimacy
• Authority
c). Territory: refers to part of the earth’s surface that marked off the
areas occupied by a population of otherstates.  
d). Sovereignty is the right of a country to exist or the power of the state
to rule over its territory
e). Recognition refers to an approval of the legal personality of the state
by other states in the international system i.e. United Nations (UN)
 Understanding State
Major Theories on the Origin and Development of State
a). The Natural Theory on the Origin of State: This theory is derived from the
Aristotelian preposition of “man is a political animal”. Aristotle, explain the
evolutionary process how state or city- state came into being.
1. According to Aristotle, the first partnerships among human beings would have
been between "persons who cannot exist without one another”.
• These are the primitive natural associations. One pair is that of male and female, for the sake
of reproduction. The other master and slave came together for self-preservation. The master
uses his intellect to rule, and the natural slave uses his body to labor.
2. The Family (household) arose naturally from these primitive communities in order
to serve everyday needs.
3. When several Families (households) combined for other needs a village emerged
according to nature.
4. “The complete community, formed from several villages, is a city-state or a state,
which can attain the limit of self-sufficiency. It comes and exists for the sake of the
good life."
 Thus, human being and the state were seen as mutually inclusive and inseparable and
that the state is not an artificial creation, rather it is natural.
 Understanding State

b). The Divine Theory on the Origin of state: this

theory was advocated during Middle Ages,  which is
period in the history of Europe that lasted from about
AD 350 to about 1450.
 The divine theory attributes the origin of state to divine
creation
 The state is seen as an institution designed by God. And, its
rulers were regarded as God’s own missionaries on earth
 The divine theory had its root in the ancient oriental
empires (Hebrew), Christian teachings and protestant
reformation
 Understanding State

c). The Social Contract Theory on the Origin of state: This

theory is inculcated by three best-known and influential
political thinkers of social contract theory: Thomas Hobbes
(1588-1679), John Locke (1632-1704), from British and Jean
Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778) from France.
 The base of this theory was the notion that human beings had
originally created the state by means of a social contract or
agreement to come out from ‘state of nature’; in which no civil
government.
 The social contract theory developed its argument from the
doctrine of popular sovereignty.
 Accordingly, it is an artificial creation based on voluntary
agreement among people in order to protect and safeguard their
inalienable rights such as the right to life, liberty and property.
 Understanding State

d). Marxist Theory on the Origin of state: The

Marxian approach to the emergence of the state.
For the Marxists, state has emerged following the
appearance of classes
To this group of social scientists state is an
apparatus that defends and imposes the interest of
the class in power over the others
State is a mechanism to suppress and subdue
society while maximizing the advantages of the
class which controls state machinery
 Understanding State

e). The Force Theory on the Origin of state:

The prominent advocators of this theory were
the 19th century German writers.
To them, the state was originated in the conquest
and coercion of the weak by the strong.
In the view of Marxian theorists (particularly) the
state was evil because it was a way of oppressing
the poor.
But for the theorists of the force theory, force was
an essential attribute of a state.
 State Structure
Major Forms of State Structure
 State structure entails the manner in which power is distributed among the state’s constituent
parts
 Based on the way power is distributed and exercised, states can be classified into unitary
states, federal states.
Unitary state structure
 Unitary state is the form of state characterized by centralization of power and indivisible
sovereignty.
 It is not to mean that there is no unitary state that share power to lower units.
 Rather, there may be a unitary state that share power to the lower units.
 But what still makes it unitary is that the power division is not on the basis of law, but at the will of the
central state.
 Unitarism is not always centralized in its organization but there are decentralized unitary
state structures .
 In Centralized unitary state structure the central state is unwilling or does not see any rational to
devolve power. However, in decentralized unitary state structure there are three broad ways of
dispersing power.
• Deconcentration,
• Decentralization,
• Devolution.
 State Structure

a. Deconcentration: There only the task of administering localities is given

to centrally appointed officials who work for the center.
 It is the least significant way of power dispersion in unitary state structure because;
 it is simply a matter of administrative organization, where no power is given to the
field officials.
 Nevertheless, these officials benefit from the knowledge of the local people.
 And they also communicate policy inputs from the local people to the center.
b. Decentralization: This way of power dispersion is the type in which the
field official is given the authority of policy execution.
 Thus, it is more significant than deconcentration.
 This way of power dispersion is experienced in Norway, Sweden, Denmark,
Finland and other states.
c. Devolution: This is the type of decentralization in which field offices are
given decision making authority with one clamber legislative body.
 This power dispersion is a more radical way of power dispersion in unitarism.
 It is applied for example, in U.K, Wales, Scotland and Netherlands.
 State Structure

 Rationales for Opting Unitary State

Structure
Organizational simplicity:  
Fair redistribution of wealth 
Favoritism of uniformity
Cost effectiveness
 State Structure
Potential Merits and Demerits of Unitary State Structure
 Unitarism is preferable for the following reasons and
conditions
• Effective and efficient for administration. This is mainly due to the
uniformity of administration and the constitution across regions that
make any constitutional change easily adaptable.
• It is more preferable for small countries with homogeneous society.
Because it is more straight forward and not complex system. I.e. when
the country is larger, the local units are not effectively under the
control of the center.
• Moreover, unitarism is not accommodative of diversities so, it is
better for homogenous than heterogeneous societies.
• Unitarism avoids the conflict of jurisdiction that might happen due to
the division of power between the center and its territorial units.
• The duplication of services and civil servants is rare in unitarism.
 State Structure

 The negative aspects of Unitarism are as

follows:-
 There is relatively greater gap for the development of
autocratic government. This, however, is not to mean
that unitarism necessarily leads to undemocratic
government.
 There is a possible inconsideration of affairs and
initiatives that could be done locally and regionally.
 The concentration on local affairs becomes a burden
for the central legislative.
 Unitarism also facilitates the development of central
bureaucracy
 State Structure

Federal State Structure

 Federal state structure or federal system is the system in which a written
constitution provides for a separation of powers between the central state
and its constituent member states.
 Federalism is the system in which same powers belong to the national,
central or federal state, while of hers belong to its constituent states.
 It is a compromise between the two extreme state structures (unitarism
and confederalism).
 In unitarism, the flow of power is down word (from the central state to its
territorial units).
 In the contrary, power flow in confederalism is up word (from the constituent
states to the central state).
 Whereas, in federal systems the power- flow is bi lateral (i.e. it flows from and to
both levels of the state).
 Thus, federalism is a compromise between the two extremes of unitarism
and confederalism.
 State Structure
 The basic characteristic features of federalism are as follows:
 There is share of sovereignty between the central state and its
constituents
• All levels of government in federalism have legal authority to pass laws that
directly influence the people
• The power all levels have is not given to them by a higher authority, but by law.
 Though the laws of the central state are supreme, they cannot over
rule state and local laws unless the latter’s’ laws conflict with those of
the former.
 There should be a written constitution as the supreme law of the land
from which both the central and regional governments derive their
authority.
 Finally, there should be an independent and impartial judiciary to
interpret the provisions of the constitution from time to time and also
act as an umpire to settle constitutional disputes between the central
and regional governments.
 State Structure
Models of Federalism
 There are two models of federalism regarding the evenness or unevenness of
power distribution among the constituent members of the federation:
Asymmetrical and Symmetrical Federalism.
 Asymmetric federalism is the model of federalism in which some states
within certain federal state are given more authority than others with in the
same central government (federal state).
 The reason for such uneven distribution of power may be there is actual difference
between the states in economic, social, historical and other aspects of power.
 Example: In Spain (made its Basque state autonomous.)
 In Canada (the state of Quebec claims more authority such as collecting its own income tax and
regulating immigration affairs by itself)
 The Asymmetric model of federalism always carries risk and creates instability
because of its un even distribution of power among different provinces.
 Symmetric federalism is the model of federalism in which all the constituent
units of a federation are constitutionally given equal (uniform) powers.
• Because of the demerits of asymmetric federalism discussed above symmetric
federalism is by and large the norm in the world federal state.
 State Structure

 Rational for opting federal state structure

over unitary state Structure
Growing complexity of national and global
conditions
Increased population and territorial size
The rational or motive behind federalism is more
of negative than positive
 State Structure
Potential Merits and Demerits of Federalism
 The followings for example are the merits of federalism.
 Federalism is more preferable for a country having large territory with
complex topography. Because, these factors make the direct control of the
central state over its peripheral units ineffective. Hence, in this context
federalism is more preferable than unitarism.
 Federalism is a system that combines and accommodates: national unity,
local authority and the right for self government.
 Federalism is a system of compromise, which creates a balance between
the center fugal (unifying) and center petal (divisive) forces in a country.
 Federalism stimulates the interest of local people on the government.
Because some policy making is decentralized to the local levels. Moreover,
local officers and assemblies are made responsible to the local people.
 Federalism saves the time and energy of the central state. Because in
federalism sub- national units and local governments share the burden of
seeking solutions for local problems.
 State Structure

 Some Demerits of federalism are stated below:

 Creates a- deficient authority over component states
and individual citizens,
 Creates absence of the power of legislation at the
central unit on subjects that need uniform legislation,
 Results in confusion and conflict of laws,
 Expenses and dalliance due to its duplicated system
of legislation and administration
 Unfit for a state without: geographic continuity,
communality of interest, similar social and political
institutions and political and national integration
 State Structure

Confederation or Con-federal Arrangement

 Doubts have been expressed as to whether a confederation is a form of
state or is more properly to be considered.
 It is so loose that the component states retain their sovereignty. Even
commonly agreed decisions can be vetoed by a member state, either by
non- compliance or by non- payment of its quota of financial
contributions.
 True enough, there is a definite central organ which co-ordinates the
common activities of the con federal states, but the list of activities
under its coordination depend solely on what the state units are willing
to delegate.
 The objectives of a confederation usually include common defense,
common postal services and communication links, common commercial
practices and measures to promote cultural unity.
 Understanding Government
Conceptual Approaches: Meaning and Definition of Government
 Government is the political organization that deals with all aspects of the
whole of a state.
 It is the functional element of the state, which makes and enforces policies on
behalf of the state and its people
 It is a permanent structure composed of decision makers, who make a
society’s rules about “who gets what and on how to resolve conflicts.
 Government is the body of people and regime (institutions, norms, rules
etc.,) for making, enforcing and interpreting laws.
 Therefore, government is the major component and administrative wing of
the state.
There relations and differences between the state and government.
 Differences:
 government is intrinsic while state is extrinsic to human beings;
 state represents but government materializes political power in a given territory; and
 state is permanent, where as government is temporary.
 Understanding Government
 Governments draw their authority and legitimacy from one
of the following sources
 The ways of the eternal yesterday: The state claims the very long
way that it has came across in constructing constitutional legitimacy,
the customary and traditional way in which it in fact ruled.
 Charismatic qualities: Leaders of popular movements, who came to
power by toppling a previous dictator region, will be considered as
they brought the state out of extreme difficulty/ danger due to their
special/ charismatic qualities.
 The claim for legality: The sate evokes that the powers it hold are
formally stated in the legal documents.
 Citizens’ representation: The claim is that the holders of the state
power are the only ones, who “give the people what they want”
Because, they are elected by the people themselves through formal
electoral procedures. Hence, the power of the power holders is a
legitimate (the power of the state)
 Understanding Government

Distinguishing Features of Government from any Social

Organization
a). Involuntary membership: Membership in most social organization is
voluntary based on conscious choices. In contrary, membership to the state
then to the government is largely involuntary. I.e. it is without any deliberate
choice or conscious act.
b). Legitimate monopoly of over whelming force: - All members of any
society do not always obey all government rules. However, in cases of breach
of its rules, government is legally authorized to impose imprisonment and
death sanctions, which other social organizations cannot do so.
 Understanding Government

 Purposes and Function of Government

Self- preservation
Supervision and resolution of conflicts
Regulation of the economy
Protection of political and social rights
Provision of goods and services
 Understanding Government
Organs of Government Organization
 The main institutions are termed as the executive, the legislative and the judiciary
The Legislative Organ of the Government
 Legislature represents the body which is entrusted with law making.
 In this regard, this institution could be mono-cameral assembly-which consists of
elected individuals or it bi-cameral assemblies wherein there exists two houses
which are entrusted to make laws in different issue areas.
Functions of legislature
Law making function:
Constitutional function:-
Control of the administration:
Financial functions:
Quasi- executive functions:
Judicial functions:
Investigative function:
Representation function
 Understanding Government
The Executive Organ of Government

 The term executive can be defined both broadly and narrowly.

 In a broad and collective sense, the executive refers to a totality of all the
functionaries and agencies, which are concerned with the execution of the will of the
state that has been formulated and expressed in terms of law, i.e. it includes the head
of government, ministers and mass of subordinated executive and administrative
functionaries (the civil service).
 It narrowly defined as a small body of states’ men who recommend a policy for the
acceptance of a legislature and, after its acceptance, are responsible for its
application.
a). Nominal executive: Presidents of parliamentary system or monarchs of
constitutional monarchy are nominal executives. Because, even though the
whole administration is carried in their name, they are symbolic (constitutional
figureheads) with little or no real political power. Such nominal executives may
be hereditary (i.e. monarchs) or elective (presidents)
b). Real executive: Refers to those who actual have and exercise political
power.
 Understanding Government
c). Political (non- permanent) executive: It refers to executive officials
who hold state power for their connection with political party/ parties.
Their stay in power is for some time.
d). Non-political (permanent) executives: It refers to the part of real
executives, who are expected not to have connection with any party. They
are selected on the basis of meritocracy. Thus they relatively have
permanent office tenure, out of which they create a system of bureaucracy
 Democratic political executives may be:
a). Parliamentary executives (cabinet under prime minister responsible
to legislature)
b). Presidential executive (a president and his cabinet, who are not
responsible to the legislature, but may be removed by it)
c). Quasi parliamentary and Quasi- presidential executive: This is the
case where a president is the real executive, and the prime minister and the
cabinet under him responsible both to him and to the legislature.
 Understanding Government

 The executive organ of the government has

also the following powers and functions.
A. Provision of national policies
B. Supervises or oversees the implementation of the
national policies
C. Controlling the Military or Defense Forces
D. Conducting foreign relations
E. Providing leadership
 Understanding Government
The Judiciary Organ of the Government
 It is an organ which is primarily concerned with the interpretation of laws.
 It is empowered to decide legal disputes and adjudicating on the meaning of
laws (interpret laws).
 Basically, the judiciary organ is responsible to interpret laws, including the
constitution and other laws of the country. But the case of Ethiopia is different
in that the power and responsibility to interpret the constitution is given to the
House of Federation.
 The judiciary is expected to become free from any influence to perform its
activities effectively.
 The judges are also expected to become free from any influence and are to be
accountable to their conscience and the law.
 According to the Ethiopian constitution, judges cannot be removed until their
time of retirement. But, they can be removed from their power (position)
when they violate disciplinary rules and No longer perform their activities due
to illness
 Understanding Government

 The major powers and functions of the judiciary branch of

government are:
a. Adjudication: Courts hear and decide cases such as civil, criminal
and constitutional disputes.
b. Formation of case laws: Sometimes the judiciary and even the
executive organs are also engaged in formulating laws when the
legislative delegates law-making power to these organs
c. Protection of the constitution: the judiciary is responsible to
ensure that all laws within the country are formulated based on the
constitution.
d. Judicial review: an important function of the judiciary is
reviewing the acts and decisions of the legislative and executive
organs, whether these acts and decisions have constitutional
validity or not.
 Understanding Government
Types and Systems of Government
Types of Government
 Governments can be classified as Limited or Constitutional and unlimited or unconstitutional
government
 Limited or Constitutional government - the people seize power and it works for the interest of the
people.
 Democratic government is of two types:
 Direct democracy and Indirect democracy.
 Government is formed directly by the people in the case of the former where as indirectly in the case of the
later.
 Democratic form of government ensures the participation of people in all political and economic
activities.
 The existence of this form of government can make the people love their country, work hard, and
develop responsibility.
 In the world history there are different types of unlimited governments have been existing i.e
Monarchy, Aristocracy, Dictatorship.
 Monarchy: It is a type of government in which all power rests in the hands of a single person regardless of
the source of coming to power and the duration of his power which could be hereditary or elected.
 Aristocracy: This is the form of government in which very few selected people rule a country. The basis of
their power could be wealth, talent, birth etc. Aristocracy could be used interchangeably with oligarchy.
Such elites exercise their power in the interest of the ruling class.
 Dictatorship: is a form of government led by a single dictator who monopolizes power and subjugates the
people.
 Understanding Government

Forms or Systems of Government

 On the basis of the powers and relationships of the
executive and legislative branches of government,
there are mainly three forms of governments.
 Parliamentarian, Presidential, and hybrid system
 Parliamentarian System of Government
 That is the executive organ of government is accountable to
the legislative organ of government.
 For example, in Ethiopia the prime minister and the council
of ministers collectively and separately are accountable to
the House of Peoples’ Representatives
 Understanding Government
Advantages of Parliamentarian Systems
 A prime minister can be forced out of office if he/she becomes excessively
unpopular or loses the support of parliamentary colleagues;
 Either a vote of no confidence within the legislature or successful challenge
from within the ruling party can bring about a change of prime minister;
 Avoids dual legislation. In parliamentary systems, voters choose a single;
legislature/executive body, namely, parliament. In presidential systems,
however, voters have to choose twice, once to elect the president and once to
elect the congress.
 It creates harmony between the executive and legislative branches of the
government, because majority of the members of the parliament are
members of the political party that holds state power.
 The executive branch of the government is accountable to the parliament;
hence, there is less possibility of the tendency towards dictatorship
 Necessarily the party that secures majority seats organizes a government.
 Understanding Government

Demerits of Parliamentary System

 The major disadvantages of Parliamentary
System are:
Violates the principle of separation of power
It will result in unstable government, when there is
no party that secures majority seats in the
parliament
It has tendency to ignore the interest of the public
in order to keep the interest of a political party.
 Understanding Government

Presidential System of Government

 Presidential systems are systems where the president is not
just a figurehead but also a functioning head of
government.
 Presidential democracies most clearly show the separation
of power between the executive and legislative branches.
 In presidential systems, the president is more or less
directly elected by the people, in the US, of course, the
quaint Electoral College mediates between the people and
the actual election.
 The president is vested with considerable powers, and
cannot easily be ousted by the legislative body.
 Understanding Government
 The following are the common features of presidential systems.
 Separation of power and responsibilities among the branches of the government.
• The doctrine of separation of power implies the absence of overlapping powers and
authorities.
 It also implies the idea that no individual shall be a member of two or more
organs of the government. Each organ of the government checks the activities of
other organs. Each organ of the government is also constitutionally independent
and accomplishes its duties freely. 
 The president is the head of state and government. He/she is the commander-in-
chief of the national defense forces. Office of head of state and the office the
head government are merged in the office of the president.
 The president has veto power over the draft bills presented by the legislative
body of the government. He or he has parallel power with the legislature.
 The president can be impeached if he/she is found guilty of wrong doings or
crimes.
 Term office for the president is fixed in presidential systems but not for prime
ministers in parliamentarian systems
 Understanding Government

Hybrid (Mixed) System of Government

Hybrid system refers to the combination of both
parliamentary and presidential systems.
In semi-presidential system the people (electorate)
elect the legislative members and the president.
Then, the president will elect the prime minister.
The president has important power such as
controlling the defense forces, matters relating to
foreign affairs.
 CONCEPT OF CITIZENSHIP

A ‘citizen’ is a member of a political community,

which is defined by a set of rights and obligations.
To become a citizen, therefore, one must
A. Be a member to a given state
B. Have civil, social and political rights (Citizenship as legal
status, objective dimension)
C. Sentiment of devotion to the state (subjective dimension,
loyalty to state)
Citizenship, therefore, represents a relationship
between the individual and the state, in which the two
are bound together by reciprocal rights and obligations
 Modes Of Aquiring And Lossing Citizenship
The following are the modes by which citizenship may be acquired:
1. By Birth.
 There are two ways of obtaining citizenship by birth
A. Jus soli (law of the soil)
 People whose birth takes place within territorial limits of a state
acquire the nationality of that state.
 The United Kingdom, the United State and many states of Latin
America follow the principle of jus soli.
B. Jus sanguinis ( law of the blood; by desent)
According to this principle, children take their parents nationality
regardless of where they are born .
 Germany, France, and Ethiopia confer nationality on the basis of this
principle
 Cont….
2. By Naturalization.
This is a process of acquiring citizenship when one fulfills
certain political, social economic and other preconditions
A person who wants to acquire nationality through
naturalization is required to give an application and to make
request for the acquisition of nationality through naturalization.
A person may acquire nationality through naturalization in
different ways:
 Through marriage,
 Through legitimating
 Option
 Acquisition of domicile
 Appointment as government official, and
 Through grant of application
 Ways of loosing citizenship

 Person may lose the nationality of a state in many ways. They are
as follows:
A. By Deprivation:
when one commits serious crimes against state(treason)
For instance,
 collaborating with enemy in times of war,
 providing secret government information to enemy or foreign country,
 participating in economic, diplomatic and other intelligence activities
B. By Renunciation: a person may renounce his nationality of a state.
 The question of renunciation of nationality arises when a person
acquires it of more than one state.
 In such cases he/she has an option to maintain the nationality of
one state and to renounce the other.
 Ways of loosing …

C. By substitution: a person may lose the nationality of

a state when he or she acquires nationality in some
other state by naturalization.
D. Lapse: A person may lose nationality of a state
by expiration.
 For instance, some states provided by legislation
that citizenship expires in case if their citizens
have left the country and stayed abroad for more
than legally specified length of time.
 Double Nationality


The lack of uniformity in municipal laws of states with respect to

the determination of a nationality gives rise to the problem of

double nationality or dual citizenship


In other words, a person may be having nationality of two states or

multiple nationalities at the same time.


The position of persons possessing double citizenship may be

awkward, since they are nationals of different states who both

therefore claim their allegiance.

 Double Nationality

As a result, there are same problems associated with double citizenship.
These are,

 Obligation to military service

 Problem of tax payment : tax payment is the basic duty of citizen and

holders of the dual /multiple nationality has pay for both states

 Getting security

 Getting citizenship rights to their children

 Stateless

 Loss of citizenship means remaining stateless to an individual

who has not become a member of national of any country
 Various states adopt different principles on those citizens who
relate the nation’s citizenship law
 In most countries either by constitutional right or by common
law a citizen cannot be deprived of his right to citizenship
 Loss of citizenship may result in loss of political right and
protection of a state
 In order to understand statelessness clearly, understanding two
concepts is essential.
 These two concepts are defector stateless and dejure stateless. 
 Stateless

 Defacto stateless persons- are persons who have a

nationality but that do not give them protection
outside their own country.
 These individuals have temporarily been displaced
from their own home country and living in another
country.
 Dejure stateless persons – are individuals who
have been deprived of nationality by their own
government.
 As compared to Defacto stateless persons, dejure
stateless persons are quite rare.
 Citizenship in the Ethiopian Context

The1930 Citizenship Law in Ethiopia

In Ethiopia, citizenship law was first enacted in 1930.
Prior to that, the issue of citizenship by and large was
regulated by custom and tradition
Nevertheless, the status of citizenship was more of
subjects than citizens
The 1995 FDRE constitution stipulates some important
principles with regard to citizenship in Ethiopia
 It could be said that both are generally similar to each
other.
 This law is based on the general principle of jus sanguinis
 Citizenship in the Ethiopian Context

 There are two exceptions, however

Every child born in a lawful mixed marriage follows
the nationality of the father.
 The child legitimated through subsequent marriage
follows the nationality of his/her foreign father only
on condition that the nationality law of the father
confers upon him the foreign nationality with all
inherent rights.
Otherwise, the child preserves his/her Ethiopian
nationality.
 Citizenship in the Ethiopian Context

 Loss of Ethiopian nationality occurs when:

 An Ethiopian woman contracts a lawful marriage with a foreigner
and acquires her husband's nationality.
 A child born in a lawful marriage between an Ethiopian female and a
foreigner follows the nationality of the father, and
 An Ethiopian subject changes his nationality and acquires foreign
nationality
 However, an Ethiopian woman who married a foreigner, if the law of
the country of which her husband is a national does not entitle her to
the nationality of her husband may retain Ethiopian nationality
 A child born outside lawful marriage where his parents subsequently
marry if the national law of the child's father does not confer upon
him his father's nationality with all its inherent rights may also retain
Ethiopian nationality.
 Citizenship in the Ethiopian Context

Adoption of an Ethiopian child by a foreign national

made in accordance to the national law of the adopting
person does not cause a change of the adopted child's
original nationality.
A woman who had lost her Ethiopian nationality by
marriage to a foreigner may recover it after the
dissolution of the marriage by reason of divorce,
separation or death of her husband
Any person who had lost his Ethiopian nationality
may recover it when he/she returns to reside in
Ethiopia.
 Citizenship in the Ethiopian Context

 A foreigner may acquire Ethiopian nationality if

he:
Has attained the age of maturity according to the law
of his/her country;
Has lived at least for five years in Ethiopia;
Can earn his/her living (for himself and his family);
Can read and write the Amharic language; and
Produces evidence to the effect that he/she has not
been previously convicted of a crime.
 Citizenship in the Ethiopian Context

Citizenship under 1995 FDRE Constitution

 Article 6 of the Constitution declares that any person of either
sex shall be an Ethiopian national where both or either parent is
Ethiopian.
 So the constitution enshrines the principle of jus sanguinis
 The particular or the details of nationality laws of Ethiopia are
legislated in the Ethiopian Nationality Proclamation No.
378/2003 which also based on the law of the blood
 In addition, any infant who is found abandoned in Ethiopia shall
be deemed to have been born to an Ethiopian parent and shall
acquire Ethiopian nationality.
 Citizenship in the Ethiopian Context
 In Ethiopia, citizenship can be acquired through decent and law:
A. By blood (Decent)
B. Naturalization
i. Marriage
ii. Legitimation (Cases of Adoption): - This is citizenship by recognition. An illegitimate child has the right to get his
biological or caretaker father/mother citizenship after legitimating.
iii. Grant on Application: - Depending on their rules, different countries adopt requirements to grant citizenship by application

C. Reintegration (Restoration): A person who has lost his/her citizenship due to

some reasons may get it back if he/she fulfills some conditions as laid down by
the laws of the state
• Returns to domicile in Ethiopia;
• Renounces his foreign nationality; and
• Applies to the Security, Immigration and Refugee Affairs Authority
D. Citizenship By Special Case: As to the Ethiopian Nationality Proclamation
article 8, a foreigner who has made an outstanding contribution in the interest of
Ethiopia may be conferred with Ethiopian Nationality by law irrespective of the
conditions stated under sub- Articles (2) and (3) of Article 5 of the
proclamation.
 Citizenship in the Ethiopian Context

 Ethiopian nationality may be lost for the following grounds

1. Renunciation
 Any Ethiopian who has acquired or has been guaranteed the
acquisition of the nationality of another state has the right to
renounce his Ethiopian nationality by informing the immigration
Authority in the form prescribed.
 However the renunciation may not be accepted if the person has not
yet discharged his outstanding national obligations or where he/she
has been accused or convicted for a crime and he has not yet been
acquitted or has not yet served.
2. Acquisition
 Any Ethiopian who voluntarily acquires another nationality shall be
deemed to have voluntarily renounced his Ethiopian nationality
THE END OF CHAPTER THREE!