Question #1
Define state. Using the UK as an example, explain how a nation is different from a state. Define nation clearly in your difference statement.
A state is a set of political institutions that has the power to create and enforce policies within a defined territorial boundary. States also have an established government, permanent population, and the ability to enter into relationships with other states. In comparison a nation is the concepts that individuals construct shared, expressed, identities with, nations often, but not always, are comprised of core elements such as cultural, civic, and ethnic identities.
For an example, within the state of the UK there are four primary nations: Northern Ireland, Scotland, England, and Wales.
Question #2
Define regime. Using Nigeria as an example explain the difference between a regime change and a change in government. Define government clearly in your difference statement.
A regime is the practices, goals, individual freedoms, and rules on how power should be exercised of a state. In their most basic forms, regimes can be categorized as either authoritarian, where the restraints of power may be loosely defined or nonexistent, or democratic, where the restraints are often far more explicit. Alternatively, the government is the leadership that runs a state, the individuals of the government bring their own personal ideas relating to freedoms, equality, and how the regime which the belong to should be exercised.
In most cases regimes endure from one government to the next, but this isn’t always the case. For an example, within Nigeria in 1999, 16 years of a highly authoritarian regime lead by military rule was ended with the election of Olusegun Obasanjo, which came with a new democratic regime for Nigeria.
Similarly in 1983 Muhammadu Buhari came to power via a military coup.
Question #3
Part A
Within a unitary system power and authority are centralized to a single government, whereas within a federal system power and authority are “split,” often between a higher-level government and a more localized one. Unitary governments allow states to move faster and adopt more uniform laws, but federal systems are often viewed as more democratic and flexible.
Part B
The difference between the United Kingdom’s and China’s unitary systems is when and how the states choose to devolve power. The United Kingdom devolves more power to different regions in comparison to China, which enables the United Kingdom to remain democratic and China to remain authoritarian.
Part C
Within a parliamentary system citizens vote for their legislators who then appoint, by some manner, a head of government, for an example - within the United Kingdom the prime minister is the head of the majority party of parliament. This contrasts to a presidential system where citizens vote for their head of state and legislators.