Federacy
A federacy is a form of government where one or several substate units enjoy considerably more independence than the majority of the substate units. To some extent, such an arrangement can be considered to be similar to asymmetric federalism.
Description
A federacy is a form of government with features of both a federation and unitary state. In a federacy, at least one of the constituent parts of the state is autonomous, while the other constituent parts are either not autonomous or comparatively less autonomous. An example of such an arrangement is Finland, where Åland, which has the status of autonomous province, has considerably more autonomy than the other provinces. The autonomous constituent part enjoys a degree of independence as though it was part of federation, while the other constituent parts are as independent as subunits in a unitary state. This autonomy is guaranteed in the country's constitution. The autonomous subunits are often former colonial possessions or are home to a different ethnic group from the rest of the country. These autonomous subunits often have a special status in international relations.Federacies
Several states are federacies. The exact autonomy of the subunits differs from country to country.Antigua and Barbuda
is autonomous within Antigua and Barbuda.Australia and Norfolk Island
self-government was revoked by the Australian Federal Government in 2015. Its laws were subsumed into the laws of the Australian federal government and be subordinate to them. On 1 July 2016, the federal government increased federal regulations so that federal laws would also apply to Norfolk Island and to make it semi-autonomous. Since then, opposition by several organizations have protested these actions to the United Nations to include the island on its list of "non-self-governing territories".Azerbaijan and Nakhchivan
is an autonomous part of Azerbaijan.China, Hong Kong and Macau
Fiji and Rotuma
Rotuma has the status of dependency in Fiji.Finland and Åland
The archipelago of Åland is a region of Finland, but compared to the other regions, it enjoys a high degree of home rule. Extensive autonomy was granted to it in the Act on the Autonomy of Åland of 1920, and the autonomy was affirmed by a League of Nations decision in 1921. The Parliament of Åland handles duties that in other provinces are exercised by state provincial offices of the central government. Åland sends one representative to the Finnish parliament, and is a member of the Nordic Council. It is demilitarised, and the population is exempt from conscription. Åland has issued its own postage stamps since 1984, and runs its own police force. Most of Åland's inhabitants speak Swedish as their first language. Åland's autonomous status was a result of disputes between Sweden and Imperial Russia in 1809, and between Finland and Sweden 1917–1921.France and its overseas lands
Most of the French Republic is divided into 18 régions: 13 are in metropolitan France and 5 are régions d'outre-mer. Not included in any région are five collectivités d'outre-mer, one territoire d'outre-mer, one collectivité sui generis and remote Clipperton Island. All are integral parts of France and subject to French law, but New Caledonia and French Polynesia have considerably more autonomy. All except the uninhabited French Southern and Antarctic Lands and Clipperton Island are represented in the French parliament. Defence and diplomatic affairs are responsibilities of France, but some overseas parts do participate in some international organisations directly. The French overseas territories were in the past colonial possessions.Iraq and Kurdistan
and the Kurdistan Region have de jure full sovereignty over internal matters for their respective regions. The agreement was upheld in the country's 2005 constitution.Kashmir and India/Pakistan
After independence from British rule, princely states of the Indian Empire during the British Colonial Era were given the choice to opt for either to the new Dominions of India or Pakistan. The Kashmir state was ruled by a Hindu king Maharaja Hari Singh but the majority of its population was Muslim. According to Burton Stein's History of India,Currently, the region is divided amongst three countries in a territorial dispute: Pakistan controls the northwest portion, India controls the central and southern portion and Ladakh, and the People's Republic of China controls the northeastern portion. India controls the majority of the Siachen Glacier area including the Saltoro Ridge passes, whilst Pakistan controls the lower territory just southwest of the Saltoro Ridge. India controls of the disputed territory; Pakistan ; and the PRC, the remaining.
Mauritius and Rodrigues
On 20 November 2001, the Mauritius National Assembly unanimously adopted two laws giving Rodrigues autonomy, creating a decentralised government system. This new legislation has allowed the implementation of a regional assembly in Rodrigues constituting 18 members and an executive council headed by a Chief Commissioner. The council meets every week to make decisions, draw up laws and manage the budget. The Chief Commissioner has the main task of informing the Mauritian Prime Minister of the management of the island's concerns.Moldova and Gagauzia
In 1994 Gagauzia, a territory in the southern part of the Republic of Moldova inhabited by the Gagauz people, an ethnic group distinct from the majority Moldovans, was given autonomy including "the right of external self-determination". This is in contrast to the other subdivisions of Moldova which are county-level administrative areas with little autonomy. However, the eastern part of Moldova is an internationally unrecognized breakaway republic which is de facto self-governing.Netherlands, Aruba, Curaçao and Sint Maarten
The Kingdom of the Netherlands consists of four autonomous countries, linked by the Charter for the Kingdom of the Netherlands as constituent parts: the Netherlands, an autonomous, independent country, and Aruba, Curaçao and Sint Maarten, three separate, non-independent, autonomous countries. The Charter links the four autonomous countries. Aruba, Curaçao, and St. Maarten do not each have statehood but have Dutch nationality in common with the Netherlands. Each of the four countries have separate constitutions, governments and parliaments, but Aruba alone has its own national currency and Central Bank.The Council of Ministers of the Kingdom as a whole consists de facto of the Council of Ministers of the Netherlands together with three ministers plenipotentiary, one nominated by each of the other countries. The legislature of the Kingdom consists of the parliament of the Netherlands. De facto the cabinet and the parliament of the Netherlands are responsible for the administration of the dependencies Aruba, Curaçao and St. Maarten alongside being responsible for the Dutch government. There is limited participation of politicians of the other countries. Aruba, Curaçao and Sint Maarten share a Common Court of Appeals; the Dutch Hoge Raad acts as their supreme court.
Dutch nationals related to these territories are fully European citizens; however, Dutch-Caribbean citizens residing in Aruba, Curaçao and Sint Maarten are normally not entitled to vote in Dutch elections, but can vote in elections for the European Parliament. Aruba, Curaçao and Sint Maarten are overseas countries and territories, listed under Annex II of the EC Treaty. Hence EC law does not apply there.
The Netherlands Antilles was scheduled to be dissolved as a unified political entity on 15 December 2008, so that the five constituent islands would attain new constitutional statuses within the Kingdom of the Netherlands, but this dissolution was postponed until 10 October 2010. Curaçao and Sint Maarten gained autonomy as non-independent countries within the Kingdom, as Aruba had in 1986, and the three remaining islands of Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba became special municipalities of the Netherlands itself.
New Zealand, Cook Islands and Niue
is a member of the Pacific Islands Forum and as such is part of the "Umbrella Agreement" including Australia and New Zealand, called the "Pacific Agreement on Closer Economic Relations". This agreement includes the future creation of a free trade area amongst the 14 ACP Forum Islands Countries called the "Pacific Island Countries Trade Agreement", without Australia and New Zealand. Under the Cotonou Agreement, Cook Islands is committed to negotiating the new reciprocal Economic Partnership Agreement between the ACP states and the EU, which was due to come into force in 2008. Cook Islands also benefits from the 9th EDF Regional Trade and Economic Integration Programme which provides approximately €9 million to assist the Region in implementing PICTA, negotiate trade agreements with developed partners, intensify links with the WTO and address supply-side constraints.Nicaragua, North Caribbean Coast Autonomous Region, and South Caribbean Coast Autonomous Region
is divided into 15 departments and two autonomous regions: North Caribbean Coast and South Caribbean Coast. The two autonomous regions formed the historical department of Zelaya and part of the Mosquito Coast.Papua New Guinea and Bougainville
is divided into 20 provinces. Among them Bougainville has an autonomous government.Philippines and Bangsamoro
The Philippines is divided into 17 regions, with Bangsamoro only the one to have an autonomous region.An earlier proposed autonomous region, the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity was "federacy" within the Philippines.