The harm and challenges of a single-party system for federalism (Case Study: Iraq Under the Ba'ath Party)

The existence of single-party systems in the world today, on the one hand, and the fact that federal governments in some parts of the world, meanwhile, make the two cases more contemplative. On the other hand, with the advent of both systems in Iraqi society, it is questioned how the interaction of a single-party system with federalism and what problems and challenges have arisen in this regard? It is a multifaceted community that has been formed in ancient times by the plurality of groups with mosaic arrangements, and this ethnic, linguistic and religious diversity has continued in the process of nation-state-building since the foundation of the Ba'ath party until its fall and new rulers. In this paper, using the conceptual model of Jean Blundell, the damages and challenges of the one-party system during the rule of the Ba'ath Party for federalism have been evaluated using a descriptive-analytical method. We have been struggling with the fact that the mosaic texture, social fragmentation, Baathist shamelessness, ambiguity in the sense of federalism and differences in perceptions, the severe crackdown on Aqrah and Shiites, and the inconsistency of the defenders of federalism have been one of the main challenges of the realization of federalism in Iraq under the rule of a single-party system.