Qualified Autonomy and Federalism versus Secession in EU Member States

Qualified Autonomy and Federalism versus Secession in EU Member States PDF

Author: Annegret Eppler

Publisher: StudienVerlag

Published: 2021-12-08

Total Pages: 348

ISBN-13: 3706562154

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This volume deals with current secessionist movements in states that are or were members of the European Union (EU). It compares the cases of Scotland, Catalonia, and Flanders, which are anchored in three different political systems. However, all three sub-state regions analysed are or were part of the EU multi-level system, and as such, they are subject to the influence of Europeanization. Their secession efforts are influenced by the European framework – including their own EU membership after a possible secession. The three regions, therefore, have different motivations and probabilities for actual secessions. All case studies in this volume are introduced and outlined with theoretical chapters and examined using consistent guiding questions to ensure comparability between the three cases. The analyses are framed by chapters describing other examples of secession processes past and present, and by texts that ask whether federalism or other solutions (so-called 'third ways') could offer a path beyond secession.

Secessionism and the European Union

Secessionism and the European Union PDF

Author: Glen M.E. Duerr

Publisher: Lexington Books

Published: 2015-10-30

Total Pages: 227

ISBN-13: 0739190857

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Secessionist (also called, nationalist, or pro-independence) political parties exist in many countries in the developed world; they raise—and then spend—a lot of money, win votes in elections, and their elected officials serve in seats in local, regional, and national parliaments. Yet, despite all of this effort, there has not been a successful case of secession since 1921 when the Irish Free State effectively seceded from the United Kingdom (UK). Perhaps the biggest issue is that these secessionist political parties have rarely been popular enough to form a government even amongst their core ethnic group. This is further compounded by the fact that secessionist parties have historically been unable to win support from immigrants or people outside their core ethnic and/or linguistic group. Given this context, four central questions are posed in this study including: whether—and also why—any of the secessionist parties have transitioned from ethnic-based to civic-based policy platforms? Why have these secessionist parties not yet achieved independence? And, what role does the European Union (EU) play in facilitating or deterring secession in independence-seeking regions within member states? This study examines three different cases—Flanders in Belgium, Scotland in the UK, and Catalonia in Spain—to investigate how secessionist political parties are approaching the issue of independence. All of the cases are different with respect to history, governmental structure, and economic situation. Yet all of the cases are similar in some ways—they are close to the same size (in terms of population), operate within mature democratic political systems, have distinct secessionist political parties, and all reside within member states of the EU. Categorically, in all cases, there are also shared influences of the ability of the region to secede: institutions, interests, and ideas.

The Political Economy of Independence in Europe

The Political Economy of Independence in Europe PDF

Author: Hana Lipovská

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2020-04-15

Total Pages: 227

ISBN-13: 1000061493

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This book examines secessionism, separatism, and calls for independence in the European Union in recent history and within an economic context. It contributes to the deeper understanding of factors influencing the individual decision-making processes around secession, using economic analysis to answer a set of simple questions about who the secessionists are, what they really want, what their incentives are, and why it is easier to declare their secessionist tendencies than to vote for secession. This a highly topical theme, given the secessionist referenda in Catalonia, Scotland, Ukraine, Kosovo, and the United Kingdom, and this book offers a unique contribution to the debate. It is based on an exclusive survey carried out among members of the pro-independence parties and movements across 17 European countries and 56 European regions. It uses the instruments of the Political Economy of Conflict to reveal the importance of romantic and economic factors influencing the drive towards secession. Secessions have been regarded as a purely romantic phenomenon that cannot be rationalised, whereas this book connects the sensibility of romantic factors such as language, religion or ethnicity with the sense of economic factors through its rational, economic approach. Furthermore, it applies the standard methodology of microeconomic analysis to discover the impact of individual pro-secessionist factors. An integral part of the text presents a brief historic overview, uncovering the lesser-known path dependency. The book will find an audience among researchers, scholars, and students of economics and political science, as well as policy-makers and professionals engaged with a secessionist agenda.

Catalonia: A New Independent State in Europe?

Catalonia: A New Independent State in Europe? PDF

Author: Xavier Cuadras Morató

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2016-04-20

Total Pages: 238

ISBN-13: 1317580559

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Catalonia: A New Independent State in Europe examines the main issues of the political process which is taking place in Catalonia today. The political confrontation between the Spanish and Catalan institutions has now reached the international arena, especially the debates concerning international recognition of a new Catalan state and its membership of the European Union (EU) and other international institutions. There are no precedents for the secession of a region from an EU member country that could be applied to the case of Catalonia. Therefore, it is not surprising that the world has many unanswered question about the process. This volume aims to provide answers to many of these questions in a systematic and rigorous way. Why has the political scenario in Catalonia changed so radically and so rapidly? Is this new situation only temporary and support for independence is likely to vanish very soon? What role has the deep economic crisis in Catalonia and in Spain played in the process? Is a potential new Catalan state economically viable? Which are the main legal controversies about self-determination and independence between the Spanish and Catalan institutions? Would an independent Catalonia be a member of the EU? This book will be of great use to academics and students in the field of politics and international relations, particularly those interested in European economic and political studies. It will also interest a wide segment of general readers interested in contemporary political issues.

Secessionism and Separatism in Europe and Asia

Secessionism and Separatism in Europe and Asia PDF

Author: Jean-Pierre Cabestan

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2013-01-03

Total Pages: 282

ISBN-13: 1136205861

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The boundaries between secessionism and separatism are often blurred, and in many cases study of secessionism encompasses that of separatism and vice versa. Recognising this inherent relationship, this book provides a comparative survey of recent attempts at secession and separatist movements from across Europe and Asia, and assesses the responses of the respective host governments. The essays address two main questions which arise from the relationship between state governments and secessionist movements: first, how secessionist or separatist movements gather support and mobilize their target populations and second, how central political authorities respond to the challenges that secessionist or separatist movements pose to their capacity to control the country. With political analysis of recent cases ranging from the Balkans, the USSR, the UK and the Basque Country, to Sri Lanka, Burma, China, Tibet and Taiwan, the authors identify both similarities and differences in the processes and outcomes of secessionist and separatist movements across the two distinct regions. This volume will be an invaluable resource for those who wish to understand the dynamics of secessionist movements and as such will appeal to students and scholars of Asian and European politics, comparative politics, international relations and conflict studies. It will also be helpful to practitioners and policy-makers who wish to understand and contribute to the resolution of such conflicts.

Secessionism and Terrorism

Secessionism and Terrorism PDF

Author: Glen Duerr

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2018-07-20

Total Pages: 206

ISBN-13: 0429948301

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This book examines secessionist terrorism in a comparative context across Europe and Eurasia. The volume seeks to uncover comparative linkages between terrorism and secessionism; specifically examining terrorist organizations that also have a political goal of independence. It examines a wide range of case studies, including the IRA in Northern Ireland, ETA in the Basque Country, FLNC in Corsica and ARD in Brittany, KLA in Kosovo, PKK and TAK in Turkish Kurdistan, and IK in Chechnya. In doing so, the book shows the linkages in terrorist tactics and demands, as well as when and how ceasefires come into place. Ultimately, none of the terrorist organizations studied here has obtained their maximalist goal of gaining independence, but each has caused significant bloodshed, and has contributed to the debate on the future of governance in Europe and Eurasia. The major strength of this format is to glean wider lessons on ethno-nationalism, as well as the causes and outcomes of terrorist actions. Each case study also updates the literature on the individual cases to provide the most recent account of events in these countries. This book will be of much interest to students of terrorism and political violence, ethnic conflict, nationalism, European politics and International Relations in general.

States Falling Apart?

States Falling Apart? PDF

Author: Eva Maria Belser

Publisher: Stämpfli Verlag

Published: 2015-08-24

Total Pages: 412

ISBN-13: 3727259132

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An increasing number of European countries are being faced with demands for greater autonomy or independence from regional groups. The legitimacy of nation states in Europe is thus being called into question not only by the forces of globalization and Europeanization from above, but also by growing pressure to recognize the autonomous or independent status of regional groups from below. From Scotland to Catalonia, from Flanders to South Tyrol, the movements vary in their intensity and demands, yet also have many commonalities. This book constitutes a compilation of papers presented at the international Conference "States Falling Apart? Secessionist and Autonomy Movements in Europe" at the University of Fribourg in 2013 and is a timely addition to the literature on secession, autonomy and federalism. With theoretical contributions and case studies, it presents a wide range of opinions and facts on these issues.

Secession and Security

Secession and Security PDF

Author: Ahsan I. Butt

Publisher: Cornell University Press

Published: 2017-11-15

Total Pages: 553

ISBN-13: 1501713965

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In Secession and Security, Ahsan I. Butt argues that states rather than separatists determine whether a secessionist struggle will be peaceful, violent, or genocidal. He investigates the strategies, ranging from negotiated concessions to large-scale repression, adopted by states in response to separatist movements. Variations in the external security environment, Butt argues, influenced the leaders of the Ottoman Empire to use peaceful concessions against Armenians in 1908 but escalated to genocide against the same community in 1915; caused Israel to reject a Palestinian state in the 1990s; and shaped peaceful splits in Czechoslovakia in 1993 and the Norway-Sweden union in 1905. Butt focuses on two main cases—Pakistani reactions to Bengali and Baloch demands for independence in the 1970s and India's responses to secessionist movements in Kashmir, Punjab, and Assam in the 1980s and 1990s. Butt's deep historical approach to his subject will appeal to policymakers and observers interested in the last five decades of geopolitics in South Asia, the contemporary Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and ethno-national conflict, separatism, and nationalism more generally.

Secession as an International Phenomenon

Secession as an International Phenomenon PDF

Author: Don Harrison Doyle

Publisher: University of Georgia Press

Published: 2010

Total Pages: 409

ISBN-13: 0820330086

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About half of today’s nation-states originated as some kind of breakaway state. The end of the Cold War witnessed a resurgence of separatist activity affecting nearly every part of the globe and stimulated a new generation of scholars to consider separatism and secession. With the approach of the 150th anniversary of the American Civil War, this collection of essays allows us to view one of the bloodiest conflicts over secession in modern history within a broader international context. The contributors to this volume consider a wide range of topics related to secession, separatism, and the nationalist passions that inflame such conflicts. The first section of the book examines ethical and moral dimensions of secession, while subsequent sections look at the American Civil War, conflicts in the Gulf of Mexico, European separatism, and conflicts in the Middle East, Asia, and Africa. The contributors to this book have no common position advocating or opposing secession in principle or in any particular case. All understand it, however, as a common feature of the modern world and as a historic phenomenon of international scope. Some contributors propose that “political divorce,” as secession has come to be called, ought to be subject to rational arbitration and ethical norms, instead of being decided by force. Along with these hopes for the future, Secession as an International Phenomenon offers a somber reminder of the cost the United States paid when reason failed and war was left to resolve the issue.