UNDERSTNADING SELF-DETERMINATION ISSUE: How is national self-determination pursued? Questions: What is self-determination? Why do nations pursue self-determination? How do people pursue self-determination within a nation-state? What are the impacts of pursuing self-determination?

What is self-determination? Self-determination:  is the right of allowing people to determine their own destiny  a nation can choose its own political status and determine its economic, cultural and social development Pursuing Self-Determination:  So why do nations within nation-states want to pursue self-determination?  A number of different reasons…. 1.Feelings of being ignored or marginalized 2.Protect culture/religion/way of life 3.No say in how a country is run; limited or violated rights and freedoms 4.Perception on how the world should be  The outcomes of self-determination range from greater political independence or autonomy to sovereignty association to full nation-statehood

Forms of Self-determination:  self-determination has different meanings for different nations  forms for achieving self-determination include 1.War 2.Terrorism 3.Revolution 4.Decolonization 5.Successor states (Balkanization) 6.Referendum

Decolonization Decolonization:  Achievement of self-determination when a nation grants independence to their colonies; can be sought after (fight for independence) or forced upon a colony (colonial power leaves) India/Pakistan: In 1947, the jewel of the British Empire, India, was granted independence. The nation was divided along religious lines and two nations were born (partitioning) – India (Hindu) and Pakistan (Muslim). Partition left 10 million people uprooted and more than half a million Muslims, Sikhs and Hindus dead in riots and massacres. Sixty years on, the status of Kashmir remains unresolved despite a tenuous peace process between India and Pakistan, following three wars. Unrest continues to surface from time to time in both countries, including the threat of nuclear weapons. Kashmir

Mahatma Gandhi  Political and spiritual leader of the Indian independence movement.  pacifist  Urged Indians to resist British rule through civil disobedience refusal to obey certain laws, demands, or commands of a government; usually non- violent  Although he supported independence for India, he opposed he partitioning of India. (read pg. 207) Just think about it: “If the outcome of self-determination creates hardship for a nation, should it still be pursued?”

Decolonization Mozambique: Mozambique became independent from Portugal on June 25, A political coup in Portugal resulted in a foreign policy of decolonization. Even those countries with little interest in decolonization (Mozambique) were cut free. Self-determination was thrust upon the Mozambique people. Portugal's policy of under-developing its colonies along with the rapid exodus of Portuguese settlers (90%) left Mozambique politically and economically unstable. With no transitional government established a long civil war broke out.( ) 1 million Mozambicans died and another 1.7 million became refugees. 30 years after achieving self-determination, the country is still struggling with economic and social problems that threaten its stability.

Questions: Question 1: How is Mozambique’s independence different from Indian independence? Question 2: Is it acceptable to remain a colony if doing so provides a higher standard of living? Question 3: Should attaining self-determination be the ultimate goal, even if it results in greater hardships (politically, economically, socially) for most of the people?

Successor States Successor State:  A new, smaller country formed after a larger country that has been divided up For example: When the former Soviet Union (U.S.S.R.) broke up in the early 1990’s, 15 Soviet republics declared themselves new independent states. Former Czechoslovakia is now the Czech Republic and Slovakia 1.Armenia 2.Azerbaijan 3.Belarus 4.Estonia 5.Georgia 6.Kazakhstan 7.Kyrgyzstan 8.Latvia 9.Lithuania 10.Moldova 11.Russia 12.Tajikistan 13.Turkmenistan 14.Ukraine 15.Uzbekistan

Successor States Ukraine: Ukraine gained its independence August, Self-determination offered Ukraine opportunity for/to regain its culture/traditions political sovereignty (closer ties to the West) financial independence

Successor States (Balkanization)  To break up into smaller parts that do not work well together and are often hostile – refers to the conflicts created by national groups in the Balkan Peninsula (former Yugoslavia)  The break up of the former Yugoslavia into 6/7 separate states led to an attempted genocide of Bosnian Muslims by Serbian leader Slobodan Milosevic in the mid 1990’s as well as numerous other conflicts in the region

Successor States Chechnya: Chechnya is a region located within the nation- state of Russia who declared its sovereignty in Russia argued that Chechnya had not been an independent entity within the Soviet Union but was part of the Russian Federation and hence did not have a right under the Soviet constitution to secede. Russia rejected this claim of independence and in 1994 invaded Chechnya to assert Russia’s claim and dominance over the territory. The Russian army withdrew in 1996 but invaded again in Much better organized and planned than the first Chechen War, the military actions by the Russian Federal forces enabled them to re-establish control over most regions. Russia was successful in installing a pro-Moscow Chechen regime.

Successor States Kosovo: Kosovo, an impoverished land with a mainly Albanian population, unilaterally declared independence from Serbia in February 2008, after years of strained relations between its Serb and Albanian inhabitants Kosovo immediately won recognition from the United States, major European Union countries and Canada. But Serbia, with the help of its big-power ally Russia, has vowed to block Kosovo from getting a United Nations seat After the break-up of the former Yugoslavia, Serbia responded to separatist pressure from Kosovo by launching a brutal crackdown on the territory's Albanian population, which was only brought to an end by NATO military intervention in 1999 Until 2008 the province was administered by the UN. Reconciliation between the majority Albanians, most of whom support independence, and the Serb minority remains elusive

Quebec could point out that Kosovo never even held a referendum in advance of declaring its independence. Leaders of Quebec sovereignty could ask: Why must we not only hold a referendum but also allow the House of Commons to approve the referendum question and certify that the referendum result constituted a clear vote for independence? The Kosovo precedent also undermines the notion that Quebec must seriously negotiate its separation from Canada How can the Canadian government recognize the independence of Kosovo and not the independence of Quebec? What is so different? What is the message of this cartoon?

Referendum Referendum/Plebiscite:  is a direct vote in which an entire electorate is asked to either accept or reject a particular proposal. Quebec: Referendums were held in both 1980 and 1995 on Quebec sovereignty but on both occasions the populace voted “NO”. East Timor: While the history between Quebec and East Timor is very different both attempted independence through a referendum (a vote). In East Timor the vote was for the “YES”. East Timor gained its independence from Indonesia on May 20, 2002.

Referendum Scotland (2014): the independence referendum question, which voters answered with "Yes" or "No", was "Should Scotland be an independent country?" The "No" side won, with (55.3%) voting against independence and (44.7%) voting in favor. The turnout of 84.6% was the highest recorded for an election or referendum in the United Kingdom since the introduction of universal suffrage.

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