Ethnopolitics In The New Europe

Applying a framework derived from comparative politics and IR theory, the authors of this text explore two sets of empirical cases: the emergence of new nationalisms in old European democracies and the re-emergence of old nationalisms in several new democracies.

Focusing on Europe this book explores the complex relationships between ethnicity and democratisation. Case studies cover ethnic experiences in a range of countries including Germany Spain, Russia, Hungary and Polnad.

The Ethnopolitical Encyclopaedia of Europe is the first work of its kind that systematically and rigorously examines the politics of ethnicity throughout the continent as a whole. Rather than indulge in a tour of Europe designed to unearth as many diverse population groups as possible, the Encyclopaedia is focused and serves as a unique data source on the continent's politically mobilized ethnic groups. In order to facilitate easy access, the various regions of Europe are assessed and then the nature of the politics of ethnicity is analyzed on a country-by-country basis. The combination of incisive entries, maps, tables and easy-to-use country guides makes this an invaluable reference book for both academics and practitioners.

The 'nationality question' was long central to Soviet thought and policy, and the failure to provide a convincing answer played a major role in the break-up of the Soviet Union into ethnically or nationally defined states. Zisserman-Brodsky explores various explanations of nationalism and its resurgence through a close and unprecedented examination of dissident writings of diverse ethnic groups in the former Soviet Union, thereby bridging macro-theory with micro-politics. Dissident ethnic networks were a crucial independent institution in the Soviet Union, and a basis of civil society. Voicing the discontent and resentment of the periphery at the policies of the centre or metropole, the dissident writings, known as samizdat highlighted anger at deprivations imposed in the political, cultural, social and economic spheres. Ethnic dissident writings drew on values both internal to the Soviet system and international as sources of legitimation; they met a divided reaction among Russians, with some privileging the unity of the Soviet Union and others sympathetic to the rhetoric of national rights. This focus on national, rather than individual, rights helps explain developments since the fall of the Soviet Union, including the prevalence of authoritarian governments in newly independent states of the former Soviet Union.

Nation states and minorities resort more and more to violence when safeguarding their political interests. Although the violence in the Middle East has been dominating world politics for some time now, European governments have had their share of ethnic violence to contend with as this volume demonstrates. And as the case studies show, ranging as they do from the Basque Country to Chechnya, from Northern Ireland to Bosnia-Herzegovina, this applies to western Europe as much as to eastern Europe. However, in contrast to other parts of the world, instances where political struggles for power and social inclusion between minorities and majorities lead to full-fledged inter-ethnic warfare are still the exception; in the majority of cases conflicts are successfully de-escalated and even resolved. In a comprehensive conclusion, the volume offers a theoretical framework for the development of strategies to deal with violent ethnic conflict.

Includes statistics.

This book investigates why, despite European integration, separatist nationalism continues to thrive in EU member states. Laible demonstrates that the EU sustains the importance of statehood, and therefore separatism, and creates new forms of political capital that nationalists employ in their struggles for self-government.

The collapse of communism and the process of state building that ensued in the 1990s have highlighted the existence of significant minorities in many European states, particularly in Central Europe. In this context, the growing plight of Europe's biggest minority, the Roma (Gypsies), has been particularly salient. Traditionally dispersed, possessing few resources and devoid of a common "kin state" to protect their interests, the Roma have often suffered from widespread exclusion and institutionalized discrimination. Politically underrepresented and lacking popular support amongst the wider populations of their host countries, the Roma have consequently become one of Europe's greatest "losers" in the transition towards democracy. Against this background, the author examines the recent attempts of the Roma in Central Europe and their supporters to form a political movement and to influence domestic and international politics. On the basis of first-hand observation and interviews with activists and politicians in the Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovakia, he analyzes connections between the evolving state policies towards the Roma and the recent history of Romani mobilization. In order to reach a better understanding of the movement's dynamics at work, the author explores a number of theories commonly applied to the study of social movements and collective action.