Rowman & Littlefield Publishers / ECPR Press
Pages: 244
Trim: 6¼ x 9
978-1-78552-333-5 • Hardback • January 2020 • $105.00 • (£81.00)
978-1-5381-5689-6 • Paperback • August 2021 • $40.00 • (£31.00)
978-1-78552-334-2 • eBook • January 2020 • $38.00 • (£29.00)
Ryan Griffiths is an Associate Professor in the Department of Political Science at Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, Syracuse University.
Diego Muro is a Senior Lecturer in International Relations at the University of St Andrews.
List of tables and figures / Preface and acknowledgments / 1. Introduction, Ryan D. Griffiths and Diego Muro / Part I: Theoretical and Conceptual Perspectives of the Strategic Playing Field / 2. In Search of International Recognition: Declarations of Independence and Unilateral Secession, Aleksandar Pavkovic / 3. Do Parent State Strategies Matter in Resolving Secessionist Conflicts with De Facto States?, Eiki Berg and Scott Pegg / 4. State Strategies Against Secessionists, Ahsan Butt / 5. Anti-Secession Constitutionalism, Rivka Weill / 6. The False Hope of Remedial Secession: Theory, Law, and Reality, Argyro Kartsonaki / 7. Playing Field Sets on Fire: Do Democratic Institutions Dilute Violence in Strategies of Secessionist Movements?, Faruk Aksoy and Melike Ayse Kocacik Senol / Part II: Empirical Case Studies of Secession and Counter-Secession Strategies / 8. The European Union in the Narratives of Secessionist Parties: a Comparison Between N-VA, SNP and ERC, Bart Maddens, Gertjan Muyters, Wouter Wolfs, and Steven Van Hecke / 9. Education as a Strategy of Secession: the Case of Northern Cyprus, Adrian Florea / 10. Viability as a strategy of secession: enshrining de facto statehood in Abkhazia and Somaliland, Giulia Prelz Oltramonti / 11. The Two Québec Independence Referendums: Political Strategies and International Relations, André Lecours / 12. Inadvertent Counter-secessionists: The Private Sector and the Politics of Independence Referenda in Post-industrial Democracies, Karlo Basta / 13. Shifting Patterns of Tactics and Strategies: Bargaining Over Self-Determination in Indonesia, Livia Rohrbach / 14. Conclusion, Ryan D. Griffiths and Diego Muro / Bibliography / Index
One of the tensions at the heart of international law is that between the norms of sovereignty and self-determination. Griffiths (Syracuse Univ.) and Muro (Univ. of St. Andrews, UK) have assembled a collection that explores "what leads to success when a territory or people attempts to secede and what accounts for the very low probability of success." The essays examine dynamics between states in the international realm and between governments and their people. Electoral strategies, universal declarations, protest movements, demonstrations, and violent uprisings are looked at both theoretically and in the context of specific case studies, as movements appeal to popular, governmental, and international actors for recognition. States, for their part, play a game of blocking in both domestic and international realms. In the end success is extremely rare and seems to honor no general formulas. Cases examined range both temporally and geographically: Europe (Flanders, Scotland, Catalonia, Kosovo), North America (Québec), Asia (Bangladesh, Abkhazia, East Timor, Aceh, and West Papua), and Africa (Somaliland) all factor in comparative analysis. Relevant for theorists and empiricists, this volume prepares the ground for future work. Summing Up: Recommended. Graduate students, researchers, faculty.
— Choice
From Scotland to South Sudan, movements are aspiring to independence – and governments are trying to stop them. This collection of essays edited by Ryan D. Griffiths and Diego Muro breaks new ground by considering both sides of the argument. Combining, law, international relations and comparative political science, the book is a most valuable primer for anyone interested in the struggle to create new states - and in the politics of maintaining territorial unity.
— Matt Qvortrup, Professor of Political Science and International Relations at Coventry University and author of 'Referendums and Ethnic Conflict'
The often intense diplomatic battles between states and secessionist territories over independence and recognition is of increasing interest to academics and policy makers alike. This impressive and wide-ranging volume showcases some of the latest thinking on the subject from leading names in the field as well as up and coming scholars. — James Ker-Lindsay, Visiting Professor, London School of Economics
Strategies of Secession and Counter-Secessionoffers an insightful look into one of the most challenging political phenomena of our time—the global spread of secessionist challenges. This comprehensive volume moves beyond a simple analysis of secession movements, including novel approaches to secession claims, in-depth studies of state-led counter secession tactics, and analysis of global and regional dynamics of secession challenges.
— Kathleen Gallagher Cunningham, Associate Professor of Politics, University of Maryland
Strategies of Secession and Counter-Secession gathers experts with diverse theoretical and empirical perspectives to examine the interaction between secessionists and states. The resulting volume offers both theoretical originality and excellent case studies and succeeds in integrating the often disparate literatures on de facto states, secessionist political parties and secessionist civil wars. A timely resource that deserves a wide audience.
— Nina Caspersen, Professor of Politics, University of York