In Pursuit of the Right to Self-Determination Collected Papers of the First International [Paperback]

Y. N. Kly (Author), D. Kly (Contributor), Richard Falk (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 2001

In today’s world, there are more than 2000 thousand ethnic groups but only 192 states. When dominant ethnic groups ignore the socio-economic and cultural identity needs and rights of other peoples within the same state, demands for self-determination arise. Wars that threaten the stability of whole regions often result. This book – the collected papers of the historic First International Conference on the Right to Self-Determination & the United Nations held in Geneva in August, 2000 – is unique in that the issue of the right to self-determination is explored within the context of just demands by those to whom it means the most. It presents the views of minority members of various parliaments, UN experts and distinguished scholars, as well as interventions from NGO attendees from all corners of the globe expressing the self-determination needs and struggles of a wide range of indigenous populations, minorities, and internal nations: Kashmiris, QuebeÇois, Irish, Tamils, Native Americans, African Americans, , Saamis, South Moluccans, Roma, Dalits of India, Canadian First Nations, Khmer Krom of Vietnam, Chechens, Mon of Burma, Puerto Ricans, Native Hawaiians, the Quichua indigenous nation of Ecuador, the Zanzibaris, etc. The Collected Papers address such questions as: The role of the UN in implementing just demands for self-determination Self-determination as a form of collective restorative justice The relationship between policies of forced assimilation and racism, ethnocide and armed conflict Self-determination through minority rights, internal autonomy or Secession Self-determination as a means of further democratization of the UN and the international system

Editorial Reviews

Review

"... the First International Conference on the Right to Self-Determination & the United Nations was the most relevant conference of this century." -- Editor, Liberty International

UN MECHANISM FOR SELF-DETERMINATION. A book with a purpose: to advance a proposal for considering and resolving self-determination conflicts. -- Foreign Policy in Focus

From the Publisher

* This book permits a global overview of the problems encountered by national minorities in multinational states when their needs and rights to development and culture are ignored by the dominant group, permitting both scholars and advocacy groups to view this problem within a paradigmatic framework relating to the disempowerment of internal nations, and how this leads to domestic and regional conflicts. No other text provides such a diverse international perspective on the issue of self-determination with a view to examining the possibilities of their resolution through the United Nations and international law.

* The contributors to this text are speaking from the practical world of action, whether as UN experts, minority members of parliament, or advocacy groups representing the struggles of various nationalities worldwide. This book therefore presents a view from the field rather than from academe, despite the scholarly quality of most of the contributions.

* This book is unique in that it approaches struggles for varying forms of self-determination -- from minority rights to political independence -- within the context of just demands by internal groups. It examines how the United Nations and international law might contribute to both preventing conflicts and resolving them - rather than re-enforcing the perspective of states who typically seek to deny the true nature of internal conflict situations and to discredit opposition groups under the rubric of "terrorism".

* This book serves as an effective primer in the area of ethnic relations, conflict resolution and peace studies, permitting the serious observer of international affairs an inside track on the roots and causes of many of the world's conflicts.

* This issue is as vital to global well-being and development as the presently well-recognized issues surrounding globalization and the Bretton Woods institutions.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 220 pages
• Publisher: Clarity Press, Inc. (July 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0932863329
• ISBN-13: 978-0932863324
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.9 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,625,538 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)