Constitutionalism and the Politics of Accommodation in Multinational Democracies

This collection argues that although constitutionalism has traditionally been the primary mechanism for facilitating the mutual accommodation of sub-state and state national societies in plurinational states.

'Very few rights are absolute, and "accommodation" of conflicting rights and interests is the hallmark of any successful system of governance. Accommodation in response to competing identities is particularly necessary to address many of the tensions in modern states, whether we refer to the relevant principles as minority rights, promotion of diversity, multiculturalism, or devolution of power. This volume offers practical as well as theoretical guidance drawn from a number of important case studies, and it is a welcome contribution to the debate over what democracy really means'. Hurst Hannum, Professor of International Law, The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, Tufts University, USA

'This book offers a very good up-to-date analysis of some of the key issues and empirical cases related to the recognition and political accommodation of national minorities in multinational democracies. In recent years, this subject has undergone a change that point to the revision of theories of democracy and federalism in multinational polities as well as in multi-level systems of governance and secessionist processes. Political science and constitutional law are the two balanced approaches presented in the essays in this volume. It is certain to become an academic reference for any reader interested in minority nations and their political and constitutional accommodation in nationally divided societies'. Ferran Requejo, Professor of Political Science at Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, Spain

Autorentext
François Rocher, University of Ottawa, Canada Elisenda Casanas Adams, University of Edinburgh, UK Hector Lopez Bofill, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, Spain Eve Hepburn, University of Edinburgh, Scotland Jordi Argelaguet, Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona, Spain André Fazi, Université de Corte, Corsica, France Stephen Tierney, University of Edinburgh, Scotland Francesco Palermo, University of Verona, Italy Markku Suksi, University of Abo, Finland

Inhalt
PART I: CONSTITUTIONALISM AND THE ACCOMMODATION OF NATIONAL DIVERSITY 1. Varieties of Territorial Pluralism: Prospects for the Constitutional and Political Accommodation of Puerto Rico in the USA; Jaime Lluch 2. (Mis)recognition in Catalunya and Quebec: The Politics of Judicial Containment; Elisenda Casanas Adams and François Rocher 3. The Limits of Constitutionalism: Politics, Economics, and Secessionism in Catalonia (2006-2013); Hector Lopez Bofill PART II: THE MULTIPLE DIMENSIONS OF THE POLITICS OF ACCOMMODATION IN MULTINATIONAL POLITIES 4. The Accommodation of Island Autonomies in Multinational States; Eve Hepburn 5. From Autonomism to Independentism: the Growth of Secessionism in Catalonia (2010-2013); Jordi Argelaguet 6. The Multilevel Politics of Accommodation and the Non-Constitutional Moment: Lessons from Corsica; André Fazi PART III: CONSTITUTIONALISM AND THE PRACTICE OF AUTONOMISM, FEDERALISM, AND DEVOLUTION 7. Flexible Accommodation: Another Case of British Exceptionalism?; Stephen Tierney 8. Italy: Autonomism, Decentralization, Federalism, or What Else?; Francesco Palermo 9. Autonomous Areas as a Constitutional Feature in China and Finland; Markku Suksi