Separatism in Western Europe: A XXI Century Perspective

Abstract

The author analyses dissimilarities between contemporary separatist movements in several Western European countries and those that developed there in the XX century, with special attention to what differs Western European phenomena from separatism in Eastern Europe and other regions of the world today. In the greater part of the contemporary world including Western Europe, separatism was in the past a radical and often armed protest, but today it has acquired mass support and democratic characteristics and resorts to parliamentary political methods. Contemporary separatism in Western Europe has regional interests rather than ethnic roots at its core. Several regions (Catalonia in Spain, Flanders in Belgium, and some regions in Northern Italy) are ahead in social and economic development in comparison with the other parts of their respective countries, and they seek to get rid of the burden of responsibility to support the least developed regions. The legal democratic character of separatist movements and their mass support, which is of a much higher level than the support for radical separatism in the past does not mean, however, that all those involved really aspire to leave the present state and to opt for new statehood. It is more likely that in the future the majority will be satisfied with a considerable expansion of regional autonomy, on condition that the central government does not provoke the radicalization of these sentiments through its own rigid politics, as is happening at present in Spain. Therefore, a distinction must be drawn between secessionism aimed at gaining independence and new statehood, and separatism calling for independence but ready to be satisfied with a wider autonomy within the boundaries of the existing state.