Secession

Secession is the withdrawal of a group from a larger entity, especially a political entity, but also from any organization, union or military alliance. Some of the most famous and significant secessions have been: the former Soviet republics leaving the Soviet Union, and Algeria leaving France. Threats of secession can be a strategy for achieving more limited goals.[1] It is, therefore, a process, which commences once a group proclaims the act of secession (e.g. declaration of independence).[2] A secession attempt might be violent or peaceful, but the goal is the creation of a new state or entity independent from the group or territory it seceded from.[3]

See also: Independence
For other uses, see Secession (disambiguation).

Secession theory

There is a great deal of theorizing about secession so that it is difficult to identify a consensus regarding its definition.[3] There is also a claim that this subject has been neglected by political philosophers and that by the 1980s—when it finally generated interest—the discourse concentrated on the moral justifications of the unilateral right to secession.[4] It was only in the early 1990s when American philosopher Allen Buchanan offered the first systematic account of the subject and contributed to the normative classification of the literature on secession. In his 1991 book Secession: The Morality of Political Divorce From Fort Sumter to Lithuania and Quebec, Buchanan outlined limited rights to secession under certain circumstances, mostly related to oppression by people of other ethnic or racial groups, and especially those previously conquered by other people.[5]

According to the 2007 book Secession and Security by George Mason political scientist Ahsan Butt, states respond violently to secessionist movements if the potential state would pose a greater threat than a violent secessionist movement would.[6] States perceive future war as likely with a potentially new state if the ethnic group driving the secessionist struggle has deep identity division with the central state, and if the regional neighborhood is violent and unstable.[6]

Justifications for secession

Some theories of secession emphasize a general right of secession for any reason ("Choice Theory") while others emphasize that secession should be considered only to rectify grave injustices ("Just Cause Theory").[7] Some theories do both. A list of justifications may be presented supporting the right to secede, as described by Allen Buchanan, Robert McGee, Anthony Birch,[8] Jane Jacobs,[9] Frances Kendall and Leon Louw,[10] Leopold Kohr,[11] Kirkpatrick Sale,[12] and various authors in David Gordon's "Secession, State and Liberty", includes:

  • United States President James Buchanan, Fourth Annual Message to Congress on the State of the Union December 3, 1860: "The fact is that our Union rests upon public opinion, and can never be cemented by the blood of its citizens shed in civil war. If it can not live in the affections of the people, it must one day perish. Congress possesses many means of preserving it by conciliation, but the sword was not placed in their hand to preserve it by force."
  • Former President of the United States Thomas Jefferson, in a letter to William H. Crawford, Secretary of War under President James Madison, on June 20, 1816: "In your letter to Fisk, you have fairly stated the alternatives between which we are to choose : 1, licentious commerce and gambling speculations for a few, with eternal war for the many; or, 2, restricted commerce, peace, and steady occupations for all. If any State in the Union will declare that it prefers separation with the first alternative, to a continuance in union without it, I have no hesitation in saying, 'let us separate'. I would rather the States should withdraw, which are for unlimited commerce and war, and confederate with those alone which are for peace and agriculture."[13]
  • Economic enfranchisement of an economically oppressed class that is regionally concentrated within the scope of a larger national territory.
  • The right to liberty, freedom of association and private property
  • Consent as important democratic principle; will of majority to secede should be recognized
  • Making it easier for states to join with others in an experimental union
  • Dissolving such union when goals for which it was constituted are not achieved
  • Self-defense when larger group presents lethal threat to minority or the government cannot adequately defend an area
  • Self-determination of peoples
  • Preserving culture, language, etc. from assimilation or destruction by a larger or more powerful group
  • Furthering diversity by allowing diverse cultures to keep their identity
  • Rectifying past injustices, especially past conquest by a larger power
  • Escaping "discriminatory redistribution", i.e., tax schemes, regulatory policies, economic programs, etc. that distribute resources away to another area, especially in an undemocratic fashion
  • Enhanced efficiency when the state or empire becomes too large to administer efficiently
  • Preserving "liberal purity" (or "conservative purity") by allowing less (or more) liberal regions to secede
  • Providing superior constitutional systems which allow flexibility of secession
  • Keeping political entities small and human scale through right to secession

Aleksander Pavkovic,[14] associate professor at the Department of Politics and International Studies at Macquarie University in Australia and the author of several books on secession describes five justifications for a general right of secession within liberal political theory:[15]

  • Anarcho-Capitalism: individual liberty to form political associations and private property rights together justify right to secede and to create a "viable political order" with like-minded individuals.
  • Democratic Secessionism: the right of secession, as a variant of the right of self-determination, is vested in a "territorial community" which wishes to secede from "their existing political community"; the group wishing to secede then proceeds to delimit "its" territory by the majority.
  • Communitarian Secessionism: any group with a particular "participation-enhancing" identity, concentrated in a particular territory, which desires to improve its members' political participation has a prima facie right to secede.
  • Cultural Secessionism: any group which was previously in a minority has a right to protect and develop its own culture and distinct national identity through seceding into an independent state.
  • The Secessionism of Threatened Cultures: if a minority culture is threatened within a state that has a majority culture, the minority needs a right to form a state of its own which would protect its culture.

Types of secession
U.S. Vice President Joe Biden and Hashim Thaçi with Declaration of Independence of Kosovo

Secession theorists have described a number of ways in which a political entity (city, county, canton, state) can secede from the larger or original state:[1][15][16]

  • Secession from federation or confederation (political entities with substantial reserved powers which have agreed to join together) versus secession from a unitary state (a state governed as a single unit with few powers reserved to sub-units)
  • Colonial wars of independence from an imperial state
  • Recursive secession, such as India seceding from the British Empire, then Pakistan seceding from India, or Georgia seceding from the USSR, then South Ossetia seceding from Georgia.
  • National (seceding entirely from the national state) versus local (seceding from one entity of the national state into another entity of the same state)
  • Central or enclave (seceding entity is completely surrounded by the original state) versus peripheral (along a border of the original state)
  • Secession by contiguous units versus secession by non-contiguous units (exclaves)
  • Separation or partition (although an entity secedes, the rest of the state retains its structure) versus dissolution (all political entities dissolve their ties and create several new states)
  • Irredentism where secession is sought in order to annex the territory to another state because of common ethnicity or prior historical links
  • Minority (a minority of the population or territory secedes) versus majority (a majority of the population or territory secedes)
  • Secession of better off regions versus secession of worse off regions
  • The threat of secession is sometimes used as a strategy to gain greater autonomy within the original state

Arguments against secession

Allen Buchanan, who supports secession under limited circumstances, lists arguments that might be used against secession:[17]

  • "Protecting Legitimate Expectations" of those who now occupy territory claimed by secessionists, even in cases where that land was stolen
  • "Self Defense" if losing part of the state would make it difficult to defend the rest of it
  • "Protecting Majority Rule" and the principle that minorities must abide by them
  • "Minimization of Strategic Bargaining" by making it difficult to secede, such as by imposing an exit tax
  • "Soft Paternalism" because secession will be bad for secessionists or others
  • "Threat of Anarchy" because smaller and smaller entities may choose to secede until there is chaos, although this is not the true meaning of the political and philosophical concept.
  • "Preventing Wrongful Taking" such as the state's previous investment in infrastructure
  • "Distributive Justice" arguments that wealthier areas cannot secede from poorer ones

Explanations for the 20th century increase in secessionism

According to University of California, Santa Barbara, political scientist Bridget L. Coggins, there are four potential explanations in the academic literature for the drastic increase in state birth during the 20th century:[18]

  • Ethnonational mobilization - Ethnic minorities have been increasingly mobilized to pursue states of their own.
  • Institutional empowerment - The growing inability of empires and ethnic federations to maintain colonies and member states.
  • Relative strength – Increasingly powerful secessionist movements are more likely to achieve statehood.
  • Negotiated consent – Home states and the international community increasingly consent to secessionist demands.

Other scholars have linked secession to resource discoveries and extraction.[19] David B. Carter, H. E. Goemans and Ryan Griffiths find that border changes among states tend to conform to borders for previous administrative units.[20][21]

Several scholars have argued that changes in the international system have made it easier to survive and prosper as a small state.[22][23][24][25][26] Tanisha Fazal and Ryan Griffiths link increased numbers of secessions to an international system that is more favorable for new states. For example, new states can obtain assistance from international organizations, such as the International Monetary Fund, World Bank and United Nation.[23] Alberto Alesina and Enrico Spolaore argue that greater levels of free trade and peace have reduced the benefits of being part of a larger state, thus motivating nations within larger states to seek secession.[24]

Woodrow Wilson's proclamations on self-determination in 1918 created a surge in secessionist demands.[23]

Rights to secession
See also: Self-determination

Most sovereign states do not recognize the right to self-determination through secession in their constitutions. Many expressly forbid it. However, there are several existing models of self-determination through greater autonomy and through secession.[27]

In liberal constitutional democracies the principle of majority rule has dictated whether a minority can secede. In the United States Abraham Lincoln acknowledged that secession might be possible through amending the United States Constitution. The Supreme Court in Texas v. White held secession could occur "through revolution, or through consent of the States."[28][29] The British Parliament in 1933 held that Western Australia only could secede from Australia upon vote of a majority of the country as a whole; the previous two-thirds majority vote for secession via referendum in Western Australia was insufficient.[30]

The Chinese Communist Party followed the Soviet Union in including the right of secession in its 1931 constitution in order to entice ethnic nationalities and Tibet into joining. However, the Party eliminated the right to secession in later years, and had anti-secession clause written into the Constitution before and after the founding the People's Republic of China. The 1947 Constitution of the Union of Burma contained an express state right to secede from the union under a number of procedural conditions. It was eliminated in the 1974 constitution of the Socialist Republic of the Union of Burma (officially the "Union of Myanmar"). Burma still allows "local autonomy under central leadership".[27]

As of 1996 the constitutions of Austria, Ethiopia, France, and Saint Kitts and Nevis have express or implied rights to secession. Switzerland allows for the secession from current and the creation of new cantons. In the case of proposed Quebec separation from Canada the Supreme Court of Canada in 1998 ruled that only both a clear majority of the province and a constitutional amendment confirmed by all participants in the Canadian federation could allow secession.[27]

The 2003 draft of the European Union Constitution allowed for the voluntary withdrawal of member states from the union, although the State which wanted to leave could not be involved in the vote deciding whether or not they can leave the Union.[27] There was much discussion about such self-determination by minorities[31] before the final document underwent the unsuccessful ratification process in 2005.

As a result of the successful constitutional referendum held in 2003, every municipality in the Principality of Liechtenstein has the right to secede from the Principality by a vote of a majority of the citizens residing in this municipality.[32]

Secession movements

Movements that work towards political secession may describe themselves as being autonomy, separatist, independence, self-determination, partition, devolution, decentralization, sovereignty, self-governance or decolonization movements instead of, or in addition to, being secession movements.

Australia

During the 19th century, the single British colony in eastern mainland Australia, New South Wales (NSW) was progressively divided up by the British government as new settlements were formed and spread. Victoria (Vic) in 1851 and Queensland (Qld) in 1859.

However, settlers agitated to divide the colonies throughout the later part of the century; particularly in central Queensland (centred in Rockhampton) in the 1860s and 1890s, and in North Queensland (with Bowen as a potential colonial capital) in the 1870s. Other secession (or territorial separation) movements arose and these advocated the secession of New England in northern central New South Wales, Deniliquin in the Riverina district also in NSW, and Mount Gambier in the eastern part of South Australia.

Western Australia
Main article: Secessionism in Western Australia

Secession movements have surfaced several times in Western Australia (WA), where a 1933 referendum for secession from the Federation of Australia passed with a two-thirds majority. The referendum had to be ratified by the British Parliament, which declined to act, on the grounds that it would contravene the Australian Constitution.

  • The Principality of Hutt River claims to have seceded from Australia in 1970, although its status is not recognised by Australia or any other country. According to a lexicon on nationalist movements across the world, Macau happened to recognise that Principality.

Austria

After being liberated by the Red Army and the U.S. Army, Austria seceded from Nazi Germany on April 27, 1945. This took place after seven years of Austria's being part of Adolf Hitler's Third Reich due to the Anschluss annexation of Austria into Nazi Germany in March 1938, and could not have taken place without the Third Reich being defeated by the Allies.

Belgium and the Netherlands
Main article: Belgian Revolution

On August 25, 1830, during the reign of William I, the nationalistic opera La muette de Portici was performed in Brussels. Soon after, the Belgian Revolt occurred, which resulted in the Belgian secession from the Netherlands.

Further information: Partition of Belgium

Brazil

In 1825, soon after the Empire of Brazil managed to defeat the Cortes-Gerais and Portugal in an Independence War, the platinean nationalists in Cisplatina declared independence and joined the United Provinces, which led to a stagnated war between both, as they were both weakened, without manpower and fragile politically. The peace treaty accepted Uruguay's independence, reasserted the rule of both nations over their land and some important points like free navigation in the Silver River.

Three rather disorganized secessionist rebellions happened in Grão-Pará, Bahia and Maranhão, where the people were unhappy with the Empire (these provinces were Portuguese bastions in the Independence War). The Malê Revolt, in Bahia, was an Islamic slave revolt. These three rebellions were bloodily crushed by the Empire of Brazil.

The Pernambuco was one of the most nativist of all Brazilian regions, which in five revolts (1645–1654, 1710, 1817, 1824, 1848), the province ousted the Dutch West India Company, tried to secede from the Portuguese Empire and from the Brazilian Empire. In the attempts the rebels were crushed, the leaders shot and its territory divided, nevertheless they kept revolting until its territory was a little fraction of what it was before.

In the Ragamuffin War, the Province of Rio Grande do Sul was undergoing a (at that time common) liberal vs conservative "cold" war. After the Emperor favoured the conservatives, the liberals took the Capital and declared an independent Republic, fighting their way to the Province of Santa Catarina, declaring the Juliana Republic. Eventually they were slowly forced back, and made a reunification peace with the Empire. The war was not a secessionist war, even if it could become if the Empire were defeated, after the Empire agreed to aid its economy by taxing Argentina's products (like dry meat), the rebels reunited with the Empire and even filled its ranks, as the rebels were very good fighters.

In modern times, the South Region of Brazil has been the centre of a secessionist movement led by an organization called The South is My Country since the 1990s. Reasons cited for South Region Brazil's secession are taxation due to it being one of the wealthiest regions in the country and political disputes with the northernmost states of Brazil as well as the recent scandal revolving around the Workers Party found to be making shady deals with state-owned oil company Petrobras and the impeachment of then-President Dilma Rousseff additionally there is also an ethnic divide as the South Region is predominately European populated primarily by Germans, Italians, Portuguese and other European countries in contrast to the rest of Brazil which is a multicultural melting pot "Racial Democracy". The South Region in 2016 voted in an unofficial referendum called "Plebisul" in which 616,917 (or half a million) voters overwhelming supported secession and the creation of an independent South Region by 95%. Another Brazilian secession movement is based in the state of Sao Paulo which seeks to create to make the state an independent country from the rest of Brazil.

Cameroon
Main article: Anglophone Crisis

In October 2017, Ambazonia declared its independence from Cameroon. Less than a month beforehand, tensions had escalated into open warfare between separatists and the Cameroonian military. Ambazonia-Cameroun conflict is deeply rooted in the October 1, 1961 incomplete decolonization of the former British Southern Cameroons(UNGA Resolution 1608). On January 1, 1960, Cameroon under French administration (Cameroun) was granted independence from France and admitted into the United Nations. The more advanced democratic and self ruling people of former British Southern Cameroons were instead limited to two choices. Through a UN plebiscite, they were directed to gain independence by either joining the independent Federation of Nigeria or the independent Republic of Cameroun as a federation of two equal states. They decided on independence by joining Cameroun, but they did so without a formal UN Treaty of Union on record at the UN. In 1972, Cameroun used her majority population to abolish the federation and implement a system which resulted in the occupation of Southern Cameroon territory by French speaking Cameroon administrators. To make matters worse in 1984, Cameroun returned to her name at independence "Republic of Cameroun" which did not include the territory of the former British Southern Cameroons or Ambazonia. For more than 50 years, the English speaking people of the Former British Southern Cameroons made multiple attempts both nationally and internationally to get the Cameroon government to address these issue and possibly return to the previously agreed federation at independence. When all these attempts failed in 2016 and Cameroon engaged in a military crackdown including cutting the internet in the English speaking regions, the people of Southern Cameroons declared on October 1, 2017, the restoration of their UN state of Southern Cameroons, which they called the "Federal Republic of Ambazonia".

Canada
Main article: Secessionist movements of Canada

Throughout Canada's history, there has been tension between English-speaking and French-speaking Canadians. Under the Constitutional Act of 1791, the Quebec colony (including parts of what are today Quebec, Ontario and Newfoundland and Labrador) was divided in two: Lower Canada (which retained French law and institutions and is now part of the provinces of Quebec and Newfoundland and Labrador) and Upper Canada (a new colony intended to accommodate the many new English-speaking settlers, including the United Empire Loyalists, and now part of Ontario). The intent was to provide each group with its own colony. In 1841, the two Canadas were merged into the Province of Canada. The union proved contentious, however, resulting in a legislative deadlock between English and French legislators. The difficulties of the union led (amongst other factors) in 1867 to Confederation, the adoption of a federal system that united the Province of Canada, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick (later joined by other British colonies in North America). The federal framework did not eliminate all tensions, however, leading to the Quebec sovereignty movement in the latter half of the 20th century.

Other occasional secessionist movements have included anti-Confederation movements in 19th century Atlantic Canada (see Anti-Confederation Party), the North-West Rebellion of 1885, and various small separatism movements in Alberta particularly (see Alberta separatism) and Western Canada generally (see, for example, Western Canada Concept).

Central America

After the 1823 collapse of the First Mexican Empire, the former Captaincy-General of Guatemala was organized into a new Federal Republic of Central America. In 1838 Nicaragua seceded. The Federal Republic was formally dissolved in 1840, all but one of the states having seceded amidst general disorder.

China
  • The Anti-Secession Law against the Taiwan independence movement
  • Western regions of Xinjiang (East Turkistan) and Tibet are the focus of secessionist calls by the Tibetan independence movement and East Turkestan Independence Movement.
  • The Special Administrative Region of Hong Kong and Macau also has a secessionist movement in the city that the Chinese Communist Party has placed on national security agenda in 2017 which is called the Hong Kong independence movement.
  • The provinces of China do have a regionalist/separatist movements, ex. Sichuan, Manchuria, Hainan and Guangdong; Sichuan has at least 1 or 2 separatist movements. Manchuria has a formal government in exile, the Manchukuo Temporary Government. Guangdong has its independence and separatist movement, but instead also named as Cantonese nationalism. One of the organizations are the Provisional Government of Cantonia, Cantonia Independence Party, etc. Hainan has very few nationalist movements, one examples are the Hainanese National Cultural Assembly.

Congo

In 1960 the State of Katanga declared independence from the Democratic Republic of the Congo. United Nations troops crushed it in Operation Grand Slam.

Cyprus
Northern Cyprus

In 1974, Greek irredentists launched a coup d'état in Cyprus, in an attempt to annex the island with Greece. Almost immediately, the Turkish Army invaded northern Cyprus to protect the interests of the ethnic Turkish minority, who in the following year formed the Turkish Federated State of Cyprus and in 1983 declared independence as the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, recognized only by Turkey.

East Timor
September 1999 demonstration for independence from Indonesia

The Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste (also known as East Timor) has been described as having "seceded" from Indonesia.[33][34][35] After Portuguese sovereignty was terminated in 1975, East Timor was occupied by Indonesia. However the United Nations and the International Court of Justice refused to recognize this incorporation. Therefore, the resulting civil war and eventual 2002 East Timorese vote for complete separation are better described as an independence movement.[36]

Ethiopia

Following the May 1991 victory of EPLF forces against the communist Derg regime during the Eritrean War of Independence, Eritrea (formerly known as "Medri Bahri") gained de facto independence from Ethiopia. Following the United Nations observed 1993 Eritrean independence referendum, Eritrea gained de jure independence.

European Union
Main article: Withdrawal from the European Union

Before the Treaty of Lisbon entered into force on 1 December 2009 no provision in the treaties or law of the European Union outlined the ability of a state to voluntarily withdraw from the EU. The European Constitution did propose such a provision and, after the failure to ratify the Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe, that provision was then included in the Lisbon Treaty.

The treaty introduces an exit clause for members who wish to withdraw from the Union. This formalises the procedure by stating that a member state may notify the European Council that it wishes to withdraw, upon which withdrawal negotiations begin; if no other agreement is reached the treaty ceases to apply to the withdrawing state two years after such notification.[37]

Finland

Finland successfully and peacefully seceded from the newly formed and weak Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic in 1917, the latter led by Lenin who had goodwill towards the Finns due to their having helped in his revolutionary struggle. Unsuccessful attempts at greater autonomy or peaceful secession had already been made during the preceding Russian Empire but had been denied by the Russian emperor.

France

Gran Colombia
Map showing the shrinking territory of Gran Colombia from 1824 to 1890 (red line). Panama separated from Colombia in 1903.

After a decade of tumultuous federalism, Ecuador and Venezuela seceded from Gran Colombia in 1830, leaving the similarly tumultuous United States of Colombia, now the Republic of Colombia which also lost Panama in 1903.

India
Main article: Separatist movements of India

Pakistan seceded from the British Indian empire in what is known as the Partition. Today, the Constitution of India does not allow Indian states to secede from the Union. The territory of Indian-administered Kashmir has had a violent Muslim nationalist movement against Indian establishment mostly in the Valley of Kashmir since 1989, which continues which is assumed to be supported by Pakistan, though the latter deny those allegations.The militancy reached at its peak influence in the decade of 1990. However, it has been fading since start of 21st century. Other secessionist movements in Nagaland, Assam, Manipur, Punjab (known as the Khalistan movement), Mizoram and Tripura were also formerly active, while Tamil Nadu had a non-violent movement in the 1960s.[38] While a violent Maoist Naxalite insurgency continues to rage across a wide-swath of eastern rural India, the movement is not considered a secessionist movement because the goal of the Maoists is to overthrow the government of India, although rebel commanders have occasionally called for a Communist republic to be carved out of swaths of India. The Pakistani Armed organizations is a participant in the Kashmir conflict and strives to establish the merger state of Jammu and Kashmir from secular India to Muslim Pakistan.

Italy

The Movement for the Independence of Sicily (Movimento Indipendentista Siciliano, MIS) has its roots in the Sicilian Independence Movement of the late 1940s; they have been around for 60 years. Today, the MIS no longer exists, though many other parties have been born. One is Nation Sicily (Sicilia Nazione), which still believes in the idea that Sicily, due to its deeply personal and ancient history, has to be a sovereign country. Moreover, a common ideology shared by all the Sicilian independentist movements is to fight against Cosa Nostra and all the other Mafia organizations, that have a very deep influence over Sicily's public and private institutions. Also, the Sicilian branch of the Five Star Movement, which is according to the polls Sicily's most popular party, has publicly expressed the intention to start working for a possible secession from Italy in the case where the central government would not collaborate in shifting the nation's administrative organization from a unitary country to a federal state. Lega Nord has been seeking the independence of the so-called region of Padania, which includes lands along the Po Valley in northern Italy. Some organizations separately work for the independence of Venetia or Veneto and the secession or reunification of South Tyrol with Austria. Lega Nord governing Lombardy has expressed a will to turning the region into a sovereign country. Also the island of Sardinia is home to a notable nationalist movement. In Southern Italy several movements have expressed a will to secede from Italy. This newborn ideology is so-called neo-Bourbonic, because the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies was under the control of the House of Bourbon. The Kingdom of the Two Sicilies was created in 1816 after the Congress of Vienna, and it comprised both Sicily and continental Southern Italy. The Kingdom came to an end in 1861, being annexed to the newborn Kingdom of Italy. However, the patriotic feelings shared among the southern Italian population is more ancient, starting in 1130 with the Kingdom of Sicily, which was composed by both the island and south Italy. According to the neo-Bourbonic movements the Italian regions which should secede are Sicily, Calabria, Basilicata, Apulia, Molise, Campania, Abruzzo, and Latio's provinces of Rieti, Latina and Frosinone. The major movements and parties which believe in this ideology are Unione Mediterranea, Mo! and Briganti.

Iran

Active secession movements include: Iranian Azeri, Assyrian independence movement, Bakhtiary lurs movement in 1876, Iranian Kurdistan; Kurdistan Democratic Party of Iran (KDPI), Khūzestān Province Balochistan and independence movement for free separated Balochistan, (Arab nationalist); Al-Ahwaz Arab People's Democratic Popular Front, Democratic Solidarity Party of Al-Ahwaz (See Politics of Khūzestān Province: Arab politics and separatism), and Balochistan People's Party (BPP) supporting Baloch Separatism.[39]

Japan
Main article: Ryukyu independence movement

The Ryukyuan (Okinawan) people had their own state historically (Ryukyu Kingdom) and have sought to become independent from Japan since they were annexed by Japan in 1879, and especially after 1972 when the islands were transferred from U.S. rule to Japan.[40]

Malaysia

When racial and partisan strife erupted, Singapore was expelled from the Malaysian federation in 1965.

Mexico
The Territorial evolution of Mexico after independence, noting losses to the US (red, white and orange) and the secession of Central America (purple)
  • Texas seceded from Mexico in 1836 (see Texas Revolution), after animosity between the Mexican government and the American settlers of the Coahuila y Tejas State. It was later annexed by the United States in 1845.
  • The Republic of the Rio Grande seceded from Mexico on January 17, 1840. It rejoined Mexico on November 6 the same year.
  • After the federal system was abandoned by President Santa Anna, the Congress of Yucatán approved in 1840 a declaration of independence, establishing the Republic of Yucatán. The Republic rejoined Mexico in 1843.

Netherlands

The United Provinces of the Netherlands, commonly referred to historiographically as the 'Dutch Republic', was a federal republic formally established from the formal creation of a federal state in 1581 by several Dutch provinces seceded from Spain.

New Zealand

Secession movements have surfaced several times in the South Island of New Zealand. A Premier of New Zealand, Sir Julius Vogel, was amongst the first people to make this call, which was voted on by the Parliament of New Zealand as early as 1865. The desire for South Island independence was one of the main factors in moving the capital of New Zealand from Auckland to Wellington in the same year.

The NZ South Island Party with a pro-South agenda, fielded only five candidates (4.2% of electoral seats) candidates in the 1999 General Election but achieved only 0.14% (2622 votes) of the general vote. The reality today is that although "South Islanders" are most proud of their geographic region, secession does not carry any real constituency; the party was not able to field any candidates in the 2008 election due to being unable to enlist 500 paying members, a requirement by the New Zealand Electoral commission. The party is treated more as a "joke" party than any real political force.

Nigeria
A girl during the Nigerian Civil War of the late 1960s. Pictures of the famine caused by Nigerian blockade garnered sympathy for the Biafrans worldwide.

Between 1967 and 1970, the state of Biafra (The Republic of Biafra) seceded from Nigeria and fought a war that ended with the state returning to Nigeria. Later in 1999 at the beginning of a new democratic regime, other secessionist movements emerged, the movement for the Actualization of a Sovereign state of Biafra was formed as a military wing of the Republic of Biafra.[41]

Norway and Sweden

Sweden, having left the Kalmar Union with Denmark and Norway in the 16th century, entered into a loose personal union with Norway in 1814. Following a constitutional crisis, on June 7, 1905 the Norwegian Parliament declared that King Oscar II had failed to fulfill his constitutional duties. He was therefore no longer King of Norway and because the union depended on the two countries sharing a king, it was thus dissolved. After negotiations Sweden agreed to this on October 26 and on April 14.

Pakistan

After the Awami League won the 1970 national elections, negotiations to form a new government floundered, resulting in the Bangladesh Liberation War by which the eastern wing of Pakistan seceded, to become Bangladesh. The Balochistan Liberation Army (also Baloch Liberation Army or Boluchistan Liberation army) (BLA) is a Baloch nationalist militant secessionist organization. The stated goals of the organization include the establishment of an independent state of Balochistan free of Pakistani, Iranian and Afghan Federations . The name Baloch Liberation Army first became public in summer 2000, after the organization claimed credit for a series of bomb attacks in markets and removal of railways lines.

Papua New Guinea
Main article: Provinces of Papua New Guinea § The Bougainville issue

The island of Bougainville has made several efforts to secede from Papua New Guinea.

Somalia

Somaliland is an autonomous region,[42] which is part of the Federal Republic of Somalia.[43][44] Those who call the area the Republic of Somaliland consider it to be the successor state of the former British Somaliland protectorate. Having established its own local government in Somalia in 1991, the region's self-declared independence remains unrecognized by any country or international organization.[45][46]

Soviet Union
Changes in national boundaries in post-Soviet states

The Constitution of the Soviet Union guaranteed all SSRs the right to secede from the Union. In 1990, after free elections, the Lithuanian SSR declared independence and other SSRs soon followed. Despite the Soviet central-government's refusal to recognize the independence of the republics, the Soviet Union dissolved in 1991.

South Africa

In 1910, following the British Empire's defeat of the Afrikaners in the Boer Wars, four self-governing colonies in the south of Africa were merged into the Union of South Africa. The four regions were the Cape Colony, Orange Free State, Natal and Transvaal. Three other territories, High Commission Territories of Bechuanaland (now Botswana), Basutoland (now Lesotho) and Swaziland later became independent states in the 1960s. Following the election of the Nationalist government in 1948, some English-speaking whites in Natal advocated either secession or a loose federation.[47] There were also calls for secession, with Natal and the eastern part of the Cape Province breaking away.[48] following the referendum in 1960 on establishing a republic, and in 1993, prior to South Africa's first elections under universal suffrage and the end of apartheid, some Zulu leaders in KwaZulu-Natal[49] considered secession as did some politicians in the Cape Province.[50]

In 2008, a political movement calling for the return to independence of the Cape resurged in the shape of the political organisation, the Cape Party. The Cape Party contested their first elections on 22 April 2009.[51]

Spain
A republican mural in Belfast showing solidarity with the Basque nationalism.

Present-day Spain (known officially as "the Kingdom of Spain") was assembled as a central state in the French model between the 18th and 19th centuries from various component kingdoms with varying languages, cultures and legislations. Spain has several secessionist movements, the most notable ones being in Catalonia, the Basque Country and Galicia.

Sri Lanka

The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, operated a de facto independent state for Tamils called Tamil Eelam in eastern and northern Sri Lanka until 2009.

South Sudan

A referendum took place in Southern Sudan from 9 to 15 January 2011, on whether the region should remain a part of Sudan or become independent. The referendum was one of the consequences of the 2005 Naivasha Agreement between the Khartoum central government and the Sudan People's Liberation Army/Movement (SPLA/M).

A simultaneous referendum was supposed to be held in Abyei on whether to become part of Southern Sudan but it has been postponed due to conflict over demarcation and residency rights.

On 7 February 2011, the referendum commission published the final results, with 98.83% voting in favour of independence. While the ballots were suspended in 10 of the 79 counties for exceeding 100% of the voter turnout, the number of votes were still well over the requirement of 60% turnout, and the majority vote for secession is not in question.

The predetermined date for the creation of an independent state was 9 July 2011.

Switzerland

In 1847, seven disaffected Catholic cantons formed a separate alliance because of moves to change the cantons of Switzerland from a confederation to a more centralized government federation. This effort was crushed in the Sonderbund War and a new Swiss Federal Constitution was created.[52]

Ukraine
Donetsk status referendum organized by pro-Russian separatists. A line to enter a polling place, 11 May 2014

In 2014 after the start of Russian intervention in Ukraine, several groups of people declared independence of several Ukrainian regions:

  • The Donetsk People's Republic was declared to be independent from Ukraine on 7 April 2014, comprising the territory of the Donetsk Oblast. There have been military confrontations between the Ukrainian Army and the forces of the Donetsk People's Republic when the Ukrainian Government attempted to reassert control over the oblast.
  • The Lugansk Parliamentary Republic was proclaimed on 27 April 2014.[53] before being succeeded by the Lugansk People's Republic. The Lugansk forces have successfully occupied vital buildings in Lugansk since 8 April, and controlled the City Council, prosecutor's office, and police station since 27 April.[54] The Government of the Lugansk Oblast announced its support for a referendum, and granted the governorship to independence leader Valeriy Bolotov.[55]

United Kingdom
A mural in Belfast depicting the Easter Rising of 1916

What is now the Republic of Ireland is the only territory that has withdrawn from the United Kingdom proper. Ireland proclaimed independence in 1916 and, as the Irish Free State, gained independence in 1922. Currently the United Kingdom has a number of secession movements:

  • In Northern Ireland, Irish Republicans and Nationalists in general have long called for the secession of Northern Ireland from the United Kingdom in order to join the Republic of Ireland. This is opposed by Unionists.
  • In Scotland, the Scottish National Party (SNP) campaigns for Scottish independence and direct Scottish membership in the European Union. It has representation at all levels of Scottish politics and forms the devolved Scottish government. A number of nascent pro-independence parties have enjoyed only limited electoral success. The Scottish Green Party and the Scottish Socialist Party are most widely publicised. However all independence movements/parties are opposed by Unionists. A referendum on independence, in which voters were asked "Should Scotland be an independent country?", took place in September 2014, and resulted in a victory for the "no" campaign as 55.3 percent of voters voted against independence.[56]
  • In Wales, Plaid Cymru (Party of Wales) stands for Welsh independence within the European Union. It is also represented at all levels of Welsh politics and is the second largest party in the Welsh Parliament (The Senedd).
  • In Cornwall, supporters of Mebyon Kernow call for the creation of a Cornish Assembly and separation from England, giving the county significant self-government, whilst remaining within the United Kingdom as a fifth home nation.
  • The Acting Witan of Mercia calls for Mercia to be recognized as distinct from England. Other "regionalists" call for similar recognition of other areas of Britain to be restored from lapsed states.
  • In England, the now-disbanded Free England Party (FEP) campaigned for English independence.
  • The concept of London becoming an independent or at least semi-autonomous city-state gained traction following the 2016 EU Referendum in which Londoners voted overwhelmingly to remain in the EU. A London independence party, known as Londependence, was established in June 2019. Calls for secession increased even more so after the 2019 General Election in which a majority Londoners voted for the Labour Party, which made a singular seat gain in London.

United States
Main article: Secession in the United States

Discussions and threats of secession often surface in American politics, and secession was declared during the American Civil War. However, in 1869 the United States Supreme Court ruled in Texas v. White, 74 U.S. 700 (1869) that unilateral secession was not permitted saying that the union between a state (Texas in the case before the bar) "was as complete, as perpetual, and as indissoluble as the union between the original States. There was no place for reconsideration or revocation, except through revolution or through consent of the States."[29][28]

Yemen

North Yemen and South Yemen merged in 1990; tensions led to a 1994 southern secession which was crushed in a civil war.[57]

Yugoslavia
A destroyed T-34-85 tank in Karlovac, Croatian War of Independence, 1992

On June 25, 1991, Croatia and Slovenia seceded from the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. Bosnia and Herzegovina and North Macedonia also declared independence, after which the federation broke up, causing the separation of the remaining two countries Serbia and Montenegro. Several wars ensued between FR Yugoslavia and seceding entities and among other ethnic groups in Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and later, Kosovo. Montenegro peacefully separated from its union with Serbia in 2006.

Kosovo declared de facto independence on February 17, 2008, and was recognized by several dozen countries, but officially remains under United Nations administration.

gollark: I like summer holidays! Some of my best nonsense work has been done during them!
gollark: You can train specialists, through *optional* things you *opt into*, or just by hiring them.
gollark: Well, yes, it would work for those things for some people, but forcing everyone to do it has downsides, so I'm against it.
gollark: And not just vast quantities of undertrained infantry?
gollark: Don't modern militaries mostly require specialists *anyway*?

See also

Lists
  • List of historical autonomist and secessionist movements
  • List of active autonomist and secessionist movements
  • List of unrecognized countries
  • List of U.S. state secession proposals
  • List of U.S. county secession proposals

Topics

Movements

References
  1. Allen Buchanan, "Secession", Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, 2007.
  2. Pavkovic, Aleksandar; Radan, Peter (2013). The Ashgate Research Companion to Secession. Burlington, VT: Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. p. 3. ISBN 9780754677024.
  3. Pavkovic, Aleksandar; Radan, Peter (2007). Creating New States: Theory and Practice of Secession. Burlington, VT: Ashgate Publishing. p. 6. ISBN 9780754671633.
  4. Pavkovic, Aleksandar; Radan, Peter (2008). On the Way to Statehood: Secession and Globalisation. Burlington, VT: Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. p. 133. ISBN 9780754673798.
  5. Allen Buchanan, Secession: The Morality of Political Divorce From Fort Sumter to Lithuania and Quebec, West View Press, 1991.
  6. Butt, Ahsan I. (2017-11-15). Secession and Security: Explaining State Strategy against Separatists. Cornell Studies in Security Affairs. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press. ISBN 9781501713941.
  7. Allen Buchanan, How can We Construct a Political Theory of Secession?, paper presented October 5, 2006 to the International Studies Association.
  8. Anthony H. Birch, "Another Liberal Theory of Secession". Political Studies 32, 1984, 596–602.
  9. Jane Jacobs, Cities and the Wealth of Nations, Vintage, 1985.
  10. Frances Kendall and Leon Louw, After Apartheid: The Solution for South Africa, Institute for Contemporary Studies, 1987. One of several popular books they wrote about canton-based constitutional alternatives that include an explicit right to secession.
  11. Leopold Kohr, The Breakdown of Nations, Routledge & K. Paul, 1957
  12. Human Scale, Coward, McCann & Geoghegan, 1980.
  13. "Full text of "The writings of Thomas Jefferson;"". archive.org. Retrieved 12 August 2015.
  14. University of Technology, Sydney description of Aleksandar Pavkovic
  15. Aleksandar Pavkovic, Secession, Majority Rule and Equal Rights: a Few Questions, Macquarie University Law Journal, 2003.
  16. Steven Yates, "When Is Political Divorce Justified" in David Gordon, 1998.
  17. Allen Buchanan, Secession: The Morality of Political Divorce From Fort Sumter to Lithuania and Quebec, Chapter 3, pp. 87–123.
  18. Coggins, Bridget (2011). "Friends in High Places: International Politics and the Emergence of States from Secessionism". International Organization. 65 (3): 433–467. doi:10.1017/S0020818311000105. ISSN 1531-5088.
  19. Gehring, Kai; Schneider, Stephan A. (2020). "Regional resources and democratic secessionism". Journal of Public Economics. 181: 104073. doi:10.1016/j.jpubeco.2019.104073. ISSN 0047-2727.
  20. Carter, David B.; Goemans, H. E. (2011). "The Making of the Territorial Order: New Borders and the Emergence of Interstate Conflict". International Organization. 65 (2): 275–309. doi:10.1017/S0020818311000051. ISSN 0020-8183. JSTOR 23016813.
  21. Griffiths, Ryan D. (2015). "Between Dissolution and Blood: How Administrative Lines and Categories Shape Secessionist Outcomes". International Organization. 69 (3): 731–751. doi:10.1017/S0020818315000077. ISSN 0020-8183.
  22. Thorhallsson, Baldur; Steinsson, Sverrir (2017-05-24), "Small State Foreign Policy", Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Politics, Oxford University Press, doi:10.1093/acrefore/9780190228637.013.484, ISBN 978-0-19-022863-7, retrieved 2020-05-02
  23. Fazal, Tanisha M.; Griffiths, Ryan D. (2014). "Membership Has Its Privileges: The Changing Benefits of Statehood". International Studies Review. 16 (1): 79–106. doi:10.1111/misr.12099. ISSN 1521-9488.
  24. Alesina, Alberto. "The Size of Nations". The MIT Press. Retrieved 2020-05-02.
  25. Thorhallsson, Baldur (2018), Small States and Shelter Theory, Routledge, pp. 13–23, doi:10.4324/9780429463167-2, ISBN 978-0-429-46316-7, retrieved 2020-05-02 Missing or empty |title= (help); |chapter= ignored (help)
  26. Lake, David A.; O’mahony, Angela (2004). "The Incredible Shrinking State". Journal of Conflict Resolution. 48 (5): 699–722. doi:10.1177/0022002704267766. ISSN 0022-0027.
  27. Andrei Kreptul, The Constitutional Right of Secession in Political Theory and History, Journal of Libertarian Studies, Ludwig von Mises Institute, Volume 17, no. 4 (Fall 2003), pp. 39 – 100.
  28. Aleksandar Pavković, Peter Radan, Creating New States: Theory and Practice of Secession, p. 222, Ashgate Publishing, Ltd., 2007.
  29. Texas v. White, 74 U.S. 700 (1868) at Cornell University Law School Supreme Court collection.
  30. Aleksandar Pavkovic and Peter Radan, In Pursuit of Sovereignty and Self-determination: Peoples, States and Secession in the International Order, Index of papers, Macquarie University Law Journal, 1, 2003.
  31. Xenophon Contiades, Sixth Scholarly Panel: Cultural Identity in the New Europe, 1st Global Conference on Federalism and the Union of European Democracies, March 2004. Archived January 5, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
  32. "The Reform of the Constitution in 2003". fuerstenhaus.li. Retrieved 2017-01-02.
  33. Santosh C. Saha, Perspectives on contemporary ethnic conflict, p. 63, Lexington Books, 2006 ISBN 0-7391-1085-3.
  34. Paul D. Elliot, The East Timor Dispute, The International and Comparative Law Quarterly, Vol. 27, No. 1 (Jan., 1978).
  35. James J. Fox, Dionísio Babo Soares, Out of the ashes: destruction and reconstruction of East Timor, p. 175, ANU E Press, 2003, ISBN 0-9751229-1-6
  36. Thomas D. Musgrave, Self-determination and national minorities, p. xiii, Oxford University Press, 2000 ISBN 0-19-829898-6
  37. Poptcheva, Eva-Maria (February 2016). "Article 50 TEU: Withdrawal of a Member State from the EU" (PDF). europa.eu.
  38. Linz, Juan; Stepan, Alfred; Yadav, Yogendra (2007). 'Nation State' or 'State Nation': India in Comparative Perspective. Oxford University Press. pp. 81–82. ISBN 978-0-19-568368-4.
  39. "UNPO: West Balochistan". unpo.org. Retrieved 12 August 2015.
  40. Molasky, Michael S., 1956–. The American Occupation of Japan and Okinawa : Literature and Memory. ISBN 978-0-203-98168-9. OCLC 1048580450.CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  41. Moses, A. Dirk, editor. Heerten, Lasse, editor. Postcolonial conflict and the question of genocide : the Nigeria-Biafra War, 1967–1970. ISBN 978-1-351-85866-3. OCLC 993762001.CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  42. No Winner Seen in Somalia's Battle With Chaos New York Times, June 2, 2009
  43. The Transitional Federal Charter of the Somali Republic Archived 2009-03-25 at the Wayback Machine: "The Somali Republic shall have the following boundaries. (a) North; Gulf of Aden. (b) North West; Djibouti. (c) West; Ethiopia. (d) South south-west; Kenya. (e) East; Indian Ocean."
  44. "The World Factbook". cia.gov. Retrieved 12 August 2015.
  45. The Signs Say Somaliland, but the World Says Somalia
  46. UN in Action: Reforming Somaliland's Judiciary
  47. SOUTH AFRICA: Cry of Secession TIME, Monday, May 11, 1953
  48. Secession Talked by Some Anti-Republicans, Saskatoon Star-Phoenix, 11 October 1960
  49. Launching Democracy in South Africa: The First Open Election, April 1994, R. W. Johnson, Lawrence Schlemmer, Yale University Press, 1996
  50. Party Wants the Cape to Secede", Business Day, December 24, 1993.
  51. Cape Party Website, Monday, May 11, 1953
  52. A Brief Survey of Swiss History, Switzerland Federal Department of Foreign Affairs.
  53. "Federalization supporters in Luhansk proclaim people's republic". TASS: World. Retrieved 12 August 2015.
  54. "Ukraine crisis: Pro-Russia activists take Luhansk offices". BBC News. 29 April 2014. Retrieved 18 January 2015.
  55. "Luhansk regional council backs referendum on region's status". kyivpost.com. Retrieved 6 May 2014.
  56. Smout, Alistair; MacLellan, Kylie; Holton, Kate (September 19, 2014). "Scotland stays in UK, but Britain faces change". Reuters – Special Report. Retrieved September 19, 2014.
  57. Hiro, Dilip (2019-03-01), "Saudi-Iranian Détente", Cold War in the Islamic World, Oxford University Press, pp. 141–162, ISBN 978-0-19-094465-0, retrieved 2020-05-29

Further reading
  • Buchanan, Allen, Justice, Legitimacy, and Self-Determination: Moral Foundations for International Law (Oxford Political Theory), Oxford University Press, 2007.
  • Buchanan, Allen, Secession: The Morality Of Political Divorce From Fort Sumter To Lithuania And Quebec, Westview Press, 1991.
  • Coppieters, Bruno; Richard Sakwa, Richard (eds.), Contextualizing Secession: Normative Studies in Comparative Perspective, Oxford University Press, USA, 2003
  • Dos Santos, Anne Noronha, Military Intervention and Secession in South Asia: The Cases of Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Kashmir, and Punjab (Psi Reports), Praeger Security International, 2007.
  • Gordon, David, Secession, State and Liberty, Transactions Publishers, 1998.
  • Hannum, Hurst, Autonomy, Sovereignty, and Self-Determination: The Accommodation of Conflicting Rights, University of Pennsylvania Press, 1996.
  • Hawes, Robert F., One Nation, Indivisible? A Study of Secession and the Constitution, Fultus Corporation, 2006.
  • Jovanovic, Miodrag, Constitutionalizing Secession in Federalized States: A Procedural Approach, Ashgate Publishing, 2006.
  • Kohen, Marcelo G. (ed.), Secession: International Law Perspectives, Cambridge University Press, 2006.
  • Kohr, Leopold, The Breakdown of Nations, Routledge & K. Paul, 1957.
  • Lehning, Percy, Theories of Secession, Routledge, 1998.
  • Norman, Wayne, Negotiating Nationalism: Nation-Building, Federalism, and Secession in the Multinational State, Oxford University Press, USA, 2006.
  • Orlov, Dimitry, Reinventing Collapse, New Society Books, 2008, ISBN 978-0-86571-606-3
  • Pascalev, Mario, "Territory: An Account of the Territorial Authority of States." Dissertation, Bowling Green State University, VDM, 2009.
  • Roeder, Philip G. 2018. National secession: persuasion and violence in independence campaigns. Cornell University Press.
  • Sorens, Jason, Secessionism: Identity, Interest, and Strategy, McGill-Queen's University Press, 2012.
  • Sorens, Jason (2008). "Secessionism". In Hamowy, Ronald (ed.). Sessionism. The Encyclopedia of Libertarianism. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE; Cato Institute. pp. 455–56. doi:10.4135/9781412965811.n277. ISBN 978-1-4129-6580-4. LCCN 2008009151. OCLC 750831024.
  • Spencer, Metta, Separatism: Democracy and Disintegration, Rowman & Littlefield, 1998.
  • Weller, Marc, Autonomy, Self Governance and Conflict Resolution (Kindle Edition), Taylor & Francis, 2007.
  • Wellman, Christopher Heath, A Theory of Secession, Cambridge University Press, 2005..
  • Secession And International Law: Conflict Avoidance-regional Appraisals, United Nations Publications, 2006.
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