Suchergebnisse

This article focuses on the evolution of Polish minority responses to Lithuanian minority policies in the post-EU-accession period. State-minority conflicts in Lithuania have not generated violence or minority radicalization, despite continuing discontent among members of the state's Polish minority (which constitutes Lithuania's largest ethnic minority population) and the failure of the Lithuanian state to resolve the causes of discontent. Employing Smooha's concept of ethnic democracy, the article addresses this puzzle through an ethnographic exploration of the views held by members of the Polish minority about the Lithuanian state's policies of nation-building. The findings reveal a diverse set of critical perceptions among Poles in Lithuania, which emphasize the ineffectiveness of state policies in addressing minority needs. However, a shared perception of threat from Russia, generated after the Russian annexation of Crimea in 2014, helps to sustain the regime's stability and its strategy of stalling the resolution of minority concerns.

It is important, in appraising the role of South Africa as today's player on the international political scene and an active participant in global associations of countries, to form a realistic idea of the political image the country projects internationally and the political situation inside the country. The hardest part is to make sense of the political situation inside South Africa, taking into account the evolving phenomenon of ethnic democracy. South Africa is a democracy with a dominant party, contingent on which are both the advantages and drawbacks typical of democracies of this type. Adapted from the source document.

Sammy Smooha's 'ethnic democracy' model challenged the notion of the uniqueness of Israel by setting it as the archetype of a special type of democracy: 'ethnic democracy'. But contrary to what Smooha suggests, Israel's national identity is indeed unique. In each of Smooha's East European examples, besides the concept of a core ethnic nation, exists the notion of a civic territorial nation, which makes possible the integration or 'assimilation' into the dominant culture of those who are not members of the core ethnic nation. Yet, Israel's national identity does not recognise the existence of a civic territorial nation and and makes no provisions for the integration or assimilation of non-Jews, especially Arabs, into the dominant Hebrew culture. Setting Israel as an archetype for his model prevents Smooha from exploring the possibility that, unlike Israel, East European 'ethnic democracy' could be a transitional phase towards a liberal democracy. (Nations and Nationalism)

The article next to the hermeneutic methodology examines the key aspects of a special model of political regime: the "ethnic democracy" of S. Smooha, which is based on the idea of the development of an ethnic nation in a state. According to this author's point of view, the main idea of this form of stability is the absolute control of the ethnic majority over the minority. It examines the reasons for the emergence of "ethnic democracy", the characteristics of its implementation in practice and the conditions of stability. When this model is implemented in practice, the State pursues the objective of central ethnic-national development in the country, as well as its isolation from other ethnic groups. Under the concept of "ethnic democracy" the ethnic minority is granted limited rights, the state constantly monitors its scope, considering the interests of the "main" nation. It is concluded that the implementation of the "ethnic democracy" model deliberately violates the right to self-identification of a part of the population (ethnic minority), therefore "ethnic democracy" is an element of state policy that addresses inequality or a desire for total assimilation.