Suchergebnisse

The thesis is a compilation of three articles that explore the relationship between immigration and minority nations. It focuses on Stateless Nationalist and Regionalist Parties (SNRP) through the lens of the centre periphery cleavage. Overall, the articles make contributions towards the research question how do the main dimensions of the centre-periphery cleavage (identity, territory and economy) reflect on the SNRPs' discourses on immigration? Each article explores one of the dimensions of the centre periphery cleavage. They analyse how identity, territorial distribution of powers and the economic context appear in the SNRPs' official discourse on immigration. Paired comparisons of different SNRPs in different contexts (Catalonia, Quebec and Scotland) are carried out using qualitative content analysis of manifestos, parliamentary debates and other party documents. The thesis provides, among other contributions, a deeper understanding of SNRPs discourses on immigration and how centre-periphery relations interfere in its construction. ; La present tesi és una compilació de tres articles de recerca que exploren la relació entre la immigració i les nacions minoritàries, tot centrant-se en els Partits Nacionalistes sense Estat i Regionalistes (SNRP) des de la perspectiva del cleavage centre-perifèria. Orientats per la pregunta de recerca com apareixen reflectides les principals dimensions del cleavage centre perifèria en el discurs dels SNRP sobre immigració?, cadascun enfronta una de les dimensions amb l'objectiu de copsar com la identitat, la distribució territorial del poder, i el context econòmic apareixen en el discurs oficial dels SNRP. S'ha dut a terme comparacions aparellades de diferents SNRP de diversos contexts (Catalunya, Escòcia i Quebec) a través de l'anàlisi qualitativa del contingut de programes electorals, debats parlamentaris i altres documents. La tesi ofereix un major coneixement dels discursos dels SNRP en immigració i com les relacions centre-perifèria interfeixen en llurs construccions. ; La ...

This article advances understandings of secessionist strategies by examining how and why secessionist movements make the case for creating a new sovereign state. It draws on new empirical data to examine the ways in which pro-independence parties in Catalonia have justified their calls for the creation of an independent Catalan Republic between 2008 and 2018. The findings challenge the widespread scholarly assumption that secessionist mobilisation is underpinned by grievances—cultural, economic, and political—against the state. We find that arguments for an independent Catalonia rarely include cultural claims. Instead, independence is advocated as a way of resolving political and economic grievances and of creating a better, more democratic, and just Catalan society. Such justifications are highly influenced by the political context in which pro-independence parties try to advance towards secession. These insights advance on extant explanations of secessionist mobilisation by highlighting the distinctive nature of, and the motives for, secessionist claims.

This paper is based on empirical research performed in Catalonia in the framework of the international research project DiasporaLink, which analysed the links between transnational diaspora entrepreneurship (TDE), migration and development. In this paper, we focus on the case of Moroccans immigrants in Spain and especially in Catalonia, in order to understand the role that different actors play in fostering or not transnational entrepreneurship of Moroccan diaspora. In order to structure the field research, as well as the further analysis, we have defined three levels of action: a macro-level, a meso-level, and a micro-level. The methodology is based on a field research conducted through in-depth interviews with macro- and meso-level actors in Catalonia, complemented by a bibliographic research on existing political frameworks and initiatives facilitating TDE activities. Our findings suggest that little TDE takes place between Morocco and Spain despite the countries' geographical proximity. The paper reflects on socioeconomic and political factors, among others, to explain why this is so.

AbstractOn 1 October 2017, Catalonia held an independence referendum. The Spanish state had previously declared this referendum illegal and activated political and security devices to prevent it from being held. The referendum was the tipping point of the so‐called Catalan 'Process', which would continue with the suspension of Catalonia's self‐government and the imprisonment of several Catalan politicians and activists. Heated political discussion has centred current Spanish (and sometimes even European) politics on issues related to the legitimacy of both the Process and the actors involved in it. This paper aims to understand how the different Catalan political parties framed the Process by looking at the parliamentary discourses which prevailed in the Catalan Parliament one month before and one month after the holding of the referendum. The data are analysed using a mixed‐methods approach. We combine topic models (used to generate different frames associated with different political leanings inductively) with an in‐depth examination of the contents of these frames. The results shed light on how the Catalan Process is framed according to different political leanings and contribute to our understanding of stateless and state‐wide nationalism strategies.

Abstract
On the 1st October 2017 an independence referendum was organised in Catalonia. The aim of this paper is to analyse the
nature of the political debate going on in the Catalan Parliament during the whole process by focusing on the kind of argumentation
strategies that were used by each of the leanings to legitimise their political decisions. We do that relying on a methodological
distinction that differentiates between sound argumentation and fallacious argumentation. By using a Critical Discourse Analysis approach,
this study offers a wide picture of the kind of argumentation used by the main political actors involved in the process of decision making
in Catalonia. The results show that there is more emphasis in antagonising with the others, than engaging in sound argument exchange that
could facilitate minimal points of consensus. Such results may help explain why the Catalan conflict is still unsolved at the political
level.

Deliberative systems theorists have for some time emphasised the distributed nature of deliberative values; they therefore do not focus exclusively on 'deliberation' but on all sorts of communication that advance deliberative democratic values, including everyday political talk in informal settings. However, such talk has been impossible to capture inductively at scale. This article discusses an electronic approach, Structural Topic Modelling, and applies it to a recent case: the Scottish independence debate of 2012–2014. The case provides the first empirical test of the claim that a deliberative system can capture the full 'pool of perspectives' on an issue, and shows that citizens can hold each other to deliberative standards even in mass, online discussion. It also shows that, in deliberative terms, the major cleavage in the 'indyref' debate was not so much between Yes and No, but between formal and informal venues.

Deliberative systems theorists have for some time emphasised the distributed nature of deliberative values; they therefore do not focus exclusively on 'deliberation' but on all sorts of communication that advance deliberative democratic values, including everyday political talk in informal settings. However, such talk has been impossible to capture inductively at scale. This article discusses an electronic approach, Structural Topic Modelling, and applies it to a recent case: the Scottish independence debate of 2012-2014. The case provides the first empirical test of the claim that a deliberative system can capture the full 'pool of perspectives' on an issue, and shows that citizens can hold each other to deliberative standards even in mass, online discussion. It also shows that, in deliberative terms, the major cleavage in the 'indyref' debate was not so much between Yes and No, but between formal and informal venues.