The Political Economy of Secession

Abstract

Secessionist movements present themselves to the global public as analogues of colonial\nliberation movements: long-established identities are denied rights of self-determination\nby quasi-imperial authorities. Self-determination is presented as the solution to the\nchallenge of peaceful coexistence between distinct peoples. The global public not only\naccepts this message but reinforces it: both Hollywood and diasporas relay it back to\npopulations in developing countries. In this paper, we will argue that the discourse of\nsecessionist movements cannot be taken at face value. We will suggest that a more\nrealistic characterization of secessionist movements is that their sense of political identity\nis typically a recent contrivance designed to support perceived economic advantage, if the\nsecession is successful, and facilitated by popular ignorance.

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