Negotiating National Identity and Self‐Determination in Ethnic Conflicts: The Choice Between Pluralism and Ethnic Cleansing

Abstract

The contradictions of ethnonational identity, which make it a prime force in both the promotion and the destruction of human dignity and social justice, have become more pronounced with the ending of the Cold War. It is necessary to reconceptualize national identity and develop new norms for accepting a group's right to national self‐determination through establishment of an independent state expressing its national identity, and even for accepting its claim to national identity itself. This article proposes that (1) implementation of a group's right to self‐determination cannot be left to the group alone, but must be negotiated with those who are affected by that decision, particularly minority populations; and (2) national identity itself must be “negotiated” ‐ explored and discussed ‐ with those who are affected by the group's self‐definition.