Conflicts over the rights of self-defined population groups to determine their own destiny within the boundaries of existing states are among the most violent forms of inter-communal conflict.
Many experts agree that autonomy regimes are a useful framework within which competing claims to self-determination can be accommodated. Published by Routledge and co-edited with Marc Weller, this volume explores and analyses the different options available. The contributors assess the current state of the theory and practice of institutional design for the settlement of self-determination conflicts, and also compare and contrast detailed case studies on autonomy regimes in the former Yugoslavia, Crimea, the Aland Islands, Northern Ireland, Latin America, Indonesia and Vietnam.
A refreshing new look at autonomy regimes as a possible response to secessionist and irredentist claims around the world.
Donald Rothchild, University of California, Davis
Weller and Wolff provide a comprehensive collection on autonomy arrangements, covering a rich range of institutional variations, as well as several different parts of the globe. The importance of their subject can hardly be exaggerated, as autonomy often remains the only choice between the unwanted incorporation of minorities on the one hand, and the disintegration of states on the other.
John McGarry, Queen’s University, Canada