Post-Scotland: Crisis for Independence Movements in Europe?

List: Scotland Independence Referendum Complete Results


I was one of the many who anxiously followed the Scottish Independence Referendum results as they were announced. I'm not Scottish, but I love Scotland and I'm a bit sad that the voters rejected outright independence.   I'm also surprised.  I can't explain why, but I had this feeling that the voters would surprise the pundits.  Actually, they did.  The vote wasn't really close.  So I'm stuck humming "Loch Lomond" with a permanent vision of Queen Elizabeth and those ugly little dogs in my head.  Back on the continent, different folks with a variety of agendas set about interpreting the results.  Personally, I don't believe the referendum on Scotland is a precursor to anything (accept possibly another go by the Quebecois to separate from Canada).  Those persons keeping an eye on the various European independence movements now turn their focus on Catalonia, Spain. 

In 2012 the state government of Catalonia signed an agreement stating that a referendum on independence from Spain would be held in 2014 unless "socio-economic and political context make a postponement necessary".  Madrid is doing everything possible to legally combat the independence movement, which shouldn't be a surprise.  I will not get into the nuts and bolts of the Spanish financial crisis, except to say that I believe high domestic growth and international financing confidence indicate that the economy is on the mend.  The recent modest improvements in the economy have not discouraged the movement for Catalonian Independence.  Many Catalonians believe that Catalonia provides more to the Spanish government than it gets in return, especially when Barcelona is factored into the equation.  If Catalonia manages to hold the referendum in 2014 (which becomes less likely everyday), there is little doubt that the people will vote to secede by a statistical majority.  Even if the referendum is postponed for a year, I can't envision a scenario in which the Catalonian people vote against independence.  I'm going out on a limb here, but I believe the only way that Madrid can avoid a separation with Catalonia, is by proposing increased autonomy, and hoping that the Catalonians won't act unilaterally.  Frankly, I don't see this ending well.  With the Basque question presently on the back-burner ("hey, we were here first!"), the Spanish people are beginning to resent the Catalonian independence movement.  Most Spaniards have felt the pinch of austerity in recent years, and the Spanish media never misses an opportunity to portray Barcelona as the Bacchanalian capital of Europe, with plenty of drunk students and money from tourists to go around. My biggest concern, is that Madrid will be obliged to provide Catalonia with virtual independence, and the Basques will be right behind.

In all honestly, the so-called independence movements in mainland France (Brittany and Normandy being the only two that have received any media attention) are used as platforms to attract tourists.  Both Brittany and Normandy have fascinating and unique customs and dialects, but so does every region of France (trust me on this one; my family is from Angouleme).  The one exception is Corsica.

Since 1960, Corsica has suffered through periods of unrest highlighted by violence committed by Corsican nationalist groups.  Because of its location, the culture of Corsica incorporates traditions from France, Spain, as well as Italy.  In the mid to late 1970s, the underground independence movement was responsible for a number of assassinations, including mayors and policemen.  The government in Paris reacted aggressively and many arrests were made.  In the 1990s, the independence movement collapsed due to internal conflict, and in 2000, French President Lionel Jospin granted increased autonomy to Corsica.  Since then steps have been taken to protect the indigenous language, which is close to extinction.  One issue that has consistently caused problems is the building of summer/vacation homes in Corsica by wealthy Parisian families.  The last time I checked, the Parisians were winning, I'm sorry to say (of course, there's nothing wrong with a polite, half-French, half-Texan buying a vacation house in Bastia, right?).  You can commit the Corsican independence movement to history; France has won.

I am fascinated by the case of Belgium.  Fifty-five percent of Belgians (the northern side) speak Flemish (Dutch), and forty-five percent (the southern side), speak French and call themselves Walloons.  I once read an article which described Belgium as suffering from a case of "linguistic apartheid", which, ironically, is a Dutch word.  Basically, Belgium is a country made up of two separate nationalities, the Flemish and the Walloons, and neither side wants to play with the other.  Belgium is a wealthy country of 11.2 million souls, and (more irony), its capital Brussels is considered the de facto capital of the European Union.  Having spent some time in Belgium, I must say there seems to be a bit of snobbery at play on the part of the Flemish.  What keeps Belgium together?  More than anything else, its royal family.  Don't misunderstand; the Belgians don't adore their royals as the Dutch love the House of Orange.  Its just that the royal family seems to be the one thing that presides equally over both sides.  The rational thing to do would be for the Netherlands to annex north Belgium and for France to annex the south.  Brussels (and its environs) could remain a city-state, continuing its important functions relating to NATO and the EU.  But for something this prolific to happen, enough folks on both side would have to make the effort.  And no one cares enough to make the effort.

I won't delve into the examples of German "independence movements", because they follow the same examples of mainland France.  Bavarians want to talk about independence, but only if you come for Oktoberfest and drink lots of beer.  If you enjoy history as much as I do, you will appreciate the case of South Tyrol.  This situation involves Austria, not Germany; but I took advantage of the shared language to build a nice segue.  Time for a bit of history.  In 1914, The Austro-Hungarian Empire and the German Empire went to war against France, Russia, England, and Serbia (the Ottoman Empire, the United States, Italy and a few others joined later).  At the time, Germany and Austria-Hungary (Central Powers) were bound by a mutual-defense treaty with Italy.  The Italians chose to interpret their obligations quite narrowly and announced neutrality.  In 1915, Italy renounced its neutrality and declared war on the central Powers (Italy's former allies).  After the war, the victorious Allies dismembered Austria-Hungary, and, in payment for services rendered, gave Italy large swaths of Austrian territory including South Tyrol.  Even though another World War has occurred (in which the Italians switched sides AGAIN), many Austrians still resent Italy's land grab.  The former province of Tyrol is now split into North Tyrol (Austria) and South Tyrol (Italy).  Even today, seventy percent of people in South Tyrol speak German and identify themselves as ethnically Austrian.  Austrians in Tyrol take this issue very seriously, and at times groups of armed men have gathered in the mountains, anticipating hostilities.  Why won't Italy act sensibly, and return South Tyrol to Austria?  It has everything to do with the fact that South Tyrol is a wealthy province, with a booming tourist industry and a robust agricultural sector.  Unfortunately for Austrian Tyrolians, the government in Vienna is more pacifist than Heidi, and does nothing more than occasionally mention the issue politely through diplomatic channels.  In 1866, Italy demanded an end to Austrian rule in Venice because Venice was obviously an Italian city.  In 1918, the situation repeated itself with Trieste.  How about a little fair play from Rome?  Don't hold your breath.

I began this post with a bit of reflection on the Scottish referendum, and really never made any correlations.  I guess that was the point.  Every circumstance is different, and the independence issues on the mainland bear more similarities to the late problems in northern Ireland than they to do the temporary family disagreement over Scotland's status.  I do believe the issues mentioned above will attract the attention of the European media some time before the end of the year (with the exception of Corsica), as some dispensation has been debated.  Personally, I'm anxious to see the Quebec independence movement (Mouvement Souverainiste du Quebec) reassert itself and call for another referendum.  In 1995, the vote was razor-thin, with fifty-one-percent voting against independence and 49 percent in favor.

Independence Movements in Europe

Link: Is South Tyrol Austrian or Italian?


I was a bit surprised when I recently stumbled upon a news program highlighting the various independence movements active in Europe today.  This is just the kind of interesting topic that gets my blogging blood flowing.  As a form of disclaimer, let me say up front that if I so chose, I could write about active independence movements in almost every country in Europe.  But with my post dangerously long as it is, I wisely decided to comment on only the Independence Movements that have gained the highest media profile.

I chose this particular link because it details the European identity crisis with which I am most familiar. In 1918, just after the end of the first World War, the winning Allies detached South Tyrol from the former Austro-Hungarian Empire and sewed it on to the Italian province of Alto Adige.  This decision continues to ruffle feathers 96 years later.  South Tyrol is one of a number of independence movements that are presently being debated in Europe.  The people of Scotland will actually have the opportunity to vote in a few weeks on the issue of independence from the United Kingdom.  Where else, you ask?  The folks in Barcelona, Spain want their province of Catalonia (Cataluña) to become a separate Republic; Catalans already speak their own language, which gives them a bit of a head-start.  In Belgium, the Flemish in the north and west would like separation from the Walloons in the south.  The status quo in Belgium is quite unique: On the left side of Belgium (as you are looking down at the map in front of you), all the road signs are in Flemish.  On the right side of Belgium, all the road signs are in French.  Brussels, the capital and one of the most important cities in the world, accommodates both Flemish and French.  Since the Flemish constitute roughly 50 percent of the population and the French speakers are closer to 35 percent (I have no idea what the other 15 percent are speaking; maybe Zulu), the Flemish are understandably a bit miffed at the arrangement.

I assume most Americans, like myself, were unaware that an independence movement existed in the northern Italian province of Alto Adige.  My close friend Marco Scherer, a member of the Austrian Army and a lifelong resident of the north Tyrol village of Schlitters, explained the issue to me in simple terms.  Italy was rewarded for ignoring its mutual-defense pact with Germany and Austria-Hungary in World War One.  Because Italy joined the Allies, the Italians were given a big slice of Tyrol.  It made no difference that the land annexed by Italy was at the time over 90 percent Austrian in ethnicity and German in language.  In most instances, the population would have assimilated to a large degree after 96 years.  But that isn't the case in south Tyrol.  Most folks still speak German and consider themselves Austrian.  Certainly there are many ethnic Italians as well, and the two groups do seem to get along.  But the issue has at times led to bloodshed.  To this day it is a very difficult subject with many Austrians (and all Tyrolians).  They consider the Italian annexation of south Tyrol to be Fascism at it worst and Imperialism at its best.  Its a fair, simple question to ask: in 2014, why is Italy governing a territory that is ethnically, linguistically, traditionally, and historically tied to Austria? 

France has had an independence movement in the province of Brittany for some time.  The central government in Paris has worked with representatives of the movement, and a good deal of governance and authority has been transferred to local officials and departments.  I understand that recently the French government has discovered a budding Catalonian succession effort on the French side of the border (Catalonia is in northeastern Spain, separated from France by the Pyrenees Mountains).  Because France has a history of being sympathetic to the Basque separatists of north central Spain, I'm sure the Spanish are enjoying the irony.  Speaking of the Basque Independence Movement, the Basque people, with their own language and customs, have been seeking independence from Spain since the mid-19th century (or earlier).  Following the second World War, the movement became more aggressive in its activities, encouraging the Basque people to commit various acts of civil disobedience.  The terrorist group "ETA" (Homeland), has committed many acts of violence in support of Basque Independence, including the murder of judges, politicians, soldiers, police, and former ETA members.  Since the turn of the last century, there has been positive movement towards a peaceful resolution, with the Basque people renouncing violence to a large degree.  The Spanish government in Madrid has given recognition to the Basque language and culture, and taken steps to provide local authorities with more control.  I do not think I will live to see the day that the Basque region becomes a separate nation from Spain.  I'm not going to tackle the subjects of Corsica (France), or Cyprus (Greece and Turkey); these two beautiful Mediterranean islands have violent histories which have been covered many times in all forms of media, and do not really fit into the category addressed in this post.

I was going to end this less-than cohesive post with a discussion on Bosnia-Herzegovina.  But similar to Cyprus and Corsica (and Kosovo), it deserves a post all to itself.  What were they thinking?  Lets have Croatians living next to Bosnians and Slovenians next to Serbs, when all they want to do is kill each other?  Well, hope springs eternal, and I have a soft spot in my heart for Bosnia (and Herzegovina).  A few facts that no one familiar with the Balkans will dispute: the Bosnians are a determined, hard-working people, and over the years they have suffered numerous episodes of tremendous suffering.  I think I will close on that note, as tomorrow I will be writing on the current state of affairs in the Balkans (pending other more important developments).  Cheers.