(DOWNLOAD) "Transnational Civil Society and the National Identity Question in East Asia." by Global Governance ~ eBook PDF Kindle ePub Free
eBook details
- Title: Transnational Civil Society and the National Identity Question in East Asia.
- Author : Global Governance
- Release Date : January 01, 2004
- Genre: Politics & Current Events,Books,
- Pages : * pages
- Size : 277 KB
Description
The institutions of civil society play diverse roles in developing and maintaining democracy--that is, the process of democratization--and perform different functions in relation to the national identity/boundary question. (1) A growing literature testifies to the emerging importance of civil society in defining the boundaries of political communities, (2) such that the participation by ordinary people and the institutions of civil society in defining these boundaries give rise to a democratic approach to the national identity/boundary issue and new forms of associated global governance. In this article, I attempt to develop a transnational civil society approach to studying the range of interactions that occur across national borders in the context of national identity politics. (3) Specifically, I consider the relevance of the transnational civil society approach to the national identity question in East Asia. In so doing, I examine the role international nongovernmental organizations (INGOs) play in defining the boundaries of political communities and empowering small ethnic groups in the region to pursue their cause for self-determination. To this end, in seeking to explain why INGOs are able to exert influence on this issue, I outline the necessary conditions for effective INGOs and the existing problems associated with them. For the purposes of this article, INGOs are defined not only as subjects of international law, but also as active participants in the shaping of such law. In other words, they are understood as shapers of international opinion and autonomous actors in competition with states. Their membership is international and their activities take place across national borders. (4) The national identity/boundary problem refers to the phenomenon whereby certain sections of a national population, who do not identify with the nation-state in which they live, endeavor to create their own political identity by reconstructing cultural and ethnic identities. It also refers to a unification process whereby two separate states or political entities express a desire to merge on the basis of shared cultural identity or history. In addition, this problem incorporates the issue of control over territories and resources and the redrawing of national boundaries.