This title was first published in 2000: An investigation of how minority groups' claims for greater political power through autonomy and secession conflict with the concerns of the nation state. The way in which a state's refusal to respond positively to such claims contributes to the escalation of ethnic conflicts is also explored.

Contents: Claims from autonomy to secession: introduction; The minority issue and ethnic conflicts; Minorities?; Peoples, all peoples, nations and minorities; Claims for autonomy with shared-sovereignty; Claims for autonomy through the right to self-determination?; Models of autonomy and movements for autonomy; Claims for autonomy: the concerns of states; Secessionist movements; The right to secession: the views of jurists; The right to secession: international law and UN practice; Secessionist attempts: case studies; The right to secession through the right to self-determination? attitudes of states; Conclusions; Index.