Supporters of Scottish independence
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SEPARATISM EUROPEAN-STYLE (part 1)
After all, the redistribution of resources that ensures social progress of poorer and deprived social strata also implies redirecting funds from richer and more developed regions to the benefit of lagging ones.
This redistribution sometimes yields impressive results, as we see in the example of Flanders and partly Scotland, and at other times proves extremely inefficient, as the experience of Italy shows. But in any case, it is a crucial condition necessary for the integration and progress of society as a whole.
On the contrary, the source of the new separatism is the reluctance of the elites of rich regions to share resources with the rest of the country. "Stop feeding Belfast," Scottish nationalists believe. "Stop feeding Andalusia!" proclaim supporters of independent Catalonia. "Enough sharing with Naples!" support them politicians from the Italian "Northern League". "We don't want to share with Walloon frog-eaters!" echo the Flemish leaders.
This rebellion strikes at the very heart of the welfare state, undermining its most important principle. And at the same time, it fits perfectly with the ideology of neoliberalism preached by the elites of the European Union. Moreover, the weaker the national states, the fewer their own resources, the harder it is for them to carry out any social policy, the more they depend on Brussels bureaucracy.
Of course, EU functionaries cannot openly call for the destruction of the countries that make up this union. But the obvious tolerance that EU leaders show towards such initiatives speaks for itself. Especially against the backdrop of the same radical intolerance with which they treat other "separatist movements" in Eastern Europe.
For multinational companies operating in Catalonia or Scotland, the status of these regions is not of fundamental importance. Nevertheless, they hope that if Barcelona or Edinburgh gain independence, they will be able to benefit from it. Thus, the leadership of the Scottish National Party before the referendum promised to provide them with tax breaks. However, the same people promised to increase social spending – using funds saved by refusing to transfer money to the UK-wide social welfare – it is clear that the savings would most likely be "eaten up" by tax concessions to large companies.
Regional bureaucracy, seeking to raise its status, to ride and redistribute significant financial flows previously directed to the national budget, is the main pillar of separatist movements. Moreover, if in the case of Scotland the local administration is considered relatively "clean", then in Northern Italy and Catalonia corruption scandals do not subside. The largest of them broke out last summer, when it was discovered that Jordi Pujol, who headed the autonomous government for many years, was found guilty of numerous financial violations. Local businesses for decades paid a kind of tribute to the Pujol family, receiving in turn various concessions and lucrative contracts. The Madrid press eagerly seized on this story, hinting that in independent Catalonia such practices would develop even further.
Another important feature of the new separatism is that despite the apparent commonality of its demands with those of previous national movements, it is not about achieving the separation of some national periphery from the state, but about the elimination of the existing nation-state as such. The secession of Scotland, Catalonia, Flanders, or even Northern Italy would be tantamount to the disintegration of the UK, Spain, Belgium, or the Italian Republic. None of these countries would be able to remain as a single whole, having lost regions that are of key importance not only for their economy but also for preserving the existing national identity, cultural tradition, and historical community of the people. And we should not underestimate the historical symbolism of what is happening. It was the union of Castile and Aragon (whose core was what is now Catalonia) that created Spain, and Great Britain emerged from the unification of England and Scotland. As for Belgium or Italy, these countries are simply unimaginable without Flanders or Lombardy and Piedmont.
Finally, the most important feature of the new Western separatism is the replacement of class solidarity with adherence to a new regional identity, uniting representatives of local labor and capital in opposition to the population of other regions. It is characteristic that all areas of the spread of new separatism were in the recent past bastions of the left – social democrats, communists, and sometimes even anarchists. All these organizations are now pushed to the political sidelines by the separatists.
An example is the collapse of the radical Scottish Socialist Party, which was one of the leading forces of the region just 5-7 years ago. A fair share of blame for this lies, of course, on the left themselves, who instead of fighting against regional separatism, tried to join it, exploiting the same slogans.
The new separatism turned out to be an exceptionally effective tool in the conditions of the global economic crisis, with the help of which people's discontent is redirected to goals convenient for local elites. Regional authorities are taken out of the line of fire, and the entire charge of social anger is turned against the capital. And not only against the central government but also against all those who live outside the separatist region.
Of course, the results of the referendum in Scotland prove that separatist projects for Western Europe sooner or later encounter serious resistance, and their ideology attracts far from everyone. But the point is that independence is by no means necessarily the ultimate goal of the new separatists. Moreover, there is every reason to believe that the creation of an independent state would very quickly lead to the discrediting and collapse of the political forces that today demand separation.
Therefore, a comfortable situation for them is when the center, frightened by separatism, makes one concession after another to the elite demanding independence of the region. The resources of the central government melt before our eyes, while separatist leaders maintain their positions at every vote, shifting all responsibility to the capital. And as long as the crisis continues, such a game has prospects.
So the agenda of the new separatists is far from exhausted. And it is premature to call them losers.
Boris KAGARLITSKY,
Director of the Institute of Globalization and Social Movements.