Liberal Multiculturalism and Nation Building

Does not the sun shine equally for the whole world? Do we not all equally breathe the air? Do you not feel shame at authorizing only three languages and condemning other people to blindness and deafness? Tell me, do you think that God is helpless and cannot bestow equality, or that he is envious and will not give it?" Constantine the Philosopher (Cyril), 9th Century A.D Liberal egalitarian theory can support minority rights and is therefore, well equipped to deal with problems of a multiethnic nature. Promoting culture through minority rights is a human interest that should be legitimately taken into account in public decision making. A nation-building process that is sensitive to demands by ethnocultural minorities follows from arguments about equality and the importance of national identity and cultural membership for the individuals of minority cultures. Although, regrettably, in the real world the implementation of the liberal theory does not solve these problems, since existing states do not fully apply the ideals of the liberal theory, it is important to understand that the failures of implementation do not do not show that the theory is deficient.

Autorentext

Zhidas Daskalovski holds a PhD from the Political Science Department, Central European University. He has published numerous scholarly articles on politics in the Southeast European region, as well as co-edited books including: Understanding the War in Kosovo (Frank Cass: London, 2003) and Ten Years after the Ohrid Framework Agreement(FES 2012.)