Is nationalism in our times a progressive or a reactionary force?

During the colonial era nationalism was a progressive movement that sought to do away with hegemony—the domination of one people by another.

The decolonization struggles of the late 1940s the 1950s and the 1960s have very nearly freed the world of colonies. Today there are only a handful of occupied territories in the world. In these areas only nationalism remains a necessary revolutionary force.

Everywhere else in the world nationalism is now a reactionary move­ment that perpetuates the divisive fragmentation of humanity.

In the age of regional groupings—common markets—global corporations—a global financial market—global telecommunication the nation state is an anachronism. It is an anachronism with distinct dis­advantages.

As the members of the West European Common Market (EEC) have learned the surest way a nation can grow economically and assert po­litical influence in today's world is through integration with neighboring states.

The EEC which in the late 1950s and the 1960s was laughed at as unworkable—is now a powerful economic and political entity moving toward ever-closer integration.

There are other such integrationist movements all over the planet. COMCON in Eastern Europe. The 22-nation Arab Common Market. The 14-nation West African group. The Southeast Asian group called ASEAN. The fledgling South Pacific Common Market—comprising Australia—New Zealand—several nearby islands. The Andean Group made up of five South American nations.

Even the United States—Canada—Mexico are this very day locked together in countless economic and regional interconnections from which none of the three can any longer disengage.

The degree of success of regional groupings varies. But the fact is that there is a persistent trend everywhere to break out of the limitations of the nation state.

Subcontinentalism—continentalism—globalization—these are the progressive movements of our times. They run concurrently reinforcing one another.

Date: 2015-02-28; view: 741