A Study On Nation-state Building In The Context Of Multiculture

Nation-state as the basic shape of State in the world, and the basic unit of the world system nowadays, the Nation-state building is the key subject of political science and ethnic politics, which is of great significance not only in theory, but also in reality. Especially in the current context of cultural pluralism, the Nation-state building is a challenging topic, not only related to how to maintain a country's stability and unity, but also to how to establish a fair and just society. Nation-state building in the context of multiculture is the fundamental problem, that a Nation-state anywhere in the world has confronted with. The Nation-state building refers to modern Nation-state in the context of ethnic and cultural diversity, in order to achieve the goal of natonal integration, how to promote national integtation under the political ideas of democracy, and through a series of ethnic policies, measures and institutional arrangements, which ultimately to realize the political, economic, and cultural integtration process in a polyethnic State.In the process of Nation-state building, the specific ethnic policies have undergone a process of inequality to equality, undemocratic to democratic,through the change from racial disrimination policy, assimilaton policy to Multiculturalism policy. In the circumstances of ethno-cultural diversity, only the ethnic policy requirements of the times could achieve the goal of ethnic integration. Nation-state building must deal with the relationship between cultural pluralism and political integration, and the relationship between ethnic identity and national identity. Western scholars proposed a political philosophy called Multiculturalism through the summary of various disadvantages of coordinations of the relations between State and ethnic groups of traditional Liberalism. Multculturalism has brought up a political idea called"Seeking Harmony through Difference", which provides a new choice for the Nation-state to achieve social justice and to coordinate the contradiction between State and ethnic groups, emphasizes to deal with the ethnic issues in a democracy and equal way. These political ideology has satisfied the requirement of national integration of modern democratic countries, and also displayed the progress of human era.Multculturalism has analyzed the social reality of cultural and ethnic diversity, based on which Multiculturalism has demonstrated the legitimacy of minority rights that shows the principles and the tendency in dealing with ethnic and cultural diveristy of Multiculturalism, also shows justice, equality, difference, tolerance and other characteristics of muliculturalism. Because there is an inherent tension between Nation-state building and the self-development of ethnic groups, Multiculturalism considers that only on the basis of maintaining cultural diversity, through a democratic, inculsive ethnic policies which allowed differented citizenship could coordinate the ehnic contradiction and confict caused by Nation-state building.These differented citizenship advocated by Multiculturalism is to give minority groups sepcial rights. Specifically, its request to give minority groups autonomy rights, to establish special representation based on consultative democracy, to set up polyethnic rights and compensation measures, and to implement the multicultural civic education.Multiculturalists hope that through these specific measures by meeting the legitimate claims of ethnic minorities and changing the current social reality of inequality could coordinate the contradiction among national integration and self-development of ethnic groups , and solve the difficult problem of community rights and social justice of political philosophy.In order to coordinate the contradiction between State and ethnic groups in the process of Nation-state building, Canada became the first country to implement muticulturalism policies under the influence of political ideology of Multiculturalism. Only through the study of specific political practice, we can measure the value of Multiculturalism to deal with the problem of ethnic and cultural diversity.Cananda as a polyethnic country, also the first to implement the Multiculturalism policy is undoubtedly the most appropriate object to study. For now, Canadian Multiculturalism policy is successful in general. Therefore, in the context of ethnic and culitural diversity, in order to maintennace the legitimacy of State power, only through democratic and equal ethnic policies could achieve the objective of national integration, coordinate the contradiction between State and ethnic groups, deal with the relationship between national identity and ethnic identity, cultural pluralism and political integration. Through the practice of Multiculturalism in the Nation-state building of Canada, we can see the positive effects that to maintain national unity and political stability, to promote ethnic harmony, at the same time, the nagative effects caused by Multiculturalism also worth consideration. Through the analysis of Multiculturalism in theory and in practice, can be more clear to the pros and cons that is whether Multiculturalism could promote national integration for the purpose of Nation-state building.Thus, we can go beyond the theoretical disputes on Multiculturalism, and provide more complete national integration theory and policy guidance to other countries.For the cultural differences between ethnic groups, a free society should regard the difference between the majority and the minority as normal, in order to give the minority different rights to ensure their equal status, and to recognize and respect their cultural differences, wishing to strengthen national identity through these differented citizenship.The importance of national identity is that it is the foundation of national legitimacy, the key factor to coordinate the relations between State and ethnic group, and the core issue of Nation-state building.These political ideology hopes to enforce Nation-state building and social justice in a harmonious way by admitting the"difference", we must acknowledge its rationality and advancement, but Multiculturalism also has obvious defects that it ignores the"unity"to some extent, which means neglecting the significance of common culture as a cultural band in Nation-state building.To enhance National identity, differented citizenship as a political band cannot be abandoned, a common national culture is also needed, Both are indispensable.Therefore, form a theoretical point of Multiculturalism to analyze the value and path of Nation-state building, to expore a democratic and equal way to coordinate relations between ethnic identity and national identity, also the relations between cultural pluralism and political integration, which could play a positive role for each Nation-state to handle the ethnic conflict and to maintain the political stability and territorial integrity, and eventually to achieve the goal of integration. In theory, we must coordinate the relations between ethnic identity and national identity, cultural pluralism and political integration, which requires ethnic policies changing from the nationalist orientation to the national orientation; enhancing the effectiveness of civil society to coordinate the relations between State and ethnic group; admitting the special rights of ethnic groups in order to achieve ture social equality; strengthening national identity in response to the weakening of the legitimacy of State power; playing a leading role of State to make use of nationalism; strengthening the role of citizenship which is a political band through civic education.Specifically, Nation-state must take the pattern to achieve the goal of Nation-state building which called the integrated framwork that could keep a harmonious relation between pulral cultures and political unity to integrate ethnic groups, through the formation of a nation; consolidation of democratic political system; improvement of economic development; generation of common cultural in any polyethnic State.As a result, a useful theoretical guidance can be found for other Nation-state to maintain national unity and political stability, to achieve national integration, by studying the research made by Multiculturalism of Nation-state building in the context of ethnic and culture diversity. The enlightenment of Multiculturalism is that in the process of Nation-state building, we must coordinate the relations between cultural diversity and political integration, ethnic identity and national identity by putting"cultural diversity"and"political integration"together, respecting for cultural pluralism and take into account both the political unification. For China, these could provide a useful reference for China to coordinate the relations between Nation-state and ethnic group, could further improve and enrich the ethnic regional automomy and the basic national policy of"one nation two systems", and realize the Nation-state building target finally that political, ecomomic and cultural integration. In short, we need to adopt Nationalistic orientation to fully meet the demands of ethnic groups, and let State play a leading role to strengthen national identity, take the integrated framwork that could keep a harmonious relation between pulral cultures and political unity. Coordinate the relationship between cultural pluralism and political integration is not only the need to achieve a fair and just socity, bu also the request to achieve the integration goals of Nation-state building.