Abstract: Starting from the typology proposed by Michael Walzer in which this author distinguishes between Nation-States and Consociations, this article will analyse two different kinds of politics of recognition of ethno-cultural diversity. It will endeavor to show that despite their considerably disparate historical experiences, practically all the diverse types of governance of cultural diversity in a globalized world have a wide range of problems in regards to a decent recognition of ethno-cultural and linguistic diversity. The comparison between classic Nation-States (like the French and German type) and Consociations (like Switzerland, Canada, Belgium and last but not least Malaysia) intends to highlight in particular that the political agenda (rather liberal-oriented) cannot be exported to plural societies just as the political agenda of plural societies (rather communitarian- and consociational-oriented) cannot be transposed tout court into other societies.
The analysis of the different politics of ethno-cultural diversity based on empirical data and the method of comparison by contrast (thus not a comparison by affinity), which also challenges the soundness of simplistic universalist models of interpretation.
Keywords: Nation-States, Consociation, Cultural Diversity, Politics of Recognition, Multiculturalism, Ethnicity, Plural Societies, Malaysia, Germany, France
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