Identities and Citizenship: Governing Constitutional Principles

Nasredeen Abdulbari

Harvard Law School

March 28, 2013


Abstract:     
In several states across the globe, the relationship between the state and its cultural, religious, ethnic, and tribal components is still an issue of fierce constitutional and political debate, both at formal and informal levels. A nation’s inability to properly deal with this sensitive question, through abiding by certain constitutional principles, makes it susceptible to instability and insecurity, and probably dichotomy and fragmentation. This article argues that general recognition of diversity in a specific state is not alone enough to guarantee peace and stability for that state. Having a state that is impartial and treats its diverse components equally is a conditio sine qua non of the stability and peacefulness of heterogeneous societies and states. The idea that modern states are not nation-states reflects the necessity of drawing a clear line of distinction between identities and the apparatus of the state that should occupy itself with the higher interests of its components and promote the peaceful co-existence of its diverse groups and elements, on the one hand, and lay down the rules that are essential to its advancement, on the other. The post-colonial history of Sudan unequivocally demonstrates that the country’s successive national governments have failed to do so. If the post-July-9-2011 Sudan is to avoid wars, conflicts, and further fragmentation, then it is necessary for the State to treat its identities equally and reflect such equal treatment in its policies.
Number of Pages in PDF File: 31
Keywords: identities, citizenship, nation-state, diversity, the State, constitution, Sudan

Full text available at: http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2241349