As societies do not exist without a moral order shared by all and stipulated by the democratically elected legislative power, every society’s moral principles and concepts have to be reflected in the politics, the practices of the political life in its entirety.

Politics without Moral Order: Utter Barbarism

Certainly not all the societies feature the same high moral standards at all times; to use terms used in the discipline of History, we should call this situation ‘decadence’, ‘sociopolitical disintegration’, ‘decay’ or ‘fall’; it actually characterizes the end phases of earlier civilized societies.

Representative and or totalitarian, monarchical, communist or republican, no political establishment escapes from this, as decay and fall may at a certain moment characterize any society.

The inception of the international or global community is a modern phenomenon that pertains precisely to fundamental moral concepts and principles as diffused and prevalent everywhere. The rise of the concept of Crime against the Mankind (which did not exist in the Antiquity of the Christian and Islamic Ages) hinges on moral and philosophical considerations; the term encompasses flagrant violations of moral codes that are common to, valid for, and accepted in (and by) all societies.

We cannot therefore dissociate the proclamation of Kosova’s independence, the international recognition of the country, and its entrance in the UN and other international bodies from fundamental political considerations of purely moral character.

This becomes clear in the light of terms used by those who deny Kosova the right to formal independence; moral particularly, the Russian president called Western countries’ support to Kosova as 'immoral and illegal'! The outgoing Russian leader, who may soon feel absolutely comfortable in the shoes of the future Russian prime minister, went on accusing the European countries of their double standards, and saying that they should be "ashamed" (http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/feb/14/kosovo.russia).

What is moral, and what is legal in politics, and subsequently in international politics? Confronted with conflicting ideas, clashing concepts, and opposite principles, one has to identify the most fundamental elements of the Moral Philosophical Order from which all the other commonly accepted moral values have derived.

Proceeding so, one defines Humanism and the Human Values, as conceived, analyzed and systematized by the Renaissance and the Classicist philosophers, as the foundations of today’s international Moral Order and Code.

Humanism, People, Nation and State

At the epicenter of the focus of our civilization, and cornerstone of its integrity is the Human Being; human freedom and dignity, equity and justice, equality, tolerance, altruism and respect for the other are epigrammatically the pillars of our world. The seminal importance of the Human Being within our system of values is extended to the human society, and every ethnic, linguistic and religious group that self defines itself according to their specific cultural and national identity.

Thus, the importance of the Human Being is transferred to the ‘People’, a large group of human beings sharing common origin, language, culture and religion. Viewed diachronically, a ‘people’ is called ‘nation’. The latter term was repeatedly confused with the state, the organization setup by a people in order to provide infrastructure for organized social life.

This created a great confusion; states (also called nations, as we said) antedate the rise of our modern world, and the Renaissance humanist philosophers. But states (nations) at the end of the Christian and Islamic Ages were not conceived in the same way as today. The concept of the nation at those days hinged on the feudal and imperial systems. A nation was personified by a feudal lord, and/or an emperor. With the rise of the Absolutism and the Absolute Monarchy, the same word took a markedly different meaning, and this was exemplarily highlighted by the notorious statement of the Roi Soleil, Louis XIV, "L’ état, c’ est moi" (I am the State/Nation).

The concordance between ‘people’ and ‘nation’ is a later philosophical conclusion, and as debate it dates back to the 18th century, representing the epitome of Enlightenment; it was formed under strong classicist impact, and in opposition to the respective Medieval or Renaissance concepts. However, the rise of Romanticism, as a rejection of the Classicism and as a nostalgia for aspects of the Renaissance world, brought about Romanticism, a system with incredibly rich and complex ramifications one of which was Nationalism, one more connotation of the already rich in nuances word.

At the times the International Law was emerging as concept and approach, ‘nation’ was identified with ‘people’ for some philosophers and intellectuals, whereas for others nation was the supposedly apparent organization of a people into a system, namely the state. The importance of the state was practically undeniable as the two world wars were triggered, undertaken and won by states, despite the participation of vast masses. When the UN initiative was launched during WW II, few would react to the equation of the nation with the state. With the rise and the fall of the Soviet block the equation prevailed for long.

Today, we cannot afford to stick to the aforementioned obsolete, trivial, and utterly anti-democratic equation. The fall of the Soviet regimes demonstrated clearly that, if a society is democratically organized, the equation of the nation with the state does not occur at the prejudice of the sovereign people. But if the society is not democratically organized, and the administration does not reflect the will of the people, the state is a mechanism of oppression.

And the original fact, value, and concept is the ‘People’; the ‘state’ exists as a derivative value and concept. The value of a state is relative; it consists in mere reflection of the value of the people, under the condition of representativeness, involving democratic elections and genuine and accurate reflection of the popular will.

National Sovereignty and Territorial Integrity

Consequently, the principles of national sovereignty and territorial integrity have to be considered as applicable and valid only in case of democratic states reflecting as best possible the will of the indigenous people (nation) or peoples (nations).

National sovereignty is to be considered as sovereignty exercised by an individual national group organized as a democratic society; national sovereignty is the privilege of a people (historically viewed as a nation) – not of a state. The privilege is transferred to the state, only in case the state genuinely and accurately reflects the will of the indigenous people (nation).

National sovereignty cannot be exercised by one specific nation over another nation, as this would automatically imply servility and voluntary submission, attitudes that contradict the human nature.

National sovereignty can be shared between two nations under condition of internationally recognized, democratically expressed agreement (referendum); however, even in this case the cohabitation of the two nations has to be evident at the level of the administration, the political life, the educational; system, the free market, and the armed forces.

When therefore we refer to the principles of national sovereignty and territorial integrity, we can only accept them as correctly valid, conforming to Humanism and Enlightenment, if applied in an independent nation, not an independent state that may comprise more than one nations, eventually oppressing one or more.

Serb national sovereignty is for Serbs – only!

The sovereignty of Serbs is therefore a moral value as long as it is applied to Serbs and not to Kosovars, Sanjakis, Voivodinians (term regrouping several non-Serb nations cohabitating in Voivodina), Macedonians, Albanians, Bulgarians and Greeks. If for any reason Serb national sovereignty is exercised over another nation – without that nation’s explicit consent –, this consists in a tyranny and it should be abolished.

Subsequently, the territorial integrity of Serbia consists in a value as long as it encompasses Serbs; any effort to include another, unwilling, nation within the Serb territory is barbarism as it takes us back to the primitive hordes of the Neolithic. The sooner this becomes clear to nationalist – chauvinist Serbs the better. No national rule can be maintained over other nations anymore.

In this regard, the fundamental concepts of Humanism and Enlightenment have prevailed in the case of Kosova’s formal independence, which is a Great Moral Victory for the undeservedly persecuted Kosovars, as well as for many oppressed and tyrannized nations allover the world.

Kosova’s formal independence heralds a great perspective for Trans-Dniestr, the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, as well as Sanjak and Voivodina in the gradually fading tyranny of Serbia. Furthermore, Kosovo announces a promising future for other oppressed peoples in Balkans, notably the Turks and the Macedonians of Bulgaria, and the Hungarians of Transylvania. As a matter of fact, Kosova opens the way for Catalonia, Corsica, the Bask country, Galicia, Occitania, Brittany, and Scotland.

By Prof. Dr. Muhammad Shamsaddin Megalommatis

Comments (7)

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Lawrence Dafinescu said:

	... Why were the etnic Albanians in Kosovo opressed by the current Serbia government, what rights did they ask for, and the current Serbian government would not grant? Same question for the Hungarians in Transylvania and the current Romanian government. Thank you.
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February 23, 2008
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Prof. Muhammad Shamsaddin Megalommatis said:

The Macedonian minority of Bulgaria Thank you for your comments and diverse opinions. I understand that anyone can perceive the verb 'to demonize' differently; personally, bringing back in my memory the inhuman attitude of the Serbs toward the Albanians of Kosova in 1998 - 1999, I do not think that a single writer, journalist, politician and diplomat in the world has ever said anything to demonize the Serbs. So appalling their racist, anti-Albanian deeds were.... However, there is another point of the utmost falsification, and I want to focus thereon. Christian said: "there's about 3,000 self-styled Macedonians in Bulgaria". This is utter forgery, and pseudo-history geared to destroy peace and fuel chauvinist policies and nationalistic wars in the Balkans. There are about 220-250.000 Macedonians in Pirin and Bulgaria. Many among them were displaced by force, which proves that there are internally displace people in Bulgaria. What an achievement for a EU member state! A great Anti-Nazi leader and Communist statesman of Bulgaria, Georgi Dimitrov, was Macedonian. There were several Macedonian organizations in Pirin in the past but now have consolidated under OMO Ilinden Pirin. Narodna Volja (the People’s Will) is another. In this regard, please visit: http://www.narodnavolja.com/, and http://www.omoilindenpirin.org/. OMO Ilinden PIRIN is the main political party of the Macedonian minority in Bulgaria. It was registered as a political party in 1999 and participated in municipal elections in October 1999, where it elected five local officials. However, on February 29, 2000 , the Constitutional Court in Bulgaria declared OMO "Ilinden" - PIRIN unconstitutional. This was in direct violation of the right to freedom of association and the right to freedom from discrimination. The Bulgarian government refuses to acknowledge the existence of the large Macedonian minority in Pirin Macedonia, and continues to violate its basic human rights. Members and supporters of OMO Ilinden PIRIN (political party and human rights organization) and OMO Ilinden (human and minority rights organization) have been videotaped, harassed, beaten, fined, and even imprisoned simply for asserting their ethnic Macedonian identity. This is the historical truth about the real (not self-styled) Macedonians of Bulgaria, and the EU will have to face the issue in the years ahead.

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February 22, 2008 | url
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Prof. Muhammad Shamsaddin Megalommatis said:

The Macedonians in Bulgaria Thank you for your comments and diverse opinions. I understand that anyone can perceive the verb 'to demonize' differently; personally, bringing back in my memory the inhuman attitude of the Serbs toward the Albanians of Kosova in 1998 - 1999, I do not think that a single writer, journalist, politician and diplomat in the world has ever said anything to demonize the Serbs. So appalling their racist, anti-Albanian deeds were.... However, there is another point of the utmost falsification, and I want to focus thereon. Christian said: "there's about 3,000 self-styled Macedonians in Bulgaria". This is utter forgery, and pseudo-history geared to destroy peace and fuel chauvinist policies and nationalistic wars in the Balkans. There are about 220-250.000 Macedonians in Pirin and Bulgaria. Many among them were displaced by force, which proves that there are internally displace people in Bulgaria. What an achievement for a EU member state! A great Anti-Nazi leader and Communist statesman of Bulgaria, Georgi Dimitrov, was Macedonian. There were several Macedonian organizations in Pirin in the past but now have consolidated under OMO Ilinden Pirin. Narodna Volja (the People’s Will) is another. In this regard, please visit: http://www.narodnavolja.com/, and http://www.omoilindenpirin.org/. OMO Ilinden PIRIN is the main political party of the Macedonian minority in Bulgaria. It was registered as a political party in 1999 and participated in municipal elections in October 1999, where it elected five local officials. However, on February 29, 2000 , the Constitutional Court in Bulgaria declared OMO "Ilinden" - PIRIN unconstitutional. This was in direct violation of the right to freedom of association and the right to freedom from discrimination. The Bulgarian government refuses to acknowledge the existence of the large Macedonian minority in Pirin Macedonia, and continues to violate its basic human rights. Members and supporters of OMO Ilinden PIRIN (political party and human rights organization) and OMO Ilinden (human and minority rights organization) have been videotaped, harassed, beaten, fined, and even imprisoned simply for asserting their ethnic Macedonian identity. This is the historical truth about the real (not self-styled) Macedonians of Bulgaria, and the EU will have to face the issue in the years ahead.

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February 22, 2008 | url
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christian said:

oprressed minorities? "Furthermore, Kosovo announces a promising future for other oppressed peoples in Balkans, notably the Turks and the Macedonians of Bulgaria, and the Hungarians of Transylvania." Are you crazy? The Turks in Bulgaria are part of the ruling coalition, and there's about 3,000 self-styled Macedonians in Bulgaria. Not to mention that the Hungarians in Romania are pretty well off as well... An ethnic minority DOES NOT equal an oppressed minority.

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February 22, 2008 | url
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Jannsunq said:

... The Serbians have been demonised in this conflict, but when you look at the statistics (ratio of Serbs and Albanians at different points in the 20th century and today), of course it’s a different story. Not to mention the obvious fact that 200 000 Serbs have not been able to return to their homes just from the last big conflict alone, and the population of ethnic Albanians is larger then ever. Go figure, with all this alleged ethnic cleansing, the picture is seems odd… The problem for Serbia is that it never had a good politician. A good politician is a whore. It’s as simple as that. But Serbian politicians (with the notion of pride which doesn’t get you far the way it may have, a few hundred years ago) tend to stick their noses up every time, irritating the big powers, and so their people suffer. But Kosovo is historically Serbian. Actually no one even denies that! (well there’s a new ethnic Albanian rhethoric which is trying to promote the notion of being descendants of the Illyrian people who lived there before 6 cen.- but the truth seems that Illyrian peoples lived all accross the Balkans and were assimilated with Slavs, except for the Albania proper, which has little to do with Kosovo.) Well, I’m sure no side is innocent, it’s always like that, but one thing that we always fail to realise, is that there is something like a collective unconscious for groups of people, which is a result of the suffering of the ancestors that makes a mark on their psyche. After watching a part of the programming of the Serb rally today (the main, peaceful part in front of the big Orthodox cathedral, which got no coverage of course...), it was so obvious that this is not just a matter of nationalism (which Serbia has a problem with and needs to learn to deal with), but in ESSENCE, it is a matter of a deep spiritual connection to their past, part of their unconscious which will haunt them for ages until they feel justice is served. The historic battle in which they lost so many to the Ottoman invaders in 1389 is history, but with centuries it also becomes like a myth that acts on their psyche and creates a group ’soul’ so to say. The more a group suffers, the stronger their unconscious connection becomes. Jewish people are probably the greatest example. Serbs with their endless troubles are up there too. And so the problem is far from over. It is going to resurface again and again, possibly igniting a bigger world conflict that may already be cooking anyway etc. Do we never learn from history?

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February 22, 2008
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Damon said:

Will Kosovo lead the way? Will Kosovo lead the way in recognizing those states that have had their independnece denied for so long? Taiwan, Somaliland, Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, Transdnista are asking for that which Kosovo is receiving. With TRNC President Mehmet Ali Talat acknowledging the UDI so soon after the historic proclaimation, Kosovo does have a moral duty to help others that were in her situation. May the foreign poliy of the Republic of Kosovo be progressive, and not tied down by hypocritical international realpolitik...

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February 22, 2008
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Alex said:

Great article... ...but you forgot (intentionally or not) to mention Serb minority within "independet Kosovo", who does not want to live under tyranicall oppresion of the Albaninas. And, also, you forgot to mention Serbs in the Republic of Srpska, who do not want to live in Bosnia-Hetzegovina. Does your "fundamental concepts of Humanism and Enlightenment" could be applied to them? If your answer is "yes, it does", then you've got youself a deal! You could take rest of the Kosovo with you!

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February 22, 2008
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