The generosity moment: Ethnic politics,democratic consolidation and the state in Yugoslavia (Croatia), South Africa and Czechoslovakia

In the course of regime change in multiethnic societies there arises a critical juncture at which dominant ethnic groups must decide whether to accommodate minorities. Such critical junctures are called ‘generosity moments’. It is hypothesized that a generous, liberal approach towards minorities is the best way to ensure a peaceful transition, earn the democratic consent of minorities, and secure the legitimacy of the state. Competing ideas about the generosity moment are considered, such as the role structural factors play in determining political outcomes and the possibility that generosity will only encourage a series of unappeasable minority demands (the slippery slope thesis). This study finds that the structuring of ethnicity has a relatively stronger causal role to play than leadership variables in determining political outcomes. Czechoslovakia's ethnic structure (that is, homogeneous republics, no historical memory of interethnic war, and the absence of contested borders) inhibited the integrative effects of generosity and instead made possible a slippery slope dynamic. South Africa indicates that generosity can make a difference in some cases, but the more intense, multiple cleavages of Yugoslavia suggests limits to its effectiveness.