The Broken Olive Branch:
Nationalism, Ethnic Conflict, and the Quest for Peace in Cyprus
Volume One: The Impasse of Ethnonationalism
Volume Two: Nationalism Versus Europeanization
Description
At the forefront of its field, The Broken Olive Branch examines the dynamics of ethnonationalism in Cyprus, a country mired in a decades-long struggle fueled by ethnic rivalry. Harry Anastasiou’s analysis of Cyprus’s historic conflict examines the logic of nationalist thinking, assesses the rise of Greek and Turkish nationalism, and traces the division of Greek and Turkish Cypriots since the country won independence from British rule in 1960.
In the first of two volumes, Anastasiou offers a detailed portrait of Cyprus’s dual nationalisms, identifying the ways in which nationalist ideologies have undermined the relations between Greek and Turkish Cypriots. In the context of regional and global conflicts, he demonstrates how the ethnic rivalry was largely engineered by the leaders of each community and consolidated by the nationalist configuration of political culture. Taking a multilevel approach, he maps out the impasse and changes in ethnonationalism over time.
In the second volume, Anastasiou focuses on emergent post-nationalist trends, their implications for peace, and recent attempts to reach mutually acceptable agreements between Greek and Turkish Cypriots. He documents the transformation of Greece, Cyprus, and Turkey within the context of Europeanization and globalization. While leaders of both communities have failed to resolve the conflict, Anastasiou argues that the accession of Cyprus into the European Union has created a structure and process that promises a multiethnic, democratic Cyprus. With great depth and balance, The Broken Olive Branch presents a fresh analysis of the Cyprus conflict and new insights on the influence of nationalism.
Syracuse University Press
http://www.syracuseuniversitypress.syr.edu/fall-2008/broken-olive-branch.html
Editorial reviews
“Few authors would have the multifaceted capacity to produce a work of this breadth and depth, based on a combination of scholarly study and personal immersion in the conflict”
Dr. Ronald J. Fisher, Ph.D.
Professor of International Relations
Director of International Peace and Conflict Resolution School of International Service American University
Washington DC.
“I have read with pleasure, the admirable book, The Broken Olive Branch, by Harry Anastasiou. I was impressed by the author’s synthesis of a comprehensive history of recent events in Cyprus, with his experience in peacebuilding there, as well as with a wide array of relevant literature on nationalism, ethnic relations, and conflict resolution. He provides an enlightening analysis and exposition”.
Dr. Louis Kriesberg, Syracuse University, USA.
Professor Emeritus of Social Conflict Studies,
Founding Director, Program on the Analysis and Resolution of Conflicts
“In this finely crafted book, Professor Harry Anastasiou shares with the reader a multidisciplinary narrative on the origins and perpetuation of the violent inter-ethnic conflict in his native Cyprus. Although himself an "insider," the volume is sensitive to the perspectives of Turkish-Cypriots as well as Greek-Cypriots. Its overarching framework is provided by a compelling analysis of the nature of nationalism and its negative impact on the conflict, framing of the issues (including history), mutual suffering, and interparty communication and negotiation -- rendering it among the most intractable identity-driven conflicts of our times. But Professor Anastasiou does not stop there, as he also provides insights on a way out for his fellow Cypriots and the international community, inclusive of a role for local peace groups and the European Union (EU), which, in view of recent political developments in the island-state, may make new coordinated efforts at conflict transformation and peacebuilding very favorable, indeed. This book is a must-read for policymakers, journalists, researchers, and businesspersons in and outside of Cyprus as well as for university and high school teachers, students, and others concerned with Cyprus and ethnic conflicts in general, especially conflicts (e.g., in Bosnia, Kosovo) for which resolution of the Cypriot conflict could provide a model”.
Dennis J.D. Sandole, Ph.D.
Professor of Conflict Resolution and International Relations
Institute for Conflict Analysis and Resolution (ICAR)
George Mason University, Virginia USA
“Harry Anastasiou has produced an extremely important book for the conflict analysis and resolution (CAR) field because it is the first study that focuses on a wholistic analysis of the Cyprus conflict as well as intervention approaches from a practitioner on the ground with intimidate knowledge of the issues and the actors. I am confident that the book will be used widely both in the CAR field and related social-science fields because it is both practical and engaging”.
Sean Byrne, Arthur Mauro Centre for Peace and Justice,
St. Paul's College, University of Manitoba, Canada.
“Overall, this real-world application of theories and concepts from the academic study of conflict resolution makes a significant and timely contribution to the field. It adds to the literature an in-depth look at a specific protracted conflict, analyzing its complex evolution over time, vividly demonstrating the realities of complex conflict phenomena”.
Dr. Benjamin J. Broome, Arizona State University, USA
Hugh Downs School of Human Communication
“To my knowledge, there is no other book on the Cyprus conflict which so wonderfully offers a rich multidisciplinary understanding of the Cypriot experience. Moreover, it is written with clarity and compassion”.
Dr. Maria Hadjipavlou, University of Cyprus,
Department of Social and Political Sciences
“I read Harry Anastasiou’s two-volume book The Broken Olive Branch, Nationalism, Ethnic Conflict and the Quest for Peace in Cyprus (Syracuse Press, 2008), at a time I had started losing sight of solution prospect. On having read it, I said to myself: As long as there are Cypriots with such a clear mind as the one shown in this book, we cannot lose hope for a leap forward in Cyprus.
Chrysostomos Pericleous, Author and journalist,
Nicosia, Cyprus
Reviews in Media
Full page review of The Broken Olive Branch, Volume I and II, in Cyprus national press. Sunday Mail, Book Reviews, "Ethnonationalism in Cyprus." April, 5, 2009. Pdf