Is Scotland the only country to want independence?

As we all know, Scotland isn’t independent and remained a part of the United Kingdom. But there are still parts and territories in others countries that would like to have independence too. As a conclusion of this blog and as an “opening” article we would like to focus on them.

In France, for example, one in five residents of Brittany favors independence from France, according to a poll organized by the magazine “Bretons”.

The poll suggested only 18% of residents would support breaking away from France, it nevertheless represented a morale boost for nationalists who secured under  5%  support at the last regional elections.

Isolated from the rest of the country and with a proud maritime tradition, Brittany has strong ties to other parts of Europe's Celtic fringe. Political nationalism seems to be weak, but a distinct Breton cultural identity does exist in the region.

Breton, a Celtic language that is close to Welsh, has enjoyed an increase in recent years after decades of decline.

The poll carried out by the magazine “Bretons” found that 37 % of residents of the region would describe themselves as Breton first, compared with 48 % who would say they are French first.

On the other hand, Spain has been avoiding the demands of independence of the Catalan and Basque institutions and citizens

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Catalonia is a case that should be understood in the context of the t level of social support that has been gained (70%) for independence, which has prompted planning for a potential referendum, pushed by the Catalan Regional Government  and against the will of the Spanish Central Government.

The Basque Country presents a new context, which has evolved very quickly and has created an environment in which a demand for a referendum is bound to a consequence of the overcoming of political violence that dominates the region.  Basque country may have the same difficulties as those faced by Catalonia regarding Spain’s inflexible position on the matter.

Even if these situations are in “status quo” at the moment we can’t say that a possible “Yes” to the Scottish referendum couldn’t have had huge consequences on the other countries’ affairs of independence.. Days after days new countries or parts of countries wanting to be independent add themselves to the list.