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The most disturbing debate that many unwitting vandals engage in is about the difference between identity and citizenship and which takes precedence over the other!
There are many views on this, but generally speaking, identity consists of multiple dimensions, including national identity. Personal identity describes one’s cultural, tribal, ethnic and linguistic affiliation, etc., while national identity encompasses everything, but it provides a set of legal and equal rights and obligations. With a few exceptions, citizenship is not based on race or ancestry.
In modern times, citizenship can be obtained through assimilation, marriage, investment, or even a lottery, as in the United States and other countries.
A nation is an entity to which a group of people belong, and to which others may join, as long as legal or traditional requirements are met. A nation can be made up of a specific or different ethnic group. It has a set of laws, rights, and obligations that are equally distributed to all. Importantly, a nation is centered around ideals that all citizens believe in. They benefit equally from the protection, economic, and legal rights it provides—like a company owned by all citizens.
It is generally accepted that a person cannot have conflicting loyalties to different nations; in many cases, siding with the “enemy” could be considered treason. However, the details must be clearly spelled out in a constitution or relevant legal charter to protect citizens’ rights from being violated by the government. If one part of a nation subjugates any of its members and controls its power and resources, then all will face instability and violence. A nation’s resources must be shared equally by all citizens, both politically and economically. Sometimes nations impose language or ethnic values on certain groups, which can lead to fascism.
In the postmodern era, citizens of any country, regardless of their social background (identity), have nationality.
Note: This is a summary of my Tigrinya lecture on Negarit 273, link is below
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