The Road to Sorrow: From State Crime to State Apology

Abstract

THE ROAD TO SORROW State Apologies and why they -and why they don't- happen MASTER'S THESIS ABSTRACT SPECIFIC RESEARCH QUESTION & HYPOTHESIS WHY IS THIS RESEARCH HERE CONCLUSIONS PREPARED BY MIGUEL MOLINA THESIS ADVISOR RNDr. JAN KOFROŇ, PH.D. METHODOLOGY CASE SELECTION RESULTS ANALYSIS WINTER 2017 Following the revelations of the process tracing and case comparison, it can be summarized that for an apology to happen, the most important factor is a measure of domestic pressure into apologizing: by the government, by local institutions or by the media. How big the crime was, how bit the economic opportunities are seem to be less relevant as long as there is a willingness to apologize. State apologies seem to be having a moment. they have become a tool for politicking that goes beyond the expression of remorse. It has been cited as crucial to the betterment of foreign relations and as a key foreign policy tool. The author is looking to contribute to the understanding of the process of state apologies and contribute to the field of Geopolitics of Peace, a field that Megoran (2013) calls often ignored. The main research question is to discover why State Apologies happen in some cases and they don't in others. The methodology chosen was Process Tracing through the development of case studies. The methodology...