Moffitt, MichaelWickramasekera, Amanda2016-10-272016-10-27https://hdl.handle.net/1794/20542Ethnic groups fear of marginalization has triggered a number of secessionist movements, which have often resulted in long and destructive conflicts that threaten international peace and human life. Scholars have written about domestic and international explanations as factors that can affect the outcome of secession (Bert 2004, Dion 1996, Hechter 1992, Aspinall and Berger 2001, Horowitz 1985, Santos 2007). I argue that in a secessionist movement, if one or more bodies of the United Nations apply pressure on the host state, then it improves the prospect of a favorable outcome for the secessionist movement.  I will focus on the international explanations as factors that can affect the outcome of secession by using South Sudan and Tamil Eelam as case studies.en-USAll Rights Reserved.Electronic Thesis or Dissertation