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This article unveils a virtually unknown chapter in the history of judicial diversity in Israel. During its first 20 years of existence, between 1948 and 1968, only three Arab judges were appointed. Then, within two years, between 1968 and 1969, Israel appointed three additional Arab judges. Two interconnected changes account for this small increase in judicial diversity. First, in the 1960s, the Arab legal elite began to exert pressure on Israeli officials to appoint Arab judges. Second, perhaps partly due to this pressure, the Judicial Selection Committee made having a diverse judiciary a top priority. This historical example teaches us that without outside pressure, the Judicial Selection Committee does not look on diversity as an important consideration, using the merit system of appointment as an excuse for its failure. Indeed, up to the present day, the Israeli judiciary has relatively few Arab judges.

The demand for rights to recognition among the indigenous activists in Taiwan was part of a larger movement for democratization before the lifting of martial law and was supported by international concurrence. The transfer of power from the Nationalist Party (KMT) regime to the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) marks a rising consciousness of Taiwanese nationalism. By examining public discourses/rituals and the debates about the organizational reforms, I show how the changing perceptions and status of the indigenous population within the state are used to legitimize the new national identity. By examining the political processes involved in the politics of recognition, on the other hand, I also explore how the indigenous activists exploit to their advantage opportunities that have arisen during the national restructuring.