Ethnic Minorities and Language Rights: The State, Identity and Culture in International Legal Discourse

Abstract

This paper focuses on a particular aspect of ethnicity, namely language. It proceeds from the insight that language is a key element of ethnic identity and culture, and is often a focal point for ethnic conflict In this context, particular reference is made to the prohibition on the use of Kurdish language in Turkey, which is seen by the Kurdish minority as part of a broader project of assimilation and repression of ethnic Kurds. The paper considers the role which international law can play in protecting ethnic minorities such as the Kurds in this context, through protecting their rights to use their own language. I argue that, by granting minorities certain ‘language rights’, international law has significant potential to advance the claims of minorities in this area. However, the conceptual framework within which these rights are interpreted and applied may limit the extent to which this potential is realised. In particular, the concepts of the state, identity and culture, which are central to the evaluation of language issues, are more complex than legal analysis generally allows. As a result, the bodies responsible for applying international law tend to ignore the constructed and contested nature of these concepts, and thus tend not to engage with the power relations involved in the construction of the state and the status of different languages, cultures and identities. This undermines the potential of international law to protect the interests of ethnic groups such as the Kurds, as it tends to perpetuate existing power relations and to ‘fix’, rather than liberate, ethnic identities and cultures. In order for international law to better protect ethnic culture and identity, through the protection of language rights, moves within international law to reconceptualise the state, identity and culture need to be encouraged.