THE CONCEPT AND PECULIARITIES OF ACTIVITY OF PUBLIC ASSOCIATIONS OF NATIONAL MINORITIES (COMMUNITIES) OF UKRAINE

Abstract

The article is devoted to the study of the concept of «public association of a national minority (community) of Ukraine». The relevance of the study is due to the process of reforming the legislation on national minorities of Ukraine, which is one of the conditions for granting Ukraine the status of a candidate for accession to the European Union. It is noted that public associations of national minorities (communities) are a means of realizing the collective rights of national minorities (communities) of Ukraine, as well as an external form of exercising individual rights to the development of ethnic, cultural, linguistic and religious identity by persons belonging to national minorities (communities) of Ukraine. The author suggests that the public association of the national minority (community) of Ukraine is a voluntary non-profit association of persons who belong to the relevant national minority (community) of Ukraine and/or relevant legal entities under private law, the main purpose of which, according to the charter, is to implement and protect the rights and freedoms of a certain national minority (community) of Ukraine, satisfy its public needs and interests, integrate into Ukrainian society. The Law of Ukraine «On National Minorities (Communities) of Ukraine» has certain shortcomings with regard to public associations of national minorities (communities). The Law does not contain a definition of the concept of “public association of the national minority (community) of Ukraine”, i.e. the formal legal features of such a public association are not defined. The Law does not define the types of public associations of national minorities (communities) that can be formed and carry out their activities in Ukraine. The Law does not give any idea about the procedure for the formation of public associations of national minorities (communities) of Ukraine. The author analyses the rights of public associations of national minorities (communities) defined by the Law and describes some of them, in particular «ceremonial». Taking into account various aspects of the activities of public associations of national minorities (communities), the author proposes criteria by which the effectiveness of such public associations and their reputation can be assessed. The author concludes that the Law of Ukraine «On National Minorities (Communities) of Ukraine» has brought the protection of the rights and freedoms of national minorities (communities) of Ukraine to a new level, and has become another step towards bringing Ukraine’s national legislation in line with international human rights standards, but shortcomings such as legal uncertainty necessitate the improvement of the Law by introducing certain amendments to it.