System Of Minority Protection Research Articles

The Bilingualism Bonus in Socialist Slovenia: Domestic Policy or Diplomatic Prestige?

Abstract The objective of the article is to establish why a financial bonus for Slovenian–Italian bilingualism was introduced in the District of Koper (comprising today’s Slovenian municipalities of Ankaran, Koper, Izola and Piran), which came under Yugoslav rule after 1954. Using Brubaker’s triadic nexus concept and analysis of newly discovered archival sources, the authors found that (a) on the federal level, Yugoslavia only focused on minority protection as much as it was required to by international agreements and treaties, (b) the Italian minority itself was not a relevant actor in the Yugoslav system of minority protection, (c) Italy had a marginal role in the process of protecting the Italian minority in Yugoslavia, and (d) the political elite in Yugoslavia introduced the bilingualism bonus to encourage the integration of the Italian minority when building a new (socialist) sociopolitical order. The Slovenian-Italian bilingualism bonus was therefore not an altruist measure directed at minority protection, but rather a self-serving measure by the authorities to reinforce their power.

"Concept of Minority and Minority Rights in International Law: An Assessment"

In international law, the term ―minority‖ remained a contested concept for a prolong period. Various authors and scholars have also defined the term in different ways depending on specific situations. The concept of minority and minority rights also remained neglected in the earlier phase of the United Nations. For many years, the UNs only focused of individual human rights, neglecting the minority protection system of its predecessor, the League of Nations. Lack of precise and accepted definition in international law led the UNs revert to its idea of only promoting individual human rights and took an interest in long ignored idea of group and minority rights. This paper attempts to define the concept of minority and minority rights in international law. It also focuses on origin of international protection of minority rights. The paper discusses the steps taken by the United Nations and other regional organizations in defining the concept in order to set universal standards for the protection and promotion of rights of minorities.

The heritage of the League of Nations’ minority protection system

AbstractThis paper discusses the system of minority protection of the League of Nations. Minority protection occupied a prominent place on the League’s agenda, which developed a significant expertise in the field. The League’s system of minority protection is often regarded as an experiment. With regard to both material and procedural aspects this assessment is certainly correct. In particular, minority protection based upon legally binding treaties and declarations gave rise to the question of how individual and group rights should be treated within the frame of an international political organization. The paper further examines whether at least some of the elements of the League’s minority protection system still persist in the context of contemporary international human rights law.

The Impact of Board Characteristics on Audit Quality, Evidence-based on Listed Firms in Ghana

This paper examines board characteristics' impact on audit quality, evidence from Ghana Stock Exchange. The study employed a panel regression model to examine the effect of board characteristics (board size, board independence, gender diversity, and CEO duality) on audit quality (DAC) for the period of 2012 to 2019 for twenty-five (25) listed firms in Ghana. The regression analysis results revealed that board size, board independence, and board gender diversity have a positive relationship with audit quality by reducing discretionary accruals. In contrast, a negative relationship was recorded between CEO duality and audit quality in the form of an increase in discretionary accruals. The shareholder accountability system and minority protection system in most enterprises in Ghana seem to exist only but need more improvement. Therefore, it is recommended that a more independent board of directors is appointed and also the engagement of auditors from the big4 audit firms to provide quality audit reports.

Drawing Borders and Protecting Minorities in a Post-Imperial World: Legal Conflicts and the League of Nations’ Minority Protection Regime

This article explores the twin issues of autonomy and minorities in a world of residual empire, nationalism, and emerging nation-States that shaped the period after the First World War. From a primarily historical perspective, it delineates the general context of the newly established international political and legal order under the auspices of the League of Nations, and outlines the system’s premises and potential, its pitfalls and shortcomings, especially with regard to the late- and post-imperial make-up of continental Europe. Three case studies of politico-legal conflicts and challenges typical for the period form the article’s empirical backbone: the case of the Bohemian and Moravian Germans in the context of the Versailles peace process, the Finnish-Swedish dispute over the Åland Islands, and the abortive application for recognition and membership in the League of Nations by the Iroquois in 1923 and 1924. Taken together, these examples of international political and legal dispute illustrate both the promise and potential, and the inconsistencies and paradoxes, of an emerging internationalist system of conflict resolution and minority protection. In line with recent historiography, the article stresses the necessity of revisiting the League and its institutions beyond the previously dominant paradigm of failure. Through the prism of its minority protection system, the League’s influence on the political and institutional establishment of procedures and practices becomes particularly tangible. Most of what the League institutions created as a toolbox of internationalist governance has thereby remained with us until today, whilst the minorities for whom it was devised are, sadly, mostly gone: legal and administrative procedure, international supervision and mediation, enforceable minority rights and protections in terms of autonomy regulations, plebiscites, federative solutions or partitions as vehicles, and resources of legitimacy.

How Fluid is the Special Statute of Autonomy of Trentino Alto Adige/South Tyrol? The influence of the Court of Justice of the EU, the Council of Europe and the Italian Constitutional Court on the Process of Implementation

This article intends to examine the different legal and institutional factors that have contributed to the fluidity of the minority protection system in Trentino Alto Adige/South Tyrol, referring to the contribution of the EU, the Council of Europe and constitutional jurisprudence. To do so, it focuses on the main principles governing minority protection. To what extent have these factors succeeded in correcting the rigidities inherent in the Statute of Autonomy? The article analyses the evolution of the jurisprudence of the Court of Justice of the EU that has redefined some principles of the Statute of Autonomy, the contribution of the Council of Europe and the jurisprudence on census, quotas and membership of linguistic groups, the legal principles guiding the education system and, finally, the influence of the Italian constitutional jurisprudence on the concept of closed farmyard (‘maso chiuso’/‘Der geschlossene Hof’). In the conclusions, the article highlights how openness to the EU and the European context has contributed to the fluidity of the system and protected the prerogatives of new groups that are emerging alongside the three traditional language groups, such as bilingual people and new minorities (immigrants). These developments and the new needs of society must be taken into account in the reform of the new Statute as a new social pact.

Investigating the Role of Permanent Court of International Justice in the Development of International Minority Protection System

Minority rights are increasingly recognized as an integral part of the United Nations' strategy towards the promotion and protection of human rights, sustainable human development, and peace and security. Permanent Court of International Justice (hereinafter PCIJ), has played a pivotal and determinative role in interpreting and developing international legal framework concerned with the protection of minorities. Interestingly, the related material of some highly significant human rights instruments such as International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, Convention on the Rights of the Child, Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities as well as the 1992 UN Declaration on the Rights of Persons belonging to Ethnic, National, Religious and Linguistic Minorities is based on and built upon the case law of PCIJ regarding minorities and their rights. Views and precedent of PCIJ in this regard could be regarded a reliable foundation for the protection of minorities and promotion of their rights within the framework of UN and other relevant international and regional mechanisms. Accordingly, following PCIJ's opinions and precedent as to minority rights can pave the way for an evolution in protection of these groups through specific binding international instruments. The present study, through a descriptive-analytic approach, attempts to investigate the role of PCIJ in development of international minority protection system.

Romania, the Paris Peace Conference and the Protection System of “Race, Language and Religion” Minorities—A Reassessment

In 1919, Ion I. C. Brătianu, the Romanian Prime Minister and head of his country’s delegation at the Paris Peace Conference, vehemently opposed the establishment of a system of minority protection and preferred to resign rather than agreeing to sign the treaty by which the Romanian state accepted such obligations. Romania was finally a founding member of the League of Nations and a participant from the very beginning in the protection system of the minorities “of race, language and religion” endorsed by the organization. In spite of the genuine enthusiasm that the leaders in Bucharest showed to the general targets of the League, the issue of minorities’ protection remained a delicate subject. Romanian and foreign historians dealt extensively with this topic, but a fresh view based on new archival findings and a balanced approach is necessary.

Avant-garde or Supplement? Advisory Bodies of Transnational Associations as Alternatives to the League's Minority Protection System, 1919–1939

This exegesis focuses on the work of minority committees of transnational associations in the interwar period. Most of their members considered the League system to be inefficient and supported the establishment of non-state alternatives, which included private investigations on the spot, publicity for specific problems of minorities, and attempts to reconcile representatives of ethnic minorities with those of the majority. Members of non-involved states were pre-destined especially to act as neutral moderators. Only those in close contact with League officials avoided being misused by political forces that did not seek reconciliation but border revision. They learnt that the League rules looked inadequate from the outside but turned out to be useful in coming to applicable solutions once they started their own alternative methods. Their publications and investigative journeys turned out to deepen the problems, whilst their reconciliation work became an appreciated supplement of the League system.

The League of Nations and the Protection of Minorities – Rediscovering a Great Experiment

After World War I the far-reaching border changes in Europe created a large number of new minorities. As a consequence, special protection measures had to be introduced. With the League of Nations’ minority protection system an extraordinary experiment was started. After World War II this system was largely ignored and fell into oblivion. In the past all too easily the minorities themselves were held responsible for the failure of this system. In this context it is often said that minorities behaved in a disloyal manner and therefore it was at least understandable that minority states over the years treated their minorities badly and finally denounced their obligations. In reality, however, such an attitude rests on a radical misinterpretation of the loyalty principle and on a denial of historic facts. All in all, the ideas and concepts of these times live on and are shaping modern human rights thinking.

Zur Novellierung des österreichischen Volksgruppengesetzes: Einführung und Kommentar

This article presents a short introduction to the existing Austrian system of minority protection in both the context of the long tradition of Austrian minority law legislation and more recent developments in Europe since 1989/1990. It also highlights briefly the controversy surrounding the draft amendment to the Austrian Law on National Minorities (Volksgruppengesetz) presented by the Federal Chancellor's office in spring 2012, a controversy that amounts to two fundamentally different approaches of minority protection.

New Minorities, Old Instruments? A Common but Differentiated System of Minority Protection

AbstractQuestions concerning whether and how the rights of minorities should be recognised in politics, and how to maintain and strengthen the bonds of community in ethnically diverse societies are among the most salient and vexing on the political agenda of many societies. All policies that seek to reconcile social cohesion, unity and diversity are confronted with a veritable mine-field of dilemmas. Whatever policy options, or mixes of policy options, one wants to choose, one has to face hard trade-offs and serious policy-problems that have been addressed, though in different ways, by moral and political philosophers, political theorists, social scientists, lawyers and by politicians and civil servants. The present paper contends that it is possible to address these issues by bridging two fields of research: minorities and migration. Studying the interaction and complementarities between old and new minority groups is a rather new task because so far these topics have been studied in isolation from each other. It is also an important task for future research in Europe where many states have established systems of old minority rights, but have not yet developed sound policies for the integration of new minority groups originating from migration.

Joining Forces or Reinventing the Wheel? The EU and the Protection of National Minorities

AbstractThis article explores a model of minority protection that the European Union (EU) could adopt. The discussion first assesses the possibility for the EU to join forces with the Council of Europe through internalising, or even acceding to, the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities (FCNM). This would provide numerous benefits, such as provision of consistent benchmarks of minority protection when applied to candidate States in the accession process to the EU, availability of mechanisms to resolve remaining issues relating to minorities within the EU post-accession and elimination of double standards between 'new' and 'old' Member States. Yet these developments are politically sensitive and prone to create procedural difficulties. The alternative option of an EU regime of minority protection is discussed next, focusing on the impact EU law may have on minority rights in Member States. Based on this analysis, the article concludes that an attempt by the EU to develop a coherent system of minority protection may result in reinventing the wheel. Therefore, it is suggested that the EU may be better placed to encourage candidate countries and Member States' implementation of the FCNM.

Geschichtswissenschaft und Minderheitenschutz

This article deals with the state of historical reasearch in Germany regarding the question of autochthonous minorities in Europe. The author discusses the quantitative research potential in this field and then outlines some qualitative results with a number of examples: The genesis of the modern questions as a result of the French Revolution, the phenomenon of population cleansing in the course of history, and the system of minority protection introduced by the League of Nations. In his conclusion, the author points out a further need of research in certain specific areas of the discipline.

Minorities and Socio-economic Participation: The Two Pillars of Minority Protection Revisited

A broad comparative analysis has demonstrated that overall there is a high degree of convergence in the way and the extent to which the application of minority specific instruments and general human rights instruments address questions of socio-economic participation. The attention to minority specific characteristics and needs was not to be expected in relation to general human rights, while the detailed assessment of distinctive issues of relevance for socio-economic participation was not self evident in terms of minority specific instruments. The case of socio-economic participation of minorities thus presents itself as a model example of the increasing synergy between general human rights and minority specific rights in relation to minority protection. In terms of the two pillars for an adequate system of minority protection: both pillars seem to be moving towards each other in the kind of protection they are providing for minorities. Of course there are still differences of degree (in both respects of relative and expected focus and detail) but overall the similarities largely outweigh the differences.

The Minority Protection System of the League of Nations and the Central and Eastern European States

The Minority Protection System of the League of Nations and the Central and Eastern European States

Liberal Nationalism in Central Europe by Stefan s> Auer (review)

REVIEWS 57I at the height of its internationalpower and influence. Today, the same assertions , however, sound hollow, if not psychotic. From Sarkisyanz'sstudy, it emerges that the break-upof the Soviet Union in i99i signifies,perhaps, less the end of socialism or Communism than the bankruptcy of the fantasy dreamt by dozens of prominent Russian thinkers that Russia will one day become the moral and political leader or even saviour of the world. While Sarkisyanz'ssecond edition is, with more than IOOO references,certainlywell -annotated,it stillsuffersfrom some strangeomissions.For instance, one wonders why Sarkisyanzfails to mention, among severalother important studies of Russian nationalism, Peter Duncan's recent book on Russian messianismthat had paid extensive tribute to the firstedition of Sarkisyanz's book. Also, while Daniel Rancour-Laferrieris singledout for explicitcriticism, Sarkisyanz seems to be unaware of Rancour-Laferrier'sbook on Russian nationalism where a number of the issues that Sarkisyanzis concerned with are discussed at some length too. Many other recent relevant books and papers on pre- and post-revolutionaryRussian national thought are ignored as well. In spite of such lapses, readerswill find Sarkisyanz'sinvestigationrich and stimulating.It is to be hoped that his book findsa receptiveaudience in Russia and may even have a sobering effect on those Russian intellectualswho still expresshopes that Russia will one day become the world'scollective messiah. NationalTarasShevchenko Universiy ofAyiv A. UMLAND Auer, Stefan. Liberal Nationalism in Central Europe. Contemporary Russia and East Europe Series. RoutledgeCurzon, London and New York, 2004. xii + 232 pp. Notes. Bibliography.Index. C6o.oo. EVEN in the aftermathof the recent EU enlargement,the studyof nationalism in Europe remains clouded by the geographical determinism of 'West' vs. 'East'.Such determinismis often seen as takingits cue fromHans Kohn's I944 work TheIdeaof Nationalism, but it can be traced even further back, being clearly apparent, for instance, in the minority protection system adopted by the League of Nations between the two World Wars. Until now, it has been common to portray Western Europe as the natural home of an enlightened 'civic' nationalism that is broadly supportive of democratic development; Eastern Europe, by contrast, is still regarded as being inherentlypredisposed towardsthe kind of 'backward'and intolerantethnocentricnationalismthat is inimical to any vision of a stable liberal democratic order. Workschallenging this long-standingstereotypeare still comparativelyfew and far between, and in this regardLiberal Nationalism in Central Europe (the title is highly revealingof the message) representsa welcome and highly significantcontributionto the literature. Auer's work analyses post-Communist nationalism in Poland, the Czech Republic and Slovakia,which are each dealt with separatelywithin informative case study chapters. In his overall introductionto the theme, the author argues that to adhere to a conception of 'the West vs. the Rest' is highly 572 SEER, 84, 3, JULY 2006 misleading when it comes to studying the region's ongoing transformation. Instead, one should acknowledge that different conceptions of nationhood and nationalism compete for predominance within all European states. As Auer observes, the cultural 'core' which exists within every national identity provides crucial underpinning to the emergence of a stable democratic community.Yet this culturaldimensioncan alsofeed ethnocentricnationalism which seeks to prioritisethe needs of a particularnational community over those of others.In this respect,as Michael BilHig has previouslyobserved,both 'civic' and 'ethnic' conceptions of nationhood can foster intolerance towards outsiders. In recent times, Western political theorists such as Will Kymlicka have arguedfor the possibilityof a liberal nationalism capable of reconcilingthe universaldemands of liberalismwith particularisticattachmentsto a national culture. As Auer reminds us here, such thinking is far from alien to the territoriesof the former Eastern Bloc, where intellectualshave perhaps had particularcause to ponder the questionof how to reconcile the particularwith the universal. Indeed, even the much-maligned and misquoted Johann Gottfried Herder subordinated concern for one's particular nationality to those of a broader 'Humanitat'.In skilfullytracingthe complexitiesof nationalist discourse within his three countries of study, Auer provides a valuable contemporary complement to Aviel Roshwald's historical study (curiously absent from the bibliographyof this work)on Ethnic Nationalism andtheFall of Empires (London and New York, 2000). In the second general chapter of the book, Auer offerssome useful reflections on the minorityrightsdilemma i.e. 'how can political liberalismwith its focus on individualfreedom accommodate the...

Book Review: Devising an Adequate System of Minority Protection. Individual Human Rights, Minority Rights and the Right to Self-Determination, Minority Protection in Post-Apartheid South Africa

Book Review: Devising an Adequate System of Minority Protection. Individual Human Rights, Minority Rights and the Right to Self-Determination, Minority Protection in Post-Apartheid South Africa

I Book Review: Minorities and International Law: Prospects for an Adequate Protection, Devising an Adequate System of Minority Protection. Individual Human Rights, Minority Rights and the Right to Self-Determination, towards International Personality: The Position of Minorities and Indigenous Peoples in International Law, Quiet Diplomacy in Action: The OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities, Minorities in International Law, the Right to

I Book Review: Minorities and International Law: Prospects for an Adequate Protection, Devising an Adequate System of Minority Protection. Individual Human Rights, Minority Rights and the Right to Self-Determination, towards International Personality: The Position of Minorities and Indigenous Peoples in International Law, Quiet Diplomacy in Action: The OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities, Minorities in International Law, the Right to

K. Henrard, Devising an Adequate System of Minority Protection; Individual Human Rights, Minority Rights and the Right to Self-Determination

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