“Serbs” in Bela krajina: a (deliberately) forgotten minority?

2015 ◽  
Vol 43 (1) ◽  
pp. 178-194
Author(s):  
Romana Bešter ◽  
Miran Komac ◽  
Mojca Medvešek ◽  
Janez Pirc
Keyword(s):  
Ethnic Groups ◽  
Ethnic Minorities ◽  
Field Research ◽  
Border Region ◽  
National Minority ◽  
Minority Status ◽  
Small Community ◽  
Minority Protection ◽  
National Minorities

There are three constitutionally recognized national/ethnic minorities in Slovenia: the Italians, the Hungarians and the Roma. In addition, there are other ethnic groups that could perhaps be considered as “autochthonous” national minorities in line with Slovenia's understanding of this concept. Among them is a small community of “Serbs” – the successors of the Uskoks living in Bela krajina, a border region of Slovenia. In this article we present results of a field research that focused on the following question: Can the “Serb” community in Bela krajina be considered a national minority? On the basis of the objective facts, it could be said that the “Serbs” in four Bela krajina villages are a potential national minority, but with regard to their modest social vitality and the fact that they do not express their desire for minority status, the realization of special minority protection is questionable.

Gender and Ethnic Discrimination

2016 ◽  
pp. 148-163
Author(s):  
Ferdous Jahan ◽  
Sharif Abdul Wahab ◽  
Fairooz Binte Hafiz
Keyword(s):  
Ethnic Groups ◽  
Ethnic Minorities ◽  
Present State ◽  
Minority Group ◽  
Ethnic Discrimination ◽  
Minority Women ◽  
Human Being ◽  
Minority Status ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
Status Of Women

Socioeconomic inequality among men and women is a major hindrance in ensuring equal advancement for all human being to live a dignified life. Minority status of women further exacerbates inequalities faced by women belonging to small ethnic groups. The chapter explores gender inequality across three small ethnic minorities' groups in Bangladesh. Applying Nussbaum's capability approach to analyze the situation of women with different social and ethnic identities, this chapter unpacks the three-fold barriers experienced by women belonging to minorities groups – first, as minority group, second as women and third as minority women. Lack of awareness, perceiving their “present state” as destiny, social and local norms and patriarchal way of thinking force these women to live with identity of secondary citizens.

Special Politics for Minority Political Participation in the Danish-German Border Region

2014 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
pp. 48-71
Author(s):  
Adrian Schaefer-Rolffs ◽  
Kai-Uwe Schnapp
Keyword(s):  
Political Participation ◽  
State Government ◽  
Direct Contact ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Decision Makers ◽  
Border Region ◽  
Political Decision ◽  
Minority Protection ◽  
National Minorities ◽  
German Minority

This article aims to explain how Denmark and Germany face the task of ensuring minority protection and the preservation of cultural diversity by way of recognising the national minorities’ needs for special attention. Both countries have installed different mechanisms that are designed to compensate minorities for their disadvantages as a group. Despite the fact that the equally well-developed structures on both sides of the border warrant a comparative analysis of the mechanisms in place, the disparity in the field of political participation receives particular attention in this article. By way of analysing results from an online survey carried out in 2010, this article shows how differently the minorities perceive the character of two special institutions for direct contact with political decision-makers. The Danish government and the state government of Schleswig-Holstein both introduced a contact person for the minorities within their area of responsibility. Our research has made interesting findings with regards to the composition of these institutions. It seems that the service offered by the geographically more distant Secretariat to the German Minority in Copenhagen is rated favourably, whereas the locally more present Commissioner for Minorities and Culture of Schleswig-Holstein has been a disappointment to the Danish minority.

scholarly journals Aesthetic Characteristics Thinking of Minority Folk Art in Guizhou

2018 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 43
Author(s):  
Ming Hong
Keyword(s):  
Ethnic Groups ◽  
Ethnic Minorities ◽  
Folk Art ◽  
Fine Art ◽  
National Minority ◽  
Paper Briefly ◽  
Minority Cultures ◽  
Art And Culture ◽  
The Aesthetic ◽  
Aesthetic Characteristics

Guizhou, with a cluster of multiple ethnic groups, is located in the southwest of China. In the province, there is up to 49 ethnic minorities whose population occupies around 1/3 of the total. Thanks to this, the multi-ethnic region is endowed with various folk art and culture of distinctive minority styles. This paper briefly discusses the outline of minority folk art in Guizhou, including its development and features, analyzes the aesthetic expression ways and characteristics of the art, and finally, puts forward some further thoughts from fine art, dancing art and batik art. This paper aims to further facilitate the development and innovation of the minority folk art of Guizhou, and add lustre to the progress of our national minority cultures.

scholarly journals Minority rights and minority identities - Sámi in Finland and Sorbs in Germany

2001 ◽  
pp. 83-102
Author(s):  
Toivanen Reetta
Keyword(s):  
Ethnic Minorities ◽  
Minority Groups ◽  
Minority Rights ◽  
Field Studies ◽  
National Minority ◽  
Minority Protection ◽  
National Movements ◽  
Specific Meaning ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Minority Identities

This paper deals with intemational minority rights and their meaning as an identityresource fr ethnic minorities. It asks why small national groups, such as the Sami andthe Sorbs, have not vanished, as was prophesied by modemisation theorists. In fact,the opposite has occurred. In Europe, small national minority groups are now clearlygaining more opportunities to invent their own "national" policies. After a short introductionthat provides some general background, 1discuss some common definitions ofminority rights and the specific meaning of 'minority identity' used in this paper. Then,1 show how minority rights and minority identities are linked to each other, and whyand how intemational minority protection treaties have become a part of the everydayvocabulary of Sami, Sorb and many other national movements. The examples 1 useoriginate mostly from my field studies with the Sorbs in Eastem Germany and the Samiin Northem Finland. 1 argue that not only the image of the group projected to itsmembers is influenced by these treaties, but that the definition of the group itself is alsochanged.

scholarly journals Ochrona praw mniejszości narodowych w orzecznictwie Europejskiego Trybunału Praw Człowieka oraz Komitetu Praw Człowieka ONZ – analiza porównawcza

2014 ◽  
pp. 7-28
Author(s):  
Grażyna Baranowska
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Political Participation ◽  
Indigenous People ◽  
Case Law ◽  
National Minority ◽  
Minority Protection ◽  
National Minorities ◽  
European Court ◽  
Religious Clothing ◽  
State Schools

The article analyses case law concerning national minority protection in the jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights and UN Human Rights Committee. The protection of national minorities is realized through protecting individual right of persons belonging to minorities. Due to significant amount of cases and given the importance of discussed issues, the analysis is restricted to three topics: names, education and political participation. The case law has set some important standards in those areas. In most of the analyzed aspects the approach of both organs has been the same, for example in regard to names and surnames of persons belonging to national minorities. The research also showed areas in which the case law was not consistent – while examining cases concerning the same French law regarding wearing of religious clothing by students in state schools, the UN Committee, contrary to the Court, found a violation by the state. However, in the vast majority of studied subjects, the jurisprudence of the Court and Committee is very similar and allows to formulate an international standard of national minority protection. Among national minorities indigenous people enjoy in some aspects greater protection than other groups, which is particularly evident in the Committee decisions.

Gender and Ethnic Discrimination

2020 ◽  
pp. 760-773
Author(s):  
Ferdous Jahan ◽  
Sharif Abdul Wahab ◽  
Fairooz Binte Hafiz
Keyword(s):  
Ethnic Groups ◽  
Ethnic Minorities ◽  
Present State ◽  
Minority Group ◽  
Ethnic Discrimination ◽  
Minority Women ◽  
Human Being ◽  
Minority Status ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
Status Of Women

Socioeconomic inequality among men and women is a major hindrance in ensuring equal advancement for all human being to live a dignified life. Minority status of women further exacerbates inequalities faced by women belonging to small ethnic groups. The chapter explores gender inequality across three small ethnic minorities' groups in Bangladesh. Applying Nussbaum's capability approach to analyze the situation of women with different social and ethnic identities, this chapter unpacks the three-fold barriers experienced by women belonging to minorities groups – first, as minority group, second as women and third as minority women. Lack of awareness, perceiving their “present state” as destiny, social and local norms and patriarchal way of thinking force these women to live with identity of secondary citizens.

scholarly journals Hungarian-Romanian relations and the activities of the Venice commission in solving the problems of national minorities in Transylvania

2021 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Ethnic Groups ◽  
National Minority ◽  
National Interests ◽  
National Minorities ◽  
Cultural Specificity ◽  
History Of ◽  
Venice Commission ◽  
Historical Comparative ◽  
The One ◽  
Operational Activity

At the present stage, researchers pay special attention to finding the causes of interstate and interethnic contradictions. Legislative projects of some states can significantly affect the situation of national minorities and become an object of monitoring by international organizations. The purpose of the article is to analyze the stages of the history and current state of Hungarian-Romanian relations, the experience of political and cultural coexistence of two ethnic groups in the Transylvanian region, the reason, features and main directions of the Venice Commission’s activities in solving the problems of national minorities in Transylvania. The following methods are: historical comparative analysis, systematization and generalization, retrospective method. The article shows that the Romanian Transylvania has historically determined features of linguistic and cultural specificity and is one of the regions of Europe in which the activity of the Hungarian national minority attracts the attention of the Venice Commission. The results of the analysis indicate that the Venice Commission plays the role of a legal instrument for resolving contradictions arising from the illegal presentation of laws that discriminate against certain rights, national interests of certain states or ethnic groups. The solution of the Hungarian-Romanian problem after the adoption of the Hungarian Law on Hungarians Living in Neighboring Countries is an illustrative example of the successful and operational activity of the Venice Commission, which, as a result, will be able to minimize the risk of interstate and interethnic tensions in Europe. The analysis presented in the proposed article will make it possible to find out what consequences may have, on the one hand, restrictions at various stages in the history of the rights of national minorities, in particular the use of their languages, on the other hand, options for the further dynamic development of nations and countries in the event of making reasonable compromises.

Mniejszościowy etnobiznes w Rumunii. Przypadek słowiańskojęzycznej ludności w Marmaroszu

2020 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 103-121
Author(s):  
Tomasz Kosiek
Keyword(s):  
National Identity ◽  
Ethnic Minorities ◽  
Field Research ◽  
Social Consequences ◽  
Ethnic Organizations ◽  
National Minorities ◽  
Political Interests ◽  
The Social ◽  
Wide Range

The author addresses the issue of ethno-business, which has been largely unresearched to date. In the approach proposed by the author, ethnobusiness is understood as a wide range of practices and behaviours related to the deliberate use of existing regulations going beyond the intentions of legislators that guarantee cultural and political privileges for national and ethnic minorities. Various activists and leaders gathered around ethnic organizations and co-creators of the discussed phenomenon most often pursue their private material or political interests. However, ethno-business is closely linked to the established Romanian legislation on national minorities. Thus, the author investigates the roots of this phenomenon, introducing readers to the regulations on minorities in Romania, and points to the social consequences of ethno-business. The analysis of the discussed problem is supplemented and illustrated by examples of specific behaviours observed by the author during his long-term and extensive ethnographic field research carried out on the Romanian-Ukrainian borderland between 2009 and 2010. Although this research project focused on aspects of ethnic and national identity among the Slavic-speaking community of the Maramures region, it also gave an opportunity to spot a number of behaviours that can be interpreted in the context of ethno-business. The ethnographic examples given in the article show how the policies related to the protection of national minorities in Romania can be exploited in various circumstances by different individuals who have relevant knowledge of the rights of national minorities.

scholarly journals An outline of the situation of education of the Mongol minority in the People’s Republic of China after 1978

2019 ◽  
Vol 72 (3) ◽  
pp. 51-65
Author(s):  
Katarzyna Golik
Keyword(s):  
Bilingual Education ◽  
Ethnic Groups ◽  
Field Research ◽  
Self Organization ◽  
People’S Republic Of China ◽  
People's Republic Of China ◽  
Scholarly Literature ◽  
Republic Of China ◽  
National Minorities ◽  
Education In China

The education of national minorities in the People’s Republic of China is not a monolithic system, but an extensive network of institutions with varied curricula. China’s territorial diversity can be closely linked to different conditions for the development of education, including the minority segment. Additionally, owing to the great diversity of ethnic groups and their political self-organization, it is difficult to comprehensively explore this system in its full complexity. However, this is not properly reflected in the scholarly literature, perhaps because its analysis is in fact possible on a fragmentary basis and during field research. This study is an attempt to fill the gap in research on minority education in China by indicating that, especially in the case of the promoted bilingual education, but also of other education models, there are differences in the praxis of their implementation. This paper presents selected determinants for these processes.

scholarly journals Institutional and Legal Mechanisms for Protection of the Rights of Ukrainian Minority in the Warmia and Mazury Region

2021 ◽  
pp. 393-416
Author(s):  
Teresa Astramowicz-Leyk ◽  
Yaryna Turchyn
Keyword(s):  
Ethnic Minorities ◽  
Institutional Environment ◽  
Equal Treatment ◽  
National Minority ◽  
Main Research ◽  
Research Hypothesis ◽  
National Minorities ◽  
Research Problems ◽  
The Republic ◽  
State And Local

The research aims at presenting and exploring the mechanisms for protection of the rights of national minorities (based on the example of Ukrainian minority) in the Warmia and Mazury Region of the Republic of Poland. The research hypothesis is based on the statement that in fact the protection of rights of national minorities at the level of the Warmia and Mazury Region could be treated as a model, and thus implemented in other regions in Poland, or even in other countries facing the problems related to the protection of national and ethnic minorities. The main research problems are addressed within the questions: how is Ukrainian minority distributed in the studied region?; What are the state and local government institutions working for national minorities in the studied region of Poland?; What activities do these institutions undertake to ensure equal treatment of national minorities and provision for their rights?; How are these activities assessed by organizations/representatives of the Ukrainian national minority? The leading research method was the institutional and legal one. The research also contained the interviewing method as well as the focus group interview. Obtained results of the study confirmed the research hypothesis. It turned out that the Warmia and Mazury Region has created an effective institutional environment for the development of national minorities, including the Ukrainian one. It was possible thanks to the activity of the only Polish Plenipotentiary of the Marshal for national minorities and also the only National and Ethnic Minorities Committee of the Regional Council in Poland.

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