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---.59.

New international
approaches
to the.solution
of ethnic
problems
in Central
Europe
Rudolf

... ,.,

Joo

and

Re k a Sx e m e r k en y i

:.

FI)M

PEACE

BY

CONTAINMENT

Few politicai phenomena

TO

PEACE

BY

in the world have received such extremely opposing

assessments in the past few years as the national/ethnic


in Central

Europe.'

CONVICTION

The

unexpccted,

powerful

reawakening of the 1990s


re-emergence

of national

consciousness in the region conjured up the image of the 'Spring of Peoplcs' of


1848 for mally experts. Many vicwed the movements of politicalliberation

and of

national emancipation to be in elose uniry with one another, almost in a symbiotic


relationship. In their perception, rcsurgent nationalism is a Iundamcntally positive
phenomenon.

It has a demoeratic and liberal content; it has been based on the

fight to gain individual


community.

1.

freedom and achieve popular

The new states were constituted

sovereignty

for its own

by the act of self-deterrnination,

11ls chapier was wriucn in 1997. For practical purposes, the term 'Central Europe' is used
in this study to include ihat group of small and medium-size countrics that wcrc under
Communist rulc bctwecn the curreru borders of the European Union and the fonner
Soviet Union. 111is docs nOI include fonner Yugoslavia. International political science
literaiure oftcn uses the tcrnis 'Central/Eastern Europe' and 'Central and South-eastern
Europe' to denore the historicai and cultural differenees in the region itself. Scc, for
instance, Samuel P. Huntington, 'The Clash of Civilizations?' Ftm:ig71 AJfizi,, Vol. 72, No. 3,
Surnmer 1993, pp. 29-31; Jeno Szucs, 'The Three Historicai Regions of Europe: An
Outlinc', Acta Historica Aoulcmiac Scientarum Hungarieae. Vol. 29, 1983, pp. 131-8,t 111e
acadcmic deliatc on tcrminology and definirion of IC 'inner Ironticrs' of Europe continucs.

fi.O

'Rudolf
and

100

Rcka

opposing

Szemerkenyi

alien rulc, a rule which had been considered

illegitimate

from the

perspective of the (re)emerging demoeratic idea of popular sovereignty.?


On the other hand, another group of observers tends to partray nationalism
as a pernicious force that spreads irrational behaviour, breeds fragmentation and
leads inevitably

to violent conflicts. This analysis rcflccts to a large extent a

reaction to the unfolding drama in the fonner Yugoslavia and to the persecution
of ethnic minorities in various countrics of the region. Many bclieve that demonic
forces arc escaping as a Pandora's
after the disappearance

Box is being reopcned," and ernphasize that

of the 'ghost of Conununisrn'

(a re ference made to the

Comnumist A11l1lifeJto, also dating back to 1848), Western dcmocracies ha~e to Iace
the appearance of a new one, this time the 'ghost of national ism' :'
Supportrs

of both approachcs,

howcver, tend to agree on the strength of

nationalism. 'Ole ethno-national renaissance of this decade has proved to be one of


the most powcrful Iactors shaping the history of the twcntieth century. It has
produced the most extcnsive geostrategic rearrangement of the European continent.
The rccent wavc of national scll-dctcrmination has fundamentally rcdrawn the map
of Central and Eastern Europe, the Caucasus and fonner Soviet Central Asia, and
resultcd in a new configuration of powers in the post-Cold War world.
Self-dctermination,

as it appeared in the early 1990s, was a liberaling conccpl.

Peeples who had bccn forccd to live within the borders of countrics with which
they could not ielentify and whose regimcs they detested prooundly,
2.

Scc, for instance, Chia Nodia,


(cds.), N"liollfdlII,

Planner
Hopkins

University

'Nationalism

Ethuic

Press,

and Dcmocracy',

COI!/hd and Dcmoancy,

in Lan]'

triecl to free

Diamond

and Marc

pp. 3-22, BaltimorcfLondon,

UJ!H; Nadia Diuk and Adrian

Kararnycky,

7/lc I',d/ q/lhe Soincts and. the CJI(I//mgr ,!/llIdcl",7Id(.'I/<I:, pp. 21-4,0, New York, John
1993.

3.

For a dctailcd

of the linkage

bctwccn

sclf-dctcrmination

Wiley,

and popular

sovcrcigniy, scc Walker Connor, Ethnonanonalism: 7//(: O.!!(!Jt,/ur Ulldcntflllrlil/g, Princcton,


Princeton University Press, 199'1.
Scc William T . .Johnscll, Pandora's Box Rcopeucd: Etlmic CO/!f/:1 il/ Europe and ils Impliratums.
Carlisle
Baker

Barrack,
and Johll

Model',
4.

analysis

Johns

NCI NIIJill1/J Rillil.e;:

I'a., US Anny
A. Ausink,

"Var College, Stratcgic Studics Institute,

'State Collapse

Violencc:

J 994; Pauline

Toward

H.

a Prcdictive

Parametcrs, Vol. 26, No. 1, Spring 199, pp. UJ-3!.

Sec also Miroslav

Hroch,

Sukurnar

(ed.), Notions ofNatianalism,

Central

and Eihnic

Periwal
European

University

'National

Sclf-detcrmination

Publications,

1995.

from a Historical

pp. 65-82,

Pcrspcctivc',

Budapest/London/New

in

York,

approach
of

New
international
es to the
solution
ethnic
Qroblems
in
Central
EuroQe

themselves from this alien domination. Oppressed minorities sought emancipation


for their lan~lage, culture and religion, and called for the right to participate more
fully in decisions concerning their own community within the state. Throughout
modern

history,

niltionalism

has ali too of ten contained

both defensive and

oflensive elements, constructve patriotic and destructive chauvinistic components.


Of ten it was extremcly difTicult to sepm'ate these elements as the two tended to be
totaIly intermingled
throughout

in the history of individual

nations. In Central

Europe,

the last two centuries, oppressed nations, as soon as they obtained

their own nation-state, began to persecure the minorities living on their tcrritorv in
order to eliminate rival ethnic claims. In the process they used, more often than
not, the same methods and ideological arguments as their forrner oppressors had
used against their own claims.
/.,. The question of nationalily has a long and complicated history in this region
since the emergence of ruodcrn nauens in the early nineteenth century. The postCold War resurgence

of the ethnic and national

questions

has of ten been

regarded as the simple reappearance of age-old, pre-World War conlict. It is our


interition

in this chapter to give an overview

policy instrumcnts,

lcgal and institutional

succcssful accommodation

of various management
techniques,

cforts,

which may facilitatc

or cthuic claims in consolidating

the democratization

process and the regional peace and stability in Central Europe.

NATIONAlISM:

'OLD'

One of the most perennial

AND

'NEW'

FACETS

Icaun-cs of the ethno-national

phcuorncnon

region is the separate development of statehood and nationhood.

in the

Traditionally,

politicai and ethno-cultural borders have not coincided. Either the political cutiry,
the state, was larger than the nati on (comprising distinct ethno-national elemeius
at the sarnc time), or the 'nation' was spread out on a larger tcrritory than that
which belenged

to the 'state' (which mearit having kinship ties wi th rninoriry

groups in adjacent tcrritorics of neighbouring statcs)."

5.

Scc also BeJljamiJl Akzin, States al/ri Nations, New York, Andlor

Books, 19()(j;.Jaroslav

and Vitczslnv Vclimsk y, Et/mir: ruul Politicai Naiions I Europe, London,

CroOITI Heim,

Krcjci
1981.

fil

62

Rudolf

and

100

Reka

Szemcrkenri

Historically, ethno-national
regions geographically.

Thus,

minorities have been concentrated in the border


once political frontiers shifted, the positions of

politicai domination also shifted. These circumstances provide another important


characteristic of Central European nationality problems which is fundamentally
difTerent from the general Western experience. In the United States, for instance,
the problems of people belenging to minorities (primarily Afro-Americans
Hispano-Americans)

have predominantly

problem of equal opportunities.

and

been considered human rights issues, a

In Western Europe and Canada, on the other

hand, minority populations demanded essentially cultural and territorial (regional),


autonorny

in the 1960s and 1980s. They received

decentralized

it in the form ff a more

or federal state. As opposed to these, in the post-Cold War era,

Central and Eastern Europe have also treated the ethnidnationality

issue as an

important factor of geopoliiics.


Despite the obvious ethno-cultural diversiry, the prevailing nalion-state policy
regards the state as the embodiment of a single nationaliry, as expressed for instance
in the German Staatsuolk concept. Compared to the Western European historical
development

of nation-building,

the nation-building

efforts of many Central

European counrries came much too late. Thesc eflorts, Irom the pcrspectivc of the
minority cultures wilhin the newly forming nations, had involved incvitably nationdestroying elcments as well, provoking various Iorms of resistance from the alTected
comrnuuities. In Central

Europe, states tried to eliminate nunoriries and their

culture by applying Iorciblc assirnilation policies throughoul the twcnticth century


and cultural (or in the worst cascs cthnic) cleansing, asidc from rare and generally
short-lived tolorant goVeJ'\llllental praciices.
The emotional or agf,'Tessive handling of cthnic problcms created existcntial
Icars, and acted as a catalyst [or a chain reaction in the communiries. sometimes
lcading up to hysteria. These have tended to overshadow

the more rational

elements in the ongoing politicai dcbate on Ieasiblc multi cultural accornmodation. In a final analysis,

they reprcsented

a serious

obstacle

to successul

democratization and development of many countries of the region. Anti-minority


(discriminatory or assimilationist) policies have historically tcndcd to backirc."
Several importani new elemenis emcrged in the rcawakcning of the ctlmonational consciousncss

in Central Europe

ill

the 1990s. The first might be its

New

approaches
of

int ern a t i o_n a I


the
solution
ethnic
Qroblems
in
Central
EuroQe
to

unexpected intensity. This was magnificd by several coineiding and overlapping


crises in the region caused by the sudden and simultaneous

disappearance of a

politicai ideology and a regime. together with the disappearance of economic and
military blocs.
These phenomena,

combined with stagnant and declining living standards,

high inilation and unemployment

in several countries, enhanced the quest for

smaller group identities. This, in tum, reinforced politcal alignments along ethnic
lines and-the drive towards a greater degree of politcal and cultural autonomy on
societal or international level. The intensity of national consciousness also had a
'contagious'

character, spreading as if by chain reaction, Successfully achieved

ethno-national

claims fuelled other attempts to have an independeru state or a

more decentralized

state, allecaring a greater degree of minority rights for the

'a:ffected community.

Media

and the increased

global

and regio nal com-

munications generally played an enormous role in intensifying the process.


Another
environment

major difference

can be found

in the reshaped

of the 1990s. The end of the bipolar confrontation

least poteutially,

a historically

unprccedcnted

opportunity

international
has opened, at

for co-operation

betwccn great powers eonfronted ali with new risks and threats of the post-Cold
War era. There is no longer a willingness to return to the political realism of the
inter-war era in Europe, when competing great powers took sides in the interstate
and intrastate coulicts of Central Europe and the Balkans.
The effort to cnhancc
organizations

the missions

and maridate of the international

in the new era, as weil as the emerging

integration

process,

played

behaviour.

Some states

escalated

consequellces: displacement

Western

European

a crucial role in the change of individnal


into nationality

of populations,

conflicts

state

with dramatic

suffering, huge loss of life and vast

material destruetien. Thcse have also prompted a higher degree of readiness for
co-operarion among major international

actors ill order to contain ethnic-based

hot wars and prevent the erupiion of new ones.

G.

Istvan

Bibo, 'The

dctcnninauon.
L. Horowitz,

Distress

of Easc-European

pp, 13-88, Highland


'Dcmocracy

Small Staics' in

Lakes, Atlantic Research

in Dividcd Socicties', in Diemond

DCIIWO'(1(.)',

and Publicauous,

Reuolution,

Self

1991; Donald

and Plauncr, op. cit., pp. 3;'-5;'.

63

64

Rudolf
100
and
Reka
Szemerkenyi

The crisis of European Communist states which led to their disappearanee in


the early 1990s coineided with the appearance of new thinking coneerning the
nation-state. As we approach the third millennium, the classie nineteenth-century
eoncept of national sovereignty
inside

and outside

is declining. It is under a dual pressure, from

state borders.

The

traditional

state structure

is being

challenged, both from bclow and from above. Decpening and enlarging regio nal
integration,
contaets

incrcasing

global communications

arc weakening

and multiplying

the states from above, whereas

cross-border

local eommunities,

corporations and NGOs are taking over many former state funetions.
This is not to say that the 'nation' is dying out in this process. f'jo national
interest has eeased to exist ill the twentieth century. The nation-state will remain
an enduring aetor of international politics in the Ioresecable future. It will continue
to be the standard

politieal organization.

Predictions about a global collapse of

states, despite the Iailures of state authority

in several eountries

(Bosnia and

Herzegovina, Semalia or Burundi), have been exaggeratedJ


The trend eaused by internal
challenges

and external

from above and bclow, however,

pronouneed

role of international

international

organizations

law on the behaviour

pressures

will probably

on the state, and


lead to a more

and a more powerful impact of

of governmental

and non-governmcntal

actors alike.
It is almest paradoxical

that several eountries of Central Europe (and of the

who le fonner

Cornrnunist

Europe

independence

at a time whcn

and Asia) have gained or regaincd

the sigl1ificanee and the content

their

of national

sovereignty are under pressure to ehange. This contradiction can be resolvcd only
by a modcru intcrpretation

of state sovercignry, one that rejccts inward-looking

and isolatienist policies and is open to the ideas of international co-operarion and
integraiion. This attirude, if it gains ground, may facilitatc international cforts to
handle minority problcms and prevent intercthnic violcnce in the future.

7.

Thcrc arc a number of suidics based on this approach. Sce, for instance, Ralph Petcrs, 'The
Culture of Future Conlicr', Parameters, Vol. 25, No. 4, Win ter 1995/9G, pp. 18-27; Baker
and Ausink, op. cit.

int ern a ticn a l


the
solution
ethnic...eroblems
in
Central
Euro}!e

New
es to

approach
of

SECURITY
THREATS:
INTO
VIOlENCE?

A POTENTlAl

FOR

ESCALATION

Therc has been a~ in-depth discussion of Central and Eastern European ethnic
tension in Westeril expert cireles which has revealed an apparent discrepancy
betwecn Western political discussion and decisions. The message stemming from
. this .discrepancy seerned anything but promising for the peaceful resolution of
diflcrences. At first, it seemcd that unless tension had a direct imp act on Western
territory

or interests,

it was unlikely to provoke

much more than academic

interest there. Despite lengthy Western hesitancy concerning the war in former
Yugoslavia, this perceptiori has diminished since the Dayton Accord. For Western
policy, the question is when and how ethnic tension escalates into violence .
./-':

Yet, even without becorning violent, ethnic discord has a potential to slow

down, dis tort and ultimatelv impede the necessary economic and political reforms
in Central and Eastern Europe. Thus, even when there is rclatively little chance
for ethnic tension to escalate, it is important to promote the peaceful demoeratic
management of the conflict towards its gradual solution.

It is understandablc

that international interest in the post-Cold War outburst

of national fee!ing in Central Europe has tended to focus on its potentially violent
aspcci. However,
understanding

such

an approach

of the problem.

can dcvelop

into

This does not promote

a unidimensional

the development

of

effective policies for dissolving ethnic tension. Ali aspects of Central European
governmentaI policies should be examined closely. Abalanccd
what has be en achieved

understanding

so far, based on how the countrics

of

of the region

themsclvcs dealt with the cthnic issue and with the tensions that sprang from it,
helps us develop the right line of action for the future.
When

the problem

of ethnic minorities

in Central

Europe

surfaced

in

1989/90, the first dciciency in the mnner of approaching it turned aut to be the
lack of standard

international

speciically or exclusively

regulation. The issue of ethnic minorities is not

a Central

European

state. Yct the international

problem
community

but one that affects

practically

every

had an unhappy

experience

with coIIective rights; the failure of the League of Natiens

is one

reminder of this. Elorts to introduce universally accep ted international norms in

65

66

Rudolf
100
and
Reka
Szemerkenyi

this ficld were further impeded by the rcluctance of most Western

European

states to treat this problem in the framework of international law, for a variety of
reasons. The goal of formalizing international
tangible in some Central European
through

the Conference

standards of minority rights was

governments'

on Security

policies. It was undertaken

and Co-operation

in Europe

(CSCE)8

process, the Council of Europe and the various organs of the United Nations.?
While the frequent reference to the ethnic issue at international forums was
often cited as a source of concern for Western countries, the rationale behind
establishing international standards on potentially contentious issues is a proof iq
itself of the demoeratic intentions of Central European governments.l1any

newly

elect ed Central European policy-makers believed that the most effectve way of
handling

the question of minority rights was by developing an internationally

accepted

and respcted

code

of conduct

for treating

minorities,

by 'de-

nationalizing' the conflict.


In addition
European

to their policy efforts in international

Iegal forums, Central

countries were the major initiators of regional co-opcration in 1989/90.

The Visegrad co-operation was launched as weil as the Pentagonale, which later
developed

into the Hexagonale

and ultimately the Central European

(CEl), as weil as the establishment

of the Central European

(CEFTA). Although it was understcod

Initiative

Free Tradc Area

from the very beginning that regional co-

operarion is at bcst an indirect and long-term policy tool for solving the problem
of ethnic minorities in the region, it was expcctcd that a web of relations among
these countries

would ultimatelv

contribute

to the stability of intraregional

relations

over time. While regional co-opcration

potential

for a number

of reasons,

continued

could not devclop to its full


efforts through

the sIow but

noticeable regional dialogue were a signal for the peaceful resolution of confliets.
Tensions

surround ing the presence of ethnic minorities and the issue of

collective minority rights touched upon multiple sensitivities in most Western


8.
9.

Now the Organization for Security and Co-opcration in Europe (OSCE).


On the cstablishing of European nOl'l11S by V/estem democracics sincc the end of the Cold
War, scc also George Schopllin, 'National ism and Ethnic Minoritics in Post-Comrnunist
Europe', in Richard Kaplan aud John Feffer (eds.), EuroJJ<"S New Nalioualism, Sta/cs al/ri
Mmontics in Coiflia, pp. 151-68, New York/Oxford, Oxford University Press, 1990.

New

approaches
of

European

countries.

neighbouri~g

Central

It was a problematic
European

in t e r n a t l o n a l
the
solution
ethnic
.l!roblems
in
Central
Euro)!e
to

question

countries,

in bilateral

especially

relations

of

lacking internationally

accep ted norms, and was further complicated by the linkage established by some
between the treatment of minorities and the respect for national borders. It is of
greatinterest
contributed

to understand

whether and, if so, how Central European policies

to the development

of peaceful conflict management

and to the

stabilization of the region, or whether the policies have tended to increase the
potential of military escalation of the nationality conflict.
A dose analysis of the fields of bilateral relations in Central Europe shows an
,

important difference between those concerned with diplomatic-polirical relations


and those concerned with military diplomaey. Contrary

to the relations between

ministries of foreign affairs, those between neighbouring

ministries of defence

'/have been significantly and consistently better.


As evidenced by policies of neighbouring
there has becn a detectablc and continued

Central European governments,

effort to keep disagreements

on the

cultural, human rights and political IcveIs, and not to let them escalate into the
Iield of military diplomacy.!" A quick overview of rclations in the field of defence
among the countrics generally regarded to have the most tensc relatens reveals
that, even in the first few years of the post-Cold
nationalism-related
relatious

War era, at a time when

tensions wcrc high in Central Europe, actual bilatcral military

were stablc and positive. The May 1991 'Open

betwcen Romania

and Hungary,

agrcemcnts,

nurncrous

the

Skies Agreement'

together with various other security-related

mectings,

the

undisturbed

support

for

the.

Convcntional Forces in Europe (CFE) spirit, the Octobcr 1993 Slovak-Hungarian


agrccmcnt on an irumediatc consultatien mcchanism,

as weIl as their July 1994

declaration to disregard aceideutal violations of their rcspective airspace during


training

f1ights, and numcrous

other decisions

all pl'Ove that the tensions

surround ing the situntion of the cthnic rninorities have been most consciously and
carefully kept out of the military domain. Ethniclnationality
10.

conflict in Central

For an excellent analysis of the arising (political, demographic, cultural, cconomic, social
and psychological) alicnalion of the ethnic groups within a society lacking ill policies
largelcd al the various ficlds, sec Guy Hcraud, Les Communants lillguf/iques en 'Iute d'un
statut. pp. 22-30, Nicc, Prcsscs d'Europc, 1990.

!iZ

{iS

Rudolf

and

100

Rcka

Szemerkenyi

Europe, used for political and rhetorical purposes is, and has been since 1989,
cultural, historicai and political in nature, but not military.
Therelore the prime focus of international effort has to shift to removing the
psychological fears that exist in some Central European countries. This may seem
but a small difference in historicaI perspectives: examples abound of wars that
were launclied out of psychological fears. The difference is far more important.
however, if our goal is to deveJop elective policies to solve the problem arising
from nationalism.

If our analysis on the socio-psychological

character

of these

old/new problems holds, a great deal of effort has to focus on socio-psychological


measures.
The emergence of nationalism

in parallel to the end of Communism

was

seen by some as the coming out of deep freeze of ancient memories and longburied feeJings. For others, it was the 'revenge' of nationalism that was able to put
an end to Communist

international ism:

Either way, without the cohesive force

of nationalism, the revolutions of 1989/90 would probably not have come about.
The attainment

of national sovereignty

national history. It is not surprising

is the most important

development

in

that such a powerfuI force needed to be

express ed also in the diversc aspects of the new democracies' policies.


Yet national feelings wcre not the exclusive inlluential aspiratien
attainrnent

of national

indepcndence.

Equally

important

afLel' the

was the dcsirc to

reincorporatc the European idea. II is needless to enumerate the many cxamplcs


of the Central European

self-identification

with, and the incorporation

of, the

European idea." These two togcther, and in their irueractiou, constiluted the basis
of various policies in praericaily all Central European countrics. Both of these
aspirations were Iurther enhanced by these countries' cxpericncc of having their
nonnal historicai development brutally intertupted by Sovici aggression.IJ
ll.
12.

13.

On the ncgauvc force of nationalism, see also Misha Glcnny, Tize Rcbirth if History, Eastern
Europe ill the Age ofDcnuxracy, London, Pcnguin Books, 1990, 1993.
Thornas W. Simmons Jr, ElIJ/(:m Eurot ill the Pos/war World, pp. 226-67, New York,
St Manin's Press, 1993, oflcrs a good insight into thc many parallel forccs aftcr the end of
the Cold War.
On the srrcngtli of the idea of 'rcturning to Europe', see Andrcw COllCY,East-Central Europe
'!Iier the Cold War, Poland. the Czech R'il/lblic, Slooakia and HUI/gw)' ill Search '!lSecunl)', London,
Macinillan Press, 1995.

.,
.

N e w.Ln.Le.r;n a t io

approaches
of

n.a.l __ .6.9.

to the
solution
e th n iLl! rob I e nl 5 i n
Central
EuroQe

It is the effort to conciliate and hannonize these two driving forces that ofTers
the most b<,tlanced basis of analysis of this area's nationality policies throughout
the period. It can be argu ed that the European

idea has increasingly

inspired

decisions in Central Europe, from the economic field through the cultural to the
politicl, and that has inluenced measuring the failure of reforms as well.
At the same time, it is the power of the European
clearest indication

idea that gives us the

to the trend that ethnic tensions are not likely to lead to

military conlrontation

in the future either. While tensions (ethnic, among others)

escalated militarily in the former Soviet Union or the Balkans, developments do


not lead the carefui observer to draw parallels between these events and those in
Central

Europe.

Central

European

countrics

have demonstrated

altogether

difTerent confiict-managing techniques and mechanisms.


/.,,' The fact that the primary goal of ali of these countries is to integratc into the
Western world has had a tan gible and ernpirically verifiable imp act on their ways of
conlict management, if not yet conflict 'resolution'. In tackling the problems that
characterize the entire region, they followed Western approaches and methods.
They have shown that they have learnt [rom the demoeratic ideals in their practical
decision-making. This fundamental strength of the European idea plays a key role
in developing frther steps to solve the remaining ethnic tension in Central Europe.
The power of Western European thinking in conllict management has becn
enough to avoid the militarization
managing

a conlict,

however

of ethnic tensions in Central

peacefully,

does not amount

Europe, but
to solving

it.

Dissatisfaciion by ethnic minorities remains a characteristic of certain countries of


the region and threatens to linger on over an cxtcnded period of time, unless the
international

community

undertakes

policy measures to promote their llltimatc

solution in a peaceful environment. What is essential is to deal with the root causes
of ethni c conflicts.

MULTICULTURAlISM:
IN INTERETHNIC

A NEW
RElATIONS

PARADIGM

Tbc more than four decades of the Cold War division of the continerit and
especially of the Pax Sovictica in the Eastern part transforrned

this historically

70

Rudolf

and

100

Reka

troubled

Szemerkenyi

region into a pcaceful one. However,

included

the loss of politicai

considerable.

freedom

the cost of this stabiliry, which

and

national

indcpendence,

ever a new paradigni

in international

policy, which implies also a change of

mentality in domestic political processes. The previous authoritarian


maiutaining

was

After the Iall of the Iron Curtain, Central Europe needs more than

stability by containment

methods of

and coercion could not be successful in the

long run and cannot be brought back after the dismancling of the Warsaw Pact.
For an acconunodation

of ethnic claims to be effective, it must be based on the

political conviction that cllere is no alternative to peaceful coexistence of majoriries


and minorities.
Events of re cent years have disproved the apocalyptic predictions of a chaos
of small states and of tribal wars encompassing the whole, or a large part, of the
region."

Arnled conflicts between nationalities (ethnic communities) that erupted

in the fonner Yugoslavia and in some regions of me former Soviet Union sent a
clear message that Central and Eastern Europe might be just ariother potendal
arca of conflict and seismic movements. Reality provides empirical evidence to the
contrary, but such a broad generalization calIs for at least two further reservations.
On the one hand, there are wide diferences between countrics of Central and
Eastern Europe and the forrner Soviet Union, including their ethnic composition
and minoriry policies. In the geographical arc from the Ballic to the Adriatic and
the Black Sca, the politicai wcight of the nationaliry issue is gcncrally greater in
the south-eastern countries than in the countries to their north and west. In terms
of ethnic composition the following countries have relalivcly few minorities on
their territory,

constituting

2 to 4 per cent of the total population:

Poland

(Gennans, Ukrainians, Czechs}; the Czech Republic (gypsies or Roma, Germans,


Poles, Slovaks}; Hungary
(ltalians, Hungarians)
(Hungarians,
Cennans,

(Cerrnans,

gypsies, Slovaks, Romanians);

Slovenia

and Albnia (Greeks). Ariother group of states: Slovakia

gypsies, Ukrainians,

Czechs);

Romania

(Hungarians,

gypsies,

Serbs) and Bulgaria (Turks, gypsies) has a larger minoriry populaiion.

Their ratio exceeds 10 to 15 per cent of the total population; in some districts and
14.

LeJ cOliflilJ identitaires, Paris, ditions Ellipscs, 1994;Joh1lJ

Sce, for instance, Francois Thual,


Mearshimcr,

'Back to the Future:

Security, Vol. 15, No. 1, Summcr

Insiabiliry

in Europe

1990, pp. 5-56.

after the Gold War',

International

New .in.t.e.r.o a t i o nal


es to the
solution
ethnic_.l!roblems
in
Central
Euro}!e

approach
of

areas their percentage constitutes an absolute majority. The minority population


of the Baltic states is even more important, both in terms of their ratio and of their
domestic political signiicance (in Latvia, for instance, ethnic Russians constitute
almost half of th<;:total population).!" Obvious ly, the more the population of a
country is composed of multinational and multicultural entities, the more complcx
this issue becomes.
Lower

figures,

however,

do not nccessarily

indicate

smallcr

political

problems. A smalJ percentage of minorities in a state in and by itsclf does not


guarantee a lack of ethnicity-related tcnsion. Neverthcless, we must keep in mind
that recent changes in the international
opportunities for prevention
today's risks .

.'....

environment

and management,

have also opened new

when judging the magnitude of

Therc is no compelling historical evidence that nationality tensions inevitably

escalate into violeut conflict and tribal wars. Societal disasters of these kinds can
be anticipated,

prevented

or at lcast modcrated

by domestic and international

measures. Policies directed at the root causes of cthnic tension have proved to be
c/Iective in improving the situation in many countries of the world.
When facing the challenge of how best to accommodate
both states and minoritics

multiculturalism,

in Central Europe of ten suffer from an 'insccurity

complex'. States fear isolatienist or scparatist tendencies among the minoritics,


They oltcn tend to analyse their situation by thinking of it as a slippcry slope and
bclieving that even amodest

request by the minority, if accepted by the majority,

might start an avalanche: a small gesturc today will result in a disaster tomorrow;
an elcmcntary school in the mother tongue of a minoriry today, a loss of territory
tomorrow, Minorities
assimilation
frequently

also fear that they might beceme the targct of forccd

or, even worse, of ethnic cleansing


victims of state-sporisored

nationalism

at any time. As they were


in the Commuriist

past, the

memOll' of rccent pain brceds and maintains mistrust towards authority and a
permanent
governlTIcnt.

15_

suspicion

concerning

Sornetimes

For ctlmo-dcmograpliic

the underlying

these concerns

intentions

arc based

of the majority

on concrete

historicai

ecusus data, sec World Dircaory if Minoritics, Minonty Righls Gml/Fr

Edition, London, Longmari Intemarional

Rcfcrcncc,

1990_

21

72

Rudolf
100
and
Reka
Szemerkenyi

experiences, sometimes on unfounded perceptions. But whatever the basis, these


problems need to be treated with great sensitivity.
There are demoeratic institutional and procedural methods that may stabilize
both the position of states and the domestic status of minorities. These methods
promote minority integradon - not assimilation - into the society. It is only in this
way that the general

civic identity

of the state can be developed

and the

rninorities' own ethnic identity preserved at the same time. In other words, loyalty
to the state in which they live and of which they are citizens does not prohibit or
contradict the rninorities' right to preserve and develop their own national and
ethnic characteristics, Rather, they go hand in hand.
These two elements

are in contradiceion

only for those who define the

nation-state as a homogenized, over-centralized mono-ethnic entity. They may be


inclined to reject concepts such as multiculturalism, ethnic pluralism, multinational
federation.
assimilation

autonomyor
and/or

minority protection,

emigration

and to support

of the minority(ies)

the concepts of

as a realistic

means of

achieving a homogeneous nation-state and of solving the ethnic problem.


Such assimilationist thinking is not a new concept in Central and Eastern
Europe. Its ideological roots go back to the late ninetcenth century. Conipared
wi th the frequent ethnic strife of the prewar period, the Communist

system did

very liulc to change eflcctively the relations between nations and ethnic groups in
the arca, dcspite its 'intcmationalist'

rhcioric." The Communist regimes, far from

selving the tensions, Iroze them. The propaganda discourse on the rapprochement
and mcrging of socialist nations and nationalities (sli:I./tenie i sliauic, in the Soviet
political dictionary) covered the policies of forcible assimilation and subordination
to the interests of the dominant natiens.
It is pertinerit

to highIight the Western

experiences

in solving minority

problems during the Cold War. The long-las ting Flemish-Walloon

conflict in

Belgium is weil known. Departing from its inter-community

tensions, Belgium

has developed

for multicultural

16.

an innovative

constitutional

arrangement

An interesting collection of the rcflcctions of the politicai actors in the Communist and
post-Comrnunist pcriods can be found in Galc Stokcs, F1'01/1 Stalinism 10 Pluralism, A
Documentary History if Eastern Europe sincc 1945, New York, Oxford University Press, 1996
(on 'Nationalism', sec pp. 257-72).

New
int ern a t ion a.L
approaches
to the
solution
of ethnic_J!roblems
in
Central
EuroJ!e

accommodation

territorial and linguistic criteria. It is not without

combining

problems e:ven today, but the legal and political efforts to find solutions for ethnic
coexistence are worthy of attntion. The Spanish experience is equally important.
Spain undertook a major reform of dcccntralization
ater-Ceneral

of governmcnt in the 1970s,

Franco's death. In this process, the ethnic communities, primarily

the Catalans and the Basques, re-established their autonomy.


The 'devolution'

in the United Kingdorn reinforccd self-rule in Wales and

Scotland. No similar solution has been possiblc in Northern Ireland so far. There,
intercommunal

strife has not yet found a settlernent, despite renewed domestic

and international
interethnic

efforts. In Italy, Alto Adige, Tyrol,

was a placc of violent

conflict in the 1950s. Today the German-speaking

minority of this

region enjoys significant cultural autonomy, which is also reinforced by interstate


~o-operationbetween Austria and Italy. This co-operation is similar to the cultural
exchange betwecn ethnic Danes and Germans in the Schleswig region, across the
German-Danish

frontier. The Swedish-speaking population of Finland, 8 per cent

of the total population,

also enjoys the advantagcs

of Nordic

opcration. This mino rity was aceoreled large cultural autonomy

regional

co-

combined with

territorial autonorny for the Swedish inhabitants of the Aland Islands. The Swiss
model of multiculturalism

and multilingualism,

based on the cantonal system,

goes back to the MiddIe Ages. It oficially recognizes the equal cultural rights of
the German-, Freneh- and Italian-speaking communiries. 111e Swiss Confederation
also prornotes the minority rights of a 40,OOO-strong community, called Romansch
or Racto-romans,

Their langlIage is oflicially used in the canton where they live,

Grisons, and it is rccognized as one of the four national languages on the level of
the Confederation

in Switzcrland.!?

Emerging Western European integration and Nordic regional co-opcration


also made

a significant

demoeratic

nations can and should live side by side. Politicai Irontiers ceased

impact on the perception

and the norms

of how

being dividing lines bctwcen peeples and started gradually to disappear within thc
European
17 .

Community,

.101111Coaklcy
joseph

now the European Union. Exchanges at the grass-roots

(cd.), 711c Tenitanal Managemen: of Etlmic Corflia; London,

V. Montvillc,

Mass., Lexingtoll

Co'.'llict

Books/D.C.

al/ri

Frank Cass, 1993;

Peacemaking in Mulll;,IIIIIU: Soacties. pp. 131-238, Lexingtou.

Hcalh, 1991.

za

74

R ud o I flo

and

o
Szemerkenri

Reka

level betwccn individuals,

institutions,

become a mass phenomenon,

smallcr or larger cornmunities,

have

Policies illcludillg youth exchange or the rwin-city

movcmeut have been set up to improve relations betwcen nations with difficult
historicai legacy, for example the Freneh and the Germans in Western Europe
and the Dalles and Norwegians in the Nordic region.
There was no similar undertaking in the historically sensitive relationships in
Eastern Europe du ring the Cold War. The Polish-Lithuanian,

Czech-Cerrnan,

Slovak-Ukrainian,

and Romanian-

Hungarian-Rornanian,

Russian, Bulgarian-Serbian,

Rornanian-Ukrainian

Serbian-Albanian

very recent times, East European

relationsliips were all 'frozen'. Unti!

societies remained

essentially clpsed to one

another. This situation more often than not presenred the old national stereotypes
and the distorted clichs about other natiens. Also, there was a widerring gap
between the official discourse of 'fraternal Iriendship' and political reality. In the
1970s when Spain, Belgium, France and the United
fundamental

territorial decentralization,

Kingdom

undertook

giving more power to their respective

regions and to the nationalities living there, the central power of the state was
reinforccd in Czechoslovakia, Romania, Yugoslavia and the Soviet Union,
Dcspite

widcspread

scepticisrn,

the mino ri ty problem

importallt issue of debate in the domestic deruocratization

has become

an

process. It has been

widelv recognizcd that democracy in Central Europe cannot be stablc without a


fair treatment of the minoriry issuc.

INTERETHNIC

RElATIONS:

FACING

THE

CHAllENGE

A bricf overview of the principal lcgal iustrumcnts developed in tius dccadc is of


interest. The pressure of ongoing events has made it clear that the nationaJity
issue has increasingly become a pre-erninem problem to deal with. As a result, a
number

of normative

Copenhagen

instrumcnts

have come into being. Already,

meeting of the CSCE in its final document supported

action' in favour of minoriry riglus. The same year, Recommendation


adopted by the Parliamcntary
adopted

No. 1134

Assembly of the Council of Europe addressed the

issue of the rights of minoritics.


Assembly

the 1990
'affirmative

III

the Declaration

December 1992, the United Natiens General


on the Rights of Persons

Bclonging

to

New
i n ter n a .i.o.n.a.L
approaches
to the
solution
of ethnic....J!roblems
in
Central
Euroj!e

25

National, Ethnic, Religious or Linguistic Minorities. Since the end of the Second
World War, this Declaration is the first document dealing exclusively with the
problem of persons belonging to minorities that has a univers al character. This
fact also indicatfs
codification

the substantial

of minority

followed. At its Helsinki


innovative

to progress

rights for many decades.

in the international

Several

major decisions

summit meeting in 1992, the CS CE to ok a highly

step in deciding

Commissioner

resistance

on the creation

of the Office

on National Minoritics. The High Commissioner,

experts, regularly monitors the implementation

of the High
with a team of

of minority rights in the OS CE

(formerly the CSCE) member states, especially in Central and Eastern Europe.
The Council of Europe also showed an increased interest in relation to minority
issues. In 1993 the Council adopted the Vienna Declaration, the annex of which
..~elates to minorities. T11e same year in Strasbourg, the Parliamenrary Assembly of
the Council of Europe adopred Reconunendation

No. 1201 regarding the rights of

national minorities, an Addiiional Protocol on the Rights of National Minorities.t"


Among other initiatives, mention should also be made of the Charter of Paris
for a New Europe, signed in Paris in 1990, which contains artides concerning
minorities, The Stability Pact of 1994 also focused on the two pillars of regional
security and good-neighbourly
inviolability

relations in Central

of the existing state borders

Europe.

and the respcet

It underlined

the

for the rights of

minorities living in their tertitories.


In accordance with the Stability Pact, most Central European countries also
signed bilateral trcaucs and agTeements which include stipulations corteerning the
bordcrs and the treatment of rninoritics, Poland signed such a document with ali
its ncighbours; Hungary signed a basic treaty (or agreement promoting minority
rights) with Ukraine,

Slovenia, Croatia and morc recently with Slovakia and

Romania.
The test of these bilateral agrcements is, obviously,

their implementation.

These documcnts should not be secn as an end but, rathcr, as the heginning of a
process. They can be crucial instruments for the consolidation of security in the
18.

An interesting analysis can be found in Timothy D. Sisk, Poioer Sharing and lntcmalional
ill Ethnic Corflid, Washington, D.C., Carncgic Corrunissiou, 1996 (US Institute of
Pcacc, 'Pcrspcctivcs' Scries},

Mcdiation

---

76

Rudolf
100
and
Rcka
Szcmerken.l'.i

arca, if they briug about actual co-operation in interstate relations, and if they
improve the status of minorities inside the countries.
The adoptiori of universal
protection demonstratcs

and regional instruments

concerning

mino ri ty

that real progress has been made since 1990 with respect

to ethnic problcms. However, it must also be emphasized that international norms


represent
practice

the minimum standard of minority protection. The domestic political


of several

requirements

demoeratic

countries

goes far beyond

these minimum

and offers more advantageous conditions for rninorities than those

defined in universal or regional documents,

as the examples of some Western

European states showed. As a whole, however, increased international discussions


prove that the treatment of rninorities is no longer an exdusively internal aflair,
and that the 'external' interest of the international community is a legitimate one.
This is an important step forward in the evolution of human rights as wel! as in
the development of the international system.
Iustitutional pluraliry provides an answer to divcrsity of ethnic and national
cultures in a society. There are various forms of cultural!y pluralist policy, in
which language

and education

are issues that enjoy priority

generally.

As

language plays a key role in national identity, the protection of the mother tongue
is one of the most important 'survival strategies' of minoritics. Depending on the
counrry's ethnic composition, cither aspiratien for state bilingualism or for local
bilingualism can be found (the latter describes the olicial use or two languages in
adrninistrativc
population).

districis

whcre minorities

constitutc

the majority

of the local

Institutional plurality also can help minorities to claim their right for

their own cducational

and cultural institutions

cnabling thcm to preserve and

develop their identity and cultural uniqueness wirhin society.


Participation
govcrnment

and power-sharing

coalitions

- by taking

- might also be essential.

part

in central

For instance,

or local

one of the

Hungariari parties participatcd in the Slovak coalition govcrnment betwcen 1992


and 1994; and in the same period the party of the Turkish minoriry participated
in the Bulgarian central governmellt. In Romania, national minorities participate
in running local adminisuations
the November

in areas of their geosrraphic concentration.

1996 national elections, which brought cerurist/ccntrc-right

into pO\.yer, the Demoeratic Alliance of Hungarians

After
parries

in Romania (RMDSZ) also

approaches
of

N e w int ern a t ion a I


to the
solution
et h nj...LJ! rob Icm sin
Central
Euro)!e

accepted ministerial responsibilities in the new cabinet forrned in December 1996


in Bucharesc. In Slovenia and Hungary, where the ratio of minorities is lower,
original forms of participatory rights in local administrations

have been developcd

to satisfy the autonomy aspirations of these groups.


The territorial management of ethnic conllicts, the subdivision of the state
into smaller administrative

units better to assure minority self-government may

also be an effective technique to ease tensions between nationalities.!" Whether the


politicai elite of the dominant community and the central government

want to

create such a decentralized government is of course a different matter. In Central


Europe, even in recent years, we can also see some opposing political efTorts, such
as the ethnic policing of the territorial units to give the dominant
numerical preponderance

nationality

even in geographic areas of rninority concentration.

-Home rule based on local municipal, county or regional (provincial) level as weil
as fedcral or confederate

solutiens to accommodate

ethnic claims offer serious

chances that the worst of the tensions may be allayed and the nationalitics Iind
satisfaction in coexistence with other communities wirhin an integrated society.
Education and media could play an outstanding
promcting

values of toleranec and understanding

roIc in changing attitudes.

in interethnic relations. Thcre

have bccn a few positive initiativcs ill this ficld. National cxpert committees were
establishcd

to reconcile

education,

improving

Domcstic

and

programmcs

promoting

private

information,

teaching

tcxtbooks

used in public

intcrpretations
institutions

civic valucs of toleranec.

on both sidcs.
are sctting

countering

up

in this way

which is sometimcs still hcavily prescut in the state-mil

systerns of certain

communication,

19.

the accuracy of historicai

international

nationalist propaganda,
education

critical aspects of history

socictics.

the rcvolutionary

Emerging

modern

changcs in transrnission

technologies

of

and process ing of

including satellite TV broadcasts and global information highways,

For an international

overview

of minority rights and their institutional

accorumodation,

scc

771C Siuuuion if MiI/OIi/Ii'J ill Europe (Political Scries W-4), Strasbourg, European Parliarncnt,
E193; Georg Bruuncr, Nationalitatcnprohlemc und A1in&rhcitcn/w,!fliUe ill OJ/curo/J(l, Ctcrsloh,
Verlag

Bcrtclsrnann

Minoritics,

Stiflung,

scc Di,uJC Chigas,

High Cornmissioncr

1996. On the roIe of the High Commissioncr


'13ridging the Gap bctwccn

on National Minoriries',

Thcory

on National

and Practice: 111c CSCl':

Helsinki Mell/itor, No. 3, 199,/., pp. 27-41.

11.

78

Rudolf
100
and
Reka
Szemerkenyi

have also introdneed new technical means and opportunities to enhance chances
of decentralized, multicentric, interacting Central European societies, where the
minority

values and interesis might be better articulated.

progress, realism commands

Yet, despite actual

conservative optimism: compared to the needs of

societies, the programmes promoting tolerance and a culture of pe ace are still few
in number

and modest

in their societal spill-over.

especially since the dominant

More should

type of conflict in current

be done,

world politics, and

probably in the period ahead, is internal conflict, which has, in most cases, roots
in ethuic and cultural policies. By the shift of focus from interstate to intrastate
confrontation,

the signilicance

of the cultural

aspects of security

has been

dramatically increased.
Successful coexistence

is not possible between

national

majorities

minorities without widening the politicai horizons of these communities.


the universal and regional (including European

and transatlantic)

and
When

institutions

project their values and ideals in this part of Europe, they widen the range of
examples and create a larger area of shared values and codes of conduct. This has
the potential eventually to develop a common security idcntity on the continent,
to encourage subregional
'crossability'

co-operation,

of state bounclaries.

and to enhance the transparency,

A large number

the

of political and security

challenges have become international in scope, such as environmcntal

problerns,

organized crimc, terrorism, uncontrolled migration. It is no longer possiblc for an


indiviclual state to manage thcse by relying cxclusively on its own resources.
Future extension of West European and Euro-Atlantic institutions can provide a
favourablc multilateral Iramcwork [or the management of bilatcral ethnic discorcI.
As both the European

Uniou's

and NATO's

multiplics forums for communication

experience

proves, intcgration

and increases the number of cliplomatic,

politicai and military channels for early warning and crisis management.
Subregional co-operation can also ereatc a larger gcographical and politicai
setting beneficial for successful accommodation

of minority claims. The state-

centrcd,

I'act/COMECON

isolationist

tendency

of the Warsaw

already been mentioned. With the collapse of Communism


system - albeit not without compromises

period

has

and its international

and setbacks - wc are wimessing a

modest opening. the revival of a few subregional and interregional forms of co-

Lt ern a t ion a I
to the
solution
ethnif..-.2roblems
in
Central
EuroQe
New

approaches
of

operarion in Central Europe, such as the Central European Initiative, the AlpeAdria, or C~rpathian co-operation.
These frameworks are considered as complementary
the Western integration

of this region. By multiplying

and not substitutes for


cross-border

contacts of

individuals, local cornmunities and enterprises, they contributc to better economic


performance

of participants and enhance values of civic society after decades of

subordination

of persons and groups to all-powerful state power. As the positive

examplcs of the Sloveniari-Hungarian-Austrian

and the Czech-Polisb

(Cieszyn)

border area dernonstrate, subregional co-operation in territories of mixed ethnicity


rnight also help national rninorities to increase their cultural exchanges across the
border.
As in the case for some other

regions,

Central

Europe

needs

more

:progranunes and action in order to enable its civic societies to raise the level of
political culture, to increase understanding in majority/minority
countries, confidcnce-building

in intercommunity

relations. In these

relations means to encourage

co-operative and discourage confrontational behaviour; promote the involvernent


of various

ethnic grolIps in joint problem-solving;

devclop

the capacity

to

understand

the other side's positiou and euhance the capability of eompromise in

the political bargaining process. These efforts may help dispel suspicions, held by
part of the majority
minority

cndcavour

population,
some

which prompt

anti-state

interit

people to discover

that

endangers

sovercignty or tcrritorial integrity. Mutual confidence-building


atmosphcrc,

can create a new

what a minority and human rights expert called 'minority friendly

environment'

(lIIi1ldcrlu:i(rji-cundliche

contributien

of international

abandonment

in every

the country's

Umwelt).20 From the minority perspective, the

organizations

and NGOs can dispel feclings of

and hopelcssness, which have already pressed these communities

(or some of their representatives)

a number of timcs in the direction of secking

irrationaI, violent solutions to their problems.


The signiicancc of minority problems in Central Europe will not decrease,
but rarher incrcasc in the pcriod ahead. Events of reccnt years have dcmonstrated
that multietluucity
20.

bas to be accommodated.

Felix Ermacora, Austrian human rights expcrl.

Bccause of the political wcight of

.za

80

Rudolf
100
and
Reka
Szemerkenyi

multiethnicity in Central Europe, success or failure in this domain will be relvant


to the entire region's political environment.

11IC way in which issues related to

minorities are treated by political actors, will influence substantially the future ol
peacc and stabiliry in the area as weil as the chances of democracy

in th,

individnal countries of the region.


Multinational efTorts targetcd at offering better psychological background fOL
the discussion of ethnic problems are worth mentioning. The methods include the
setting up of minority round tables and inter-community

councils (the latter have

proved their bcneficial impact on Protestant-Catholic

co-operation

urider the

auspices of local authorities in Northern Ireland for instance)," Ioundations

anc

think tanks established by non-governmentaI organizations to encourage dialoguc


The Carnegie Foundation's

Project on Ethnic Relations, for instance, establishe:

unofficial, infonnal meetings between politicians and public figures belonging tI


the Hungarian

community

Beltelsmann Foundation

in Romania and Romanian politicians. The Germa:


has also initiated similar forums for dialogue bctweei

reprcsentatives of die Slovakian majority and the Hungariari minority in Slovakia

CONClUSION

Central

and Easlern

European

countries

might End it useful to observe the

mariner in which the Western democracics have deali wim their ethuic problcms.
They might draw on the succcsses and Iailures of thcse experiences,

in their

positive as wcll as negative aspects." Western European modcls wcrc dcvelopcd


in speciic historicai and socictal circumstances: consequently

they cannot and

should not be autornatically copied. Howevcr, il should be noted that Western


poiiticai and economic arrangernents can oler useful insights for Central Europe,

111Cy tcstiy that demoeratic and

effectve IegaI and political solutions of ethnic co-

existcnce are indeed in the realrn of the possible. Thcse modcls, togelller with the
new instruments

for international
and joanJlc

'Community

of minoritics,
Rclations

contain numerous

Colin Knox

22.

Pcace Research, No. 1, 1996, pp. 83-98.


Lucas, Lord Chilworih,
National Minorities in Gm/ral and Easicm ElIl'lJjic, p. 13, Brusscls,
Civilian Afairs Commince

ill

Northern

(Rcports},

19!J2.

Ircland',

.Jol/mal qJ

21.

North Atlantic Assembly,

Hughcs,

protection

New

approaches
of

nonnativc

and institutional

international
the
solution
ethnic
eroblems
in
Central
Europ'e
to

c1ements which can also be incorporated

in the

developing rninority policies of the Central European states .


. lhnic diversity is a global phenomenon
pluralist

world civilization

and it will remain a part of modern,

in the foreseeable

future. The UNESCO

World

".Gonference on Cultural Policies held in Mexico City in 1982 stated in its Final
Report:
Evcry culture rcprcscnts

a unique and irreplaceablc

body of valucs since each pcople's

traclitions and forrns of expression arc its most effcctive means of demonstrating its
prcscncc in the world. Thc assertion of cultural identity therelore contributes to the
liberation of peoplcs. Converscly, any form of domination constitutes a denial or an
impairmcnt of that idcntity."

Special characteristics do not hinder but cnrich the community of universal values
uniting peoples. Hcnce recognition of the presence of variery of cultural identities
whenever

various

traditions cxist side by side constitutes

the very essence of

cultural pluralism.
There

is an inclination

to see ethnic identity as a source of trouble and

minorities as potcntial troublc-makers.

This indicates a reversal in the relation

betwecn causes and consequellces; it is not ethnic diversity in and of itself, but the
perception and treatmcnt

of it, that constirutc the roots of conflicts. Nationalistic

and cxclusivist policies directed against minoritics can be highly destabilizing and
may uliimatelv lead to violcucc. Promotion
policies can reducc

aggressive

strains

of minority rights and multicultural

of chauvinism

in both majority

and

minority,
At the end of the tweutieth century rninoriiy questions cannot be solved with
the political 'meihods' practised by irrcdcntist

movernents,

changes, ethnic cleansing or massive deportations.

by forcible border

Nor is the 'cultural ethnic

c!eansing', the Iorced assimilation of minorities, an acceptable method for civilized


societies. Today,
thousands,

when distinct ethnic and national communiries number in the

whereas there are only some 180 states, forcible homogenizaeion and

political subordination
23.

cannot be an answer to the problem of mulriculturalism.

World Conference on Cultural


July-6 Augusl 1982, pp. 4.1-2.

Policies, Final Report, UNESCO,

Mcxico City, 26

82

Rudolf
100
and
Rcka
Szemerkenyi

The morc the minority sees its own interests and values respected, the less
likely it is to embrace

radicalism

and extremism.

Tolerance

by the majority

towards the minority's autonomy tends to strengthen a common civic identity. If


national minorities have the right to cultivate their own identity in the state they
live in, they tend to develop more respect for the territorial integrity of their
country and for the rule of law there. As a collection of essays dedicated to the
ethnic and national problems in contemporary

Europe concludes:

The experienee of Westem Europe strongly suggests that accommodating


ealIs for
increased protection of minoritics satisfics rarher than Iuels scparatist tendencies. Across
Western Europe, minority gmups that enjoy a substantia] degree of culturaf freedom live
comfortably inside states dominated by other ethnic groups."

A 1992 report of the North Atlantic Assembly Civilian Affairs Committee makes
a similar concluding proposal for the Central European countries,
Genuinc

motivation

for elltering

into politicai compromise

in Central

European countries is often hard to find. Compromise is often viewed as a sign of


weakness and not as part and parcel of the political decision-making process. It is
thus not an overstatement

to say that minority

problems

tend to be a true

indicarion of ongoing troubles of general domestic politicallife in Central Europe.


They arc rooted in the intellectual and institutional disposition of the goveming
elite or of the general population towards cultural diffcrences.
Most tcnsions

due to the relation between

majorities

and minorities

in

Central Europe carry the burdcn of historicai prejudices, ncgative stereotypes and
mutual suspicion about true intcntions. In such a heavily loaded environment,
policies need to be targeted at the socio-psychological level as well. Without thesc,
econornic, bilatcral political or other measures cannot eflectively defuse mutual
hatred. Thcsc psychological efforts imply influencing group beliefs and attitudes
in favourablc dircctions, and creating and maintaining a readiriess on the part of
communiries living tagether to engage in dialogue.

24.

See also Charles A. Kupchan (ed.), Nationalism and Natioualitics in the


lthacaILondon, Cornell University Press, 1995.

NoW Europe,

p. 187,

New
in_ternational
approaches
to the solution
of eth!!.lL.J?roblems
in
Central
Eur0.l!e

There is a noteworthy relationship between minority policy and democracy.


The political treatrnent of minorities credibly rnrrors the general politicai culture
prevalling in a society. This in tum affects the situation of the national majorities.
On the other han,d, especially within countries that have a substantial minoriry
population

and that are going through fundamental

political changes, minority

policy can becomc the Archimedean point of democracy, a relatively small device
which

can move

the complex

machinery

of general

demoeratic

politicai

construction.
Tolerant multicultural policies may have a beneficial spill-over effect on the
democratization

process of societies in transition as a whole. Ethnic, pluralist and

political integrationist currents have proved not to be mutually exclusive in the


experience of established democracies. They act simultaneously upon individuals
"and groups within the same society, contributing to the development of multiple
and overlapping

identities of the modern world. The diverse nationalities can

becomc a moderating

factor [or inducing political stability within and betwecn

states in Central Europe.

Ba

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