Promoting the Rights of Minorities and Enhancing Intercommunity Understanding in Southeast Europe - National Advocacy Plans -
Publisher: Association for Democratic Initiatives (ADI)
Date: 2005
Volume: 96 pages, pdf
Description
In the 1990s major wars were fought in the former Yugoslavia. Intolerance and prejudice were and still are shown in most countries of SEE towards certain ethnic minorities and particularly towards Roma by both governments and some members of dominant communities. Xenophobic political parties of the right have re-attracted growing support and their intolerance is often left unchallenged by the State and imitated by other political parties. Especially in the region of SEE the majority-minority relations were one of the main causes of the large scaled conflicts and major destructions. The presumed and stereotyped definitions on the rights of the majorities, and the lack of willingness to understand the changing reality of the new era, resulted with conflicts, huge population movements and mass killings. Today the major violent conflicts have subsided but latent tensions exist in many places of SEE. These undermine the stability needed to create European harmony and leaving many, individually and collectively, excluded politically, socially, economically and culturally. The effective implementation of the FCNM is essential for the development of a stable and inclusive Europe.