The Changing European Map :
the place of minorities in a globalised multicultural world
International colloquium 15-17 April 2014, MSHS, University of Poitiers (France) The Council of Europe has been concerned about protecting national minorities since 1950, when it adopted the (European) Convention of Human Rights and Fundemental Freedoms.
Since the beginning of the 1990s, two recent Conventions have been introduced : the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages (5 November 1992), and the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities (1 February 1995), which stipulates that "protection of the historical regional or minority languages of Europe, some of which are in danger of eventual extinction, contributes to the maintenance and development of Europe's cultural wealth and traditions" and represents "an important contribution to the building of a Europe based on the principles of democracy and cultural diversity within the framework of national sovereignty and territorial integrity" (Council of Europe : http://conventions.coe.int/Treaty/en/Treaties/Html/148.htm).
These provisions are by no means binding, simply recommendations with no legal basis. They were followed up at the end of the 1990s by further recommendations published by the High Commissioner for National Minorities at the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe.. Respecting national minorities - those whose national identity is a reality in a neighbouring state - is thus one of the fundemental criteria of Union membership in the name of human rights, but remains highly imprecise (S. Riedel, 2002).
Since the beginning of European contruction, the status of numerous minorities which co- exist in Europe inside nations with a long history has continued to evolve. In the current context of the resurgence of nationalisms, it seems important to return to the issue of European policy on national minorities since 1945, taking as the starting point the experience of difference minority communities. What changes have been witnessed since the second half of the twentieth century as regards the protection of national minorities in Europe : promotion of integration (integrationism), linguistic segregation, collective rights, the ethnic state model, community conflicts? What are the aims pursued by States concerned about defending national minorities in their country? What are the stakes at issue in the protection of minorities for the Europe of yesterday and today? And, how and with what means do the minorities in question react? What is the real impact of the European policy of protection and promotion of regional or minority languages in different countries and regions of Europe?
Can one establish a link between the evolving cultural production by national minorities and European policy since the middle of the twentieth century?
In order to establish a better picture of the reality for European minorities today, the following themes will be developed:
1. Political and legal definitions of the term 'minority' since 1945 2. The status of stateless minorities
3. Minorities and frontiers
4. Minorities between exclusion and inclusion 5. Minorities and marginalisation
6. Minorities and recent migrants
7. Mapping new migration circuits in Europe 8. Toponymes and chronotopes : minority tracking
9. Dominant or dominated minorities 10. Visible and invisible minorities
The MIMMOC research group encourages approaches that include fieldwork but also an interdisciplinary nature on questions linked to the integrtion of national minorities in Europe.
This call for papers is addressed to researchers from different fields - historians, geographers, philosophers, linguists, specialists in area studies. The contributions may deal with minorities ranging from Danish or Sorabe in Germany, Hungarians in Roumania and Austria, German- speakers in Poland and Itlay, Turkish speakers in Bulgaria, the Armenian diaspora in Europe, etc. An interest in countries which have not signed or ratified these conventions - France and Belgium in particular - may be expressed.
The current work on the place of minorities within the European framework is part of the ongoing work in the cultural and political domains within the MIMMOC research group, whose aim is to explore and analyse questions of "Memory, Identity and Marginalisation, within the contemporary Western world" (EA 3812), following on from two day conferences organised in June 2012 and May 2013 on the issue of national minorities in Europe.
This international colloquium organised by the MIMMOC research group, with the assistance of the University of Poitiers and the Poitou-Charentes Region, is open to the scientific community in general, to doctoral students at the Lettres, Pensée, Arts et Histoire Graduate School (MSHS, Poitiers) and graduate students in the Master's research degree Cultures et Société étrangères, at the Faculty of Literature and Languages, University of Poitiers, and any interested members of the public. It will take place from 17 to 19 April 2014 at the Maison des Sciences de l'Homme et de la Société, 5, rue Théodore Lefebvre, 86000 Poitiers, France.
