Minority Rights
@minorityrightseu.bsky.social
75 followers 100 following 170 posts
Sharing developments and academic commentary on (national, ethnic, religious, indigenous) minorities and equality law, with special focus on Europe. Set up as part of MINOTEE: https://tinyurl.com/y8d7u8ud. Not reflecting official institutional positions.
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minorityrightseu.bsky.social
“Khetane ame Zorale. Together we are stronger.” Learn more about the additional challenges Roma communities in Uzhhorod face after the war, including statelessness, marginalization, and displacement.

📷 Karol Grygoruk

#minority #minorityrights #roma #ukraine #uzhorod #minorities
They have never caused any war - Minority Rights Group
As the Roma say: Khetane ame Zorale. Together we are stronger.
minorityrights.org
minorityrightseu.bsky.social
Read an open access chapter from Erőss, Kovály, and Tátrai on how war shapes ethnic dynamics, migration, and demographics for Ukraine’s Hungarian minority, and how their lives and coping strategies transcend borders.

📖 dx.doi.org/10.4324/9781...

📷 Adrien Vautier

#minority #ukraine #academicsky
Two women standing in front of a building in traditional folk wear standing next to each other looking towards camera
minorityrightseu.bsky.social
“As I crossed the border into Zakarpattia a couple of hours ago, I heard Ukrainian, I heard Slovak, I heard Hungarian. And I knew I was standing not only in Ukraine, but in the very heart of Europe.” Marta Kos, Commissioner, visited Uzhhorod. Read her speech below.

🎤 ec.europa.eu/commission/p...
Image of four people sitting behind desk with nametags. The woman in the middle with black short hair and glasses looks towards the camera whilst the two women to her left look down at the desk and the man on her right looks ahead with his hand up to this face
minorityrightseu.bsky.social
EU Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos attended a meeting of the Council of Public Associations of National Minorities of Ukraine to discuss implementing the new “Law on National Minorities” in the context of European integration. Read more below.

#europe #eu #ukraine #minority #minorities
EU Enlargement Commissioner meets with the Council of National Minorities to discuss Ukraine’s EU Integration path - Council of Europe Office in Ukraine - www.coe.int
Kyiv, Ukraine 7 October 2025
www.coe.int
minorityrightseu.bsky.social
Explore Selma Selman’s selected works and an interview on her Flowers of Life exhibition, where she explains how trauma and pain can be transformed into resistance and how art serves as a tool for communication.

📖 www.selmanselma.com/activism

📹 www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZxSI...

📷 Selma Selman
#art
Black and white photo of a woman with long black hair in a white dress wearing gloves covered in paint in a vehicle looking towards camera Black and white photo of a woman with long black hair in a white dress wearing gloves covered in paint in a vehicle looking and positioned towards camera with an open mouth showing teeth
minorityrightseu.bsky.social
See how lack of change has hindered Bosnia and Herzegovina’s EU accession, as noted in the 2019 Commission Opinion (point 4f), requiring “equality and non-discrimination of citizens, notably by addressing the Sejdić-Finci ECtHR case law.”

📖 enlargement.ec.europa.eu/document/dow...

📷 Shutterstock
Image of two flags, one of Bosnia and Herzegovina which is a blue rectangle with a yellow triangle in the middle with 9 white stars across the triangles base and the European Union flag which is blue with a circle of stars blowing in the wind
minorityrightseu.bsky.social
Almir’s poems reveal the daily prejudice Roma face in Bosnia and Herzegovina, stemming from political under-representation, inadequate language policies, and failure to implement the Sejdić-Finci ruling, hindering equality and EU accession.

📖 minorityrights.org/bosnia-roma/

🎨 Selma Selman
#bosnia
Painting of a woman looking forward with two hands framing her face. An eye peeks from above a green material
minorityrightseu.bsky.social
See the 2009 ruling declaring the Bosnian constitution discriminatory, violating Article 1 of Protocol No. 12 and Article 14 with Article 3 of Protocol No. 1 due to the applicants’ ineligibility to run for the Presidency and House of Peoples.

📖 hudoc.echr.coe.int/fre#{%22item...

📷 MRG
#bosnia #law
Man looking towards camera with gray hair wearing a suit and blue tie.
minorityrightseu.bsky.social
“That Sejdić guy – he’s not fighting just for himself. He’s fighting for all of us. Even for you, and you weren’t even born when this started.” (Human Rights Watch)

📖 minorityrights.org/bosnia-roma/

#minority #minorityrights #bosnia #sejdic #academicsky #law #humanrights #roma
Bosnia, Roma and empty paragraphs - Minority Rights Group
As long as young people like Almir in Bosnia and Herzegovina can write poems about being invisible but cannot even dream of holding the highest offices, this country will not join the European Union. ...
minorityrights.org
minorityrightseu.bsky.social
Tomoka Sato’s article examines China’s language assimilation policy and its use of ‘unity,’ drawing parallels between Inner Mongolia, Tibet, and Xinjiang, and showing how Mongolian-language education has been eroded despite official claims of equality.

📖 doi.org/10.1080/0306...

📷 Byamba-Ochir
People standing in a crowd in front of a building holding white signs with black handwritten text on them
minorityrightseu.bsky.social
China’s draft law raises concerns that it masks assimilation as unity, targeting religious and ethnic minorities. Human Rights Watch @humanrightswatch.bsky.social warns that such claims have previously justified repression of language rights and the persecution of Tibetans and Uyghurs.

#minority
China: Draft ‘Ethnic Unity’ Law Tightens Ideological Control
A newly proposed law in China would provide a broad legal framework to justify existing repression and force assimilation of minority populations throughout the country and abroad.
www.hrw.org
minorityrightseu.bsky.social
Days before the decision, the Venice Commission of the Council of Europe issued an ‘urgent opinion’that warns that the amendment may conflict with Slovakia’s obligations under the Treaty on European Union and the European Convention on Human Rights.

📖 www.coe.int/en/web/venic...

📷 ta3 Denis Dufala
Image of a grey building with the Slovak coat of arms and text saying "NÁRODNÁ RADA SLOVENSKEJ REPUBLIKY", taken from a lower angle.
minorityrightseu.bsky.social
On September 26, the Slovak parliament approved a constitutional amendment that, alongside restrictions on adoptions and gender definitions, asserts the primacy of Slovak law over EU and international law,emphasizing sovereignty in national identity, potentially risking diversity in a broader sense.
Slovakia amends constitution to promote 'national identity'
Slovakia's laws will take precedence over EU legislation in matters concerning "national identity", including issues of family and gender, under a constitutional change approved by parliament on Friday.
www.reuters.com
minorityrightseu.bsky.social
Susan Divald (2021) shows how the Hungarian minority in Slovakia uses commemoration and strategic wording (“self-governance” vs “autonomy”) to sustain identity post-EU accession—a helpful context for the gaps flagged by the Council of Europe.

Read article:

📖 doi.org/10.1177/0888...

#Slovakia
Pie chart of Slovakia's ethnic compostion (2023) by Encyclopædia Britannica.
minorityrightseu.bsky.social
@coe.int report on Slovakia: “legislation continues to contain provisions that exclude, restrict or discourage the use of minority languages, particularly in the fields of the judiciary, administration, the media, and economic and social life.”

📖 Read more below:

#Slovakia #Politics #Minority
More work needed on minority-language education in Armenia and Slovakia
<p>Council of Europe issues two reports on regional and minority languages</p>
www.coe.int
minorityrightseu.bsky.social
Read Landau's (2017) analysis - 'The quest for legitimacy in independent Kosovo' - examining how Kosovo's "state of communities" and minority-rights strategy created internal legitimacy tensions, a must-read for context to the parliament freeze.

Open access article here:

📖 doi.org/10.1080/0090...
Map of the ethinic breakdown of Kosovo (2008) by Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
minorityrightseu.bsky.social
Kosovo’s parliament is frozen until Sept 30 after a constitutional court ruling tied to minority representation. What does this mean for governance and stability?

Read more and watch the video report by @tvpworld.bsky.social below:

#Kosovo #Governance #MinorityRights #PoliticalCrisis #Balkans
Kosovo court freezes parliament over minority representation dispute
Kosovo’s Constitutional Court has barred parliament from passing legislation or forming a government until September 30, after a challenge by the Belgrade-backed Serb List party. The decision follows ...
tvpworld.com
minorityrightseu.bsky.social
As Norway’s elections may empower the far right, Margaretha A. van Es offers a timely analysis of how Norwegian Muslims resist binary definitions of ‘moderate’ or ‘radical’ by using public protests to challenge stereotypes and assert belonging.

Open access article:

📖 doi.org/10.1080/0048...
A young Muslim woman takes a photo of the flowers in tribute to the victims of Anders Breivik, in Oslo, July 2011. REUTERS/Cathal McNaughton
minorityrightseu.bsky.social
Norway goes to the polls on September 8 amid rising far-right influence. As Islam becomes the country’s fastest-growing minority, Muslims fear mounting polarisation.

📖 Read Natalie Donback’s analysis of the upcoming election, parties, and minority impacts on @hyphenonline.com.

#Politics #Minority
Why the upcoming Norwegian election matters
When Norway votes in a new government on 8 September, the country’s growing Muslim minority fear the far right will make significant gains
hyphenonline.com
minorityrightseu.bsky.social
@apnews.com’s Anita Snow reviews Madeline Potter’s The Roma: A Travelling History (2025), “a fascinating look at a marginalized and misunderstood group.” Potter blends memoir and research to trace Romani persecution, resilience and culture across Europe.

Read more:

📖 apnews.com/article/roma...
Book cover of The Roma: A Travelling History (2025) alongside a portrait of the author, Madeline Potter. (Photo source: Topping & Company Booksellers)