The Challenge of Ethnic Conflict, Democracy and Self-Determination in Central Europe by Anton Pelinka & Dov Ronen

Author:Anton Pelinka & Dov Ronen [Pelinka, Anton & Ronen, Dov]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Political Science, General
ISBN: 9781135249908
Google: 8c-2AQAAQBAJ
Goodreads: 20846557
Publisher: Routledge
Published: 2013-10-23T00:00:00+00:00

In the Post-Cold War Era

With the end of the Cold War, which we date to the tearing down of the Berlin Wall in November 1989, first the Baltic states - the Union Republics of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania - broke away from the Soviet Union. The other Union republics followed later. The peaceful division of Czechoslovakia into Czech and Slovak republics came on 1 January 1993. In the meantime, negotiations for reforming the Yugoslav federation failed and collapsed through violent ethnic conflict.

Apart from these well-publicised secessionist cases, several 'minority problems' continued brewing - in Slovakia, Transylvania, Vojvodina - and, outside of Central Europe, in Azerbidjan, Georgia and elsewhere in the former Soviet Union. By the early 1990s, prospects for the spread and intensification of ethnic conflict and extreme nationalist manifestations in Central Europe appeared serious.

The question that interests us here is this: What kind of policies, or practical solutions have been proposed and undertaken in response to the apparent 'ethnic challenge' in the post-Cold War era?

It seems clear that the 'minority problem' failed to gain priority until the eruption of ethnic conflict in Yugoslavia. The transition was not easy from a Cold War foreign policy concern with 'modern' super-power confrontation to a concern with what has been perceived as 'pre-modern' ethnic quarrels. Indeed, the transition was relatively slow. We shall again look at major international documents to prove our point.

The Charter of Paris for a New Europe18 was signed and published on 21 November 1990, after the crumbling of the Berlin Wall, but before the outbreak of large-scale violence in Yugoslavia. A transition indeed occurred. While the Helsinki Final Act concentrated on territorial integrity and relations among states, The Charter of Paris shifted the focus to democracy and elections, i.e., democratisation. The issue of human rights also appeared, and that in the new context of democratisation, in the context of transition from repressive rule to democracy. The Charter stated:

We undertake to build, consolidate and strengthen democracy as the only system of government of our nations. In this endeavour, we will abide by the following:

'Human rights and fundamental freedoms ...' the protection of which is 'the first responsibility of government' ... and 'an essential safeguard against an over-mighty State.'

'Democracy is the best safeguard of freedom of expression, tolerance of all groups of society, and equality of opportunity for each person.' [Note the democratic right of 'opportunity'.]

'We affirm that, without discrimination, every individual has the right' to various freedoms, including the right 'to own property alone or in association and to exercise individual enterprise, to enjoy his economic, social and cultural rights'.

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