CoE v.Chair, Croatia v.Prime Minister Buric to EF : for W.Balkans Integration, Minorities = Bridge

*Strasbourg/CoE/Eurofora/- Replying to an "Eurofora"s Question on Western Balkans at the incoming Austrian EU Presidency's Priorities (7-12/2018) and Croatia's PanEuropean CoE's Presidency's (5-11/2018) interest for Minorities' protection, the v.Prime Minister and Foreign/EU Affairs Minister of Croatia, Marija Pejčinović Burić, expressed her Belief that, with a Closer EU/CoE Cooperation, the European Integration of those Countries could be greatly Facilitated, inter alia, also by valorizing National Minorities' potential as key Links between Countries.EU Commission has notoriously adopted, recently in Strasbourg, an overall Strategy aimed to Boost Western Balkans Countries' European orientation.

Topically, the New CoE's vice-President-in-office spoke to "Eurofora" just after Opening, together with CoE's Secretary General, Thornbjorn Jagland, former Prime Minister of Norway and Key Member of Oslo's NOBEL Peace Prize Committee, an Exceptional, 2-Days Long, International Conference on the 20th Anniversary of the 47 Member States' strong PanEuropean Organisation's landmark Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities (FCNM), and its Charter for Regional and Minority Languages, with active Participation of 6 more Foreign Ministers, as well as Experts also from Russia, from the OSCE and UNO's Highest relevant Senior Officials, (See Infra).

On this occasion, the Croatian v.Prime Minister's Reply to our Question, came among several Other relevant Statements to "Eurofora", also by OSCE's High Commissioner on National Minorities, Ambassador Zannier, by CoE's Presidents of Committees on National Minorities and Regional or Minorities' Languages, respectively Edita Ziobene and Vesna Crnic-Grotig, by the CEO of CoE's Committee on Minorities, Marco Leidekker, of this International Convention's Rapporteur, former CoE's Legal/Human Rights issues Director, Philippe Boillat, and various Other Top Official and/or Experts d.ex., from Norway, Russia, etc, (See Infra).

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- "Yes, we (i.e. CoE's Presidency by Croatia) shall strive, indeed, to Work closer Together with the Austrian EU Presidency (Comp. Supra), particularly on Western Balkan's Stability and Integration, she confirmed to "Eurofora", from the outset.

- And, as far as National "Minorities" are concerned, "I am really Convinced that they can be very Good Bridges" between various Countries, the Croatian v. Prime Minister characteristically  stressed in Substance, in her Reply.

+ Earlier, she had already observed, as a matter of General Principle, that, at least, National Minorities can "Contribute to Strengthen Bilateral Relations".

Interestingly, Pejčinović Burić, an EU - Experienced Croatian, had been Born at Nowadays Bosnia-Herzegovina, and has reportedly Worked, as an EU/WTC Affairs Consultant also with various Other Western Balkan Countries, as well as on EU Consulting for neighbouring Serbia.

- And, nowadays, her Country, "Croatia has the Greatest Number of permanent Minorities", as she had observed.

- "Measures to encourage TransFrontier Cooperation", as well as "Bilateral and Multilateral Agreements with Other States" (etc), are among the Measures supported by the above-mentioned CoE's Convention (FCNM), according to its Article 18, (and a recent CoE's Pamphlet, Resuming the FCNM places "International and Transfrontier Cooperation" among the 12 main "Commitments" undertaken by State Parties).

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+ At the same time, in Parallel, CoE does "Not" like "Parallel Societies" inside any of its Member States, and the way that its Convention on National Minorities is applied in practice, should also  "facilitate their Integration" in the State whose Citizens the are, stressed to "Eurofora" the CEO of CoE's National Minorities' Convention, Marco Leidekker, in the margins of a relevant Press Conference, Earlier Today, (See also Infra).

All this may Facilitate Nowadays, inter alia, also some Geo-Politically Important Public Infrastructures, that EU Insiders had already Highlighted, at a special meeting at the CoE in Strasbourg, where "Eurofora" had participated, as Early as shortly after the Fall of Berlin' Wall, precisely, for that Western Balkans' "Corridor", between Europe's Central Franco-German area, near Strasbourg, (alias "Mittel-Europa"), Straight towards South-Eastern Mediterranean Sea's and/or Middle East Oils/Gas Energy Sources.

Something that even ...Hitler had, in fact, desperately Tried to do, 1st by struggling to Cross that Direct and Shorter, "Western Balkan Corridor", all the way until down to Greece's Southern Island of Creta, (where he was notoriously Delayed by a surprizing "No" even from a Far Right Government of that of Authoritarian Nationalist Prime Minister Metaxas, until Anglo-American and French Allies blocked his route towards Egypt), but, even with Harder Alternatives, such as General Rommel's North-African Mediterranean Coast-line route, (succesfully faced by Allies' General Montgomery in several Battles in the Sahara), as well as in the German Attack of Russia, which had rectified Napoleon's Historic Error to Invade Moscow, by suddenly Turning Southwards, and seeking to cross the Caucasus area, in order to Reach Nowaday's Iraq/Syria's Oil/Gas Natural Resources, until Russia, supported by all Allies, notoriously succeeded to Stop Hitler at Stalingrad, then, (nowadays Volgograd). As a Result, whent the NAZI Tanks' attacked through France's Ardennes' Forests, later-on, even if they Initially Won some Battles, nevertheless, at the End, they were spectacularly Obliged to Stop any advance, precisely because of that Lack of Energy sources..., proving that the Strategic "Western Balkans' Route" was Instrumental, in Europe, even for the Final Outcome of the 2nd World War !

- Indeed, CoE's Convention on National Minorities was its "Only Treaty which was Drafted in Less than 8 Months' Time, in a context of Extreme Time Pressure, particularly "during the Last 3 Months, that I shall never forget, as Leading then a Legal Team which Prepared that Text", precisely "Because War had just Started in the former Yugoslavia's area", and there was an Urgent Need for such a Legal Text, as that Country (which Dominated then most of the Western Balkan's route) was Breaking Down into Several Independent Parts becoming New States, reminded to "Eurofora" the Experienced, until recently, Long-Time CoE's General Director of Legal and Human Rights issues, Philippe Boillat, (who served now as "Rapporteur" of this International Conference to CoE's Committee of Minisers, and afterwards Hailed, by Nowadays CoE's General Director of Democracy, Snezana Samardzi-Markovic, at the Closing Session, as "an Intellectual Father of this Convention".

- The Move had come just After CoE's Exceptional "Heads of State/Government's Summit in Vienna on 1993, which had Focused on Democratic Security", and the Convention on National Minorities' protection "Had to be Drafted just between 1993 and 1994", Boillat reminded earlier to "Eurofora", adding, Later-on, also that all that had, in Fact, started just After the "1989 Fall of Berlin's Wall" and the subsequent "Explosions of Yugoslavia and the URSS on 1991", which created many "New States" in those Areas, as he reminded in fine. The main Point was to try to establish "a PanEuropean Area of Democratic Security", "precious for Peace, which is a Condition for any Development, economic, scientific or cultural", as he stressed at the Closing Session.

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- Indeed, too Often, "when you hear about Minorities, it's also about Conflict !", realistically reminded, speaking earlier to "Eurofora", the Experienced OSCE's High Commissioner on National Minorities, Ambassador Lamberto Zannier, who notoriously was, until recently, the Long-Time Secretary General of all OSCE's Euro-Atlantic Organisation, (where Both Russia and USA are Members : Comp. already, Zannier's previous Statements to "Eurofora", as early as since, already, the December 2014 OSCE's Annual Summit, then at nearby Basel, f.ex., at : ..., etc). Therefore an interesting link to Security and Peace-making/Keeping and/or various relevant operations, (whose General "Know-how" might even be usefully, later-on, Transmitted also to Other Areas of the World, including, f.ex. to the African Union, etc. as he Added Later-on, during a Debate with UNO's former Rapporteur on Minorities, and nowadays UN Rapporteur against Racial Discrimination, Rita Iszak-Ndiaye : See also Infra).

- However, even if Both CoE's relevant Legal Tools on the "Protection of National Minorities" and "Regional and Minorities' Languages" entered into Force since 1998, (i.e. completing their 20th Anniversary on 2018), nevertheless, they were Not Equaly WideSpread : Indeed, while National Minorities are covered thus throughout 39 among CoE's 47 Member Countries, (including Russia, but Excluding France, Turkey, Andorra, Greece, Belgium, Luxembourg and Iceland : the three first without even signing, and the other four because they didn't yet ratify, despite having signed), nevertheless, "Regional and Minority Languages" are Only covered in 25 CoE's Member Countries, (as another 8 have Only Signed, but Not Ratified yet : including France, Italy and Russia, Iceland,  Georgia, Azerbaijan, Moldova, FYROM, etc, while another 12 have Not even Signed : including Turkey, Greece, Belgium, Ireland, Bulgaria, Albania, Portugal, the Baltic States, etc).

- It's true that, at least in the Particular Case of "Greece and Turkey, Minority Issues are covered by the (Older : 1923) Treaty of Lausane", as the CEO of CoE's National Minorities' Convention, Marco Leidekker, reminded to Strasbourg's Journalists, including "Eurofora", during a Press Conference, (Comp. also Supra + Infra).

- But the Présidents of Both CoE's Committees which Monitor the Implementation of those Legal Tools, and particularly Vesna Crniuc-Grotic, concerning the "Regional and Minority Languages", speaking also at the Closing Session of this 20th Anniversary International Conference, complained about the Fact that Many States' full Accession has been recently "Stuck".

- Indeed, f.ex., in cases as such of Russia, whose Languages may Total (including even those which are still spoken Nowadays by Only a Few People : f.ex. Dozens or 10, perhaps 5...) about 200 (sic !), while, if one added Also the Languages of Foreign-Origin Communities which have come and Settled in Russia, (as, f.ex., in some Villages populated mainly by Kurds, etc), Estimations might go even Further than ... 300, as Moscow "Lomonosov" University's Expert, Olga Kazakevich, told "Eurofora", (See also Infra).

 + There are also the cases of some Small Countries, as f.ex. FYROM, which have already Officialy Recognized the existence of Many "National Minorities", such as "the Albanian People, Turkish People, Vlach People, Serbian People, Roma People, and Bosniac People", according to COE's Official Documents, distributed this week in Strasbourg. (While, given a notorious History of Thousands of Years, since the Ancient Greek Civilisation, revived in the Byzantine Empire, etc, at least some Greeks, and afterwards Bulgarians should, normally, be included, at the South and Eastern Areas, respectively. Among others, considering also, both Sofia's influence for Many Decades, and that President Tito's Balkan Policies were quite Popular among Leftist Greeks who fought on the Balkan Mountains as Allies of the Yugoslavian side, during the Civil War of 1946-1949 in Greece, when FYROM's area had been born, at the Beginning of the Cold War, and, logically, stayed there, probably prolonging that for Generations, since it had become afterwards Impossible for them to move in nowadays Greece for Decades).

By a Coincidence, it's also when CoE's Convention on National Minorities had been Drafted and Adopted in a Hurry, Back on 1993-1994,  mainly Because of the Former Yugoslavia's War, (as a main Actor as Boillat reminded to "Eurofora" these Days : Comp. Supra), that Liberal/"Socialist" former USA President Bill Clinton chose to Appoint Mathew Nimitz as his Envoy for the Issue of the Future "Name" of Skopje's Region, (located approximatively at the Ancient "Paeonia", particularly the Kingdom of "Dardania", Northwards), later accepted as "FYROM" inside the UNO, in relation with the Ancient Greek Macedonian History and Culture, centered Southwards, and, particularly, Modern Greece (1821-2018).

- Regarding the "National Minorities" themselves, Rapporteur Philippe Boillat (Comp. Supra), reminded, at the Closing Session of CoE's International Conference, that, in order also to attract as much as possible among the concerned Member States to Sign and Ratify that "Framework Convention", it had been Drafted in a very "Soft" Way, f.ex., Leaving it up to the Contracting States a Free Choice on the Definition of What They Recognized (each one, in particular) as "National Minorities" inside their Territory. Moreover, States can also Choose most of the Commitments that they Decide to Undertake, or not, with "the Only Exception of the Article 6, about Tolerance", (but also "Protect(ion)" from eventual "Threats, or acts of Discrimination, Hostility, or Violence, as a result of ...Ethnic, Cultural, Linguistic or Religious Identity", as that Article adds). At the same time, "we stressed also the respect of States' Territorial Integrity and Sovereignity", he added, (pointing at CoE's Convention's Preambule).

But it's also a Fact that, there are at least Some "Delicate" Points in CoE's "National Minority" and/or "Regional/Minority Languages" Legal Tools, as, f.ex., among others, the Distinction between Allowed "Integration Policy" and "Practices aimed at Assimilation of persons ...Against their Will", (Article 5 of the FCNM) ; or Educational Measures which, sometimes, might even go as far as to Revendicate Special "University" level studies for one or another Minority, etc.; perhaps use of even some rare Languages in Exchanges with National Authorities, (etc), which might, at least partially, explain some CoE's Member States' reluctance to Engage too much in such Issues, and/or some's Hesitation to Fully Implement All their Commitments in this regard, (as several Critical Observers pointed out).

Inter alia, f.ex., Regional/Minority Languages is, in some Countries a very "Sensitive" Issue, (even in Big and Strong ones, as, f.ex., France). To the point that, f.ex., in FYROM, Demographic Census' Data and relevant Maps seem to have practically Disappeared since 2002, reportedly because the 2001 Ohrid Agreements had linked a 20% Minority Threshhold in each Municipality with a promised Right for a secondary Official Language vis a vis Local Authorities, (as also "Wikipedia" notes : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographics_of_the_Republic_of_Macedonia). That's why, f.ex., relevant FYROM's Demographic Maps, (existing between 1961 and 2002) recently seem to Lack between 2002 and 2018. 

(Based on "Wikipedia" of 2018.

White Color reportedly means "Empty" or unclear Demography Municipalities)

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- Moreover, as f.ex. a Spanish Representative critically Observed during the Debates of this CoE's International Conference, sometimes, Countries like Spain and others, simply "Don't dispose of sufficient (Financial and/or other) Means to have, at their Capital, enough Staff and other Tools in order to Translate all required Documents, Letters, Exchanges, etc., in All Regional or Minority Languages", (as far as CoE's relevant "Charter" is concerned : Comp. Supra and Infra).

>>> This is one among the Various current Problems which might be more or less Alleviated by the adequate Development and use of "Digitalisation" New Technologies, on which "Eurofora" had just Focused our main Question in CoE's Press Conference, Earlier Today, with the Presidents of the Paneuropean "National Minorities" and "Regional/Minority Languages"' Monitoring Committees, respectively Edita Ziobiene and Vesna Crnic-Grotic, (Comp. also Supra) :

- Their Replies to the above-mentioned "Eurofora"s Question were, in Substance, to point Both towards the New "Opportunities" and to the "Challenges" that Modern "Digitalisation Technologies" seem to Open also in relation with various Minorities-related Issues : F.ex., inter alia, also Better Community Interactions, Automatic Translations, etc., emergening "Social Medias" and other New Web Oulets at the Internet, advancing well Beyonf the "Traditional Medias", but also more Risks of "Hate Speach", and so on, as they Highlighted.

- Afterwards, Experienced Russian Expert Olga Kazakevich, (who is also Director of the Laboratory for Computational Lexicography, at Lomonosov University's Computing Center, in Moscow), one of CoE's Invited Speakers in a special Debate about "Digitalisation" (See Infra), Replying, Later-on, to an "Eurofora"s Question, Acknowledged, in principle, that an eventual Development of "Automatic, Machine Translations", including, f.ex., "On Line" at the Internet, etc., might, possibly, Help to overcome at least some among such Language Barriers vis a vis Minorities, in the foreseable Future, (Comp. Supra).

- However, Kazakevich also Warned "Eurofora" about the Current "Limits of Machine Translation", to the point that many find "Preferable to hold a Good Dictionary", instead, while, in Real Practice, Most People "use to simply Switch into the Wider-Spread Language in a Country", often, f.ex. "English or Russian", etc.

- So that, inter alia, particularly Small Minority Languages, some spoken by "Less than 50.000 People", until to even "Only some Dozens, eventually 10 or 5 People still alive", are "Dying", risking to be left with No Descendants Anymore, the Russian Expert told Earlier CoE's Conference. Therefore, "some Old People", Lone Survivants of such Dying Languages, often "Wish to be Video-Filmed in order to leave a Message which might Interest, if not even their own Kids, at least, perhaps, their Great-Children, and/or Other People, in the Future" : I.e. something "Interesting Also for Scientific Research by Linguistists", that New, Digital Technologies can Help Saveguard, she added also, Speaking Later with "Eurofora" (Comp. Supra).

 

+ But, in this regard, it's a Young Expert from Estonia, (an EU Member Country with notorious Advance in Internet Communications, but also quite Strict in Minority Languages' exchanges vis a vis the Public Administration, f.ex. Russian, as she observed herself), Ms Maimu Berezkina, who works for the Norwegian Directorate of Health, at Oslo, and was also Invited by the CoE to speak at that Special Debate on "Digitalisation", who appeared much More UpBeat about the Practical Possibilities to really Use Digital Technologies in order to Help People (including, naturally, various Minorities) Communicate, much more Easily than in the Past, Well Beyond Linguistic Barriers, as she Described by pointing, f.ex., at her own Experience as "Web Advisor" in Norway for "e-Health".

- It's also from Norway, that came anOther interesting Expert, Bjorn Olav Megard, Director General at the Ministry of Modernisation and Local Government, in charge of Minority Affairs, who Participated, in this regard, to CoE's Conference Debates, and also afterwards Explained to "Eurofora", that a Team of Researchers is recently Developing a New, "Grammar-Based" Machine Translation Method, (which is, f.ex., Independent of the Number of Users, Unlike USA's "Google" Translations, whose "Reliability and Quality", on the Contrary, depend on Massive Use, as a UK Expert had just pointed out), that might be Helpful in these and other cases.

+ Giving a Wider Overview of also Various Other "New Developments" by "Digitalisation", during that CoE's Debate, Swedish Professor Jarmo Lainio, at the Department of Slavic and Baltic Languages, Finnish, Dutch and German, of Stockholm University, described, f.ex., a Recent Trend for "Traditional Medias to Merge with On-Line Medias" at the Internet, so that, inter alia, the Key References of COE's Conventions about Minorities to "TV Channels", "NewsPapers", "Radios", and other such "Classic" Medias, have Now become "Out-Dated", as he Warned, (and should, in consequence, be rather extended also to New, Internet Medias).

++ Moreover, thanks to the Internet, it has "become Easier", Nowadays, "to Establish Contacts, and Create Communities", etc., it was pointed out, in the context of various Minorities at various Countries.

+++ However, in Addition, at the same time, there is also an "Increasing" use of "Geo-Blocking", (i.e. Hindering the World Wide Web to be Accessed in Certain Countries (f.ex., often, currently, between EU and USA, etc), but, "perhaps, also Inside one Country, among its Various Regions", etc", so that all this, obviously, may create "a New Problem", as he critically Observed.

>>> Nevertheless, the Experienced Rapporteur of this COE's International Conferenxce, and former Director General on Legal and Human Rights, Philippe Boillat from Switzerland, Urged, at the Closing Session, to try to Benefit from the "Digitalisation", in order also to "Increase the Visibility" of CoE's Legal Tools, by Developing the "Use of the Immense Potential of New Communication Technologies", as he said.

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+ But, Recent Developments appear to Add also some Other New Possibilities :

- Already, CoE's Secretary General, Thornbjorn Jagland, had observed from the outset, in his Official Speech at the Opening of CoE's International Conference, (Comp. Supra), the Fact that, f.ex., "Armenia has Recently set up Schools which Teach in 3 Minority Languages : Assyrian, Kurdish and Yazidi", as he observed, Welcoming such moves.

- As "Eurofora" found Confirmation also by the Armenian Ambassador/Permanent Representative to the CoE, Pamur Hovhannisyan (Comp. also: ...., etc), that Recent move was, indeed, Motivated by Yerevan's Political Will to show Solidarity and Help, by such Humanitarian Means, those genuine Political or War Refugees, mainly from Syria and/or Iraq, who have notoriously been Brutaly Persecuted and Oppressed particularly by Islamist Terrorists of ISIS' coward Killers Targetting innocent Civilian People, near the Borders of Turkey, that they naturally canNot Trust at all. This includes even a Landmark, Brand New Church Building for Yazidi Refugees, recently established at the Armenian Capital City, etc.

+ However, going even Further than such, obviously moraly necessary moves, OSCE's new High Commissioner on National Minorities, (who has served also as former Secretary General of that PanEuro-Atlantic Organisation : Comp. f.ex. his previous Statements to "Eurofora" at : ..., etc), speaking at a Joint, CoE-OSCE-UNO Debate on the "International Protection of Minority Rights" (Compr Supra), referred to the OSCE's "Guidelines for Integration in a Diverse Society", and Explored the Idea of Using CoE's a.o. "Legal Tools, initially made for Traditional Minorities", also for Nowadays "New (Mass) Migrants", i.e. for the "Integration of New Minorities", as he said, for which "our (Political) Leaders are Not Well Prepared" yet.

- CoE's Director General on Democracy, Snezana Samardzic-Marcovic, appeared to Agree, by adding that certain "CoE's Experts are also for Using these Tools vis a vis <<New Minorities>>, but, at least for the Time being, there are, among others, also severe "Budget Problems" inside the CoE :

I.e. after the Scheduled "Freezing" of Russia's Financial Contribution recently, following 4 Years of Obstacles to the Russian MEPs' Participation in CoE's Parliamenary Assembly since the 2014 Ukranian Conflict following the Violent and Deadly Clashes provoked in Kiev on February that year, which Brutally Cancelled a Political Compromise Agreement, signed between the then Président Yanukovitch and the Opposition Leaders (for Cease-Fire, Amnesty, New Goverment of National Unity, and New Presidential Elections before the end of that Year, etc. + But Also ...Turkey's UnWarned Unilateral Restriction of its Financial Contribution, thanks to a recent Augmentation of which, Ankara had Obtained More Seats for its MEPs in CoE's Assembly, that Turkey apparently still Keeps even after this Sudden Financial Cut, at least until very recently...

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=> But, at the Official "Closing Session", CoE's Democracy Director-General Focused much More on How to "Help States to meet their Obligations", not jus by Criticizing them, and/or via "Name and Shame", but rather "by Assisting them" to accomplish their Duty, as she characteristically stressed.

=> - Echoing such Calls, at the Closing Session, the new President-in-office of COE's Committee of Ministers, Croatian Ambassador/Permanent Representative Miroslav Papa, (Comp. his Recent Statements to "Eurofora" on Other Big Challenges of Zagreb's CoE's Presidency nowadays, between May - November 2018, at: ...), Vowed to Support inside CoE's Committee of Ministers this International Conference's Rapporteur, Philippe Boillat's main Coclusions, for a Series of Practical Measures (f.ex., Publication of Monitoring Reports after Dialogue with the concerned State, more Frequent Actions, Contacts even Before Reporting Visits, etc), in order to Strengthen the "Multilateral" (and Not Bilateral) character of COE's role in this field, and Meet the "Need to Revigorate and Strengthen the Monitoring" of Member States' Compliance to their above mentioned Legal Obligations :

- Indeed, "Monitoring lies at CoE's Heart", in general, as he Concluded.