Minorities before the Court: Rights, Provisions and Jurisprudence

Jurisprudence on the protection of minorities is as lengthy as diverse. This bundle examines relevant publications at the ECMI addressing the different approaches at the judicial level which have helped to develop a consistent jurisprudence in minority related cases. In addition to it, several commentators analyse certain landmark decisions of -principally- the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR), the European Court of Justice (ECJ), and the European General Court (EGC), the most relevant tribunals in the European territory when it comes to the protection of human rights. 

Accordingly, Sia Spiliopoulou Åkermark introduces us to a comprehensive analysis of the jurisprudence of the ECtHR until the beginning of the 2000s. This publication addresses a number of cases at the ECtHR regarding questions affecting minorities, highlighting the complementary character of Article 14 of the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (ECHR) vis-à-vis other substantives articles of the Convention. This provision is the general non-discrimination clause, particularly referring to “association with a national minority” when enumerating the grounds on which discrimination is prohibited. Anneleen van Bossuyt explained in 2007 that Article 14 was of little relevance until 2005, when the ECtHR found for the first time in Nachova v. Bulgaria a violation of the principle against racial discrimination. This commentator provides in her publication with a detailed assessment of the various angles adopted by both the ECtHR and the ECJ for the purpose of gaining insight into their respective attitudes towards minority protection.   

Roberta Medda-Windischer and Michaela Salamun comment on distinctive rights of minorities whose violation is often brought to court. In her contribution to the Yearbook, Medda-Windischer addresses the role of the ECtHR when facing questions relating religious minorities and groups in contemporary societies. In particular, she explores which are the approaches taken by the Court in issues where religious-related concerns are at stake. For her part, Michaela Salamun systematizes in her publication the jurisprudence of highest courts (constitutional courts or supreme courts) on linguistic rights. The different constitutional systems (e.g., States with co-official languages at the national level or at the subnational level, and States with only one official language) serve as the starting point for explaining that Courts deal differently with linguistic rights.  

Lastly, Balázs Tárnok analyses in his contribution to the JEMIE the judgment of the EGC on the Minority SafePack Initiative, which was not registered in 2013 by the European Commission on the ground that it fell manifestly outside its competence. This decision was annulled in 2017 by the EGC on the ground that the Commission had failed to comply with its obligation to state reasons. Tárnok describes the chain of events that led to such a milestone judgment, which, in his view, could be critical for the success of the initiative.  

 

List of related Publications: 

ECMI Founders

The German Federal Government
The Danish Government
The Federal State Schleswig-Holstein