Interview with Francesco Palermo

Can you tell us a little bit about your connection to the ECMI? How have you been involved with the ECMI activities/projects/research?

My connection to the ECMI dates back to the late 1990's, when the cooperation with Eurac Research gradually started. My involvement has been twofold. On the one hand, I had the privilege to participate in some (applied) research projects and activities, sometimes in cooperation with Eurac and sometimes in my personal capacity as a researcher. On the other hand, I have often been in touch regarding a number of different issues when I was working for the OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities and was a member and president of the Council of Europe’s Advisory Committee on the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities, as the ECMI has permanent contacts and exchanges with these institutions. In both cases the exchange has always been productive and useful.

Do you remember the first time you visited the ECMI Headquarters in Flensburg or an ECMI event? What was the occasion and how do you remember that day?

It was in July 2013, and the occasion was a conference in which the book in honour of Rainer Hofmann was presented. I remember the friendly atmosphere, the hospitality and a fantastic boat tour of the fjord that we did on the subsequent day. It was also great to visit the premises after more than a decade of various forms of cooperation, as a first-hand impression is very important to round up the picture.

The ECMI opened its doors 25 years ago. In your opinion, how has the research on minority issues changed over the past 25 years?

It has changed a lot, sometimes it seems like 250 years, in fact. But it is not going to change less in the coming 25 years. Minority rights and their challenges have tremendously changed since then, and not always for the better. Back then the main priority was the establishment of an effective system of minority protection, based on appropriate legislation. In parallel, it was necessary to convince the governments that protecting the rights of minorities was not only an international (and often a constitutional) obligation, but also in the prime interest of the States themselves. It was the time when domestic law was deeply influenced by international standards, and these were pervasive as they were part of domestic law. A few years after, this enthusiasm disappeared, as other priorities emerged, from international terrorism to financial crises, and subsequently the migration challenge and the pandemic. Minority rights disappeared from the screen and the implementation stagnated. The last stage was marked by a backslide including in the normative framework: minorities are often either exposed to serious threats to assimilate or they are kept in their own bubble where they can exercise (some of) their rights but follow a parallel development and create parallel societies. The challenge is indeed the integration of diverse societies as a whole, in a process of mutual enrichment of majorities and minorities where all diversity is respected and celebrated. But this is not happening, or at least not to the extent that circumstances would require. Some good research is being carried out, including by the ECMI, but the impact remains overall limited, as very often both governments and minority representatives prefer to listen to what they already have in mind. What is needed, in other words, is a change of paradigm in research and, consequently, in the policies in most countries. What is still lacking, outside the small circle of experts, is the awareness of the key importance of these issues in the years to come.

What do you think was the ECMI’s biggest contribution to the minority research so far?

I have always appreciated the ECMI’s ability to work on two fronts that are deeply connected and need one another: research and consulting with work on the ground. Practice-oriented work, such as the development of indicators to measure the implementation of minority rights, or to determine the effectiveness of cross-border arrangements in the enhancement of minority rights, are of utmost importance, including for international organizations and policy makers. Such kind of work, however, would not be possible without a sound knowledge and research background. This is the reason why the work by numerous NGOs, despite its often excellent quality, faces its limits in terms of long-term sustainability. This is not a problem that ECMI has. Numerous publications have helped the ECMI’s work to become standard reference in this field and to establish the centre in the academic community. Besides excellent individual volumes, the regular publications deserve a special mention in this regard, such as the European Yearbook on Minority Issues and the JEMIE Papers.

In your opinion, what makes the ECMI unique and sets it apart from other research institutions dealing with minority issues?

There are a couple of factors that make the ECMI unique and special - an institution that is able to attract excellent people from all over Europe and beyond. One is no doubt its ability to be a center of academic excellence and at the same time an active think-thank and resource for international organizations in its area of expertise. Such a combination does not exist in universities and makes the ECMI one of the very few places to go when dealing with minority issues.

Another factor is specialization without becoming narrow in the approach. The studies and other activities clearly have minority issues at their core, but look at them in a comprehensive, holistic way which never omits to consider all facets of the complex minority kaleidoscope. This way qualitative research and sustainable advise are possible.

Probably, also the location in Flensburg plays a role here. To study minority issues while breathing, inhaling them in the daily life, when walking to the office or buying groceries, makes a great deal of difference. I can sense this also in my area, South Tyrol.

Thinking about the next 25 years, where do you see the role of the ECMI in minority research? What are the new developments and challenges for which the work of the ECMI might be useful?

Like for minority studies overall, their connection with societal developments at large will become necessary. The ECMI has always shown an uncommon capacity to grasp and investigate the elements that influence effective minority protection, such as security, international relations, cross-border cooperation, kin-state activism and many more. In future, attention cannot but be devoted to the relationship between minorities and the rest of society, and to the management of difference as a whole. This might be seen by some as going beyond the field of minority issues, but in fact the instruments developed for the protection of minority rights provide the most obvious matrix for addressing all calls for difference in complex societies. Expertise on minority rights will become ever more strategic in future as diversity in societies will inevitably grow.

Francesco Palermo is Professor of comparative constitutional law at the University of Verona and Director of the Institute for Comparative Federalism at Eurac Research in Bolzano/Bozen. He worked for the OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities and was member and president of the Council of Europe’s Advisory Committee on the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities. From 2013 to 2018 he served as a non-party member of the Italian Senate, Member of the Scientific Committee of the Fundamental Rights Agency of the EU for the term 2018-2023 and Constitutional Adviser to the Council of Europe’s Congress of Local and Regional Autonomies since 2019. He has authored over 300 publications, including 11 monographs and 36 edited volumes. Full CV can be found here.