The United Nations Special Rapporteur on Minority Issues, the Tom Lantos Institute and the Diplomatic Academy in Vienna organised the European-Central Asia Regional Forum on 2 and 3 May 2022, which brought together a large number of Minority Rights experts that discussed the situation of minorities in Europe and Central Asia. Mr. Zandberg participated in this conference as well and made several statements during these two days in Vienna.
The objective of the event is formulated by the organisers as follows: “At a time when minorities face increased challenges worldwide, the Europe-Central Asia Regional Forum will mark the 30th Anniversary of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Persons Belonging to National or Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities by undertaking a critical assessment of its problem-solving capacity through a gap analysis focusing on the normative framework, institutions and mechanisms facilitating implementation, and the effectiveness of minority participation in norm-making and norm-adherence. The aim is to formulate concrete recommendations for the improvement of the regional and global minority protection regimes.”
The event was organised in four thematic sessions where experts provided input for further discussion and made recommendations on improving the Minority Rights situation. The sessions were the following:
- Normative framework: existing norms and interpretations
- Implementation: Institutions, Mechanisms, Policies, and Programmes
- Minority participation as a procedural and substantive right and practice
- Moving Forward: Reforming the Protection and Implementation of the Minority Rights Framework
A more detailed overview of the event will be published below in the upcoming days.
