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Conference Announcements
Theme: Self-determination in Europe
Subtitle: Contemporary challenges of minorities in multinational
states
Type: International Conference
Institution: Department of Geography, University of Bern
Location: Bern (Switzerland)
Date: 9.–11.10.2014
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Claims for political self-determination have been omnipresent in
Europe for decades. In the 1990s, the ('European') debates were
shaped by violent territorial conflicts in Southeastern Europe
(break-up of Yugoslavia) and the Caucasus (Nagorno-Karabakh,
Chechnya, Georgia) as a consequence of the fall of the Iron Curtain
25 years ago. And some of the conflicts have survived the turn of the
millenium, for instance in Kosovo, where also 15 years after the
outbreak of war a political solution could not yet be reached.
More recently, claims for self-determination have regained strength
also within the European Union, from Spain (Catalonia) in the South,
Great Britain (Scotland) in the North, Romania (Szeklerland) in the
East to Belgium (Flanders) in the 'Heart' of Europe, to name just a
few. Although non-violent, these struggles have essentially touched
the same or similar issues as it was the case in the wars of the
1990s. In all cases people have in some form expressed their will to
self-determination, be it as armed rebels and terrorists or, in a
more democratic form, as members of civil society and political
organisations, in order to make their claims heared.
At the core of the issue of self-determination is the question, what
makes people, ethnic groups or national minorities raise their claims
for self-determination? What factors play a role with regard to the
timing and intensity of these claims? And what kind of
self-determination do people want? In recent years, new forms of
autonomy have been tested; territory is not the only point of
reference, even if still an important one. How do different minority
groups make their claims heard, what are their strategies in the
struggle for self-determination? And how and with whom do they
negotiate their claims? Finally, what happens to ethnic minorities
without territorial bonds, such as the Roma in Southeastern Europe?
How do claims of one group effect others? How does the concept of
citizenship change in the course of these processes?
The general theme of the conference encompasses a wide range of
topics and approaches. Contributions to the conference's topic will
focus on empirical research and case studies, conceptual and
theoretical issues, or policy relevant aspects with regard to
self-determination in Europe alike. Since the conference will be open
to decision- and policy-makers, country or region-specific panels
will be also considered.
Contact:
Dr. Béla Filep
Department of Geography
University of Bern
Hallerstr. 12
CH-3012 Bern
Switzerland
Email: [email protected]
Web:
http://www.geography.unibe.ch/content/forschungsgruppen/kulturgeographie/conferences/index_eng.html
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