Individual or collective rights as rights of the national minorities

• Author: Diaconu Catalin Stefan - Diaconu Elena
• Position: Teaching Assistent, University Lecturer - PhD University Lecturer, Spiru Haret University
• Pages: 36-39

INDIVIDUAL OR COLLECTIVE RIGHTS AS RIGHTS OF THE

NATIONAL MINORITIES

Ştefan Ctlin Diaconu

Elena Diaconu

Abstract

The present pa per is based on the doctrina l and legal approach to the minority rights in

terms of two possibilities of exercising them, namely together with the individual one, or with the

others. The legal issues presented in the paper is of a strong political natur e and created

difficulties both in defining the term "national minority''and in framing its rights into individual

or collective rights.

Key words: National Minorities, Human Rights, Individual Rights, Collective Rights.

Introduction

The issues of the national minorities rights is very curr ent and controversial.

The preocupation for the minority rights became a topic of constant concer n in the international

law only after World War I, although the issues of the existence and protection of the minority

groups came out in the16th century. These problems increased after after World War I ,by the

treaties concluded between the Allied and Associated Powers (USA, United Kingdom, F rance,

Italy and Japan) a nd the defeated states or those that got their territories reintegrated a nd also

got minorities in these territories. Thus, until 1934, the regulations relating to the national

minorities were given by: the peace treaties concluded in the Paris Peace Conference with

Austria, Hungary, Bulgaria, Turkey, special trea ties also called The Minority Treaties concluded

within the Peace Conference from Paris, with Poland, Greece, Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia a nd

Romania. The statements about the minorities, made in front of the Council of the Nations

Society by the member states: Albania, Estonia, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania; the mutual

agreements between states.

After the Second World War, the international community began to focus on the human

rights and their international protection. In 1945 the United Nations Charter came into force.

Although it did not contain specific provisions on the minority rights, the Charter proclaimed the

universal principles of the observation and protection of the human rights, and the principles of

equality and non-discrimination. Article 1, Paragraph 3 states that one of the purposes of the

Organization is "to achieve international cooperation ... in promoting and encouraging the

observation of the human rights for everybody without any relation to race, sex, language or

religion." Thus, by including the principle of non-discrimination in The Charter, which is one of

 Teaching Assistent, University Lecturer, Trainer for a Doctor’s Degree, Ion Şuiu, e-mail:

easymoderogue@yahoo.com, e-mail: nelusuiu@yahoo.com

 PhD University Lecturer, Spiru Haret University, e-mail: diaconuush@yahoo.com