The office of the OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities (HCNM) is charged with identifying and seeking early resolution of ethnic tension that might endanger peace, stability or friendly relations between and within the participating states of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe.
[5] The Yugoslav Wars were ethnic conflicts that broke out after the collapse of the Berlin Wall and of Communism, and which eventually resulted in the break up of the country.
[9] This prohibits the High Commissioner from considering “violations of CSCE commitments with regard to an individual person belonging to a national minority”.
[11] As a result, the HCNM was prohibited from considering ‘national minority issues in situations involving organized acts of terrorism’.
[14] The HCNM's mandate as defined at the Helsinki Summit meeting in 1992 contained many ambiguities, the most significant of which is the definition of “national minorities”.
[16] He did this by consulting many experts on minority rights and international law, and thereby developing a set of guidelines and practices for overcoming the ambiguities in the mandate.
Finally, he referenced paragraph 32 of the 1990 CSCE Copenhagen Document,[19] which emphasised that being a part of a national minority was a person's individual choice.
[23] The mandate authorises the HCNM to assess ‘the role of the parties directly concerned, the nature of the tensions and recent developments therein and, where possible, the potential consequences for peace and stability within the OSCE area’.
[24] Her most important role is not necessarily to completely resolve all potential conflicts, but rather to manage them in a way that the tension between groups does not escalate but declines.
Van der Stoel always prepared extensively for any state involvement, often by organising a one- or two-day workshop with leading experts in several relevant areas.
[36] The High Commissioner will assist in preventing an escalating conflict by introducing a minimum standard of minority rights, which should be upheld by the state and other majority actors.
These include recommendations on education, linguistic rights, participation, kin-states, policing in multi-ethnic societies, minority languages in broadcast media, and integration and conflict prevention.
[37] The HCNM frequently recommends that states take measures to protect minority languages, as this is one of the major causes of inter-ethnic tension.
[38] However, the OSCE and HCNM also promote a policy of integration, which strives for a balance between protection of minority culture and the development of an overarching common identity.
[39] The High Commissioner also promotes education of national minority languages and religious practices as a way to prevent conflict.
In order to develop a peaceful society the High Commissioner strives to ensure that all minority groups are sufficiently involved in public life, and are fairly represented at national, regional and local levels.
[49] The flexibility of the HCNM's mandate and the nature of the role allowed van der Stoel to become involved in the tensions in Ukraine at a very early stage.
[50] The success of his work there is in large part credited to his ability to build a relationship of trust with the parties involved and to approach all issues from the basis of impartiality.
The HCNM was involved in managing the relations between the Russian minority and the Ukrainian majority, the status of Crimea within Ukraine, and resettlement of the Crimean Tatars.
[52] Therefore, while the HCNM ultimately played a critical role in conflict prevention in Ukraine, his ability to secure a sustainable solution across all areas of tension was often limited.