durant.dk

European democracies in crisis.

Why are minority rights important? Because the true test of a pluralist, democratic society is the extent to which the society includes minorities, allows them to participate and integrate rather than excludes, vilifies and discriminates against them.

The term “minority rights” refers to the rights of individuals and groups that define themselves or are defined by others based on race, gender, age, ethnicity, nationality, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, etc. These rights can be individual or collective in nature.

Mechanisms put in place to protect the rights of minorities, in a political process that is determined by the will of the majority, do not appear to be functioning adequately. Liberal democracy and human rights mechanisms in Europe appear to be failing minorities, particularly the Muslim minority. As I have mentioned in an earlier posting, according to a recent report from the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights:

“1 in 3 Muslim respondents were discriminated against in the past 12 months and 11% experienced a racist crime. The highest levels of discrimination occurred in employment (when looking for work 18%; at work 13%), and in private services (at a bar restaurant, shop, by a landlord; total 14%). In comparison, of all ethnic groups surveyed within EU-MIDIS, 37% experienced discrimination, and 12% had been a victim of a racist crime.”

In Denmark, 42% of those people surveyed of Turkish origin, replied that they had experienced discrimination within the 12 month period the study covered. 62% of the people, who participated in the study, with a Sub-Saharan African, between 16-24 years of age, reported discrimination during the same 12 month period.

The report goes on to state:

“1 in 4 Muslims experienced discrimination and did not report their experiences anywhere. If this was extended to the entire Muslim population in the 14 Member States where Muslim respondents were surveyed, the level of non-reporting would translate into thousands of cases that do not reach any complaints bodies – including State bodies and NGOs.”

You can download the full report by saving the document at this link to your computer desktop. A summary with statistical analysis can be found here.

Of particular concern for the Muslim minority in Denmark, is that Danish political parties as a policy, have been demanding Muslims renounce Sharī‘ah (الشريعة) before they are allowed to stand as candidates. There have been at least three documented cases of this taking place. Such demands constitute a violation of religious freedom.

Other minorities have also been searching for protection from hate crime, discrimination and racism. In Denmark, where I have the most complete information on the issue, there are no national hate crime, discrimination and racism statistics. In connection with the recent World Outgames, which were held in Copenhagen, a police spokesman stated that the police would start taking hate crime more seriously. What have they done before? No one knows, the entire area is opaque. It is unclear how many reports of hate crimes and racism are received by the police in relation to how many are rejected as unfounded, year for year. The police do not at this time receive any diversity training. Nor do there appear to be any functioning outreach programs to minority communities. Current Danish legislation lacks cohesion. There are changes needed that will effectively treat discrimination complaint procedures on an equal footing, regardless of whether the discrimination is because of gender, race or ethnic origin, religion, disability, age, sexual orientation, political opinion, origin, etc. It is also unclear how many court cases end with a conviction for racism. Furthermore, it is unclear if any resources are committed to combatting hate crime, discrimination and racism.

These are glaring failures for liberal democracies in Europe, particularly Denmark. Admittedly, I don’t have a full picture, but the picture I do have is not a pretty sight. None of the information in the above is actually new. The same tendencies have been obvious since the 1980’s. Desultory reforms have been passed over the years, but in recent years European politics have more often emphasized the majority will. Minority rights and majority responsibilities have taken a back seat. This is a problem that strikes at the heart of the post World War II, European democratic process – civil rights and human rights, which has largely been left to the shifting sands of political rhetoric.