EURASIA-NET

Europe-South Asia Exchange on Supranational (Regional) Policies and Instruments for the Promotion of Human Rights and Management of Minority Issues

 Partecipanti

Mappa

 Word cloud

Esplora la "nuvola delle parole (Word Cloud) per avere un'idea di massima del progetto.

 Obiettivo del progetto (Objective)

'Human rights, and especially minority rights, have a clear supranational dimension both in Europe and in South Asia. Europe has made wide use of the mechanisms and soft law approaches developed and implemented at regional level by the OSCE, the Council of Europe and the European Union. In South Asia there is a long tradition of study and robust experience in the field of cultural, religious, linguistic and ethnic management, including the gender dimension, within national boundaries. However, it is only recently that some albeit limited attempts have been made to enhance regional cooperation on these very sensitive issues. Studies carried out by South Asian scholars have created the knowledge base underlying the first rudimentary attempts by the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) and the foresight initiatives of human rights NGOs and activists. Furthermore, the geopolitical context is now particularly favourable to a supra-national discourse on human and minority rights as a consequence of recently improved relations between India and Pakistan. The overall objective of EURASIA-Net is therefore to enhance the requisite knowledge-base for new policies and instruments to reduce ethnic-religious conflicts and to foster stability and security in South Asia. The specific objectives are: 1. To develop a better understanding of regional South Asian attempts to define (by the research community) and implement (by decision-makers and activists) new supranational instruments for the protection and promotion of human rights, with a particular focus on cross-border minority issues. 2. To sustain Euro-Asiatic research cooperation and exchange on those issues and to enlarge the discussion forum to encompass politicians and human rights activists. 3. To create a framework for future research cooperation between Europe and South Asia that is twofold: (a) a Joint Research Agenda and (b) a modus operandi based on mutual knowledge and understanding.'

Introduzione (Teaser)

The Eurasia-net project has explored cooperation between Europe and South Asia in the field of human and minority rights. The aim is to exchange knowledge and best practice between the two regions and raise the profile of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) on minority issues.

Descrizione progetto (Article)

A conference was organised under the auspices of the Eurasia-net initiative, which highlighted the need for fresh approaches to protect the rights of minorities. Special measures for protecting vulnerable members of society were also discussed.

Study visits for improving cooperation between European and South Asian academics have been organised to enable a common agenda for future research. Furthermore, two summer schools have been run in Italy and Nepal. Participating students have provided very positive feedback and expressed an interest in contributing further to the success of Eurasia-net.

A trans-regional platform has been established, which has acted as a forum for the exchange of information and experience between researchers, universities, media, NGOs and decision-makers. The platform has also been used for dissemination of results and to help prepare the way for joint research activities and the Joint Research Agenda (JRA).

The Eurasia-net initiative has successfully enhanced the knowledge-base needed for new policies and methodologies to reduce ethnic and religious conflict. The activities conducted by the project therefore help promote stability and security in South Asia.