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Speaker	Valentina Rigamonti
	European Centre for Minority Issues, Flensburg, Germany
Topic	Minority participation in the political process in eastern Europe

Abstract	Abstract “Minority Participation in the Political Process in Eastern Europe” Valentina Rigamonti – Project Associate, European Centre for Minority Issues (ECMI), Flensburg, Germany. The right to effective participation of minorities in public life has been deeply covered, although as a general principle, in modern human rights treaties and commitments undertaken by the States participating in the OSCE process. Still, the two milestones regarding the issue of minority inclusion and political representation can be considered the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities (CoE) and the Lund Recommendations on the Effective Participation of National Minorities in Public Life (OSCE). The general aim of the Framework Convention is to ensure that the signatory states respect for the rights of national minorities, undertaking to combat discrimination, promote equality, preserve and develop the culture and the identity of national minorities, guarantee certain freedoms in relation to access to the media, minority languages and education and encourage the participation of national minorities in public life. It is important to note that the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities defines a national minority implicitly to include minorities possessing a territorial identity and a distinct cultural heritage. Still, this paper focuses on the Lund Recommendations and their implications on enhancing the participation of minorities in public life. This presentation is divided into two parts: a. Explanation of the “history” and content of the Lund Recommendations. b. Analysis of the merits and problems of the Lund Recommendations with a special focus on the lack of any concrete recommendations on how to improve minority participation and how ECMI is planning to contribute on this issue.