policy paper Partnership for all? Measuring the impact of Eastern Partnership on minorities By Heidrun Ferrari YEZIDI CHILDREN IN ARMENIA. PHOTO: MRG Contents Acronyms 1 Executive Summary 2 Introduction 7 1 An Overview of the Eastern Partnership 9 1.1 The evolution of the Eastern Partnership 9 1.2 The Eastern Partnership approach 10 1.2.1 The bilateral dimension 10 1.2.2 The multilateral dimension 11 2 Minorities in the Eastern Partnership Countries 14 2.1 Armenia 14 2.2 Azerbaijan 14 2.3 Belarus 15 2.4 Georgia 16 2.5 Moldova 17 2.6 Ukraine 18 3 Minority Rights in the Policy Process of the Eastern Partnership 20 3.1 The policy process 20 3.1.1 What follows the Vilnius Summit? 20 3.1.2 Minority perceptions on the EU 20 3.2 Objective setting from ENP Action Plans to the 2013 Vilnius Summit Roadmap 22 3.2.1 Action Plans 22 3.2.2 Visa Liberalization Action Plans 22 3.2.3 The 2013 Summit Roadmap 22 3.3 EU monitoring of progress towards the 2013 Vilnius Summit with regard to minorities 23 3.3.1 Country Progress Reports 23 3.3.2 Visa Liberalization Action Plan (VLAP) Progress Reports 24 3.4 Gaps and limitations of EU monitoring of minority rights 25 3.4.1 Minority rights in the education sector 25 3.4.2 Participation of minorities in the public sphere 26 3.4.2 Consideration of specific minority groups 27 4 Participation of Minorities in the EaP 28 4.1 The EaP Civil Society Forum 28 4.2 Inclusion of minorities in the CSF and the National Platforms 29 5 Inclusion of Minorities in EU Financial Instruments available for EaP Countries 32 5.1 Financial support for the Eastern Partnership countries 32 5.2 Mainstreaming of minorities into ENPI sector programmes 33 5.3 Inclusion of minorities in grant programmes – The Civil Society Facility 34 5.4 Inclusion of minorities in grant programmes – The European Instrument for Democracy and Human Rights 35 6 Statistical Data and Indicator Setting for Minority Rights 37 6.1 The need for statistical data on minorities 37 6.2 Challenges in disaggregated collection 37 6.3 Rights-based approaches and minority inclusion into programme planning 38 6.4 Minority-specific indicators for programming 39 Conclusions 41 Recommendations 42 Notes 44 PARTNERSHIP FOR ALL? MEASURING THE IMPACT OF EASTERN PARTNERSHIP ON MINORITIES Acronyms AA Association Agreement EURONEST EU-Neighbourhood East Parliamentary CERD Committee on the Elimination of All Forms of Assembly Racial Discrimination FCNM Framework Convention for the Protection of CESCR Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural National Minorities Rights FDP Formerly Deported People CIB Comprehensive Institution Building GGDC Good Governance and Development Contract CoE Council of Europe IDP Internally Displaced People CORLEAP Conference of the Regional and Local IPA Instrument for Pre-Accession Authorities for the Eastern Partnership LGBT Lesbian, Gay, Bi-sexual and Transgender CSF Civil Society Facility MEDA Measures d’accompagnement (accompanying CSFO Civil Society Forum measures) CSO Civil Society Organization NGO Non-Governmental Organization CSP Country Strategy Paper NIP National Indicative Programme CBSS Country-based Support Scheme OSCE Organization for Security and Cooperation in DCFTA Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Europe Agreement OECD Organization for Economic Cooperation and EaP Eastern Partnership Development EaPIC Eastern Partnership Integration and PCA Partnership and Cooperation Agreement Cooperation Programme PRDP Pilot Regional Development Programmes EaPMN Eastern Partnership Minorities Network SRC Sector Reform Contract ECMI European Centre for Minority Issues SBC State Building Contract ECRI European Commission against Racism and TACIS Technical Assistance to the Commonwealth of Intolerance Independent States EIDHR European Instrument for Democracy and USSR Soviet Union Human Rights UNDP United Nations Development Programme ENP European Neighbourhood Policy UNESCO United Nations Educational, Scientific and ENPI European Neighbourhood and Partnership Cultural Organization Instrument VLAP Visa Liberation Action Plan EU European Union PARTNERSHIP FOR ALL? MEASURING THE IMPACT OF EASTERN PARTNERSHIP ON MINORITIES 1 Executive Summary The Eastern Partnership Minority rights in the policy process In 2009 the EU launched the Eastern Partnership (EaP) The 2009 Declaration of the Prague Summit, which encompassing Azerbaijan, Armenia, Belarus, Georgia, launched the Eastern Partnership, does not refer to Moldova and Ukraine. The respective Council Declaration minority rights explicitly but more broadly makes a states that the EaP commits “to the principles of commitment to fundamental values including the respect international law and to fundamental values, including for human rights, confirmed by the 2011 Eastern democracy, the rule of law and the respect for human Partnership Summit in Warsaw.3 Reference to both human rights and fundamental freedoms, as well as to market and minority rights is made in the three sets of documents economy, sustainable development and good governance.”1 outlining the way forward to association with the EU: the The Eastern Partnership seeks to follow a two-track Actions Plans, Visa Liberalization Action Plans (VLAP) approach. The bilateral dimension has three long-term and Country Progress Reports for Ukraine, Moldova and objectives including the Association Agreements (AA) Georgia. The Action Plans refer to actions on common between partner countries and the EU (with the exception values through political dialogue and reform as well as to of Belarus), the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade actions with regard to economic reform, trade and Agreement (DCFTA) and Visa liberalization. The EaP also alignment of legislation to bring about economic introduced financial initiatives: The Comprehensive integration. All Action Plans contain a standardized Institution Building (CIB) is aimed to support the reference to ensure or to strengthen the “respect for the strengthening of capacities of those institutions in the rights of persons belonging to national minorities”. With partner countries that are key to implementing the new the exception of the Azerbaijan Action Plan, reference is Association Agreements with the EU. The Pilot Regional made to a limited number of steps each country aims to Development Programmes (PRDP), the Eastern take individually. The VLAPs set out two consecutive levels Partnership Civil Society Facility (“Facility”) and the of benchmarks - the policy framework and implementation Eastern Partnership Integration and Cooperation (EaPIC) measures. Citizens’ rights including the protection of programme which constitutes a financial instrument minorities are a specific component of the fourth block of working on the basis of the “more for more” principle. all VLAPs. Finally, all country-specific measures for The EaP multilateral dimension is comprised of Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine bear particular reference to initiatives at three different levels. At the political level, ensuring the rights of minorities.4 Progress on, and gaps in, exchange was established through biannual Summits of the objectives of the European Neighbourhood Policy and Heads of States and annual meetings of Foreign Affairs the EaP are captured in Country Progress Reports to Ministers. At the technical level the introduction of monitor action plans and VLAP Progress Reports on Thematic Platforms aimed to promote cooperation in Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia.5 concrete thematic areas. So-called Flagship Initiatives With the initialing of the Association Agreements with implement multilateral projects. At the participatory level Georgia and Moldova the conclusion can be drawn that with the EU-Neighbourhood East Parliamentary Assembly political commitments with regard to minority rights are (EURONEST) and the Conference of the Regional and by no means intrinsic to the association package due to a Local Authorities for the Eastern Partnership (CORLEAP), number of reasons. These include key concerns regularly exchange platforms were introduced. Finally, the Civil flagged up in the progress reports which are not addressed Society Forum (CSF) aims “to develop and propose by EaP countries; insufficient collection of data and modalities for the establishment of a Civil Society Forum information on minority concerns in relevant sectors; of the Eastern Partnership”.2 conflicting assessments by the EU and government reports; unsystematic reference of minority concerns, particularly in progress reports; and a prioritization, again especially in VLAP reports, on anti-discrimination issues. Most 2 PARTNERSHIP FOR ALL? MEASURING THE IMPACT OF EASTERN PARTNERSHIP ON MINORITIES importantly, the EU has no clear indicators, targets and There are a number of factors that constrain the benchmarks to assess progress. participation of minority CSOs in the National Platforms. This particularly affects the assessment of In their member selections, National Platforms focus on implementation of minority relevant legislation. It is bringing in expertise on those thematic fields that focus straightforward to stipulate progress at a policy level in their engagement, which for the most part do not touch on line with clear benchmarks, such as draft legislation and the rights and concerns of minorities. Moreover, addressing first or second readings. However, the actual language barriers to minority participation seems to be an implementation of legislation is less clear as it usually issue only for some of the National Platforms in the EaP requires the adequate application of a multitude