CROSSROADS IN CULTURAL STUDIES
Fourth International Conference
June 29 - July 2, 2002, Tampere, Finland
Multiculturalism in Nation-State
Organisers: Outi Lepola and Seija Tuulentie
Lautensach, Sabina (University of Canterbury, New Zealand) MULTICULTURAL
HUMANITARIANISM: AUSTRALASIA'S REFUGEE CHALLENGE
In the past, New Zealand has
welcomed a relatively large number of refugees to its shores. However, attitudes
towards a new (and larger) influx of refugees have been mixed. The notion of
asylum as a positive act of prosperous states committed to humanitarian ideals
has been seriously eroded. Increasingly, refugees are seen not as people in need
but as people who threaten the present order of things. Recent decisions by the
Australian government to prevent asylum seekers from setting foot in their
country has forced New Zealand to review its own immigration policies. Despite a
growing reluctance of the public to accept more refugees into the country New
Zealand's Labour government is expected to increase its quota for newly arriving
refugees. How will New Zealand as a country respond to the challenge represented
by a growing number of refugees entering the country?
Lepola, Outi (University of Helsinki, Finland) and Suurpää, Leena (Youth
Research Network, Finland) POLITICAL PARTICIPATION OF IMMIGRANTS AND ETHNIC
MINORITIES IN FINLAND
This presentation focuses on the classical question of
whether it is possible to combine meaningfully two logics of societal
membership: on the one hand that of a multicultural society and on the other
hand that of a national welfare state. Whereas a multicultural society
supposedly integrates various values, ways of life and cultural traditions, a
welfare state policy provides comprehensive entitlements, rights and
responsibilities to the whole population - and tacitly comprehenses the
population as a homogeneous nation. The question is addressed both in general
terms and in the light of a case study on Advisory Board for Ethnic Relations
(ETNO). ETNO is a consultative expert organ, which gives statements on matters
relating to migration and ethnic relations. A variety of immigrant groups and
ethnic minorities are represented in this board. Three questions will be raised:
To what extent immigrants are able to
articulate their interests and to participate in developing the Finnish society?
Membership can be regarded to comprise activity in social, cultural and
political realms - to which of these realms do interests of the members of
ETNO extend? Regarding the idea of members representing a certain group: do the
members of ETNO interpret their representation to be of political or cultural
type?
Shamai, Shmuel (Golan Research Institute and Tel-Hai Academic College,
Israel) and Ilatov, Zinaida (Golan Research Institute, Israel) MULTICULTURALISM
OR MULTI-VOICES? THE CASE OF RUSSIAN IMMIGIRANTS IN ISRAEL
Ethnic relations in
Israel are being re-shaped in ideological ambiguity. Multiculturalism, Zionism
and Post-Zionism are part of conflicting ideologies in the national discourse.
The ethnic identities (Israeli and Russian) of Soviet immigrants in Israel are
studied: among the age group 20-40, the Russian identity is negatively connected
to Israeli identity. Among older age groups, there is no connection between
these identities. Russian and Israeli identities are connected to exposure to
Russian and Israeli cultural consumption respectively. There are high negative
correlations between the Russian and Israeli use of cultural aspects. Thus,
Multiculturalism is questioned: on the one side, there is a legitimatization for
immigrants to maintain their previous culture, but the two identities seem to
conflict, mainly among the young adults. The Russian community has an obvious
voice in the Israeli society, but has partial legitimation to keep both
identities.
Tirronen, Tanja (University of Lapland, Finland) POLITICS OF INTERPRETING
ILO-CONVENTION No. 169 -THE CASES OF SCANDINAVIA AND LATIN AMERICA
The 1989
ILO-Convention No. 169 concerning Indigenous and Tribal Peoples is the only
multilateral convention dedicated to indigenous peoples. The Convention aims at
protecting indigenous peoples and their languages from vanishing with special
actions by the governmental authority. The question of land ownership has been
the most difficult and problematic issue of the convention. It has caused
[political] conflicts among the indigenous peoples, other local people and
states, and these conflicts can be seen as disagreements of values and means.
The purpose of this research is to evaluate how four so similar Scandinavian
countries; Finland, Sweden, Norway and Denmark have had so different views about
the most important convention concerning indigenous people. In comparison to
Nordic countries it is useful both theoretically and empirically to examine the
Latin American countries which have already ratified the convention and those
who seriously consider the ratification at the moment. The theoretical approach
of critical geopolitics will give the needed guidelines to examine the identity
which the land forms to indigenous peoples.
Toivanen, Reetta (Åbo Akademi, Finland) MULTICULTURAL STATES AND RIGHTS OF
MINORITIES
This paper explores obstacles in implementing the existing
international minority law on groups of modern cultural minorities from an
anthropological perspective. There are more international right treaties to
protect ethnic and cultural minorities than ever. Simultaneously, the number of
minority groups which formulate legitimate arguments to demand protection and
special forms of fostering in plural states is increasing. The international
minority rights are obviously not only protecting minorities from state
oppression. These rights also co-determine which identity claims are possible
for the minority activists in the given context, the state. My research points
out that the minority activists tend to seek answers in a nationalistic,
ethnic-oriented discourse stressing a common heritage. This discourse idealizes
homogeneity and authenticity of nations. Why this static identity constellation
may be the most successful, is answered by analyzing the minority definitions of
the international law and its implications for European national policies.
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