Securitization and minority rights: Conditions of desecuritization

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Abstract (may include machine translation)

This article assesses the possibilities for applying the concept of desecuritization to the area of minority rights. The major conclusion is that a Jef Huysmans-type deconstructivist strategy, while perhaps conducive to the desecuritization of the individual migrant, is not possible in the case of the collective minority; indeed, the desecuritization of minority rights may well be 'logically impossible' in certain cases. The article seeks to show how, in seeking to maintain their collective identity, minorities are necessarily imbued with a certain 'societal security-ness', which, if removed, results in the death of the minority as a distinctive group. The article therefore suggests that 'managing' securitized issues might be more profitable than trying to 'transform' them.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)279-294
Number of pages16
JournalSecurity Dialogue
Volume35
Issue number3
DOIs
StatePublished - Sep 2004

Keywords

  • Desecuritization
  • Management
  • Migration
  • Minority rights
  • Securitization

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