The ECMI Working Paper #96 is now online. The paper focuses on Transnistria as a model of post-Soviet diversity policy.

The Ecmi Working Paper #96 is authored by Dr. Alexander Osipov (ECMI Senior Research Associate) and Dr. Hanna Vasilevich (ECMI Project Research Associate). The paper on “The phenomenon of Transnistria as a model of post-Soviet diversity policy” provides a brief description of the Transnistrian normative framework and a brief sketch on its implementation.  Some of the questions that the paper aims to formulate and briefly address include: What are the ways to interpret the local diversity policy? Can we compare it with other national cases? How can we assess its effectiveness and efficiency? However, full and final answers to this range of questions would be beyond the scope of this paper.  The paper discusses a topic of multi-ethnicity using four theoretical frameworks: “nation-building”, “diversity policy” (or “diversity management”), “identity policies”, and “regime of ethnicity”.

Disclaimer from the authors:

“We avoid judgments concerning the legal claims around the TMR’s current and anticipated status. We refer to Transnistria as a de facto state with real existing institutions of government of its own and do not imply the validity of any claims of its
international recognition.”

Abstract:

This text discusses the structure and content of diversity policy in the so -called Transnistrian Moldovan Republic (TMR), an unrecognized state that broke away from Moldova during the collapse of the Soviet Union. The case of Transnistria is particularly useful as an example for analyzing the origins, structure, contents and effects of the post-Soviet ethno-cultural policy in a comparative perspective. Moreover, the model of Transnistrian state- and nation-building, since it is not explicitly based on privileging a core ethnicity, differs from nearly all countries and de facto states of the post communist space. The working paper describes the TMR normative framework pertinent
to the management of ethnic and linguistic diversity and analyzes the patterns of its
implementation. The authors analyze the reasons why ethnic diversity has never been a
challenge to the Transnistrian statehood and its stability while different ethnicities and
languages are treated differently. The Transnistrian phenomenon is also considered
from the perspective of the effectiveness and efficiency of post-Soviet diversity policies.

Download the ECMI Working Paper #96 here

Also relevant:

On a related topic, also check out an article of Dr. Hanna Vasilevich in a newly released free-access publication: Panorama of Global Security Environment 2015-2016. In this issue of Panorama Dr. Vasilevich features with her article “Transnistria: a geopolitical challenge within a changed regional status quo” (pg. 211-220).

Download the Panorama of Global Security Environment 2015-2016 here

About the authors:

Dr. Alexander Osipov is a Senior Research Associate and head of cluster Justice and Governance at the ECMI. Dr. Osipov studied history and law in Russia and defended a PhD thesis in ethnology in the Russian Academy of Sciences.

Dr. Hanna Vasilevich is a Project Manager of the ECMI Eastern Partnership Programme and also contributes to the cluster Politics and Civil Society. Dr. Vasilevich holds M.A. in International Relations and Diplomacy and she completed her PhD in International Relations and European Studies at the Metropolitan University in Prague.

Source: ECMI InfoChannel @ European Centre for Minority Issues.