Udrea, A.M.;
(2011)
Culture, history, and a kin-state's obligations: a liberal evaluation of the Hungarian status law.
Doctoral thesis , UCL (University College London).
Abstract
As a result of an arbitrary drawing of borders, most states today have forcefully incorporated groups which identify by culture and history with the states that border their 'new' home-states. For this reason, such groups are referred to as kin-minority groups. What distinguishes some European kin-minorities from those around the world is the response of their kin-states to their living situations. In the last decades, many European kin-states adopted policies known as Status Laws. Even though there are substantive differences among them, many of these states assumed an obligation to support the cultural flourishing of their kin-minority groups. The case-study of my dissertation is the Hungarian Status Law, which represents the response of the Hungarian state to its kin-minority groups. This dissertation examines the relationship between a state's duty and individuals' cultural membership in the context of kin-minority groups. Precisely, it assesses the importance of culture and history for allocating a kin-state's responsibility and defining the standard of care for its kin-minority groups. The inquiry shows that a kin-state's obligations challenge the liberal responses to the accommodation of cultural minorities in plural societies, disputing the allocation of responsibility, the standard of care and the relationship between a state's cultural duties and citizenship. First, I explore the role of history and culture in generating culture-related responsibilities beyond the borders of a state. Liberal theories unanimously contain such duties within a state's borders and tie them to citizenship. Contrary to such theories, I argue that history and cultural membership may generate obligations beyond a state's borders in the case of kin-minority groups. Second, the enquiry focuses on the impact of the kin-state's involvement upon the accommodation of minority cultural groups. The analysis shows that a kin-state's involvement fosters a better accommodation of its kin-minority groups within their home-states. I argue that a kin-state's obligations complement the home-state's multiculturalism.
| Type: | Thesis (Doctoral) |
|---|---|
| Title: | Culture, history, and a kin-state's obligations: a liberal evaluation of the Hungarian status law |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | Permission for digitisation not received |
| UCL classification: | UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH > Faculty of S&HS > Dept of Political Science |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/1333993 |
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