Constitutional Instruments for the Accommodation of Diversity

The study of minority rights is a dynamic area of research that is nowadays facing new important challenges as a consequence of the recent evolutions of societies. Today’s reality indeed demonstrates that diversity protection and management is not matter of “classic minorities” only: it rather involves the entire society. In other words, minority rights law is theoretically and practically both under stress and undergoing a process of redefinition, as highlighted and investigated by this research. In order to capture the described trends in this field of study, the descriptive/analytical phrase “law of diversity” will be generally used instead of “minority rights law”.

The main goal of the project is therefore to address the abovementioned contemporary trends, with an analysis of the role of law in societies that are becoming increasingly multicultural and complex. In particular, it will focus on the tools thanks to which constitutional systems manage (cultural) diversity, highlighting their characteristics and evolution (from minority rights to diversity management). Specifically, the research project aims, on the one hand, to provide a comprehensive overview of the constitutional instruments for the accommodation of diversity (i.e. the law of diversity); on the other hand, to deepen the relations between the law of diversity and the federal idea, as an organizing principle, a framework (or matrix) and a method.

The first chapter is aimed at presenting the working plan and method. As for the latter, its main points are to be found in: the focus on instruments rather than on legal systems; the relevance of measures provided for by hard and soft law; the indication of the dynamic criteria which underly the successive classification.

Afterwards, the second chapter will be devoted to proposing a taxonomy of the constitutional instruments for the accommodation of diversity; for this purpose, they are divided in four categories, namely: Survival; Recognition; Higher protection, promotion, and tools for coexistence; Instruments for unity in diversity. The last one could be considered as the innovative part of the classification, and is derived from emerging theories and practices in several legal systems.

The last chapter will firstly attempt to build a broad theoretical definition of the law of diversity, which, as a continuum, embraces all the proposed models and instruments (from minority protection to diversity management), highlighting common features and principles; among them, the federal principle as a framework will be included. Secondly, it will specifically address how federalism could affect the understanding, the evolution and the implementation of the law of diversity, beyond the concept of territorial autonomy, which is broadly considered (also) as a tool for the protection of minorities. Specifically, since federalism and the law of diversity both aims at managing composite realities balancing unity and diversity, their connections (especially in the dynamic and complex reality we are living) seem to deserve a further and thorough study.