The European Union's Legislative Framework for the Protection of National Minorities: Principles of Non-Discrimination and Equality

Abstract

The European Union, through its institutions, has performed an intenseactivity to reduce discrimination against national minorities, the Parliament,the Commission and the Council have joined forces to become activelyinvolved in creating a legal space relevant for national minorities byestablishing a complex and effective legislative framework in order toachieve this goal.In this paper we aim to include elements of conceptual analysis, withreference to the content and legal dimension of the principles of non-discrimination and equal treatment, in the sense that they are not equivalentto the identity of legal treatment, to interpret scientifically the provisionscontained in European documents to highlight how European legislation andthe mechanisms created by these regulations provide protection for nationalminorities by applying the principles of non-discrimination and equality.For the elaboration of the paper we have used as research methods theanalysis of problems generated by the mentioned subject with reference todoctrinal views expressed in treaties and papers, the documentary research,the interpretation of legal norms in the matter.