HUMAN RIGHTS OF MINORITIES, MIGRATION, AND CONSTITUTIONS IN THE BALKANS: A FOCUS ON COUNTRIES WITH MUSLIM POPULATIONS
HUMAN RIGHTS OF MINORITIES, MIGRATION, AND CONSTITUTIONS IN THE BALKANS: A FOCUS ON COUNTRIES WITH MUSLIM POPULATIONS

Summary/Abstract: This study offers a comprehensive synthesis of how constitutional engineering in the Western Balkans has attempted to balance ethnic peace with democratic functionality. By analyzing the legal landscapes of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Albania, Kosovo, and North Macedonia, the research moves beyond purely normative descriptions to uncover the practical tensions between international human rights standards and local ethno-political realities. The core findings reveal that while the so-called “stabilocracy” model, born out of post-conflict settlements, succeeded in halting violence, it simultaneously created rigid constitutional architectures that often perpetuate the marginalization of “nonconstituent” minorities and the diaspora. The paper highlights a critical shift: the transition from collective ethnic rights toward a more inclusive, citizenbased pluralism, driven largely by EU conditionality pressures and landmark legal challenges such as the Sejdić–Finci case. Ultimately, this work serves as a critical evaluation of the “Balkan model” of minority protection, concluding that sustainable democratic inclusion requires a structural departure from ethnocentric governance toward a framework of genuine pluralist constitutionalism.

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