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MULTICULTURALISM VS INTERCULTURALISM: FROM AN INDIVIDUAL (SUBJECTIVE) VIEWPOINT

Author(s): Milan Tasić / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2012

In general, when a man is in the conglomerate of different cultural facts surrounding him and if he has at any occasion to be inclined to some of them – within the socio–cultural space where he belongs – it is appropriate to find that they have to follow, rather, the result of an individual effort, of an autonomous individual, than to be instructed from above, say, by the institutions of the community, by the state. That would concern not only the possible choices done on this occasion, but the volume (level) in which they would be adopted and so on, so the real dramatis personae on that road would be properly thought out and educated individuals. Then, we have to arrive to an acceptable solution by foreseeing, on the one hand, the educational contents that would apply to all individuals, and then point them out, in principle, and the ways in which such an individual chooses the value of orders for himself.

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ISLAM AS A GLOBAL PROVOCATION: INTEGRATION OF EUROPEAN MUSLIMS FROM TARIQ RAMADAN’S PERSPECTIVE

Author(s): Ali Pajaziti / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2012

The worldview ideas of the Swiss-born of Egyptian origin Tariq Ramadan, who according to the “Time” magazine (2004) is one of the 100 most influential world thinkers and innovators of the 21st century, also called a Muslim Martin Luther, nowadays are very interesting and important in view of the fact of the current global changes and turbulences, when the world entered a dangerous new phase. Islam, as one of the largest world religions whose number of adherents is increasing daily all over the world, and is at the same time the most negatively viewed religious structure (islamophobia), especially after September 11, 2001. Europe and Islam have been in contact ever since the 8th century, but the communication today is far more intensive (over 20 million Muslims live on the Old Continent). Today’s European Muslims are not only newcomers but natives; Euro-Islam converts imbue special nuances to the social milieu. Some, like Tibi, discuss Euro-Islam, others like the xenophobes talk about Euro-Arabia and third ones use neologisms such as Londonistan (M. Phillips). Integration versus ghettoisation, Euro-Islam versus ghettoism, Islamisation of modernity versus modernization of the Islam are the main thesis of Ramadan, a university professor, who, in one of his academic discourses, discusses the subjects of belonging, identity, secularisation, Islam, universality, multiculturalism, integration and etc.

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THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PERSONAL AND SOCIAL DETERMINANTS OF SELF AND ADHERENCE TO VARIOUS SOCIAL CATEGORIES AMONG THE STUDENT POPULATION IN REPUBLIC

Author(s): Marijana Marković,Eleonora Serafimovska / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2012

Pluralistic society adopted the discourse of identities on a large scale. Identity is considered a modern phenomenon with its origins in Western individualism, and the problem of how to reconcile the relationship of self-identification and the existence of the “other” in order to answer the question “who am I” and “Where do I Belong” is becoming more scientifically and practically exploited. The Republic of Macedonia in terms of its plurality and in terms of crises in various fields, is a challenge for researchers of identity. Thus, in spring 2011, the research team from the Institute for Sociological, Political and Juridical Research conducted research within the scientific research project Perception of identities among the student population in Macedonia. One of the primary goals of the scientific research project was the identification of self-identity of students and its relation to the sense of bonding with different social roles, groups and affiliations. The results showed the complex relationship between personal and social determinants of identity and the various roles that “I” play in everyday life, and indirectly confirmed the need of society to care about identity and its relations with the “others” among its citizens.

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THE EXTERNAL IDENTITY OF THE EU AS A ‘DEMOCRACY PROMOTER’: MYTH OR REALITY?

Author(s): James Cardwell / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2012

Like all political actors, the European Union (EU) presents its identity to the outside world in as positive a light as possible: a successful example of peaceful, democratic integration and cooperation between nation states. References to its birth from the destruction of the European continent and its role in ensuring peace and stability between Member States are commonly expressed features of the EU’s external identity. At the heart of this external identity lies the belief that the EU embodies democratic principles which are reflective of its internal structure and development. The EU’s own treaty arrangements state that EU action on the international scene shall be guided by a set of principles which are central to its own existence – and the first of these is ‘democracy’. This chapter will consider, first, the complex nature of how the promotion of democracy is carried out in the EU’s relations with the world beyond its borders. The chapter adopts a wide conception of democracy promotion, which can be expressly or impliedly perceived. By casting a wide net, the extent of democracy promotion can be seen to be wider than previously thought which helps to broaden the debate about how the EU puts in place its Treaty obligations to promote democracy. The chapter will finally consider the extent to which the emphasis on democracy promotion within the EU’s external activities can justify characterising the EU’s identity as one of a ‘democracy promoter’ or whether its actions do not fully match up to its words.

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DOES THE EU ENLARGEMENT INFLUENCE THE NATIONAL AND EUROPEAN IDENTITY? A Longitudinal Analysis in Old and New Member States

Author(s): Sergiu Gherghina / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2012

This paper investigates whether changes occur in the national and European identities of the citizens from the old and new Member States following the 2004 and 2007 enlargements. Complementary, it seeks to identify the major attitudinal determinants of national and European identities for the EU citizens. The analysis focuses on the 27 EU Member States and uses individual level data from the 2002-2009 Candidate Countries and Standard Eurobarometers. The descriptive statistics and multivariate quantitative analyses reveal that no relevant changes occur in the levels of national and European identities. The two types of identities coexist and are shaped at various levels. Their determinants appear to be quite stable over time, thus indicating no major alterations after the enlargement.

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THE GLOBALIZATION INFLUENCE ON THE WORKING FORCE MIGRATION

Author(s): Ljupco Vckov / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2012

The subject of the scientific study of this paper is the influence of globalization on the movement of labor relations and labor market. Labor mobility and flexibility of the labor market have a significant impact on overall economic developments and especially the change of environment, migrations, educational structure and other important indicators for determining the degree of correlation between the¸phenomena. History teaches us that when we analyze the early development of the globalization along with this phenomenon there are emerging trends of migration, which are necessary to take into account when analyzing the trends of movement of the labor market. The international movement of labor migration means that it can be analyzed in terms of outward movement or so-called external migration, which is under the direct influence of globalization processes, but not less important is the internal migration that which occurs within the state and represents an important factor in the balanced development and regionalization of a country. Assuming that these processes (globalization and migration) in the future will show even greater growth, it is necessary to study the positive and negative effects that occur in each national economy. At no time we should not forget that migration has an impact on the country where labor is moving as well as in addressed countries. Any neglecting or underestimation of the effects of these processes can have extremely negative impact on the countries participating in this process. The aim of this paper is to try to locate the benefits of the developments of these economic trends and to affirm, and also locate the negative effects of afore mentioned processes, and as well as focusing on them and trying to propose solutions to mitigate and overcome these negative effects.

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‘ANTIQUIZATION’ AND THE MACEDONIAN NATIONAL IDENTITY: THREE EXAMPLES ONE EXPLANATION

Author(s): Petar Atanasov / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2012

To talk about the national identity of one nation it means to talk about its present connected with its past. Unarguably, the identity of the nation is crucial for its future regarding its existence and prosperity. The paper will try to analyze the ‘antiquization’ in the Republic of Macedonia as parallel process of national identification and international promotion of the country. The thesis of the paper is that the effect of non-recognition of full Macedonian national identity, especially vis-a-vis Greek objections, directly influences and reinforces the shift towards the ancient ethnogenesis of the Macedonian nation. The search for antique roots of the Macedonian national identity is the third wave of defence after the successful establishment of first, the federal state and, second, an independent nation. ‘Antiquization’ as a phenomenon is a defence not an attack but will certainly have longer impact on perceptions of national identity in the Republic of Macedonia.

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THE ADMINISTRATIONAL ASPECT OF THE STATE AND THE LOCAL SELF – GOVERNMENT IN THE ERA OF GLOBALISATION

Author(s): Mirjana Slaninka-Dineva,Gjura Stevanović / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2012

In the era of globalisation, the development of local communities should be favoured, but also the traditional forms of local democracy should be preserved from dying. There is necessity for modernisation of the local self-government with the help of informatics technologies and the internet. The local administration should be in function of the needs of the population, highly professional and out of political party influence. From this material a lot of project themes could derive, based on different approaches (theoretical, historical-juridical, comparative and other approaches). Thereat, the basic leading idea is that any reorganization should be in function of the needs of the local population, legal entities, central government and so on. Withal, the rigorous redefinition, especially in the view of decreasing the numbers of the local self-government units (LSGU) and the bureaucracy, should be in correlation with the percentage of the population of each state and of the LSGU. The village self-government should be organized in a modern manner, especially bearing in mind the necessities of the local population. Each reorganization, especially in context of increasing the space of LSGU should be scientifically founded. The city of Skopje as a major city should be reformed in the spirit of the organization of the capital European cities.

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INTERCULTURAL COMPETENCE AND IDENTITY NEGOTIATION

Author(s): Ivan Blazhevski / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2012

Globalization processes are giving rise to more systematic cultural encounters, borrowings and exchanges. Crossing borders and being in contact with languages, customs and beliefs different than ours, questions the truths we have always taken for granted, and this triggers insecurity and uneasiness. So, the question of identities – national, cultural, religious, ethnic, linguistic, gender-based – is assuming renewed importance for individuals and groups who see globalization and cultural change as a threat to their beliefs and ways of life. The development of human culture is made possible through communication. Intercultural dialogue promotes the sharing of ideas and explores different ways of looking at the world. Rethinking our cultural categories, recognizing the multiple sources of our identities, helps to shift the focus away from ‘differences’ towards our shared ability to evolve through interaction. One of the major factors influencing the effectiveness in communicating with people from other cultures is the ability to understand their culture. This explains why intercultural dialogue is largely dependant on intercultural competencies, defined as the complex of abilities needed to interact appropriately with those who are different from oneself.

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EUROPEANIZATION EFFECTS: THE ROLE OF DOMESTIC ACTORS IN WESTERN BALKANS

Author(s): Gazmend Qorraj / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2012

The economic sustainability as well as the EU accession process requires flexible and efficient institutions, policy frameworks and knowledge-based economy that can exploit new opportunities that emerge from rapid change such as globalization and EU Enlargement. The main questions to be addressed in this paper are: do international actors ensure the long term progress and reforms or does their functioning ensure stability and emergent solutions for these countries? Do local actors have an active role in the process and create a sustainable development. The paper identifies that in many of the Western Balkan countries international and domestic actors achieved to create a political stability but not a sustainable development and effective institutions. First, international actors faced many challenges in promoting effective policies due to their standard function in all of these countries. With regard to domestic actors, they failed in creating their own capacities due to high level of dependence on the international community. The current EU financial crisis has shown that candidate countries should fulfill EU criteria and develop local ownership in order to sustain economically and reduce negative spillover effects coming from globalization and Europeanization.

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ROMANIAN IDENTITY REPRESENTATION IN EUROPE BY SPORT AS A MODERN EXPRESSION OF CULTURE IN THE PROCESS OF GLOBALIZATION

Author(s): Jean Firică / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2012

In the European Parliament sport is considered both as a source of identity and social integration and a tool in the fight against discrimination and racism. The European Union strategy takes the form of discourse well suited to the sportive atmosphere. European Union uses major sporting events to promote its own image and amplify its general discourse. Sports have an important role in identity formation and the effects on individuals’ politicization. European Union special campaign of promoting sports events is based on deliberative behaviors - all visitors are urged to talk about Europe, give opinions without fear that they will be put in bad situations or that they come into conflict with certain parties. Through participation in the dialogue a more democratic Europe will be built, and by exchanging points of views and arguments we will learn from each other. Most citizens agree with the establishment, in their own countries, of institutions where they get information and increase their knowledge about the European Union. The paper presents the activities of European institutions to complete the European public space, based on diplomacy and the positive impact of sport.

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ETHNIC IDENTITY, ETHNO-NATIONALISM AND GLOBALIZATION (THE CASE OF FORMER YUGOSLAVIA)

Author(s): Duška N. Matevska / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2012

Socialism which in many elements represented a totalitarian political system, based on the supreme authority of the party, relying on crude collectivism, tried to erase all the differences among social groups. The two primary sources of identity: nation and religion, which were suppressed during the socialism, rose to the surface during the period of transition. Marxist ideology had a generally negative attitude towards religion, which led to weakening the religious identity among the population of former Yugoslavia. On the other hand, the idea of “brotherhood and unity”, and the creation of a “Yugoslav nation” (during the 1971 Census, the citizens of Yugoslavia were allowed to declare themselves as Yugoslavs) obstructed to a great extent the development of the ethnic identity as well. The collapse of socialism was followed by a crisis of identity among the population which lived in the territory of former Yugoslavia. Different ethnic groups felt a need for an identity which will distinguish them from others. The search for an identity raises the following questions: Who am I? Where do I come from? Who I belong to? and the like. In response to these questions, the individual seeks to find out what are his/her specific features and what is it that differentiates him/her from the others. Identity is closely connected with the feeling of security, trust and belonging to a particular group. But the efforts to “win” and keep this identity impel people in certain situations to act irrationally and sometimes violently.

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CONCEPTUALIZATION OF RELIGIOUS IDENTITY IN THE EUROPEAN UNION AND THE REPUBLIC OF MACEDONIA

Author(s): Hristina Ignatovska / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2012

The contemporary dimensioning of the social passage includes interactive essential principle of all relevant socio-communal components. This pattern roughly sketches the contours of the global framework which gives equal importance as to the sustainable economic development and maintenance of the environment, and to the respect and promotion of the human rights and fundamental freedoms. The syncretism which is a referent of the so-called process – globalization, hence refers to the notation of identity, which one absorbs in one’s self the sociological aspects, such as: ethnicity, nationality, and religion too. The survey’s concluding results are significant generally and particularly. They give a general picture of the condition of religious group identity. At the same time they present the legal frame for the position of the religion or the church in Europe, including ours in that group. Following this sociological, refined, descriptive and comparative way, the communal fragments which are important steps of the Macedonia`s international road to the European Union, might be achieved. Religious identity realized through the religious rights and freedoms is crucial and indispensable component of the “Universal Declaration of Human Rights” and R. Macedonia shows relatively high global standard harmonization in the field of religion and low internal religious diversity cohesion. This certainly has an impact on social fields such as education, politics, culture, and opens the way for new further research in the sociology of religion and its interactive and interdisciplinary perspective.

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IDENTITY AND PLACE: TOWARDS ONE DURABLE INTERPLAY IN THE SOCIAL SCIENCES AND HUMANITIES

Author(s): Ana Aceska / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2012

The question that is central in this paper is linked to the historical interplay between two fundamental concepts in the social sciences and humanities: identity and place. I thereby argue that there are two interlinked developments that have significantly marked the study of the relations between identity and place: (1) the introduction and development of the concept of boundaries and together with it the shift towards considering identity “as a process” and (2) the alteration of the isomorphism between spatial locations and social identities.

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THE HOLLY GRAIL AND THE ALTER EGO: BALKANS AS A SOURCE OF THE RUSSIAN EXCEPTIONALITY IN THE LATE SOVIET AND EARLY RUSSIAN DISCOURSE

Author(s): Vsevolod Samokhvalov / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2012

The paper is based on the inter-disciplinary research project, which studies the process of relational identity construction and the Russian foreign policy. Following the constructivist epistemology and methodology of intertextuality, the paper will study main texts that defined the Russia’s Great Power identity: school and university textbooks, major history works, most popular history novels and media discourse. The author looks into the concept of identity as expressed by the term of Russia’s Great Powerhood linked to the idea of Europe. The working hypothesis of the research project is that Russia’s idea of Great Powerhood was always exercised/implemented in/through Russia’s interaction with Europe. The Balkans take special role in the role of the Russian identity construction. Departing from the facts of certain historical borrowings the Balkans the discourse evolves to reconstruct the Balkans as the source of the Russian Greatness. Embedded in the Soviet discourse through the textbooks and fiction literature in the 1960s, the discourses penetrates numerous texts in the media discourse in the late 1980s. The paper further analyzes evolution of the discourse in the Russian period. It identifies certain deconstruction of the Holy Grail that take place, introduction of orientalist elements and adjustment of the discourse to new realities.

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PROTESTANTISM AMONG ROMA IN SOUTH-EASTERN SERBIA: STATE AND CONSEQUENCES

Author(s): Dragan M. Todorović / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2012

Mimicking the distribution patterns in European, as well as Balkan countries, Protestant communities in Serbia pay special attention to ethnic and religious minorities, the favourite source of their survival, spreading, and growth. Particularly in its south-eastern regions, Roma represent a religious confessional reservoir of Protestantization, primarily due to the lack of any kind of pastoral activity among them by the traditional churches and religious communities. The conversion of Roma into the Protestant religious corpus transforms every aspect of their everyday life, bringing them dignity and appreciation, care and support, hope and perspective, respect within the majority. Positive effects are felt in the improvement of the quality of life in Roma families: the decrease in petty crime, alcoholism, drug addiction and prostitution, better hygienic, working and education habits. The paper is based on the data collected through observation and participation in religious rituals, as well as through in-deep interviews, based on the structural questionnaire, with members of the Roma Christian Baptist Church, Christian Adventist Church, Evangelical Pentecostal Church and Jehovah’s Witnesses in South-eastern Serbia.

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EUROPEAN IDENTITY VS. NATIONAL IDENTITY

Author(s): Ganka Cvetanova / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2012

The discussions regarding the significance and relevance of the identity represent an inevitable segment of the current sociological, anthropological and philosophical debates. On the other hand, the concept of the European identity formation is one the most relevant topic in the scientific and political sphere. There are several approaches or several aspects from which the European identity can be analyzed and defined as such. One of the existing definitions states that the European identity dwells on the idea of a cultural family. According to another definition, the European identity is founded on the idea of United Europe. Very often, European identity is equated with “universal values”, such as individualism, social cohesion and tolerance. Defined in such manner, European identity is transferred to the sphere of politics and it is given a political dimension i.e. it becomes a political identity. This paper examines comparatively the patterns and basis of European identity formation and national identity formation, using an approach based primarily on nationalist theory with special emphasis on cultural aspects. In other words, for the purposes of this paper the nationalist theory is the one that is providing a framework for the analysis of European identity formation. The paper is focusing also on the sustainability of European vs. national identity.

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CULTURAL AND ETHNIC IDENTITIES IN MACEDONIA

Author(s): Emilija Simoska / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2012

This paper concentrates on the development of the model of political culture of the citizens of Macedonia, during the so called transitional period, with a special focus to the issue of ethnic identities and identities in general, as they were determined by the changes of the general value matrix. Data from the latest research done on political culture and identities (June – September, 2010) will be presented and compared to some previous researches. The focus is on the questions: is Macedonian society really multicultural, and if it is, is that a burden or a contribution to its members? The paper analyses the ethnic environment, the ethnic distance and the perception of self-identities of the citizens.

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THE DIVERSITY OF BALKAN COUNTRIES AND THE GLOBALIZATION PROCESS

Author(s): Bashkim Arifi / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2012

We are witnesses that we are living in a time of economical and political globalization. Everything what is happening is in the trend of globalization, such as economic developments, economic associations as well as political and geo-political associations of different countries. Balkan countries (including Kosovo) are slowly joining the new modern trends toward more open liberal economy and Euro-Atlantic integration. Economical and political globalization as a worldwide trend affects the expansion of national economies into a global - world area, in which they slowly but surely eliminate a set of different barriers, in particular political interventions. But the “Jumping” of national economies into Global markets has not only positive aspects but also negative, bringing with themselves the risk, for pure and not enough competitive companies of Kosovo. There is a hypothesis which needs to be verified: “Mutual influence between the diversity in the Balkans and the globalization process is large”. Giving the proper and scientific answer, for the main issue and hypothesis, needs a lot of analyses and methods including statistical and historical data. To sum up, there are not more advantages than disadvantages of globalization and vice versa. What can be concluded is that the process of globalization is unavoidable. The step globalization has undertaken, while setting new standards and regulations has gone too far to be misplaced. As cloudy as it may seem, the disappearance of various domestic products and the expansion towards a global unity of economic sense might prove valuable for the future generations.

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INTERNATIONAL JUDICIAL COOPERATION IN CRIMINAL MATTERS

Author(s): Manuel Cristian Firică / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2012

Increasing crime and proliferation on plenary level, after the end of World War I, expanding forms of organized crime on the territory of several states, with express reference to drug trafficking, person trafficking, counterfeit currency, forgery of credit cards and information fraud, terrorism acts and so on, have caused a reaction of solidarity to combat this dangerous phenomenon. International cooperation in legal matters, in the sense of cooperation and assistance in various areas of legal activity, is necessary for the purpose of fighting crime. The current paper focuses upon one special law Romania adopted to strengthen international judicial cooperation.

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