Author: Craig Willis / Topic: Identity

Author:: Craig Willis
Publication Date:: 01-2020
Content Type:: Research Paper
Institution:: European Centre for Minority Issues (ECMI)
Abstract:: Research on Gaelic language in Scotland has increased substantially in recent decades, as has Scottish regional development programmes following devolution. However, the overlapping of these two aspects remains limited, particularly in the context of regional development data available on regions where Scottish Gaelic speakers mostly reside. This Research Paper uses the OECD Regional Wellbeing index as a framework to measure regional development in Scotland at the level of council area, comparing this with its percentage of Gaelic speakers. Equivalent data for eight of the eleven OECD topics is analysed and the focus is placed on the three council areas with significant Gaelic speaking populations – Argyll and Bute, Na h-Eileanan Siar and Highland. The results show that these three regions consistently perform average or good across the eight topics measured, in comparison to the national average in Scotland. This demonstrates that Gaelic language is not a hindrance to development and the three regions perform comparably to other remote council areas such as the Orkney and Shetland Islands.
Topic:: Development, Minorities, Language, Regionalism, and Identity
Political Geography:: Britain, United Kingdom, Europe, and Scotland

Author:: Craig Willis
Publication Date:: 10-2020
Content Type:: Research Paper
Institution:: European Centre for Minority Issues (ECMI)
Abstract:: This Research Paper focuses on economic effects experienced by Roma communities in seven non-EU states during the COVID-19 pandemic and states’ consequent lockdown measures in the first half of 2020. Roma communities in Albania, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia and Ukraine, were all facing socio-economic exclusion and marginalisation before the pandemic and international organisations were warning very early on that Roma communities were at serious risk during the pandemic, including in the fields of employment or loss of income. This research paper uses primary data collected from a survey of 440 Roma individuals across the seven states in order to add empirical evidence to an under-researched area. The main findings include that almost 73% of them experienced a reduced income and the major reason for this was due to access to or demand for informal work was hindered by the lockdowns. Moreover, most Roma who needed to borrow money did so through private means (family and friends) rather than through official or state institutions.
Topic:: Economics, Minorities, Ethnicity, Public Health, Pandemic, COVID-19, and Identity
Political Geography:: Europe, Ukraine, Moldova, Serbia, Albania, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and North Macedonia

Author:: Sergiusz Bober, Aziz Berdiqulov, and Craig Willis
Publication Date:: 12-2018
Content Type:: Special Report
Institution:: European Centre for Minority Issues (ECMI)
Abstract:: In 2018, the ECMI organised a workshop on Central Asia aiming to advance the knowledge and understanding on the region. The workshop covered mainly 4 countries – Kazakhstan (KZ), Kyrgyzstan (KG), Tajikistan (TJ) and Uzbekistan (UZ) and was attended by the ECMI staff. The discussions were organized along four cross-cutting topics: 1. Current Political Situation; 2. Human and Minority Rights; 3. National and Ethnic Minorities (including a sub-section on religion); 4. Border Issues. The present report will provide an overview of the discussions that took place during the workshop, highlight the key points and conclude with suggested follow-up actions by the ECMI. The structure of the report will follow the thematic order of the workshop.
Topic:: Human Rights, Nationalism, Minorities, Ethnicity, Discrimination, Borders, Civil Rights, and Identity
Political Geography:: Central Asia, Middle East, Kazakhstan, Asia, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan

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