The Legacy of Colonialism on Linguistic Minority Rights: Postcolonial State Practices from the Perspective of International Law

Abstract

Minority populations, around the globe, have been historically marginalized, in many cases, due to the detrimental effects of colonialism in their communities. Facing discrimination and oppression since the formation of colonial empires, minority and indigenous minority groups in post-colonial societies continue to live in precarious socio-economic conditions, disadvantaged compared to majority populations, with their communities’ interests and needs often neglected. In this framework, minority -and particularly indigenous- languages face an existential threat, in the 21st century, with the majority of them being categorized as endangered ones. National governments of post-colonial states have in most cases inherited the issue of minority linguistic rights’ lack of protection from the colonial past, failing to accommodate the individual language rights of persons belonging to minority groups, neglecting to safeguard the rights of the minority communities to learn their mother languages or to provide the necessary responses to the intensifying issue of language loss and endangerment. It has, therefore, been an issue of international law to provide the necessary framework for the protection of minority linguistic rights and for the assistance of minority linguistic communities to use, maintain and revitalize their languages. Since the era of decolonization, in the mid-20th century, various international law texts -both binding conventions and soft law provisions- have been drafted with the aim to promote individual linguistic human rights, collective minority cultural and language rights and the protection of endangered languages, while in the post-colonial states, the significant amelioration of the accommodation of minority linguistic groups’ rights, largely remains the exception, rather than the rule. This study aims to present the situation of minority language rights in post-colonial societies, examine the various provisions of International Law that relate to minority groups’ linguistic rights, as well as, briefly analyse their extent and implementation, critically reviewing state practices in three specific cases studies of post-colonial states – in South Africa, Australia and New Zealand, while, taking into account the latest developments on the international agenda on linguistic rights.