De-territorializing minority rights: the application of non-territorial autonomy for dispersed minority communities

Abstract

The traditional understanding of self-determination vis-à-vis territory is problematic in addressing the needs of dispersed and/or migrant populations, and alternative arrangements of self-determination must be examined. The Non-territorial autonomy model has acquired a significant level of attention in the last two decades as an alternative to territoriality This dissertation examines the prevailing international practice of self-determination through territorial statehood or territorial autonomy in relation to diffused ethno-national communities. It problematizes the conventional understanding of territoriality for not being suitable for dispersed minority communities. It uses the Roma population of Europe as a case study to highlight the shortcomings of the territorial model in solving the self-determination issues faced by dispersed minority communities. The dissertation suggests that non-territorial autonomy model proposed by Karl Renner and Otto Bauer function to de-territorialize minority rights and serve as an alternative solution to the complications faced by dispersed communities. Non-territorial autonomy offers a novel way to interpret and understand the concept of self-determination.