The High Commissioner on National Minorities (HCNM) is mandated by the 57 participating states of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) to prevent tensions over national minority issues from escalating into conflict. In recent years, the HCNM has noted an increase in disputes both within and between OSCE participating states over issues related to historical memory. The use and abuse of history as part of identity politics can divide societies along ethnic lines, as majorities and minorities promote divergent and sometimes clashing historical narratives. Tensions can arise over the use of symbols and statues in public space, over history curricula in schools, over ‘memory laws’ that regulate and criminalize interpretations of history or over acts of remembrance of controversial historical periods. In light of the HCNM’s mandate of conflict prevention, the aim of the meeting is to explore the role of intergovernmental, national and local actors in promoting a way of dealing with the past that promotes rather than undermines social cohesion within states and that builds friendly neighborly relations between states.
