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CULTURAL DIVERSITY, HUMAN RIGHTS AND DEMOCRATIC GOVERNANCE . 29
that have not seriously taken account of cultural
diversity, mass immigration has led to the emergence of
community ‘ghettos’ that can become sources of conflicts
– hence the need for ‘reasonable accommodations’
between cultures. Issues of perception are important
here, since intercultural conflicts invariably involve
confusions and distortions between fact and perception,
especially between the majority population and
minorities that feel themselves insufficiently recognized
and integrated in the social fabric. Steps should be taken
to ensure that minority voices and views can be heard
and that debates involving all members of the
communities concerned can take place.
Since the 1970s, multiculturalist policies – notably in the
areas of education, information, law, religious observance
and media access – have been one of the main
approaches to ensure equality in diversity. Such policies
have proved to have a number of shortcomings,
particularly that of encouraging a drift towards cultural
isolationism. Several countries are currently challenged
with finding new models that fuse agendas for
promoting national identity with those ‘celebrating’
diversity. In this context, the aim is to go beyond
assimilation and multiculturalism conceived in terms of
separateness, in order to highlight multiple interactions
and allegiances and facilitate access to other cultures,
particularly through the development of networks and
new forms of sociability.
The challenge of cultural diversity for democratic
governance
Governance involves the whole range of decisionmaking
processes and actors within formal and nonformal
structures in a given social or political context.
Recognizing the interdependence of all these actors
connects governance to a wider concern with social
capital and the underpinnings necessary for social
cohesion.
Building cohesive societies requires developing and
implementing policies that ensure empowerment of all
groups and individuals, as well as their political
participation. Power-sharing arrangements, such as
consensus democracy, should be complemented by
empowerment policies in the fields of education, culture
and the media.
The overarching goal is to promote an enabling
environment for realistic progress towards genuine
democratic governance. Such a universalistic approach
founded on mutual trust is the key to peaceful
coexistence within societies, for it is the point of
departure for the forging of a wider international
consensus in keeping with the goals of the United
Nations. As with human rights, such an overarching goal
gains in acceptance when it takes root in the diversity of
cultural models of governance in use in societies. In this
regard, customary law and dispute-settlement
mechanisms – as rediscovered through the prism of
intangible heritage – can coexist with State organization
and serve to strengthen democratic governance.
L The fortified town of Ait
ben Haddou near
Ouarzazate in Morocco
I Aboriginal rock paintings
at Carnarvon Gorge, Central
Queensland, Australia
The overarching
goal is to promote
an enabling
environment for
progress towards
genuine democratic
governance
L New Jersey City skyline on
the Hudson River, US
Chapter 8: Cultural diversity,
human rights and
democratic governance