Authors

Discussion

The Italian national community in Slovenia, recognized as an autochthonous minority, enjoys a special level of protection defined in the national legal framework. Various acts and regulations grant members of this community the right to use their own language and promote effective bilingualism.

Despite adequate protections for the minority in official documents, in the last years we are witnessing also a new trend – the detachment of the majority from the minority – which manifests itself in a diminishing sensitivity among the majority population towards the rights of the minority. On the other hand the Italian national community, having its own internal problems, in comparison to the past decades has begun to isolate itself and has built a sort of  “fortress” around. This detachment is becoming wider and establishes also some fertile ground for the possible securitisation of both entities in the country.