ABSTRACT
Minorities and migration are of great importance for the stability of individual European states and of Europe as a whole. Increasing flows of migrants and refugees, together with the new freedom of movement, pose enormous challenges. The modus vivendi evolving between majorities and long-standing minorities is not easily extended to new ones, especially if they carry with them non-European cultures, languages, and in the case of Muslims, religions. Caribbean and Indians flowed into Britain, Algerians into France, Turks and Italians into Germany, and Surinamese and Moluccans to the Netherlands. Consociational democracy in mixed societies allows different groups to create and run their own institutions, including some government and public service agencies. A combination of national and international mechanisms can enhance the chances of accommodating minorities and migration and hence promote the prospects for peace and stability in Europe as a whole.
