Futurology of the Evolution of the Concept of Minority in International Law Literature

The "minority" has evolved in form and content since it was first introduced in the Treaty of Augsburg in 1555. After the "religious minority", the "ethnic minority" entered international law with the Vienna Document of 1815, the "linguistic minority" with the decision of the Permanent Court of 1935 and with the ratification of Article 27 of the 1966 Covenant and the "national minority" with the 1992 Declaration. The minority has evolved conceptually and formally, especially the condition of citizenship.The purpose of this paper is to study the future evolution of the concept of minority in international law.

By accepting the principles of descriptive and analytical methods, the research uses the interrogative strategy and the method of "extension of the present to the future", which is one of the methods of futures studies.

Relying on the theory of multiculturalism, the possible futures of minority evolution are to reduce the role of the four traditional elements of religion, ethnicity, language, and national origin in identifying minorities and to increase the role of "distinction in habits, beliefs, and behaviors."

The study of the Propellants shows that in the "probable future", there is activism in Western countries for the entry of new groups such as misguided sects and homosexuals into the legal circle of minorities. To prevent this process contrary to "public order", the legal cooperation of the member states of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, especially in the "Human Rights Committee" and the "Forum on Minority Issues" is necessary.