E/CN.4/Sub.2/AC.5/2001/2 page 7 cultural identity, customs and traditions and institutions of indigenous peoples, as well as provisions of regional instruments such as those of the Organization on Security and Co-operation in Europe, including its 1990 Copenhagen Conference on the Human Dimension and its 1991 Geneva Meeting of Experts on National Minorities. Another recent instrument in the same direction is the European Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities. 28. Minority group identity requires not only tolerance but a positive attitude towards cultural pluralism on the part of the State and the larger society. Not only acceptance but also respect for the distinctive characteristics and contribution of minorities to the life of the national society as a whole are required. Protection of their identity means not only that the State should abstain from policies which have the purpose or effect of assimilating minorities into the dominant culture, but also that it should protect them against activities by third parties which have an assimilatory effect. The language and educational policies of the State concerned are crucial in this regard. Denying minorities the possibility of learning their own language and of receiving instruction in their own language, or excluding from their education the transmission of knowledge about their own culture, history, tradition and language, would be a violation of the obligation to protect their identity. 29. Promotion of the identity of minorities requires special measures to facilitate the maintenance, reproduction and further development of their culture. Cultures are not static; minorities should be given the opportunity to develop their own culture in the context of an ongoing process. That process should be an interaction between the persons belonging to the minority themselves, between the minority and the State, and between the minority and the wider national society. The measures required to achieve this purpose are set out in greater detail in article 4 of the Declaration. 1.2 States shall adopt appropriate legislative and other measures to achieve those ends 30. Article 1.2 requires “appropriate legislative and other measures”. Legislation is needed and it must be complemented by other measures in order to ensure that article 1 can be effectively implemented. Both process and content is important here. In terms of process, it is essential that the State consult the minorities on what would constitute appropriate measures. This follows also from article 2.3 of the Declaration. Different minorities may have different needs that must be taken into account. Any differences in policy, however, must be based on objective and reasonable grounds in order to avoid discrimination. 31. “Other measures” include, but are not limited to, judicial, administrative, promotional and educational measures. 32. In general terms, the content of the measures which have to be adopted are set out in the other provisions of the Declaration, particularly articles 2 and 4, which will be discussed below. One set of measures stem directly from article 1.1: States must adopt laws protecting against acts or incitement to acts which physically threaten the existence of groups or threaten their