political tensions in the OSCE area, particularly following the refugee and migrant crisis of recent years, and the resulting pressure on integration policies. All the issues included in these publications relate directly to the High Commissioner’s mandate to prevent conflict and to reduce tensions affecting minority communities. The publications are grounded in the recognition that the numerous conflicts involving national minorities that have erupted since the HCNM was established could have been avoided. More often than not, such conflicts are rooted in the denial of basic minority rights (including through violence) and the marginalization of minority communities in ways that amount to systemic discrimination. As the Copenhagen Document stresses, “participating States recognize that the questions relating to national minorities can only be satisfactorily resolved in a democratic political framework based on the rule of law, with a functioning independent judiciary.”2 This is why the protection and indivisibility of human rights and minority rights, including through access to justice, should be central to conflict prevention within and between States, and why it is a specific area of HCNM focus. National minorities might lose confidence in the justice system and in State authorities in general if they are unfairly targeted by law-enforcement and judicial bodies or if their access to justice is denied or even restricted, not least because of corruption. The Ljubljana Guidelines go further, stating that lack of trust in the justice system, or a perception that the system favours members of the majority, undermines social cohesion, fosters alienation and can increase the risk of conflict, including of an inter-ethnic nature.3 In the most extreme cases, systemic discrimination and alienation, as well as inter-ethnic tensions and violence, can also contribute to a climate where violent extremism and radicalization may take root. It is also possible that persons belonging to minority communities may use violence or implement discriminatory measures against members of the majority in areas over which they exert control. Lastly, lack of access to justice and disillusionment with the State may encourage minority communities to look for support from neighbouring States or States from the region with which they share ethnic or cultural characteristics. This can further increase domestic and inter-State tensions. Inter-ethnic tensions, discrimination, hate crimes and lack of access to justice can lead to a cycle of inter-ethnic conflict. Access to justice, therefore, is not just about the rights of 2 3 4 OSCE (1990) Document of the Copenhagen Meeting of the Conference on the Human Dimension of the CSCE, paragraph 30. HCNM (2012) Ljubljana Guidelines on Integration of Diverse Societies, explanatory note to Guideline 47. The Graz Recommendations on Access to Justice and National Minorities