HISTORY

The Statutes of the International Scientific Conference Minorities for Europe of Tomorrow - ISCOMET (Document, Council of Europe, Strasbourg, June 27, 1989, OPL/BUR (24) 8) was adopted by the founding Conference on June 8-9, 1989 in Ljubljana. The conference was convened as a private initiative of a group of experts with the informal support by the Council of Europe. The final Declaration of the conference was distributed by the Council of Europe (see Council of Europe, CLRAE, CPL / BUR / 24 / 8, Strasbourg, 27 June 1989). The Declaration included between other two requests of the participants:
 - to transform the meeting in Ljubljana in the permanent scientific encounter  “The International Scientific Conference Minorities for Europe of Tomorrow - ISCOMET” and
 - to establish a research centre in order to study the issues of ethnic minorities and regionalism in the emerging European circumstances (later it was establish at the University of Maribor as the European Centre for Ethnic, Regional and Sociological Studies - ECERS). It is necessary to stress that the founding conference in Ljubljana was convened eight months before the crash down of the Berlin wall what symbolised the beginning of the new historical era in Europe. 

On behalf of the recommendation of Mrs. Catherine Lalumiere to the Committee of Ministers and to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe on 14 November 1991 in application of Resolution (72) 35 of the Committee of Ministers, ISCOMET was added, with the effect from 14 May 1992, to the list of international non-governmental organisations (NGO) enjoying participatory status with the Council of Europe. On the 38. FUEN Federal Union of European Nationalities - Congress on 28 May 1992 in Branitz, Cottbus, ISCOMET has been accepted as a correspondent member of FUEN.

The Governmental Committee of the European Social Charter of the Council of Europe registered 1st July 1998 ISCOMET on the list of international NGOs (altogether 38 NGOs) entitled to submit collective complaints to the Committee of Independent Experts responsible for the supervision of the application of the Charter in the states that have ratified this instrument.