"Unser Volk ist vereint, unser Land unabhängig" - zum Umgang mit nationalen Identitätsmodellen im postsowjetischen Kasachstan

Für alle fünf zentralasiatischen Teilrepubliken kam der Zusammenbruch der Sowjetunion im Jahr 1991 relativ plötzlich und eher unerwartet. Der Prozess der „Transformation“ beinhaltete für die neu entstandenen Staaten nun nicht nur die Umstellung politischer und wirtschaftlicher Systeme, sondern ebenso die Organisation von Erinnerung und die Konstruktion von Identität, bei der die staatliche Nationalisierungspolitik oft Paradebeispiele von invented traditions her-vorbrachte. rnIn Kasachstan, dem Land, das während der Sowjetzeit am stärksten russifiziert wurde und heute offiziell 120 Minderheiten zählt, stellt sich dabei die Frage, wie nationale Identitätsmus-ter konstruiert werden und wie Politik. Medien und Bevölkerung damit umgehen. Zwanzig Jahre nach der Unabhängigkeitserklärung des Landes und einer Phase, in der die Regierung mit einer Vielzahl von Maßnahmen versucht, den Identitätsfindungsprozess zu steuern, wurde im Rahmen dieser Arbeit erstmals eine empirische Studie zu der Frage durchgeführt, welche Bedeutungen bestimmte Identitätskonzepte für die lokale Bevölkerung haben. Während meh-rerer Forschungsaufenthalte von insgesamt vier Monaten in den Jahren 2010 und 2011 wurden in Hinblick auf die Fragestellung leitfadenorientierte Interviews und informelle Gespräche mit Teilen der kasachstanischen Bevölkerung geführt, teilnehmende Beobachtung, zwei Fragebo-genaktionen und eine Zeitungsanalyse durchgeführt sowie wissenschaftliche Studien und poli-tische Dokumente analysiert.rnDie Arbeit kommt zu dem Ergebnis, dass die Mehrheit der Befragten sich mehr oder weniger stark entweder über die Staatsbürgerschaft oder die ethnische Zugehörigkeit zur Titularnation mit dem Staat identifiziert. Auffällig ist die Bedeutung regionaler Identitäten für die Befrag-ten, die weder in der nationalen Identitätspolitik noch in der wissenschaftlichen Literatur von Wichtigkeit sind. Ethnische und religiöse Nivellierungen scheinen im Alltagsleben belanglos zu sein, aber in bestimmten anderen Kontexten eine entscheidende Rolle zu spielen. Starke Unterschiede in der Bedeutung verschiedener Identitätsmodelle lassen sich zwischen Stadt- und Landbevölkerung beziehungsweise zwischen sowjetisierten und nach der Wende repatri-ierten Kasachen ausmachen.rnEs ist anzunehmen, dass die Regierung der entscheidende Agent in der Identitätsfindung des Landes ist. Unter den Befragten zeigte sich, dass Identitätspolitik auf der pragmatischen Ebe-ne, beispielsweise in der Anerkennung von Russisch und Kasachisch als Staatssprachen, er-folgreicher ist als auf der emotionalen. rn

Acknowledging linguistic diversity in a multicultural society: the issue of indigenous languages in Colombia.

Nowadays, modern society is gradually becoming multicultural. However, only in the last few years awareness on its importance has been raised. In the case of Colombia, multiculturalism has existed since the pre-Columbian period and today there are more than 80 ethnic groups and 65 indigenous languages in the country. The aim of this work is to illustrate the status of indigenous languages in Colombia and to enlighten about the importance of recognizing, protecting and strengthening the use of these native languages. Subsequent to this, it will be point out that linguistic diversity should be considered a resource and not a barrier to achieve unity in diversity. Finally, ethno-education will be presented as an adequate educational program that may guarantee an equal linguistic representation in the country.

Association between variants of the leptin receptor gene (LEPR) and overweight: a systematic review and an analysis of the CoLaus study

Background Three non-synonymous single nucleotide polymorphisms (Q223R, K109R and K656N) of the leptin receptor gene (LEPR) have been tested for association with obesity-related outcomes in multiple studies, showing inconclusive results. We performed a systematic review and meta-analysis on the association of the three LEPR variants with BMI. In addition, we analysed 15 SNPs within the LEPR gene in the CoLaus study, assessing the interaction of the variants with sex. Methodology/Principal Findings We searched electronic databases, including population-based studies that investigated the association between LEPR variants Q223R, K109R and K656N and obesity- related phenotypes in healthy, unrelated subjects. We furthermore performed meta-analyses of the genotype and allele frequencies in case-control studies. Results were stratified by SNP and by potential effect modifiers. CoLaus data were analysed by logistic and linear regressions and tested for interaction with sex. The meta-analysis of published data did not show an overall association between any of the tested LEPR variants and overweight. However, the choice of a BMI cut-off value to distinguish cases from controls was crucial to explain heterogeneity in Q223R. Differences in allele frequencies across ethnic groups are compatible with natural selection of derived alleles in Q223R and K109R and of the ancient allele in K656N in Asians. In CoLaus, the rs10128072, rs3790438 and rs3790437 variants showed interaction with sex for their association with overweight, waist circumference and fat mass in linear regressions. Conclusions Our systematic review and analysis of primary data from the CoLaus study did not show an overall association between LEPR SNPs and overweight. Most studies were underpowered to detect small effect sizes. A potential effect modification by sex, population stratification, as well as the role of natural selection should be addressed in future genetic association studies.

Identification of an African Bacillus anthracis Lineage That Lacks Expression of the Spore Surface-Associated Anthrose-Containing Oligosaccharide

The surfaces of Bacillus anthracis endospores expose a pentasaccharide containing the monosaccharide anthrose, which has been considered for use as a vaccine or target for specific detection of the spores. In this study B. anthracis strains isolated from cattle carcasses in African countries where anthrax is endemic were tested for their cross-reactivity with monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) specific for anthrose-containing oligosaccharides. Unexpectedly, none of the isolates collected in Chad, Cameroon, and Mali were recognized by the MAbs. Sequencing of the four-gene operon encoding anthrose biosynthetic enzymes revealed the presence of premature stop codons in the aminotransferase and glycosyltransferase genes in all isolates from Chad, Cameroon, and Mali. Both immunological and genetic findings suggest that the West African isolates are unable to produce anthrose. The anthrose-deficient strains from West Africa belong to a particular genetic lineage. Immunization of cattle in Chad with a locally produced vaccine based on anthrose-positive spores of the B. anthracis strain Sterne elicited an anti-carbohydrate IgG response specific for a synthetic anthrose-containing tetrasaccharide as demonstrated by glycan microarray analysis. Competition immunoblots with synthetic pentasaccharide derivatives suggested an immunodominant role of the anthrose-containing carbohydrate in cattle. In West Africa anthrax is highly endemic. Massive vaccination of livestock in this area has taken place over long periods of time using spores of the anthrose-positive vaccine strain Sterne. The spread of anthrose-deficient strains in this region may represent an escape strategy of B. anthracis.

Trends in Migrations of Refugees in Serbia

This project aimed to establish a comprehensive long-term projection of refugee migration trends in Serbia which would allow the different organisations engaged in caring for refugees to plan their work more effectively. Mr. Cvetkovic studied first the official records of numbers and origins of refugees and the various definitions used to describe refugees, exiled persons, etc., considering also the indication of nationality, i.e. Serb or Yugoslav, and the future intentions expressed by refugees. He concluded that more than three quarters of the total number of refugees in Serbia wish to remain in Serbia/Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, and only 20% wish to repatriate. He concludes that the situation in relation to the ethnic-national structure of Serbia is extremely complicated, even to the point of chaos. One certainty is that sooner or later a huge majority of the refugees in Serbia today will be granted full citizenship and will then participate in the choice of the political system and the dominant national values and institutions of the country. The experiences of the refugees, as well as of their fellow nationals in Serbia, make it relatively unlikely that they will make rational choices that could produce a balance between civil democracy and national totalitarianism. Insofar as overall political relations within Serbia and its Federation with Montenegro develop along democratic lines, the civic identity of Serbs (as opposed to their national/ethnic status) can be expected to become stronger, and the civil and national to become an integral part of thinking which does not represent a challenge to the democratic state. This would help ensure that the migratory movements of the Serbs and of other national and ethnic groups in the region are motivated by economic rather than political or ethnic reasons.

The Ingrian Question as a Historical and Political Phenomenon

The project dealt with the political history of the Finnish-speaking minorities of the Russian northwest, mainly in the 20th century. The first part looks at the development of the national movement of the Ingrian Finns and other related ethnic groups (Izhoras, Votes) from the turn of the century to 1920, when Estonia and Finland signed peace treaties with Soviet Russia and the national rights of the Finnish minority in Russia were to some extent guaranteed. In the second section, on the history of the Ingrians during Soviet and post-Soviet times, areas covered include Ingrian national-cultural autonomy in the 1920s, the activities of Ingrian "ingri" organizations in Finland during the inter-war period, social and national repression and the end of autonomy in the 1930s, the dispersal of the Ingrians during the second world war, their first attempts to return home in the immediate post-war period, trends in the development of the social and cultural life of Ingrians during the last 40 years, and the prospects for their existence as an ethnic unity in the future. The research is based on documentary sources from 15 Russian archives, many of which have not previously been used.

Development of Socio-Economic Behaviour and Attitudes of Baltic Nationalities: Perspectives for Integration with Europe

This project is the third stage of a comparative research project, The New Baltic Barometer, which was carried out simultaneously with the "New Democracies Barometer" of the Paul Lazerfeld Society (Vienna) and The Russian Barometer. It studied the opinion and behaviour of the largest Baltic ethnic groups (Estonians, Latvians, Lithuanians). The main focus was on the attitudes of Baltic residents towards the changes in the economic and political system, attitudes towards political values, political trust, and attitudes to the Baltic countries joining the European Union. An analysis of macroeconomic indicators of the Baltic states made it possible to deduce the link between the country's economic development, and satisfaction with the political regime and attitudes towards democratic values. The study analysed the conditions for the democratisation of society, i.e. the development of culture and public opinion in the Baltic states. Attention was also paid to the development of a social network of individuals, showing the transition from informal networks to impersonal institutions. The group concluded that the participation of residents in formal organisations, NGOs in particular, considerably fosters political trust and also increases political efficacy. Participation in formal organisations also reduces the importance of esteem for an authoritarian leader.

Muslim Literature in Serbo-Croat in Relation to the Serbian and Croatian Literatures

Mr. Tutnjevic set out to define the position of the Muslim community within the overall framework of literature in Serbo-Croat, particularly in terms of its relation to the Serbian and Croatian Literatures, on the basis of an extensive comparative study of primary and secondary sources relating to the most important Muslim writers in Serbo-Croat. Carried out against the background of an unprecedented civil war between these national groups, his research focused rather on the encounters between them on the historical and literary stages. He concludes that the Muslim national community was established and developed on a foundation of Slavic self-consciousness and oriental influences. The constantly changing relative weights of the influence of these two factors on the community shaped the specific nature of its literature as well as its place in the cultural environment of its neighbouring national communities, and Muslim literary traditions are inseparably linked with the total literature in Serbo-Croat. A real Muslim literature first emerged at the end of the nineteenth century and virtually all authors writing about this at the time emphasised its educational character and its importance for the process of national identification. At the same time there were visible results of the self-awareness process in which Muslim authors affiliated with Serbian or Croatian literary tradition, sometimes even substituting one with another. During the period between the two world wars Muslim literature reached maturity and while Muslim authors generally focused on their national milieu in terms of subject matter, their forms of expression and their understanding of the function of literature showed the same preoccupation as other Yugoslav authors of the period. When the ideological and class-related concept of society replaced the national character of literature after 1945, Muslim writers found themselves in the same position as writers from other ethnic groups. As in earlier times, writers sought to present themselves to as wide a market as possible and would provide grounds for consideration as Serbian or Croatian writers, sometimes even explicitly presenting themselves as such. Most of the writers of this period are described at times as Yugoslav, at others as Bosnian-Herzegovina, and at still others as Serbian, Croatian or Muslim. Mr. Tutnjevic quotes, for example, the case of Camil Sijaric, a Muslim from Sandzak who also wrote in Sarajevo and falls within the boundaries of Bosnian-Herzegovnian literature, but is also described as a Muslim, Montenegrin and Serbian writer, together with a number of other such examples. An understanding of this process provides the basis for a completely new perception of the intertwining of Serbian, Croatian and Muslim literary traditions, without the earlier visible prejudice on all three sides.

The Social Desintegration of an Ethnical German Group from Romanian Village Community Comparative with a Romanian Group and Hungarian Group from some Village Their Integration into the German Society

Zarna is witness to the disappearance of the Swabian community in Santana, a process which seems to date back to before the major changes in Central and Eastern Europe. His project showed how a strong German ethnic community, formed more than 250 years ago, has virtually disappeared from the village of Santana (Romania). Zarna presents the causes leading to the loss of their ethnic identity, of their culture, traditions and of the collective reproduction of their ethnicity, although the last Swabians remaining in the village have preserved their individual identity and not let themselves be assimilated. The policy of the former communist regime is not sufficient to explain the decline of the German ethnic group, nor is the present international context with its varying effects on the form and reproduction of their ethnic identity. Zarna has analysed the origins of the Swabian community, its development, historical changes (both desired and imposed) and the disappearance of elements that determined their German culture and their pride in being German. The Germans have demobilised more rapidly than other ethnic groups in Romania, partly because of Germany's pro-emigration policy over the last two decades. Many of the emigrants were however, poorly prepared for emigration and have not been able to recreate the prosperous financial situation which they left. The prevalent feeling among those interviewed was disappointment and this increases with age and education.

Frequency of Malaria and Glucose-6-phosphate Dehydrogenase Deficiency in Tajikistan

Background During the Soviet era, malaria was close to eradication in Tajikistan. Since the early 1990s, the disease has been on the rise and has become endemic in large areas of southern and western Tajikistan. The standard national treatment for Plasmodium vivax is based on primaquine. This entails the risk of severe haemolysis for patients with glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) deficiency. Seasonal and geographical distribution patterns as well as G6PD deficiency frequency were analysed with a view to improve understanding of the current malaria situation in Tajikistan. Methods Spatial and seasonal distribution was analysed, applying a risk model that included key environmental factors such as temperature and the availability of mosquito breeding sites. The frequency of G6PD deficiency was studied at the health service level, including a cross-sectional sample of 382 adult men. Results Analysis revealed high rates of malaria transmission in most districts of the southern province of Khatlon, as well as in some zones in the northern province of Sughd. Three categories of risk areas were identified: (i) zones at relatively high malaria risk with high current incidence rates, where malaria control and prevention measures should be taken at all stages of the transmission cycle; (ii) zones at relatively high malaria risk with low current incidence rates, where malaria prevention measures are recommended; and (iii) zones at intermediate or low malaria risk with low current incidence rates where no particular measures appear necessary. The average prevalence of G6PD deficiency was 2.1% with apparent differences between ethnic groups and geographical regions. Conclusion The study clearly indicates that malaria is a serious health issue in specific regions of Tajikistan. Transmission is mainly determined by temperature. Consequently, locations at lower altitude are more malaria-prone. G6PD deficiency frequency is too moderate to require fundamental changes in standard national treatment of cases of P. vivax.

Body-mass index and incidence of cancer: a systematic review and meta-analysis of prospective observational studies

BACKGROUND: Excess bodyweight, expressed as increased body-mass index (BMI), is associated with the risk of some common adult cancers. We did a systematic review and meta-analysis to assess the strength of associations between BMI and different sites of cancer and to investigate differences in these associations between sex and ethnic groups. METHODS: We did electronic searches on Medline and Embase (1966 to November 2007), and searched reports to identify prospective studies of incident cases of 20 cancer types. We did random-effects meta-analyses and meta-regressions of study-specific incremental estimates to determine the risk of cancer associated with a 5 kg/m2 increase in BMI. FINDINGS: We analysed 221 datasets (141 articles), including 282,137 incident cases. In men, a 5 kg/m2 increase in BMI was strongly associated with oesophageal adenocarcinoma (RR 1.52, p<0.0001) and with thyroid (1.33, p=0.02), colon (1.24, p<0.0001), and renal (1.24, p <0.0001) cancers. In women, we recorded strong associations between a 5 kg/m2 increase in BMI and endometrial (1.59, p<0.0001), gallbladder (1.59, p=0.04), oesophageal adenocarcinoma (1.51, p<0.0001), and renal (1.34, p<0.0001) cancers. We noted weaker positive associations (RR <1.20) between increased BMI and rectal cancer and malignant melanoma in men; postmenopausal breast, pancreatic, thyroid, and colon cancers in women; and leukaemia, multiple myeloma, and non-Hodgkin lymphoma in both sexes. Associations were stronger in men than in women for colon (p<0.0001) cancer. Associations were generally similar in studies from North America, Europe and Australia, and the Asia-Pacific region, but we recorded stronger associations in Asia-Pacific populations between increased BMI and premenopausal (p=0.009) and postmenopausal (p=0.06) breast cancers. INTERPRETATION: Increased BMI is associated with increased risk of common and less common malignancies. For some cancer types, associations differ between sexes and populations of different ethnic origins. These epidemiological observations should inform the exploration of biological mechanisms that link obesity with cancer.

Performance characteristics and design recommendations for biomass-burning stoves using earthen construction materials

This report provides an analysis of the thermal performance and emissions characteristics of improved biomass stoves constructed using earthen materials. Commonly referred to as mud stoves, this type of improved stove incorporates high clay content soil with an organic binder in the construction of its combustion chamber and body. When large quantities of the mud material are used to construct the stove body, the stove does not offer significant improvements in fuel economy or air quality relative to traditional open fire cooking. This is partly because a significant amount of heat is absorbed by the mass of the stove reducing combustion efficiency and heat transfer to the cook pot. An analysis of the thermal and mechanical properties of stove materials was also performed. A material mixture containing a one‐to‐one ratio by volume of high content clay soil and straw was found to have thermal properties comparable to fired ceramics used in more advanced improved stove designs. Feedback from mud stove users in Mauritania and Mali, West Africa was also collected during implementation. Suggestions for stove design improvements were developed based on this information and the data collected in the performance, emissions, and material properties analysis. Design suggestions include reducing stove height to accommodate user cooking preferences and limiting overall stove mass to reduce heat loss to the stove body.

An ethnobotanical survey of the economic and cultural significance of non-timber forest products in the southwest Rhodope Mountain region of Bulgaria

The people of the southwestern Rhodope Mountains of Bulgaria live in small, mountainous villages and rural areas. They rely on berries, herbs, and mushrooms provided by the forest and maintain a lifestyle and culture of gathering them. This study determined the economic and landscape concentration of Non-Timber Forest Products (NTFPs) and how this has changed in the past twenty years in the region of Garmen. The objective was to gauge the cultural and economic significance of NTFPs in the lives of the people who live there. Data was collected using informal, open-ended interviews and through participant observation. Results indicate that ethnicity influence how resources are utilized. Roma people collect mushrooms for income generation; Orthodox Bulgarians gather herbs, berries, and mushrooms for medicinal purposes, to supplement their diets, and to carry on traditions. Bulgarian Muslims collect for a combination of the aforementioned reasons. Changes that occur in the forests affect each of the ethnic groups in different ways and forest management practices should include people’s knowledge and uses of NTFPs.

Genetic association studies under the population stratification, family pedigree and application to genome-wide association studies

This dissertation has three separate parts: the first part deals with the general pedigree association testing incorporating continuous covariates; the second part deals with the association tests under population stratification using the conditional likelihood tests; the third part deals with the genome-wide association studies based on the real rheumatoid arthritis (RA) disease data sets from Genetic Analysis Workshop 16 (GAW16) problem 1. Many statistical tests are developed to test the linkage and association using either case-control status or phenotype covariates for family data structure, separately. Those univariate analyses might not use all the information coming from the family members in practical studies. On the other hand, the human complex disease do not have a clear inheritance pattern, there might exist the gene interactions or act independently. In part I, the new proposed approach MPDT is focused on how to use both the case control information as well as the phenotype covariates. This approach can be applied to detect multiple marker effects. Based on the two existing popular statistics in family studies for case-control and quantitative traits respectively, the new approach could be used in the simple family structure data set as well as general pedigree structure. The combined statistics are calculated using the two statistics; A permutation procedure is applied for assessing the p-value with adjustment from the Bonferroni for the multiple markers. We use simulation studies to evaluate the type I error rates and the powers of the proposed approach. Our results show that the combined test using both case-control information and phenotype covariates not only has the correct type I error rates but also is more powerful than the other existing methods. For multiple marker interactions, our proposed method is also very powerful. Selective genotyping is an economical strategy in detecting and mapping quantitative trait loci in the genetic dissection of complex disease. When the samples arise from different ethnic groups or an admixture population, all the existing selective genotyping methods may result in spurious association due to different ancestry distributions. The problem can be more serious when the sample size is large, a general requirement to obtain sufficient power to detect modest genetic effects for most complex traits. In part II, I describe a useful strategy in selective genotyping while population stratification is present. Our procedure used a principal component based approach to eliminate any effect of population stratification. The paper evaluates the performance of our procedure using both simulated data from an early study data sets and also the HapMap data sets in a variety of population admixture models generated from empirical data. There are one binary trait and two continuous traits in the rheumatoid arthritis dataset of Problem 1 in the Genetic Analysis Workshop 16 (GAW16): RA status, AntiCCP and IgM. To allow multiple traits, we suggest a set of SNP-level F statistics by the concept of multiple-correlation to measure the genetic association between multiple trait values and SNP-specific genotypic scores and obtain their null distributions. Hereby, we perform 6 genome-wide association analyses using the novel one- and two-stage approaches which are based on single, double and triple traits. Incorporating all these 6 analyses, we successfully validate the SNPs which have been identified to be responsible for rheumatoid arthritis in the literature and detect more disease susceptibility SNPs for follow-up studies in the future. Except for chromosome 13 and 18, each of the others is found to harbour susceptible genetic regions for rheumatoid arthritis or related diseases, i.e., lupus erythematosus. This topic is discussed in part III.

Unravelling the distinct strains of Tharu ancestry

The northern region of the Indian subcontinent is a vast landscape interlaced by diverse ecologies, e.g. the Gangetic plain and the Himalayas. A great number of ethnic groups are found there, displayed as a multitude of languages and cultures. The Tharu represent one of the largest and linguistically most diversified such groups, scattered across the Tarai region of Nepal and bordering Indian states. Their origins are uncertain. Hypotheses have been advanced about an Austroasiatic affinity, Tibeto-Burman origins, as well as aboriginal roots in the Tarai. Several Tharu groups speak a variety of Indo-Aryan languages, but have traditionally been described by ethnographers as representing an East Asian phenotype. Their ancestry and intra-population diversity had previously been tested only for haploid (mtDNA and Y-chromosome) markers in a small portion of the population. This study presents the first systematic genetic survey of the Tharu from both Nepal and the Indian states of Uttaranchal and Uttar Pradesh, using genome-wide SNPs and haploid (mtDNA and Y-chromosome) markers. The results suggest that the 'ethnic' construct of Tharu is likely to have lain in the Tarai region, with a reconstructible radiation to Uttaranchal and Uttar Pradesh. Despite extensive admixture with other local communities, Tharu sub-populations preserve strong genetic signatures that indicate a common ancestry.