Judgement of the European Court of Justice – A milestone in European minority protection

Press release by Kinga Gál

In its February 3rd decision, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruled in favor of the “Minority SafePack” European Citizens’ Initiative against the European Commission. “This is an important milestone for European minority protection,” said Fidesz MEP Kinga Gál, “since the legally binding decision compels the Commission to address the issue again.”

The Federal Union of European Nationalities (FUEN) submitted the “Minority SafePack” European Citizens’ Initiative in 2013 to urge a more appropriate protection of national and linguistic minorities living in the European Union. While the European Commission acknowledged that respecting the rights of minority groups is a core value of the Union, it rejected the initiative. The Commission justified its decision by stating that the topic of the initiative fits only partially within the Union’s competence. The petitioners have now successfully challenged that decision at the European Court of Justice.

“It is a breakthrough success that this was the first case where the ECJ ruled against the Commission concerning the refusal of a European Citizens’ Initiative,” said Kinga Gál, Co-Chair of the EP’s Intergroup for Traditional Minorities, National Communities and Languages.

“Hence, the Commission is obliged to appropriately evaluate the initiative,” Gál continued, “instead of wiping European minority protection off the table for superficial reasons. This is a step forward in the tilting at windmills that is our daily fight with the Commission, in which they reject all of our questions and initiatives with the same reason: that minority protection is not an EU competence. Linguistic and cultural diversity and the use of the mother tongue constitute values of the Union that should be protected like biodiversity or endangered species. If the latter fall under the competence of the EU, then at least the same attention should be paid to assuring equal opportunities, use of mother tongue and protection of identity for the 60 million European citizens who belong to linguistic or national minorities.”