We expect immediate and concrete steps to protect national minorities

The EP’s Committee on Culture and Education (CULT) held an exchange of views today with a representative of the European Commission (EC) on the Minority Safepack European Citizens’ Initiative. In her speech, Fidesz MEP Andrea Bocskor expressed her disappointment that the Commission had failed to support the Minority Safepack initiative and called on it to make legislative proposals to protect national and linguistic minorities as soon as possible.

The Vice-Chair of CULT committee highlighted that almost 1.2 million EU citizens have supported with their signature the initiative to guarantee the rights of more than 50 million indigenous minorities and national and linguistic communities in Europe. The Minority Safepack was created primarily for the protection of the linguistic and cultural rights of indigenous national communities and not for new minorities. Last December, the European Parliament supported this citizens’ initiative for the protection of minorities by a large majority and called on the European Commission to take action. “We were expecting legislative proposals to protect minority languages ​​and multilingualism, as the widespread support for the initiative further proved its necessity. It is incomprehensible why the Commission thinks that there is no need for a new legal framework”, stressed the Fidesz MEP.

MEP Bocskor also pointed out that: “The European Commission’s arguments are simply unacceptable. The reasons outlined in the Commission’s communication are superficial, vague and do not cover what was requested in the Minority Safepack’s initial proposal. I therefore call on the Commission to reconsider its decision and make a proposal for the benefit of national and linguistic minorities”.

Balázs Hidvéghi, Fidesz member of the Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs Committee (LIBE) pointed out in his speech that the European Commission always highlights its dedication to democracy, but now when millions of citizens turned to the Commission demanding concrete measures to protect national minorities, it turned its back on citizens. “This initiative could have been the feast of democracy. The people of Europe have sent a very clear message, they demanded actions, but the Commission swept this initiative off the table”, said MEP Hidvéghi.

Vivienne Hoffmann, representing the Commission, reiterated why no new legislations were needed, and spoke of such  EU programs and decisions made by the European Council, that were not sufficient to guarantee effective legal protection for indigenous minorities, not even for indigenous minorities but were primarily supporting migrants. Almost all speakers of the debate expressed their dissatisfaction with the Commission’s response and called for action.

“The European Commission has repeatedly ignored the will of citizens, undermining not only the credibility of the citizens’ initiatives but also that of the Commission”, concluded her speech MEP Andrea Bocskor.