ABTTF President: “With the inclusion of the Framework Agreement and the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages in the EU legal system, the protection of national and autochthonous minorities in Europe and the promotion of linguistic and cultural diversity will be one of the general policy areas that are legally binding for all EU Member States including our country Greece’’.
A comprehensive resolution on cooperation between the European Union (EU) and the Council of Europe was adopted with a large majority of votes at the plenary session of the European Parliament (EP) held on 18 April 2023.
The resolution which was prepared by Vice-Chair of the Committee on Constitutional Affairs (AFCO) and President of the Federal Union of European Nationalities (FUEN) Loránt Vincze envisages the inclusion of the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities (FCNM) and the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages (ECMRL) into the EU legal system.
The resolution underlines that the legal instruments developed and followed by the Council of Europe for the protection of minorities are currently the most comprehensive and legally binding instruments in the world, and indicates that the EU should make the protection of minorities part of the monitoring of the rule of law and fundamental rights within the EU.
The report reiterates the EP’s call for the EU to accede to the FCNM and the ECRML and calls for closer legal relations between the EU and the Council of Europe in the field of minority rights. The report emphasises that the EU’s credibility in the accession process would be strengthened if the standards set by the Framework Convention are included within the framework of the EU’s monitoring of the rule of law and fundamental rights. Furthermore, the report calls for the formalisation of a consolidated strategic partnership between the two institutions and the swift completion of the EU’s accession process to the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR).
“The adoption of the resolution on expanding the scope of cooperation between the European Union and the Council of Europe by the majority of MEPs at the EP Plenary is a very important success in terms of protecting the rights of minorities in Europe with legal measures. I congratulate FUEN President and Member of the European Parliament Loránt Vincze, who prepared the report subject to the resolution in achieving this success. Protecting the rights of minorities and strengthening cultural and linguistic diversity are among the values of the EU and should always be taken into account at EU level. With the inclusion of the Framework Agreement and the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages in the EU legal system, the protection of national and autochthonous minorities in Europe and the promotion of linguistic and cultural diversity will be one of the general policy areas that are legally binding for all EU Member States including our country Greece”, said Halit Habip Oğlu, President of the Federation of Western Thrace Turks in Europe (ABTTF).
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