WRITTEN QUESTION E-0664/02 by Feleknas Uca (GUE/NGL) to the Commission. Cultural and linguistic rights of minorities in EU candidate countries.
Date: 2002-03-08
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: accession criteria, accession negotiations, accession to the European Union, economic situation, language teaching, minority language, political situation, rights of minorities, social situation

17.4.2003

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 92 E/19

communication, and increased co-operation and dialogue between the World Trade Organisation (WTO)
and the International Labour Organisation (ILO), is one important means of improving governance. In
view of the strong development component of the social dimension of globalisation, the Commission
suggests involving relevant development organisations in such strengthened co-operation, including United
Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), the World Bank and International Monetary
Fund (IMF).

While the Doha outcome was relatively modest as regards core labour standards, it does provide a good
basis for further progress, by confirming the commitment to core labour standards and the need for co-
operation between WTO and ILO. The Commission is following up on this commitment in its direct
contacts with the two organisations by urging closer co-operation and in the institutional context,
including by its call that the newly established ILO World Commission on the Social Dimension of
Globalisation involve and draw upon the experience of other organisations. Following the efforts of the
Commission, the WTO has in fact taken interest in and contributed to the ILO Working Party on the
Social Dimension of Globalisation by the WTO Secretariat contribution on trade liberalisation and
employment, which was discussed on 18 and 19 March 2002. The Commission intends to continue its
efforts in this field to strengthen the ties between the WTO and the ILO to help promote core labour
standards and decent work in the context of globalisation.

(1) COM(2001) 416 final.

(2003/C 92 E/021)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0664/02

by Feleknas Uca (GUE/NGL) to the Commission

(8 March 2002)

Subject: Cultural and linguistic rights of minorities in EU candidate countries

The integration of ethnic and religious minorities into society is a requirement for democratic stability.
Certain EU candidate countries are still a long way from reaching this goal, for example Turkey, which
grants ethnic and religious minorities no rights.

The Council of Europe’s Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities is designed to
establish the individual rights of those belonging to minority groups. Which EU candidate countries have
ratified and implemented this framework convention?

How does the Commission view the situation of ethnic and religious minorities in the EU candidate
countries?

Are the cultural rights of minorities guaranteed in the EU candidate countries? Do their educational
systems respect the right to education in one’s mother tongue?

Will the implementation of the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities and the
European Charter for Regional and Minority Languages serve as a point of reference for the accession
negotiations?

Answer given by Mr Verheugen on behalf of the Commission

(30 April 2002)

The political Copenhagen criteria include the ‘… respect
for and protection of minorities.’ The
Luxembourg European Council (12 and 13 December 1997) recalled that compliance with the political
criteria laid down in Copenhagen (21 and 22 June 1993) is a prerequisite for the opening of accession
negotiations.

C 92 E/20

Official Journal of the European Union

EN

17.4.2003

In assessing progress made by the candidate countries with regard to these criteria, the Commission
devotes particular attention to the respect for, and the implementation of, the various principles laid down
in the Council of Europe Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities. With the
exception of Latvia and Turkey, all candidate countries have ratified this convention. It is to be noted that
not all Member States have yet done so.

As of 1997, the Commission has regularly assessed progress made by the candidate countries in meeting
the Copenhagen criteria, first in its 1997 Opinions, and subsequently in its Regular Reports. In November
2001 the Commission concluded in its ‘Strategy Paper’ (1) that the Copenhagen political criteria ‘continue
to be met by all presently negotiating candidate countries. Turkey still does not meet these criteria.’

The regular assessment of progress made by the candidate countries in meeting the requirements set by the
Copenhagen political criteria has led to positive developments in all candidate countries, also as regards
respect for minority rights and the protection of minorities. Estonia and Latvia, for example, have further
progressed in the integration of non-citizens and continued to fulfil the Organisations for Security and
Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) recommendations regarding citizenship and naturalisation; due care will
need to be taken, however, to ensure that the implementation of existing language legislation takes place
in full respect of international standards. Moreover Latvia is expected to fully align its election legislation to
international standards in 2002. In Romania, new legislation extending the use of minority languages has
been approved and in Slovakia significant efforts in further developing approaches to protect minority
rights were taken.

As regards the Roma communities, discrimination in several candidate countries remains widespread and
they continue to experience difficult living conditions. At the same time, a number of encouraging
developments can be registered:
in all candidate countries with sizeable Roma communities, national
action plans to tackle these issues are now in place and in some countries national budgetary resources
have been reinforced. PHARE funding in this context has been considerably increased.

The rights of religious minorities are largely respected in the negotiating countries and the governments do
not restrict the observance of religious belief. In a few cases, new legislation on religious denomination is
still pending.

The educational systems in these 12 candidate countries largely provide for education in the minority
language (cid:1) e.g. in Estonia, the Law on Basic and Upper Secondary Schools also provides for continued
teaching in Russian. Latvia supports education both in Latvian and Russian and in 8 other minority
languages and implements a bilingual education program at the elementary school level in view of an
eventual transition to Latvian-language secondary education. Other examples are Romania, where presently
5 % of educational units teach in a minority language or the Slovak Republic, which in June 2001 has
ratified the European Charter of Regional and Minority Languages.

(1) COM(2001) 700 final.

(2003/C 92 E/022)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0712/02

by Encarnación Redondo Jiménez (PPE-DE) to the Commission

Subject: International adoptions in Romania

(14 March 2002)

In Romania, the number of international adoption request procedures in hand runs into thousands (there
are over a thousand from Spain alone). In 2001, the adoption of minors came to a complete standstill, and
in June 2001 the register of requests was closed. At the outset, those procedures which were waiting a
ruling, judgment and conformity with the Hague Convention etc., were allowed to continue, brought to an
end and returned to their respective countries of origin. Since then, the situation has worsened, and even
when the procedures have successfully gone through all the requisite stages, including a firm ruling in
favour of adoption, the children in question are denied authorisation to leave the country.