The documents of the Council of Europe can provide a starting point for EU actions as well
The guarantee of cultural and linguistic diversity in the European Union should be made more efficient through a legal frame with a strict monitoring mechanism based on the documents already adopted by the Council of Europe – said DAHR’s MEP Csaba Sógor Monday, the 4th of April 2011 on the first day of the plenary session in Strasbourg.
Here follows Csaba Sógor’s speech:
„Europe’s cultural diversity is a value we all need to sustain. But this was not so obvious all the time. There are several cultures on our continent that are in danger of disappearing. The Csángó Hungarian in Moldova, Romania are such a community. The 1521/2001 Recommendation of the Council of Europe urges the protection of this minority culture, pointing out concrete steps for the Romanian government to take. Although some progress has been made in the last decade due to this Recommendation, the situation is not yet solved adequately. The Council of Europe does not possess the means of European law and the monitoring mechanisms supporting it, a tool that provides for the functioning of the EU as well. The Council precedes the EU in many aspects of protection of fundamental rights, but its recommendations and agreements do not achieve the desired effect. If the EU truly aims to protect the cultural and linguistic diversity, as stated in the third article of the Treaty on the European Union, then it will do everything in its power to ensure that this principle is being implemented in actual situations. Let’s start with the Hungarian Csángó culture in Moldova.”
„Europe’s cultural diversity is a value we all need to sustain. But this was not so obvious all the time. There are several cultures on our continent that are in danger of disappearing. The Csángó Hungarian in Moldova, Romania are such a community. The 1521/2001 Recommendation of the Council of Europe urges the protection of this minority culture, pointing out concrete steps for the Romanian government to take. Although some progress has been made in the last decade due to this Recommendation, the situation is not yet solved adequately. The Council of Europe does not possess the means of European law and the monitoring mechanisms supporting it, a tool that provides for the functioning of the EU as well. The Council precedes the EU in many aspects of protection of fundamental rights, but its recommendations and agreements do not achieve the desired effect. If the EU truly aims to protect the cultural and linguistic diversity, as stated in the third article of the Treaty on the European Union, then it will do everything in its power to ensure that this principle is being implemented in actual situations. Let’s start with the Hungarian Csángó culture in Moldova.”
