Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2005-09-29-Speech-4-200"
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"en.20050929.25.4-200"2
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".
Mr President, the Commission attaches great importance to the preservation of the multi-ethnic character of Vojvodina. The Commission has the authority to investigate thoroughly any ethnic incident and effectively promote good inter-ethnic relations. We appreciate that the authorities have condemned the ethnic incidents that have occurred and we concede that these incidents do not amount to any form of gross violation, nor are they backed by the Belgrade authorities. Nevertheless, we are convinced that the authorities have often been late and negligent in investigating reported incidents. The fact that the perpetrators of violent acts and harassment are neither identified nor brought to justice creates a climate of impunity, which unfortunately can foster further incidents and increase the feeling of frustration and insecurity among the minorities.
During the stabilisation and association negotiations process, the Commission will continue to monitor respect for human and minority rights, as well as the other requirements related to the Stabilisation and Association Agreement. In this regard, let me stress that we would be failing in our duty if we looked at the situation of only one minority in one region of Serbia, however important it may be. We need to pay due attention to all minorities and in particular the most vulnerable ones, such as the Roma.
The progress report on Serbia and Montenegro due to be published next month by the Commission will also review respect for human and minority rights. At the same time, the Commission will continue to support Vojvodina with financial assistance, although there is no specific programme targeting the province as such.
Vojvodina has benefited as much as the rest of Serbia from EU assistance. Let me mention just a few examples. A contribution of EUR 40 million was made to the reconstruction of the Sloboda Bridge, which will be opened in October. The support given to small and medium-sized enterprises amounts to EUR 8 million worth of credit. In addition, the two neighbourhood programmes with Hungary and Romania were launched in January 2005. I am confident that strengthening the relations between the EU and Serbia and Montenegro, through the conclusion of the Stability and Association Agreement, will help consolidate democracy and the rule of law, which will also be to the benefit of the ethnic minorities. Thank you for your attention.
In this respect, the law enforcement agencies and the judiciary are often failing in their duties. Let me stress that this is a sign of a much wider problem. There is an urgent need in Serbia to reform the police, to make it professional and accountable, and to reform the judiciary, which needs to become efficient and truly independent from undue political pressure. These reforms are key for the protection of the rights, not just of minorities, but of all citizens.
In line with the recommendations issued by the European Parliament after the fact-finding mission of last January, we have urged the authorities to take concrete measures in the field of police and judicial reform. This includes the need for more adequate representation of the minority communities in these institutions. Nobody needs a police or judiciary based on ethnicity, but it is certainly true that a better and more qualified presence of personnel coming from the minority communities could improve their functioning, by facilitating communication with citizens in their mother tongue. It would also increase the trust placed by citizens in the State.
If we look at the incidents that have been reported, very often they involve youngsters. This shows that there is an urgent need for the authorities to take measures in the field of education, as recommended by the European Parliament. Schools can play a key role in preserving the cultural richness of a region like Vojvodina and in helping young people take full advantage of that richness, rather than withdrawing into nationalist isolation.
We know that often the youngsters involved in or supporting these incidents are the children of people displaced because of the wars of the last decade. The influx of displaced persons has sometimes changed the ethnic composition of the regions. There is no simple solution to this issue and we should seek to prevent people who belong to the Serbian community but are often themselves in a very precarious situation, including from a socio-economic point of view, from turning their frustration into violence.
The authorities still have much to do. It is also important for cooperation between Serbia and Montenegro and its neighbouring countries to be intensified in the context of their bilateral agreements. This is particularly true of the agreement between Serbia and Montenegro and Hungary.
We appreciate the initiative of holding a European Parliament hearing on the situation of the minorities in Vojvodina on 13 October. This will offer an excellent opportunity to discuss the issue directly with both the authorities and the representatives of the minority communities.
For its part, the Commission is continuing to monitor respect for the rights of the various ethnic communities in Vojvodina, as well as in the rest of Serbia and Montenegro. In the feasibility report issued last April the Commission concluded that Serbia and Montenegro were adequately meeting the criteria – including the political ones – for the opening of stabilisation and association agreement negotiations.
At the same time, the Commission drew the authorities' attention to a number of issues, including respect for human and minority rights. Respect for these rights is indeed an integral part of the political criteria for the stabilisation and association process and it is an essential element of the Stabilisation and Association Agreement. The way a country treats ethnic minorities and the quality of the relationship among them are important indicators of democratic maturity. A country aspiring to come closer to the European Union needs to show such maturity."@en1
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