Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2009-12-16-Speech-3-250"
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"en.20091216.17.3-250"2
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"Thank you for your question, Mr Posselt. At the General Affairs Council meeting on 7–8 December this year, we adopted conclusions on enlargement and the stabilisation and association process. In these conclusions, the Council welcomed Serbia’s commitment to EU integration and its work in implementing key reforms in line with European standards. The Council also stressed that the reform agenda must be continued.
We noted the Commission’s communication of 14 October, which states that the general legal and institutional framework for respecting human rights is in place in Serbia and that progress has been made as regards improving compliance with international human rights legislation. The new Ministry of Human and Minority Rights in Serbia is playing an important part in this work. However, further efforts are needed to increase understanding of international standards. The Council also noted that Serbia has ratified all the major human rights instruments.
With regard to the specific situation in southern Serbia to which the honourable Member referred, some very violent incidents did indeed take place in July, including an attack on the gendarmerie based there. Several arrests were made, after which there were no more incidents. The atmosphere within the Coordination Body for Southern Serbia has since improved. It is fragile, but the main ethnic Albanian political parties from the region are involved in this work. There are also positive developments with regard to the sensitive issue of education. In this regard, I would particularly like to mention the opening of a university department in Medveđa, where teaching will be undertaken in Serbian and Albanian.
A national minority council for the Albanian population of Serbia will be set up in the near future. This will give the people greater influence on education, culture and other issues. The region’s weak economic and social development presents an obstacle for the ethnic minorities in southern Serbia. The international community, and the OSCE in particular, is continuing to monitor the situation in southern Serbia and it is playing an active role in promoting peace and stability in the region in close cooperation with the Serbian Government and local leaders."@en1
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