The existence of national regions must be enshrined in law

The European Commission has formulated a number of questions for its interactive conference scheduled for 28 April. Below are answers to these questions by Izsák Balázs, representative of the citizens' committee of the citizens' initiative for national regions.

We show our solidarity for the Catalan politicians!

On 8 March, the European Parliament will pronounce in plenary session on suspending the right of immunity of three Catalan politicians, Carles Puigdemont, Toni Comin and Clara Ponsati, the representatives of JUNTS Per Europa. This decision takes place after the European Parliament's Committee on Legal Affairs has succumbed to pressure from Spain and accepted the request for the suspension of immunity.

Europe is the Continent of Regions!

Today, on the 25^th of October, on the Day of Szekler Autonomy we Szeklers – together with other communities standing in solidarity with us – convene in order to repeatedly assert our demand for the territorial autonomy of Szeklerland.

The magnitude of this demand, which is based on international law, is larger this year than it was a year ago. The European citizens’ initiative of the Szekler National Council has received over one and a quarter of a million supporting signatures across Europe. The population of our kin-state, Hungary, is fully united behind the initiative, together with other Hungarian minority communities. The signature collection process, which is still open, attracts more- and more supporters from Spain, mainly Catalans, and Basques, and the numbers of supporting signatures are also going up in Sweden, thanks to the Sami communities, and the local Hungarian diaspora.

There is no Europe without Flanders, and Flemings!

After Veneto and Silesia, we are putting Szeklerland in the spotlight this month. Attila Dabis is also on the speakers' list of the ICEC conference in the European Parliament postponed to 2021.

Most of our readers may scratch their hair when hearing about Szeklerland. Time for an insightful interview.

Open letter to Dr. Jürgen Linden, Speaker of the Board of Directors of the International Charlemagne Prize of Aachen

Dear Mr. President!

On 14 May, we asked you to examine the video message of Romania’s President Klaus Iohannis, in which he incited against Hungarians, and to withdraw the decision to award him the Charlemagne Prize, as the Romanian President has proven unworthy of this award.

We ask for a real extension for the signature collection

On 7 April 2020, we addressed a written request to the European Commission to extend the deadline on the collection of signatures for the citizens' initiative for the protection of national regions. In this request, we asked for a six month extension of the deadline, so that this six-month period begins when the restrictive measures taken due to the pandemic in most Member States are lifted.

Six more months for signing the petition in favor of the national regions

European Union – The Hungarian Justice Minister Judit Varga announced yesterday, May 20, that the European petition launched on the initiative of the Szeklers in favour of European national regions – one of whose spokespersons, Attila Dabis, we recently interviewed – obtained an additional six months delay for collecting missing signatures in at least four countries.

Petition on the Day of the Szekler Liberty

Petition on the Day of the Szekler Liberty

To The Government and Parliament of Romania

For his information: to Mr. President Klaus Johannis

Reaffirmation of the mandate of Attila Dabis Ph.D.

Attila Dabis Ph.D., Foreign Affairs Commissioner of the Szekler National Council has been barred from entering Romania for three years, due to unspecified national security reasons. This measure is a violation of the right of citizens of the European Union to freedom of movement, it is completely unfounded, illegal, unconstitutional and in violation of fundamental human rights.

POLITICALLY MOTIVATED ENTRY BAN

On 09 March 2018, I attempted to cross the Hungarian-Romanian border at the Ártánd-Bors border check point at 12:44 CET, together with a Swiss-Hungarian friend. After checking our ID cards, the Romanian border guard asked us to pull over to a nearby administration facility, where he informed me that I was barred from entering Romania.

Open letter to Carmen Daniela Dan Romania's Minister of Internal Affairs

Esteemed Madam Minister

Over the course of the past few years, I couldn’t help but notice that every time I cross Romania’s border, I am given special attention by the Romanian Border Police. On more than one occasion, I was forced to park my car, and wait nearly an hour by orders of the Border Police; sometimes the justification was computer failure, sometimes some other, equally untrue excuse. It didn’t take me long to discover, by studying the laws on border crossing in Romania, that I’m what is referred to as a „registered person” (persoana cu consemn). Such people are treated based on special legal dispositions, should they cross the border. 

The Szekler people are subjects of international law!

The peace process ending the First World War has cut off Szeklerland from Hungary, placing it under the jurisdiction of a foreign country, Romania. At the same time, however, the Szekler peoples, together with Transylvanian Saxons, gained recognition as subjects of international law.

We will not give up on Szeklerland's right to self-determination

We are preparing for the Day of Szekler Freedom, in a year in which we commemorate the centenary of the Szekler National Council. Just as Paál Árpád’s plan for a Szekler Republic becomes a century old, so will the Szekler self-determination movement.

Petition on The Day of the Szekler Freedom

To The Government and Parliament of Romania

For his information: to Mr. President Klaus Johannis