The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe held its summer session in June. On the 23rd, the the Secretary General of the Council answered the questions of the members of the Assembly. Below a question and an answer:
Mr CSENGER-ZALÁN (Hungary) – Secretary General, some two years ago you admitted that you are not aware of the situation in Romania. As far as I know, you have received regular information since then, so let me thank you in public for being personally involved in the monitoring of the ongoing administrative reform in Romania. The Hungarian minority in Transylvania is fighting by peaceful and democratic means, trusting the European rule of law, to achieve special status as a region. Do you think that the Council of Europe should help them in order to show that the rules are the same for everybody and that such a goal can be achieved peacefully?
Mr JAGLAND – We are monitoring the situation of all minorities in Europe, including the Hungarians in Transylvania. As far as I know, the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe is heavily involved in the matter and held a hearing about it during the previous session, so we are following the situation closely. There are standards for how to organise the influence of a minority, but we do not have one solution for all minorities, because it depends on where they live and how they interact with the authorities. As far I see it, many ways have developed over the years for how the minority can have influence within Romanian society. We are attentive, however, to whether new methods should be developed.
Sepsiszentgyörgy/Sf-Gheorghe, the 29th of June 2015