Paul Butcher (Scotland), Erika Casajoana i Daunert (Catalonia), Balázs Izsák (Szeklerland), Wauter Patho (Flanders), and Zsolt Szilágyi (Partium) have created a multilingual Facebook group called Friends of National Regions, with the intention of opening the path, in the virtual space, towards mutual understanding and closer ties among the inhabitants of national regions.
National regions are territorial indigenous communities that do not have their own state or live outside the borders of such a state, but hold a strong attachment to their homeland, language, and culture.
In the group’s description, the founders define their common goals as follows:
- to make known the reality, values, and challenges of the national regions;
- to create opportunities for mutual information exchange between different regions, thereby strengthening European cohesion;
- to build a political and social environment that takes into account the specific needs of national regions and thus contributes to the European common good;
- to establish a forum where civil organizations, representatives of local and regional governments, researchers, and ordinary citizens can share their plans, ideas, and experiences.
The creation of this group is a natural continuation of the European Citizens’ Initiative Cohesion Policy for the Equality of the Regions and the Sustainability of the Regional Cultures, since the goal supported by more than 1,200,000 European citizens through their signatures must be pursued—even independently of the institutions of the European Union.
We kindly invite all those who signed the Citizens’ Initiative, who support the aspirations of the national regions, and indeed all European citizens who think democratically, to join the group.
Press Service of the Szekler National Council
Sepsiszentgyörgy, October 2, 2025
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