Past Still Influences Minority Rights in Serbia

CRNPS

22 November 2007

On November 17, the Observance of Minority Rights in Serbia Conference was held in Novi Sad, with presentation of the Alternative Reports on Implementation of Charter of Regional and Minority Languages and Framework Convention on Protection of Minority Rights in Serbia.

The Vojvodina Human Rights Centre and CHRIS Network of Committees for Human Rights in Serbia presented their respective reports to the Council of Europe in June and September of this year. Representatives of 17 national minorities, i.e. 11 national minority councils, 15 organizations and prominent experts in the field took part in the preparation of reports.

The Conference was supported by the Open Society Fund and the Provincial Secretariat of Regulations, Administration and National Minorities. The opening remarks were given by representatives of CoE and OSCE offices in Serbia.

Such a big gathering of national minority representatives in a single forum is a rare sight, and each community was given a chance to present its assessment and opinions about observance of minority rights in Serbia and to emphasize the problems its members commonly face.

The general observation was that the rights of national minorities are best and most consistently observed in Vojvodina, compared to Central Serbia, as well as that the events of the past and the slow decentralization processes have great impact on their realization.

The participants were especially concerned about current developments within the Bosniak community in Sandjak, and appealed to the competent bodies of the state to engage fully to appease the tensions in that regiona and to create safe and stable living conditions for all citizens.