18 Amendments of Artis PABRIKS related to 2018/2036(INI)
Amendment 70 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital H
Recital H
H. whereas the European Union’s cultural heritage is rich and diverse; whereas cultural heritage enriches the individual lives of citizens; whereas Article 3 of the TEU affirms, that ‘the Union shall respect its rich cultural and linguistic diversity, and shall ensure that Europe’s cultural heritage is safeguarded and enhanced’; whereas persons belonging to minorities that have been living together in Europe for centuries contribute to this rich, unique and diverse heritage and are an integral part of the European identity;
Amendment 101 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1 – introductory part
Paragraph 1 – introductory part
1. Recalls that while protection of minorities is a part of the Copenhagen criteria, both for the candidate countries and for the Member States, there is no guarantee that candidate states stick to the commitments undertaken under the Copenhagen criteria once they became Member States; recalls that there is no standard for minority rights in Union policy nor a common understanding of who can be considered a member ofperson belonging to a minority; notes that there is no definition of minorities in the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Persons Belonging to National or Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities, nor in the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities (FCNM); recommends that, with respect to the principles of subsidiarity, proportionality and non-discrimination, such a definition should be based on the definition, laid down in Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly Recommendation 1201(1993) for an additional protocol on the rights of minorities to the European Convention on Human Rights, of a ‘national minority’ as a group of persons in a state who
Amendment 106 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1 – indent 1
Paragraph 1 – indent 1
– reside on the territory of that state and are citizens thereof,
Amendment 107 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1 – indent 1
Paragraph 1 – indent 1
– historically reside on the territory of that state,
Amendment 112 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1 – indent 2
Paragraph 1 – indent 2
– historically maintain longstanding, firm and lasting ties with that state,
Amendment 126 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1 a (new)
Paragraph 1 a (new)
1a. Recalls that within existing international standards every Member States has a right to define persons belonging to national minorities.
Amendment 130 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Notes that parts of the provisions of the FCNM and the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages (‘Language Charter’) may fall within the competences of the EU, and recalls the FRA’s conclusion that whereas the Union does not have overall legislative competence to rule on the protection of national minorities as such, it ‘may rule on a variety of issues that affect persons belonging to national minorities’;
Amendment 136 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Expresses that there is a need for a legislative proposal on minimum standards of protection of minorities in the EU, for improving the situation of minorities in all the Member States and to avoid double standards, while respecting the principle of subsidiarity and proportionality, and after carrying out a proper impact assessment; calls on the Commission and the Member States to ensure that their legal systems guarantee that persons belonging to a minority are not discriminated against, and to take and implement targeted protection measures based on relevant international standards;
Amendment 143 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Calls on the Member States, while safeguarding the national citizenship, and calls on the Commission, while promoting the European identity and common values, to safeguard the right of persons belonging to national minorities to preserve, protect and develop their own identity, and to take the necessary steps to ensure the effective participation of national minorities in social, economic and cultural life and in public affairs;
Amendment 155 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Recalls that common and minimum standards to protect the rights of persons belonging to national or ethnic, religious and linguistic minorities should be developed in the EU, taking account of best practices already used within the Member States, such as in Italy (Alto Adige/South Tyro)l, in Germany (Schleswig-Holstein) or in Finland, following the procedural principles of good neighbourliness, friendly relations and co- operation between the Member States, and on the basis of the implementation of international standards and norms; recalls the implementation of the commitments adopted and principles developed in the framework of the OSCE, particularly in its thematic recommendations and guidelines; recalls that the Commission has already taken these standards into account in the context of the Copenhagen criteria during the accession negotiations with the countries of Central and Eastern Europe, Cyprus, Malta, Bulgaria, Romania, Croatia and the current candidate countries;
Amendment 186 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10
Paragraph 10
10. Notes that national minorities are groups of persons belonging to minorities who have been historically living on the same territory, historically maintaining longstanding, firm and lasting ties with that state, and sharing a common identity, in some instances as a result of border changes, in others as a result of living a long time in an area, whereby they have managed to preserve their identity; calls on the Member States and the Commission to protect the cultural and linguistic identity of national minorities, and to create conditions for the promotion of that identity; points to the important role that regional and local authorities in the EU can play in protecting national minorities, and considers that administrative reorganisation and territorial districting must not have negative consequences for them;
Amendment 253 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 18 a (new)
Paragraph 18 a (new)
18a. Notes that every person belonging to a national minority has the right to learn his or her minority language.
Amendment 254 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 18 b (new)
Paragraph 18 b (new)
18b. Calls on the Member States and the Commission to ensure, in line with international norms, that in areas inhabited by persons belonging to national minorities traditionally or in substantial numbers, if there is sufficient demand, as far as possible and within the framework of Member State education systems, persons belonging to those minorities have adequate opportunities for being taught the minority language or for receiving instructions in this language.
Amendment 261 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 20
Paragraph 20
20. Calls on the Member States and the Commission to ensure that persons belonging to national minorities have rights and adequate opportunities to receive education in a minority language andor for instruction in their mother tongue in both public and private educational institutions; calls on the Member States to formulate appropriate education policies, bearing in mind the right for education in a minority language and the needs of national minorities; calls on the Members States and the Commission to incorporate the best practices in teaching foreign languages into the methodology of teaching official languages when it comes to curricula for schools which provide education in a minority language; notes that the Member States should ensure that both the regional or minority language and the official language are taught using appropriate methods;
Amendment 270 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 21
Paragraph 21
21. Calls on the Member States to define preferential thresholds in the learning of regional or minority languages; calls on the Member States and the Commission to ensure that people belonging to national minorities living in rural area, or living in widely scattered settlements, have the right to learn his or her minority language, or receive education in a minority language, e.g. in their mother tongue, if there is sufficient demand, and ; calls on the Member States and the Commission to ensure that education reforms and policies do not restrict the right to receive education in a minority language;
Amendment 322 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 30 – introductory part
Paragraph 30 – introductory part
30. Calls on the Commission to draw up a roadmap towards establishing minimum standards for the protection of minorities; recommends that this roadmap should contain measurable milestones with regular reporting, andthey should consist, as a minimum of
Amendment 326 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 30 – indent 2
Paragraph 30 – indent 2
Amendment 329 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 30 – indent 3
Paragraph 30 – indent 3