‘The problem is a lack of political will’

On Thursday, the European Court of Justice announced its final ruling on the European Citizens' Initiative “Minority Safe Pack Initiative” (MSPI): According to the ruling, the EU Commission's decision to reject the demands of the “Minority Safe Pack Initiative” was lawful.

‘The Citizens‘ Committee, FUEN and its partners accept the Court's decision, but believe that the EU has failed to create a fairer and more equal society for all its citizens’, writes FUEN President Loránt Vincze in a press release, adding: ‘Unfortunately, this ruling comes as no surprise – the signals from Brussels were clear: The EU still does not want to deal with the issue of minority protection, which some Member States consider too sensitive. As a result, members of national minorities and language communities continue to feel systematically excluded from all EU measures on diversity, equality and the rule of law.’

Lawyer Thomas Hieber, who represented FUEN in the proceedings, was also very surprised: ‘I did not expect such a rigorous rejection of our appeal. After all, the EU Commission never addressed certain points of our argument and failed to fulfil its obligation to state reasons for its rejection,’ said Hieber; ’However, the underlying problem is not a legal one, but a lack of political will.’

‘This is a blow to the protection of minorities and the democratic rights arising from the European Citizens‘ Initiative,’ sums up the European law expert. ‘The legal process is now finally over. But the political process continues,’ said Hieber. The “Minority Safe Pack Initiative” and the lawsuit have achieved something important: ’They have put the issue on the EU agenda and given it a prominent place. That cannot be overestimated.’ In the medium term, the initiative will bear fruit. “It has given minorities and FUEN much greater visibility,” says Hieber. And without it, issues such as reform of geo-blocking and trademark protection in the interests of national minorities would not be on the EU's agenda.