The Minority Intergroup debated the case of “Székely Mikó College”

The specific case of the "Székely Mikó College" was presented in detail by Mr Hunor Kelemen, the President of the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Romania. Mr Kelemen noted that the acquired rights are at risk and the Reformed Church took a complaint related to violation of property right before the European Court of Human Rights.

It was raised during the debate that Romania — similarly to some other Member States — has failed to implement commitments undertaken in accession negotiations, especially in the field of national minority protection. Since in the European Union it is completely wrong to distinguish between first-class and second-class Member States, it is also unacceptable to create second-class national communities. Therefore, a consistent monitoring of the minority rights in that field is essential. The members of the Minority Intergroup decided to formulate a Written Question on the matter to the European Commission.

Ms. Kinga Gál MEP, Co-Chairwoman of the Minority Intergroup, emphasised that in the case of the national minorities in Central and Eastern Europe (including the case of the Hungarian minority) the religion, the historical churches are of the utmost importance, because, for instance, these represents a preserving force in the culture of national minorities from the period of communism up to the present day. The role of the churches as means of self-regulation is very different from the Western European experiences. Therefore, depriving religious (and national) communities of their property rights shakes the very foundations of these national communities.

“The principle of legal certainty and the rule of law are jeopardised. This should be unacceptable in the European Union, especially when this inherently leads to the violation of the property rights. All this undermines the confidence of the people, the Hungarian national minority, to the proper functioning of the judicial system. Therefore, neither the Commission nor the European Parliament can ignore the Mikó-case. We are determined to make every effort to keep this injustice on the agenda” – stressed Ms Kinga Gal MEP.