Original sender: Constantin Sergiu <[email protected]>
Newsletter no. 6: Minority Rights Information System (MIRIS)
Dear colleagues and friends,
This is the sixth MIRIS newsletter which contains some of the most
relevant documents that have been stored recently in the Minority Rights
Information System (MIRIS). Please, open the attached file and click on
the blue titles of the documents in order to see the full text.
At the moment, over 3 700 documents on national minorities, from 35
European countries, are stored in MIRIS and can be easily accessed on
the website: http://www.eurac.edu/miris
The use of the database is free of charge.
Any comments and suggestions from your side are very welcome!
The MIRIS Team
Recently added documents to MIRIS (September 2004) - www.eurac.edu/miris
DOMESTIC LEGISLATION/REGULATION
ESTONIA
Citizenship Act - consolidated text 2004 - in English and Estonian
Language Act - consolidated text 2003 - in English and Estonian
Population Register Act - consolidated text 2003 - in English and
Estonian
Personal Data Protection Act - 2003 - in English and Estonian
Government of the Republic Regulation No. 249 of 16 August 1999 -
Approval of Mandatory Levels of Proficiency in Estonian, Extent of and
Procedure for Consultations Prior to Estonian Language Proficiency
Examinations and Format of Certificate of Proficiency in Estonian
Language - consolidated text 2004 - in English and Estonian
Regulation of the Government of the Republic No. 164 of 16 May 2001
Mandatory Levels of Proficiency in Estonian for Employees of Companies,
Non-Profit Associations and Foundations and for Sole Proprietors -
consolidated text 2004 - in English and Estonian
This updated Estonian legislation contains provisions regarding
conditions for citizenship, the status of the official language and the
use of sensitive data like ethnicity.
FINLAND
Sami Language Act - it entered into force on 01/01/2004 - in English
This Act contains provisions on the right of the S? to use their own
language before the courts and other public authorities, as well as on
the duty of the authorities to enforce and promote the linguistic rights
of the Sami.
Act on the Knowledge of Languages Required of Personnel in Public Bodies
- it entered into force on 01/01/2004 - in English
This Act applies to the knowledge of languages required, and to the
demonstration of knowledge of languages, of personnel in the service of
State authorities, the authorities of one or several municipalities and
of independent institutions under public law.
MACEDONIA
Law on Territorial Organization of the Local Self-Government in the
Republic of Macedonia - August 11, 2004 - in Macedonian
The Parliament adopted a new decentralization law on August 11, 2004,
implementation remaining prerequisites foreseen by the Ohrid Framework
Agreement. The Law grants more competences to local governments, redraws
the borders of several districts and grants more autonomy to those
municipalities in which Albanian minority members constitute majority of
population. This Law grants furthermore a right to use minority language
in communication with the local administration in such municipalities.
Finally, the Law foresees to cut the number of administrative districts
from 123 to 80 in 2005 and to 76 in 2008.
ROMANIA
Order of Ministry of Health no. 386 of 07/04/2004 regarding the approval
of the Norms of application of Law on the rights of the patient no
46/2003 - April 2004 - In English and Romanian
The Order contains a general ban of discrimination on the ground of
race, sex, age, ethnic or national origin, religion etc.
Order of Ministry of Health no. 619/2002 approving the conditions for
exercising the profession of health mediator and the Norms regarding the
organization, functioning and funding of the activities of health
mediators in the year 2002 - September 2002 - in Romanian
This regulation addresses Roma's problems in access to general
practitioners, preventive care, and to social support and health
education. It regulates the activity of a new profession introduced in
the Code of Occupations of Romania: the health mediators who are hired
by the Ministry of Health to work in the Roma communities.
SPAIN
Decree 162/2003, of 5 September, of approval of the rules which regulate
the requirement of Catalan language command in the selection process for
civil service positions and for the assignment of positions offered in
the area of Administration of the Autonomous Community of the Balearic
Islands - 2003 - in English and Catalan
Decree 176/2003, of 31 October, amending decree 162/2003, of 5
september, of approval of the rules which regulate the requirement of
Catalan language command in the selection process for civil service
positions and for the assignment of positions offered in the area of
Administration of the Autonomous Community of the Balearic Islands -
2003 -in English and Catalan
These acts regulate in details the language requirements for all
selection processes for admission in the different bodies and scales of
lifelong civil servants working in the administration, or for positions
of permanent staff members working for administration. All candidates
shall necessarily certify their Catalan language command, the language
proper to the Balearic Islands, in oral and/or written expression.
CASE-LAWS
BULGARIA
Sevda Nanova v. VALI EOOD - July 23, 2004 - in Bulgarian
Sofia District Court ruled on 23 July 2004 against a company VALI EOOD
which refused its services to Ms. Sevda Nanova, a member of Roma
minority. The Court found that such conduct amounts to direct
discrimination based on ethnic origin and is therefore in violation of
the new Bulgarian anti-discrimination law passed in September 2003, and
which entered into force on 1 January 2004.
CROATIA
Blecic v. Croatia (no. 59532/00) - July 29, 2004 - in English
The applicant, Krstina Blecic, is a Croatian national, who abandoned her
property during the war in Zadar, where she previously lived in socially
owned apartment. Her tenancy rights were terminated by court decision.
The applicant claimed that Croatia's delay in returning occupied private
property violates the European Convention. However, the European Court
for Human Rights ruled that there were no violation of the Articles 8
(right to respect for home) and 1 of Protocol No. 1 (protection of
property) of the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights
and Fundamental Freedoms.
HUNGARY
Balogh v. Hungary - July 20, 2004 - in English
The applicant is an ethnic Roma who was taken into custody by the police
and suffered ill-treatments. The European Court of Human Rights held
that the Hungarian Government was unable to provide any plausible
explanation for the cause of the applicant's injuries, and that it was
believable that they were inflicted in police custody. Consequently, the
Court found a violation of Article 3 of the Convention, but on the same
facts held that there was no violation of Articles 13, 6 and 14
(non-discrimination).
SERBIA AND MONTENEGRO
Jugen TTT v. Merihana Rustenov, Jordan Vasic and Zoran Vasic - September
16, 2004 - in Serbian
The Humanitarian Law Center filed a civil action for racial
discrimination against Jugen TTT, the company that operates the sports
center. The ?abac Municipal Court, in a decision that was subsequently
upheld by the District Court, ordered the company to make a public
apology to the three Roma - Merihana Rustenov, Jordan Vasic and Zoran
Vasic - and have it printed in the high-circulation daily Politika. The
Court also ordered the center to cease discriminating against Roma and
barring them from the sports facilities. The defendant appealed against
this decision to the Supreme Court. Departing from the jurisprudence of
domestic courts, the Supreme Court invoked in its ruling the provisions
of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of
Racial Discrimination and Article 26 of the International Covenant on
Civil and Political Rights, thus applying directly international
standards of minority protection.
REPORTS
ROMANIA
Monitoring of the local implementation of the Government Strategy for
the Improvement of the Condition of Roma in Romania - September 2004 -
In English and Romanian
This is a common project of the Resource Center for Roma Communities
(Romania), the EU Monitoring and Advocacy Program (OSI) and the Roma
Participation Program (OSI). The report presents the findings from a
local?level monitoring of the implementation of the Strategy of the
Government of Romania for the Improvement of the Condition of Roma and
reveals the problems showed by practice.
CZECH REPUBLIC, ESTONIA, SLOVENIA (July 2004)
Czech Republic's Report
Estonia's Report
Slovenia's Report
Second reports submitted pursuant to article 25 , paragraph 1 of the
Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities - in
English
INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS DOCUMENTS
COUNCIL OF EUROPE
Agreement between the United Nations Interim Administration Mission in
Kosovo (UNMIK) and the Council of Europe on technical arrangements
related to the Framework Convention for the Protection of National
Minorities - August 31, 2004 - in English
According to the agreement signed between the UNMIK and the Council of
Europe, the UNMIK and the Provisional Institutions of Self-Government in
Kosovo shall exercise their respective responsibilities in compliance
with the principles contained in the Framework Convention for the
Protection of National Minorities (FCNM). The UNMIK has accepted to
prepare a report pursuant to the FCNM till February 2005. The agreement
emphasizes that it does not make UNMIK a Party to the FCNM and that it
is without prejudice to the future status of Kosovo to be determined in
accordance with Security Council resolution 1244 (1999).