Territorial autonomy is a key instrument of “democratic participation”, Zsolt Németh, the head of the Hungarian delegation to the Council of Europe’s parliamentary assembly, said ahead of a panel discussion in Strasbourg, on Tuesday.
Autonomy
The human rights of minorities could be guaranteed through such autonomy, he said.
The panel was organised to mark the 800th anniversary of Diploma Andreanum, a medieval royal charter issued by King Andrew II of Hungary to Transylvanian Saxons (German settlers) in 1224.
Németh said autonomy largely contributed to a region’s economic development and prosperity.
“It would be a crucial task for the European Union to establish closer and closer ties with these instruments of the Council of Europe, because, unfortunately, an effective minority protection system has not yet been created within the framework of the EU,” he said.
Speaking at the panel, József Komlóssy, the Hungarian delegation’s councillor on human rights, said CoE member states must observe the Andreanum’s provisions.
“Our goal is to create a Europe free of divisons; we want to maintain Europe’s national, cultural and religious diversity,” he said.
Armin Lascher, vice president of the CoE parliamentary assembly, referred to the Andreanum as a highly esteemed document.
Zsolt Neméth elected leader of PACE European Conservatives Group and Democratic Alliance
Zsolt Németh, the head of parliament’s foreign affairs committee has been elected chair of the European Conservatives Group and Democratic Alliance of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE).
Németh told MTI by phone that he had been elected to head the body after its former leader Ian Liddell-Grainger had lost his mandate in Britain’s parliament.
Németh has been deputy chair of the group for two terms.
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