Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2009-02-03-Speech-2-454"
| Predicate | Value (sorted: default) |
|---|---|
| rdf:type | |
| dcterms:Date | |
| dcterms:Is Part Of | |
| dcterms:Language | |
| lpv:document identification number |
"en.20090203.23.2-454"2
|
| lpv:hasSubsequent | |
| lpv:speaker | |
| lpv:spokenAs | |
| lpv:translated text |
"Unfortunately, today this draft decision is being put to the Parliament only in the form of a question. Representatives of traditional national minorities and communities have been trying to persuade the majority through peaceful parliamentary means that what was good for the 14 Member States of the European Union will be good for the entire territory of the EU. The traditional national minorities found themselves in a new country through no fault of their own, without ever having moved from their centuries-old homelands. No one asked them whether they wanted to change nationalities or adopt a new official language. These traditional national minorities are the most loyal citizens of their respective countries. Despite wars, economic crises, internal political battles and assimilation, they did not abandon their ancestral, longstanding and yet new homeland. Their loyalty has been unbroken. It is precisely for this reason that it is incomprehensible that the several dozen million strong populations of large countries should fear a few hundred thousand or, at most, half a million members of a minority.
The various forms of self-governance found in the European Union, such as territorial and cultural autonomy, result from a policy of consensus on the part of the majority and minority, and have not weakened the economic, political or social power of the state in question, or that of the European Union. My country, Romania, has been in existence in its current form since 1920. In 1930, the population on this territory included 28% non-Romanians; today, this has fallen to 10%. There are several other Member States besides Romania that have similar concerns. There are laws and rights, but their implementation cannot be guaranteed, although linguistic, ethnic and regional diversity is a European value. Therefore, it is important for draft guidelines to be drawn up, based on existing, successful EU examples, that are acceptable to all and do not infringe on the states’ territorial integrity."@en1
|
| lpv:videoURI |
Named graphs describing this resource:
The resource appears as object in 2 triples