The public hearing was opened by the Chairman of the Committee on Human and Minority Rights and Gender Equality, Meho Omerovic, who said that the goal here is to exchange experiences and discuss practical problems the national minority councils have been encountering in their day-to-day operation since their constitution in October 2014, and exchange views on the possible amendment and improvement of the legislative framework.

Director of the Serbian Government’s Human and Minority Rights Office Suzana Paunovic said that, since its establishment in 2012, the Office has enjoyed exceptional cooperation with the national minority councils. Representatives of the national minority councils were included in the work on the amendments and modification to the Law on the National Councils of National Minorities, passed in 2014, said the Office Director, adding that the practice will also be pursued in the new amendments of the Law. Besides working on the improvement of the legislative framework, full implementation of the adopted laws and the drafting of an Action Plan for Negotiations Chapter 23, relating, among other things, to the status of national minorities, are next periods’ priorities.

State Secretary at the Ministry of Public Administration and Local Self-Government Ivan Bosnjak also addressed the participants of the public hearing and spoke about the Ministry’s regular meetings and contacts with representatives of the national minority councils.

The Head of the OSCE Mission to Serbia, H.E. Ambassador Peter Burkhard, emphasised the importance of the topic - operation and functioning of national minority councils, since the degree of integration and inclusion of national minorities in political and social processes, while still maintaining their national identity, is an indicator of the democratic development of a society. Ambassador Burkhard stressed that the Republic of Serbia has adopted a progressive legal framework which protects the rights of all social groups and prevents discrimination of any kind, and it is very important to ensure the full implementation of the existing laws. He stressed that the national minority councils are crucial for the promotion of minority rights in the fields of culture, media, education and language use.

The public hearing was attended by members of the Committee on Human and Minority Rights and Gender Equality, representatives of the 17 national minority councils, representatives of the ministries, independent state bodies, civil sector and interns of the Serbian Government’s Human and Minority Rights Office.

In the course of the debate, the participants discussed models of cooperation between the national minority councils and the Committee on Human and Minority Rights and Gender Equality, funding and instruments of labour at the disposal of the national councils and the protection of collective and individual rights of the national minorities. They also spoke of the need for departisation of the national councils, and exercising national minority rights in the fields of media, culture, education and employment.