ACFC/SR (2002) 003

 

 

 

REPORT SUBMITTED BY THE

FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF YUGOSLAVIA

PURSUANT TO ARTICLE 25, PARAGRAPH 1

OF THE FRAMEWORK CONVENTION FOR

THE PROTECTION OF NATIONAL MINORITIES

(Received on 16 October 2002)

FEDERAL MINISTRY OF NATIONAL AND ETHNIC COMMUNITIES

Submitted pursuant to Article 25, paragraph 1, of the

Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities

Belgrade 2002

THE FIRST REPORT OF THE

FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF YUGOSLAVIA

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

 

PART I:

INTRODUCTION

PART II:

GENERAL INFORMATION

1. Basic historical facts

2. Basic demographic facts

3. Basic economic indices

4. Status of International Law

5. Basic problems

6. New minority policy

7. Status of the Roma community

8. Federal Law on the Protection of Rights and Freedoms of National Minorities   (2002).

PART III:

IMPLEMENTATION OF THE FRAMEWORK CONVENTION

Article 1 Article 9 Article 17
Article 2 Article 10 Article 18
Article 3 Article 11 Article 19
Article 4 Article 12 Article 20
Article 5 Article 13 Article 21
Article 6 Article 14 Article 22
Article 7 Article 15 Article 23
Article 8 Article 16 Article 30

PART IV:

APPENDIXES

       

1. Minority communities – characteristics and basic facts

Albanians

Bosniacs/Moslems

Bulgarians

Bunjevci

Croats

Hungarians

Germans

Romanians

Ruthenians

Roma

Slovaks

Ukrainians

Vlachs

Less numerous minority communities

2. Regulations governing, or related to, the status of national minorities

1)      Constitutions

2)      Federal laws and regulations

3)      Laws and regulations of the Republic of Serbia

4)      Laws and regulations of the Republic of Montenegro

 

PART I

INTRODUCTON

1.

Pursuant to the provision of Article 29, paragraph 1, of the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities (hereinafter: the Framework Convention), FR Yugoslavia was invited by the Council of Ministers to become a Contracting Party to the Framework Convention. Yugoslavia’s becoming a member of the Framework Convention should present one of the first steps toward its membership in the Council of Europe.

In response to that invitation, Yugoslavia became a Contracting Party to the Framework Convention on May 11, 2001, and, in accordance with the provision of Article 29, paragraph 2, of that document, it came into force for Yugoslavia on September 1, 2001.

Pursuant to the provision of Article 25, paragraph 1, of the Framework Convention, the Contracting Parties are obliged, within a year from its coming into force, to submit to the Secretary General of the Council of Europe full information on legislative and other measures undertaken for the application of the principles enshrined in the Framework Convention. In the case of Yugoslavia, that report (hereinafter: the Report) is due on September 1, 2002, i.e., a year after the Framework Convention came into force for FR Yugoslavia.

Thus, this Report is being submitted within the prescribed time limit, and its objective is to indicate the legislative and other measures FR Yugoslavia has undertaken in order to meet the obligations enunciated by the Framework Convention.

2.

This Report was made in conformity with the instructions of the Council of Ministers of the Council of Europe, contained in the Country Report Form, to be submitted pursuant to Article 25, paragraph 1, of the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities, of September 30, 1998.

To the extent possible, the report adheres to the form of replies to separate questions contained in the Country Report Form. Still, in order to obtain a coherent text and avoid unnecessary repetitions (replies to many questions are interrelated), it was often necessary to apply certain abridgements, i.e., the method of referencing.

For these reasons, extensive descriptions of related situations are mostly given only when they appear for the first time. On the other hand, the text tends to avoid extensive citations (quotations) of provisions of relevant regulations, since they are given as Appendix to the Report, and in most cases it was sufficient just to offer data on the related legal act (name, article, etc.) and its basic arrangements. Still, if mandated by the importance or interest of arrangements concerned, appropriate provisions were cited sufficiently precisely, and in some places they are cited in full.

3. 

The Report contains a short historical and factual overview (Part II: ‘General information’) which points to the most important characteristics of the situation of FR Yugoslavia, primarily those of importance for the (legal and factual) status of national minorities, and thus for the implementation of the Framework Convention.

The subsequent part of the Report (Part III) deals with the implementation of specific provisions of the Framework Convention. First and foremost, it points to the relevant provisions of national legislation (Federal, as well as of both Republics), which is followed by statistical and other data illustrating the realization of these arrangements in practice. Owing to the complexity of the federal system of FR Yugoslavia, it was necessary to cite Federal, as well as Republican, i.e. Provincial regulations, as well as data concerning the practice on different levels.

Namely, FR Yugoslavia is a federal state, consisting of two member republics (the Republic Serbia and the Republic of Montenegro), of which one (Serbia) comprises two autonomous provinces (AP Vojvodina and AP Kosovo and Metohija). Each of these entities has certain responsibilities of direct relevance to the status of the minorities, and with respect to each of them, we can speak of relatively independent practices.

The report does not deal with the territory of AP Kosovo and Metohija, since this province de facto is not under the jurisdiction of the authorities of FR Yugoslavia, i.e. Serbia, since the deployment of the international force (despite the fact that the Yugoslav sovereignty over this province has been internationally confirmed).

4.

This part of the Report is made based on data of the Federal Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities, data obtained from other competent state bodies (Federal, as well as Republican, i.e., bodies of the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina), from reports of FR Yugoslavia submitted to other international organizations (e.g., the Report of FR Yugoslavia on Implementation of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination). Most of the data, perhaps slightly elaborated and corrected, has been taken over from the publication National Minorities in FR Yugoslavia (Belgrade 2001, 111 pages), published by the Federal Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities.

A great deal of additional information was requested and used in the drawing up of the Report, obtained from other sources as well, such as various entities outside the government, primarily those directly dealing with this matter.

The first version of this Report was delivered to the following bodies, with a request to submit their opinions on it:

1)      minority organizations;

2)      representative non-governmental organizations (especially those engaged in the field of the protection of minority rights, i.e., non-discrimination);

3)      political parties in the Federal Parliament.

These organizations were allowed sufficient time to submit their written objections, observations, comments and suggestions to the Federal Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities. In the drafting of the final text of the Report these opinions of the said organizations constituted a precious source which served to once again examine the facts, make certain corrections of, and additions to, the Report.

PART II:

GENERAL INFORMATION

1.      BASIC HISTORICAL FACTS

1. The Federal Republic of Yugoslavia was proclaimed in 1992 as a federation of two of the former six republics of which the former Socialist Federative Republic of Yugoslavia consisted.

In fact, after separation of four members of the former Yugoslav Federation, Serbia and Montenegro decided to remain in a joint state which, by the area of its territory and the number of inhabitants, makes approximately one half of the former SFR Yugoslavia.

2. One of the important characteristics of this state is a very diverse ethnic content of the population, with a significant share of a large number of national minorities. Namely, according to the results of the census of 1991, approximately every third citizen of FR Yugoslavia (cca. 33% of the population) did not belong to the Serbian or Montenegrin nation, or in absolute figures, such persons (minority members) amounted to nearly 3.4 million.

According to the same data, even 4/5 of the minority population were persons belonging to one of the three most numerous minorities – Albanians, Hungarians and Bosniacs (then called Moslems). The consequence of the fact that there was a very high percentage of minority groups, which were most often concentrated in one or several regions, was that at that time (which is the present situation as well) practically each ethnic group (including the “majority” ones – Serbs and Montenegrins), depending on the territory they lived on and their prospective, could find themselves in the position of a majority, as well as a minority.

3. That was probably one of the reasons why FR Yugoslavia (1992) was not in its Constitution defined as a national state of any nation (not even Serbian, i.e., Montenegrin). Instead, Article 1 of the Constitution stated: “Federal Republic of Yugoslavia is a sovereign federal state, based on equality of its citizens and equality of the member republics”.

Even more precise was the Constitution of the Republic of Serbia (1990), which in Article 1 clearly states: “Republic of Serbia is a democratic state of all citizens living in it, based on freedoms and rights of man and citizen, on the rule of law and on social justice”.

Similar definition is found in the Constitution of the Republic Montenegro (1992), which in Article 1 just states that Montenegro is a democratic, social and ecologic state; that it is a republic; and that it is a member of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. Thus, this Republic either is not defined as a national state of any nation, not even Montenegrin.

4. In the years that followed, Yugoslavia faced numerous political, economic and other difficulties (wars in its neighborhood, sanctions of the international community, NATO bombing 1999, etc.), which, with a rigid position of the then authorities, caused the position of national minorities not to be fully satisfying.

Namely, although there was previously a long-term practice of ethnic tolerance and although legal acts were in effect that guaranteed the most important rights to national minorities, in practice anomalies were allowed, i.e., non-implementation, even violation of certain legal and other norms. Moreover, even when it was evident that relevant norms were violated in practice (for example appropriate provisions of the Law on Official Use of Languages, Law on Publishing Federal and Other Regulations and General Acts in Minority Languages, etc.) that was not sanctioned in the right manner.

True, in this period as well there were attempts for promotion of human and minority rights, which especially applies to the period when Mr. Milan Panic was the head of the Federal Government (1992-1993) and when there was a separate Federal Ministry for Human Rights and Minority Rights. This ministry, among other things, formed in 1992 an expert team for compiling of a federal law which would regulate this field of social relations in a systematic and unique and, above all, democratic way. Although by the middle of 1993 the expert team finished and submitted the concept of the Law on Freedoms and Rights of Minority Communities and their Members, because of reasons of political nature (fall of Mr. Panic`s Government) this was stopped, and moreover, relatively soon after that the Ministry itself was abolished.

5. After the victory of the Democratic Opposition of Serbia at the autumn 2000 elections, parallel with the efforts for democratization of the society in all fields of life, special attention was paid to promotion of the position of ethnic minorities.

In that aim a series of measures were instantly undertaken at the internal (forming of a separate Federal Ministry of National and Ethnic Minorities, work on preparation, and soon after that adoption of the federal Law on Protection of Rights and Freedoms of National Minorities, etc.) and international plan (joining the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities, preparations for joining the European Charter on Regional or Minority Languages, beginning of the work on preparation of relevant bilateral agreements with the neighboring countries, etc.).

2. BASIC DEMOGRAPHIC FACTS

1. As a consequence of historical circumstances – massive migrations and incessant wars which as often as not changed state borders – various ethnic communities are highly intermingled in a relatively small territory.

The latest census was held in FR Yugoslavia in the spring of 2002. The results of this census will not be known until the beginning of 2003, although from results of the previous census it may be concluded that there is a decrease of the total number of population on one hand, and a change of the national structure on the other hand, Still, for any serious analysis it is necessary to wait for the official report on the results of the census.

2. In the situation when there are no verified new data, the only relatively reliable basis is the latest census held in 1991, i.e., just before the beginning of the war conflagration in the territory of the former SFR Yugoslavia. That census showed that at that moment around 30 different ethnic communities lived in the territory of FR Yugoslavia, with 32.7% of the population being persons who did not declare themselves as Serbs or Montenegrins

According to the results of the census of 1991[1], the territory of the present FR Yugoslavia had a population of 10,394,026, out of which 9,778,991 lived in Serbia and 615,267 in Montenegro. Ethnic structure of the population was as follows:

Nationality of the Population of Yugoslavia

According to the census of 1991[2]

Nationality

FR YUGOSLAVIA

SERBIA

- total

Central Serbia

Vojvodina

Kosovo

MONTENEGRO

Total

10,394,026

9,778,991

5,808,906

2,013,889

1,956,196

615,035

Serbs

6,504,048

6,446,595

5,108,682

1,143,723

194,190

57,453

Montenegrins

519,766

139,299

74,096

44,83

20,365

380,467

Albanians

1,714,768

1,674,353

75,725

2,556

1,596,072

40,415

Yugoslavs

349,784

323,625

145,873

174,295

3,457

26,159

Hungarians

344,147

343,942

4,409

339,491

142

205

Moslems

336,025

246,411

174,371

5,851

66,189

89,614

Roma

143,519

140,237

70,126

24,366

45,745

3,282

Croats

111,650

105,406

22,536

74,808

8,062

6,244

Slovaks

66,86

66,798

3,227

63,545

26

65

Macedonians

47,118

46,046

27,596

17,472

978

1,072

Romanians

42,364

42,331

3,507

38,809

15

33

Bulgarians

26,922

26,876

24,335

2,363

178

46

Bunjevci

21,434

21,434

-

21,434

-

-

Ruthenians

18,099

18,073

400

17,652

21

26

Vlachs

17,810

17,807

17,672

132

3

3

Turks

11,263

11,235

603

187

10,445

28

Other

44,244

42,338

15,754

18,944

7,640

1,906

Undeclared

and undecided

11,849

10,906

5,291

5,427

188

943

Regional affiliation

5,910

4,912

2,338

2,503

71

998

Unknown

56,443

50,367

32,465

15,493

2,409

6,076

Share of Different Ethnic Communities in FR Yugoslavia in the Total Population

According to the 1991Census in percent

           

 

F R Y

Serbia

Montenegro

  1. Serbs

62.32%

65.65%

9.29%

  2. Montenegrins

5.00%

1.43%

61.84%

  3. Albanians

16.60%

17.22%

6.64%

  4. Hungarians

3.32%

3.53%

-

  5. Yugoslavs

3.30%

3.26%

4.20%

  6. Moslems

3.14%

2.42%

14.62%

  7. Roma

1.32%

1.40%

-

  8. Croats

1.11%

1.12%

1.02%

  9. Slovaks

0.64%

0.69%

-

10. Macedonians

0.47%

0.49%

0.14%

11. Romanians

0.41%

0.43%

-

12. Bulgarians

0.24%

0.26%

-

13. Ruthenians

0.18%

0.19%

-

14. Vlachs

0.17%

0.18%

-

15. Turks

0.11%

0.12%

-

16. Slovenians

0,08%

0,09%

0,07%

17. Others

1.36%

1.30%

2.19%

3. Although the above table may provide a relatively clear illustration, we must instantly point out that in a great degree it is not reliable.

First of all, since the Albanians boycotted the census then, data for them were derived by applying the method, as claimed, of scientifically verified assessments. Still, assessments are one thing, while precisely established facts are another thing.

Besides, the results of the census of 1991 presented, as always before, Yugoslavs as a specific ethnic group (349,784 persons declared as such). After all the wars and other events leading to polarization and confrontation, and especially in the situation when survival of the joint state of the two last Yugoslav republics is uncertain (but it is almost quite certain that even if it does survive, that state will not keep the present name), it may be assumed that the number of those who in an ethnic sense feel and declare as Yugoslavs has significantly decreased.

4.  Even if the above observation is left aside, it must be taken into account that the stated data do not fully reflect the present situation.

Many persons from the census of 1991, because of biological and other reasons have passed away, but also many inhabitants of FR Yugoslavia have left the country out of various reasons and moved to foreign countries. The reasons for that were different – to escape from the war (wars) and social and other insecurity; economic reasons; ethnic hatred and pressure of the neighborhood; and other things, but in any case it is certain that this also disrupted the ethnic picture existing at the time of the previous census. Here it should be stressed that all types of people left the country – members of minority groups (e.g. emigration of members of former Yugoslav peoples to their mother republics, now sovereign states), but also members of the majority nations (Serbs and Montenegrins).

On the other hand, new inhabitants migrated to FR Yugoslavia – several hundred thousand of refugees, mostly from Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, but also from other former Yugoslav republics, now sovereign states. It is important here to take into account that Serbs and Montenegrins were not the only immigrating refugees (although undoubtedly a vast majority).

At present around 700,000 refugees are registered in FR Yugoslavia, who came from Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, together with the internally displaced persons from Kosovo and Metohija.

6. Thus, many things happened in the last 11 years, so it is difficult to estimate the number and ethnical structure of the population of Yugoslavia. As was already pointed out before, the new census was held in the spring of 2002, but its results will not be known before the beginning of 2003 the earliest, so that, when the number, share and structure of ethnic minorities is in question, everything mainly remains in the domain of assumptions for now.

7. If in this respect no clear data may be established, we should still point to some other elements which complicated the already sufficiently complex reality even more. In fact, while they were previously registered as Moslems, the citizens belonging to this ethnic group today mostly declare as Bosniacs (but some of them still as Moslems), a part of Vlachs declares as Romanians (another part refuses to do that), while with the Roma there are divisions of internal special groups, etc.

8. If in spite of that we analyze the data offered by the census of 1991, we may notice that the central Serbia (Serbia without provinces) is relatively ethnically homogenous in the sense that it is mostly inhabited by Serbian population. The exception is Sandzak, where around 180,000 Bosniacs live, as well as certain municipalities in which there is a larger concentration of Albanians (Presevo, Bujanovac), i.e., Bulgarians (Dimitrovgrad, Bosilegrad).

The Serbian Autonomous Province Vojvodina has always presented a real multi-ethnic society. According to the census of 1991, its population consisted of 57.3% Serbs, 16.9% Hungarians, 8.4% Yugoslavs, 3.7% Croats, 3.2% Slovaks, 2.2% Montenegrins, 1.9% Romanians, 1.2% Roma, 1.1% Bunjevci, 0.9% Ruthenians, 0.24% Ukrainians and 3.2% "others"[3] The consequence of such an ethnic structure of the province is that members of national minorities have an absolute majority in several municipalities in Vojvodina. Thus, for example, members of the Hungarian minority make a majority in 8 municipalities (absolute majority in 7 of them).

It was already mentioned that another Serbian province – Kosovo and Metohija – is not included in this Report. Still, here we should perhaps mention that there is an explicit domination of Albanian community in it. The situation, however, is very complex, not only because of unsettled political circumstances, but also because after the arrival of KFOR a large number of members of other ethnic communities were forced to leave the territory (most of the Slav inhabitants and the Roma moved to neighboring regions).

Finally, in Montenegro, beside the Montenegrins and the Serbs who make the absolute majority (61.86%, i.e., 9.34%) there are also Bosniacs/Moslems (14.57%), Albanians (6.57%), Roma (3.42%), Croats (1%) and 18 more ethnic communities, which make a total of 5.8% of the Republic’s population.

3. BASIC ECONOMIC INDICES

1.  The economic policy of FR Yugoslavia in 2000 was characterized by a high degree of non-market economy. Foreign trade and prices of products and services were under direct control of state bodies. The level of foreign trade was low. That, together with the unrealistic foreign exchange rate produced an insufficient hard currency inflow. Production and total economic activity were reduced to approximately one third of the production in 1989.

After the democratic changes basic preconditions were created for implementation of complex reforms of the social and economic system. FR Yugoslavia has rejoined most international financial institutions, and at the internal plan, regulations were adopted which enabled functioning of the economy on new foundations. Firm monetary control and discipline were established in spending of budget funds. Foreign exchange rate was rapidly stabilized, in spite of the rush of price increases upon their liberalization after a decade long rigid control.

2. The year 2001 for the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia was the first year of transition. The real increase of gross national product in the year 2001 was 5%, while inflation was 40% in Serbia and around 6.5% in Montenegro.

The real increase of the total income of inhabitants was 46.4%, with the real increase of the average income being 13.2%, and of average pensions 15.7%.

In the year 2001 average income in Yugoslavia amounted to 5,540 dinars (1 euro = 60 dinars), in Serbia 5,381 dinars, and in Montenegro 7,590 dinars.

The average paid pension in the same period was 4,302 dinars (in Serbia 4,105, and in Montenegro 7,225).

According to the latest data, the average income in the first half of 2002 was around 200 euros.

3. The unemployment rate is still extremely high, in December 2001 it was nominally 28%, but really much higher. Potential danger from further decrease of the number of employed, apart from the expected accelerated privatization, comes also from objective financial difficulties Yugoslav enterprises are facing.

Foreign debt of the country is US $ 12.2 billion.

4. FR Yugoslavia belongs to the countries with the lowest gross national product per capita in the region (in 2001 it was US$ 1,336), which presents a burdening factor in realization of the new minority policy. The expected economic growth will favorably affect further promotion of the situation in this field.

In this sense it should especially be stressed that the Federal Law on Protection of the Rights and Freedoms of National Minorities provides for forming of the federal fund for stimulation of social, economic, cultural and general development of national minorities. The Fund will contribute to financing from budgetary funds of projects activities concerning improvement of the position and developing of cultural creative work of the minorities.

4. STATUS OF INTERNATIONAL LAW

1. Federal Republic of Yugoslavia is a contracting party of a large number of important universal and regional international agreements in the field of human rights, especially those indirectly or directly concerning fundamental rights and freedoms of members of national minorities. It is, among other things, a party in:

·        International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (1965)[4]

·        International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (1966)[5]

·        Optional Protocol To the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (1966)[6]

·        International Convention on the Suppression and Punishment of the Crime of Apartheid (1973)[7]

·        Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989)[8]

·        Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities (1994)[9], etc.

2. Besides, FR Yugoslavia is in the process of negotiating with a number of neighboring countries (Hungary, Croatia, Romania, and Macedonia) for concluding bilateral agreements on the protection of national minorities.

3. The status of international law is principally regulated by Article 16 of the Constitution of FR Yugoslavia (1992). It (Paragraph1) regulates that FR Yugoslavia in good faith fulfils the obligations deriving from international agreements of which it is a contracting party, and (item 2) it details that international agreements verified and published in accordance to the Constitution and the generally accepted rules of international law, are an integral part of domestic law.

It is clear from these provisions that constitutional verification of the obligation is undoubted, but also the willingness of Yugoslavia to fulfill its international legal obligations, even those concerning the protection of minorities. The thing that is perhaps not so clear from the stated formulation is whether ratified and published international agreements have a smaller, the same or bigger importance (legal primacy) than domestic laws.

This question, however, is indirectly regulated by the provision of Article 124 of the Constitution, which regulates the jurisdiction of the Federal Constitutional Court. According to the provisions of Paragraph1, line 2) of this Article, the Federal Constitutional Court decides on the conformity of the laws, other regulations and general enactments with ratified and promulgated international treaties. From that it clearly follows that international treaties override domestic laws[10].

4. Besides, Article 10 of the Constitution of FR Yugoslavia defines that: "Federal Republic of Yugoslavia recognizes and guarantees the freedoms and rights of man and citizen defined by international law".

5. BASIC PROBLEMS

1. Beside the undoubted willingness of the present authorities of FR Yugoslavia to maximally improve the position of national minorities, and even in that sense to go beyond the so-called international standards, this is in a degree hindered by certain objective factors. Namely, the reality of Yugoslavia is burdened by a number of problems and contradictions specific only to it, out of which only the most important ones will be mentioned here:

1.1. Irregular circumstances in which they appeared and time schedule in which they evolved, provoked all three Yugoslav constitutions (Federal and both Republican) to use different names for designating ethnic minorities. Thus, the Constitution of the Republic of Serbia (1990) uses the expression nationalities, the Constitution of the Republic Montenegro (1992) speaks of national and ethnic groups, while the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (1992) uses the most widely accepted term of the International and Comparative Law - national minorities, which is, in fact, in full accordance with the terminology of the Framework Convention;

1.2. Different names for ethnic minorities and the fact that regulating of certain fields of social life of importance for national minorities (e.g. education, culture, information obtaining, official use of languages and letters, etc.) belongs to the competence of federal units, has lead to a somewhat different regulation of their legal status. Here it may be mentioned that the most complete protection was provided by the Constitution of Montenegro which was the last to be adopted, and that in that sense the most restrictive is the oldest one of the constitutional documents – the Constitution of Serbia from 28.3.1990. Still, thanks to the latest changes of legislation, and above all thanks to adoption of the special federal Law on Protection of Rights and Freedoms of National Minorities (2002), the situation has significantly improved, in the sense of adjustment of legal regulations, but also and even more, because very liberal solutions were adopted with this Law;

1.3. The Federal Republic of Yugoslavia is in a process of comprehensive political and every other transformation, which, among other things, includes redefining of relations within the Federation (the relation between the two members of the federal state – Serbia and Montenegro). Because of this it is not possible now to foresee what will be the relations of the two member republics in future, i.e., what will be the competences of the federal state. Preparations for the drafting of the Constitutional Charter are in process, which will introduce a transformation of the Yugoslav Federation, but it is still not possible to discuss the content of that document, or even when it will be adopted.

1.4. A similar thing could be stated for the legal status of the two autonomous republics of the Republic of Serbia. As for Vojvodina, in which members of numerous nationalities, i.e., ethnic minorities live, it seems that there is a general consensus for its self-government to be broadened, but this question is yet to be politically solved and legally regulated. On the other hand, the degree of autonomy, i.e., its possible further broadening, will also mean, it seems, the delegation of some functions to provincial bodies, including the competences and powers of direct interest for members of national minorities, which is partially done through adoption of the special Law on Defining of Competences of an Autonomous Province, which the National Assembly of Serbia adopted on 7.2.2002 (the so-called Omnibus Law).

With Kosovo and Metohija things are even more complicated, because of the inherited problems and circumstances arisen after arrival of KFOR based on the Resolution 1244 of the UN Security Council;

1.5. Legal regulations and practice of their implementation are far more complex in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia than in the majority of other countries. This is because at least three levels of regulations, i.e., practice, must be observed: (1) Federal, (2) Republican (regulations of the Republic of Serbia and the Republic Montenegro) and (3) Provincial (regulations of the AP Vojvodina, which is an autonomous province within the Republic of Serbia)[11].

The existence of three levels of legislation (Federal, two Republican and Provincial) implies an increased possibility of lack of harmonization among laws.

1.6. As it was pointed out before, Yugoslavia is not just another country in transition. With all it has in common with the countries of similar historic, economic and other inheritance, what is characteristic for Yugoslavia is that its internal relations have been additionally complicated by sorrowful events that took place in the past ten odd years, such as wars, long-lasting sanctions, international isolation, a large number of refugees (migrating both from and into Yugoslavia), etc.;

1.7. The collapse of the national economy caused by international sanctions, hyperinflation, NATO bombing and other factors, has unfavorably affected the possibility of real implementation of minority rights (forming of new minority schools, theatres, etc.);

1.8. A problem is also the fact that within the frame of certain ethnic minorities there is no consensus about the minimum joint interests and ways for their realization.

6. NEW MINORITY POLICY

1. Although previously there were also relatively developed and satisfying legal regulations in the domain of protection of minorities, it is certain that the situation needs to be improved, especially on the level of practical implementation of normative solutions.

Because of this, in the last incomplete two years (after the democratic changes in the country) a series of measures and activities have been undertaken directed toward a better normative regulation of this subject, as well as toward promotion of the situation in practice.

The basis of the new minority policy is a full integration of minorities in the social life, together with preserving and further developing of their national and cultural specific characteristics.

This is realized through constant communication of governmental bodies with representatives of all minority communities and partnership with relevant international organizations and institutions (especially OSCE and the Council of Europe).

The foundations of the new minority policy are:

1.      Development of democratic institutions and respect of the rule of law;

2.      Building of comprehensive legal regulations in the domain of minority rights;

3.      Creation of a social environment in which a spirit of tolerance and respect of diversities is cultivated;

4.      Faster tempo of economic growth and development of the country.

2. Here it will be pointed only to some of the most important measures, undertaken within the frame of realization of the new minority policy:

2.1. After the well-known political changes in the year 2000, a separate Federal Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities was founded, headed by a representative of the Bosniacs community, with his closest associate (deputy minister) being a representative of the Hungarian community.

Although the Federal Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities is the principal champion of the new minority policy, other state bodies and entities also play an important role. Thus in Montenegro, beside the Ministry for National and Ethnic Groups, there is the Republican Council for Protection of Rights of Members of National and Ethnic Groups; while in AP Vojvodina the Provincial Secretariat for Administration, Regulations and National Minorities works efficiently; the Coordination Body, formed by the Federal Government and the Government of the Republic of Serbia, deals with the problems concerning the rights and position of minorities in the south of Serbia.

It should be added here that the new Federal Law on Protection of Rights and Freedoms of National Minorities plans to form a Federal Council for National Minorities, which will include representatives of national councils of national minorities.

2.2. The most important step in the field of legal regulation is the adoption of the federal Law on Protection of Rights and Freedoms of National Minorities (27.2.2002), which uniquely regulates the most significant issues of importance for survival and development of national minorities;

2.3. Relevant provisions of some other regulations have also been altered and in a way promoted, such as, for example, those of the laws of the Republic of Serbia concerning local self-government, elementary schools, secondary schools, universities, etc. Besides, a number of new acts was adopted, including the bylaws necessary for implementation of the Law on Protection of Rights and Freedoms of national minorities. Thus, in honoring the obligation provided for by the federal Law on Protection of Rights and Freedoms of National Minorities, and for the purpose of facilitating election of their national councils to minorities, the Federal Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities adopted the Rules of Procedure for electors´ assemblies in election of councils of national minorities.

A change of the electoral laws is also in preparation, with the aim of facilitating the participation of minorities in representative governmental bodies, since the existing laws, with their census of 5%, are unacceptable for parties of members of national minorities. Besides, passing of a federal law against discrimination, federal and republican law on introduction of the institution of ombudsman, federal law on religious freedoms, etc., are also in preparation;

2.4. At the international level, in 2001 FR Yugoslavia became a party to the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities, and also of the Optional Protocol with the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (the former SFR Yugoslavia was not a party of these agreements). FR Yugoslavia also signed the Instrument on Protection of Rights of National Minorities of the Central-European Initiative (CEI). Besides, preparations are in process for joining the European Charter on Regional or Minority Languages.

 2.5. Simultaneously, negotiations have started with the neighboring countries for concluding bilateral agreements on protection of minorities. The biggest progress has been made in negotiations with Hungary, Romania, and Croatia, with whom the greatest number of future agreements has been agreed upon.

2.6. The implemented measures of the Federal Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities in the aim of realization of the new minority policy include the following:

2.6.1. Measures for promotion of tolerance and confidence building:

-                                                                           Model of the new minority policy in solving of inter-ethnic conflicts was applied in the south of Serbia. The crisis arisen by the activities of Albanian extremists´ armed groups (the so-called OVPMB) was solved in a peaceful way through signing of an agreement on 31.5.2001. The governmental Coordination body also made a special plan for solving of the crisis in the south of Serbia, which implies cessation of conflicts, political integration of Albanians and economic and social reconstruction of the region. In that aim multi-ethnic police was formed, and local elections were held, which enabled participation of Albanians in the local authorities;

-                                                                           Implementation of an extensive campaign for tolerance. The campaign is run through video spots, special RTV broadcasts, and in other media and in other ways – through books, brochures, badges, etc.).

-                                                                           Publishing of a special Bulletin by the Federal Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities;

-                                                                            Organization of speaker’s platforms and round tables at which direct communication is realized with members of national minorities, especially in insufficiently developed milieus, as well as round tables dedicated to training of civil servants for work in multi-ethnic milieus (Kovacica, Novi Sad, Nis, Dimitrovgrad, Bosilegrad, Subotica, Prijepolje, Novi Pazar, Bujanovac, Medvedja, Backi Petrovac);

-                                                                            Opening of multicultural and Internet centers (in Belgrade, Bujanovac, Presevo, etc.);

-                                                                            Organization of multi-ethnic camps for young people «Culture of Cohabitation» (from the mid-2001 till September 2002 seven camps were organized), as forms of alternative education on tolerance;

-                                                                            Joining by FR Yugoslavia the project on non-discrimination (‘Non-Discrimination Review’), which is under the auspices of the Council of Europe, concurrently run in several countries. For that purpose an independent national expert team was formed which has already began work and cooperation with competent bodies of the Council of Europe, as well as exchange of experiences and other forms of cooperation with experts from other countries;

2.6.2. Measures of aid and support for minority communities and their members

-                                                                            Financial and other aid to minority organizations;

-                                                                            Education of members of minorities on their rights and ways of their realization;

-                                                                            Publishing of the federal Law on Rights and Freedoms of National Minorities, as a special edition, concurrently in Serbian, English, and nine languages of national minorities (Albanian, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Hungarian, Roma, Romanian, Ruthenian, Slovakian and German). This was done in order for the Law to be made available and fully understandable to those it concerns;

-                                                                            Promotion of providing information in languages of minorities (initiation of new broadcasts in Bulgarian, Roma, Croatian and Ukrainian languages, in several national and local media);

-                                                                            Participation of the Federal Ministry in the reform of the educational system; the Expert Group engaged by the Ministry made a comprehensive analysis of the existing curriculums and offered proposals and recommendations for amending the contents which incite ethnic hatred and create frustration among members of national minorities.

7.  STATUS OF THE ROMA COMMUNITY

1. Since the status of the Roma community in FR Yugoslavia, as well as, really, in most other countries, is especially difficult, the federal Law on Protection of Rights and Freedoms of National Minorities has a special provision (Article 4, paragraph 2) which recognizes the status of a national minority of the Roma and defines measures of affirmative action in the aim of promoting the socio-economic position of the Roma. In accordance to that, Federal Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities has undertaken a series of concrete measures:

·        There is a special division within the Ministry dealing with promotion of the status of the Roma, headed by a member of the Roma community;

·        Elements for a governmental plan were drafted for integration of the Roma in the social life, which implies solving of problems of the Roma in the field of homing, employment, education, health and social insurance and solving of problems of the Roma refugees from Kosovo and Metohija;

·        Research is nearing its finish, whose goal is to make a database or a social map, based on which the number of the Roma will be established, as well as the number of the Roma settlements, children attending elementary school, the Roma who have a social and health insurance, and the number of the employed Roma;

·        Interministerial group has been formed, coordinated by the Federal Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities, in which various ministries are included at the federal, republican and provincial levels;

·        Under the patronage of the Federal Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities, a Roma Task Group has been formed, which will draft proposals of this national minority for integration;

·        Federal Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities, in cooperation with OSCE and UNICEF, organized the international conference ‘Roma in Central and Southeast Europe’ (Belgrade, 17-19.5.2002), in which seven countries of the region took part;

·        Federal Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities, in cooperation with OSCE, organized several round tables: in Novi Sad, Nis, Bujanovac, etc., with the aim of offering help for forming of national councils of the Roma community;

·        For the needs of the Federal Ministry of National and Ethnic communities, the experts of OSCE made a program for economic strengthening of the Roma and a model for their employing;

·        Federal Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities initiated several broadcasts for promotion of providing information in the Roma language in several regional centers (Beograd, Novi Sad, Nis, Kragujevac, etc.), and soon, under the patronage of the Ministry, news agency for broadcasting news in the Roma language will start working;

·        In cooperation with the Ministry of Education of the Republic of Serbia, the Federal Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities will provide textbooks for all Roma pupils of elementary schools (around 5,000 sets) for the school year 2002/2003.

Position of the Roma in Yugoslavia has been separately discussed in the Annex to this Report (‘Minority Communities – Characteristics and Basic Facts’).

8. FEDERAL LAW ON THE PROTECTION OF RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS OF NATIONAL MINORITIES (2002)

1. The Law on Protection of Rights and Freedoms of National Minorities, as its name says, legally regulates the way in which rights of members of national minorities will be realized.

In that sense the Law presents another source of the constitutional law in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, since it elaborates constitutional norms on rights and freedoms of members of national minorities, i.e., elaborates principal solutions of the Constitution of FR Yugoslavia and international agreements of which it is a contracting party, on the rights and freedoms of members of national minorities.

2.  Starting from the provisions of the Constitution of FR Yugoslavia, the Law on Protection of Rights and Freedoms of National Minorities fills in the vacuum existing in the constitutional legal system of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and, in a legally valid way, enables the members of national minorities, in a democratic political milieu, independently, or together with other members of their national group, to enjoy their constitutional rights.

These are the rights which are in the Constitution of FR Yugoslavia generally defined as rights on preserving, development and expression of ethnic, lingual and other specific characteristics of national minorities. These are: the right on national determination, the right on cooperation with the compatriots in the country and abroad, the right on the use of the mother tongue, the right on the use of national symbols, and a series of other rights and solutions which protect specific characteristics of national minorities in the fields of social development of special interest for national minorities (use of languages of national minorities in the work of bodies and organizations with public authority, education and public information providing in languages of national minorities, cultivation and protection of the cultural heritage, etc.).

Through institution of acquired rights, the Law disables limiting or abolishing of rights and freedoms which members of national minorities, independently or together with other members of their group, enjoyed until its coming into effect.

The Law also provides for introduction of special measures for achieving of the equality of rights, especially with regard to the Roma national community.

3. The specific characteristic of this new Law on Protection of Rights and Freedoms of National Minorities are provisions regulating solutions which should enable effective participation of minorities in decision-making on issues of specific characteristics, in the government and administration.

The Yugoslav legislator, starting from the realization that many minority rights are enjoyed in a community, which gives them a collective character, and respecting international obligations of FR Yugoslavia to secure necessary preconditions for efficient participation of the members of national minorities in public affairs concerning them, has provided for a whole series of new institutions.

Establishing of the Federal Council for National Minorities, in whose work representatives of national councils of national minorities will participate, should create the necessary institutional frame for permanent and joint work of representatives of the government and minorities on promotion of position of national minorities and protection of their specific characteristics.

A step further is the introduction of National Councils of national minorities, contrived as bodies representing national minorities as collectives. According to the provisions of the Law, National Councils of national minorities are partners and advisory bodies of the state authorities, and their representatives participate in decision-making on issues of importance for the specific characteristics of national minorities. National Councils may have certain independent powers in the field of education, culture and informing. These are the powers of importance for expression and preservation of specific characteristics of national minorities, which may be entrusted with them by the Law.

4. The above stated solutions create a new approach in domestic and comparative legislation and should enable participation of minorities in public affairs of importance for preserving of their specific characteristics, and even a certain degree of independence in these affairs, with observation of the legal system and obligations that members of minorities have as citizens of FR Yugoslavia.

If democratism and liberality of the said solutions are confirmed in practice, then such solutions will grow into a new, role model for protection of minority rights, and with that FR Yugoslavia will grow into a country setting new standards in the field of minority rights and their protection.

PART III

IMPLEMENTATION OF THE FRAMEWORK CONVENTION

Article 1

The protection of national minorities and of the rights and freedoms of persons belonging to those minorities forms an integral part of the

international protection of human rights, and as such falls within the scope of international co-operation.

1.  The Federal Republic of Yugoslavia is a Contracting Party to numerous multilateral international treaties in the field of human rights. It is a Contracting Party to:

·        International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (1965);[12]

·        International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (1966),[13]

·        International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights,[14]

·        Both Optional Protocols to the International Covenant of Civil and Political Rights (1966),[15]

·        International Convention on the Suppression and Punishment of the Crime of Apartheid (1973), [16]

·        Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989);[17]

By accepting the above instruments of international law Yugoslavia has accepted also the monitoring mechanisms enunciated in them. In that context, the honoring of the obligation to submit reports on the implementation of these treaties included the reporting on the measures taken for the protection of national minorities as well as on freedoms and rights of persons belonging to national minorities.

In addition to the treaties in the field of human rights, which partially govern the protection of national minorities, FR Yugoslavia has also accessed to the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities (1994);[18] and there is also political will to access the European Charter on the Regional or Minority Languages. In connection with FR Yugoslavia’s accession to the European Charter on Regional or Minority Languages, in cooperation with the Council of Europe, a separate Conference on that Charter was held on 11 and 12 June 2001. The gathering was attended by representatives of minority organizations, Council of Europe experts, representatives of the authorities, experts in international law, linguists and representatives of non-governmental organizations. The primary objective of the Conference was to enable exchange of opinions and information among representatives of all levels of the government, non-governmental and other organizations, which deal with the issues and problems of national minorities in different manners.

2.  FR Yugoslavia is currently negotiating with a number of neighboring countries (Hungary, Croatia, Romania, Macedonia) bilateral agreements on the protection of national minorities. In the negotiations with Hungary, Romania and Croatia, the bulk of the content of the future agreements has been agreed. At the same time, official contacts have been made with the FYR Macedonia aimed at initiating negotiations for the conclusion of an agreement that would regulate the status of the Serbian/Montenegrin minority in that country, i.e. the Macedonian minority in Yugoslavia.

3. The most important aspect of FR Yugoslavia’s international cooperation in the field of human rights is the cooperation established with relevant international organizations – the Council of Europe and the OSCE.

Council of Europe

The Federal Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities has established intensive cooperation with the Council of Europe in the area of minority rights and their protection. That cooperation included:

-                                        Professional support by Council of Europe experts in the drafting of the Law on the Protection of Freedoms and Rights of National Minorities

-                                        Visits by Yugoslav experts to the Council of Europe

-                                        Holding seminars on the Framework Convention and the European Charter on Regional or Minority Languages

-                                        Expertise and consultation on bilateral agreements

-                                        Drawing up the Antidiscriminatory Review

-                                        Participation of Council of Europe representatives in the work of the Office of the Federal Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities in Bujanovac

-                                        Organization of Serbian-Albanian dialogue among the youth

-                                        Participation in the Link Diversity Campaign for the promotion of multiethnic society

-                                        Visits by the Special Envoy, Special Rapporteurs, the Secretary General (including visits to the south of Serbia)

        OSCE

         Cooperation of the Yugoslav authorities with the OSCE included:

-                                        Cooperation with the High Commissioner and his team on the drafting of the Law on the Protection of Freedoms and Rights of National Minorities – the meeting with the High Commissioner in Baden is of special importance (with the participation of 20 Yugoslav experts), on legislation regulating the status of minorities

-                                        High Commissioner’s support to the Multicultural Center in Bujanovac and the holding of youth camps

-                                        Joint work on the reform of the education of minorities

-                                        Joint organization of the Conference on Minorities in South East Europe

-                                        Joint work on the organization of the Roma National Council

-                                        Cooperation in the preparations of the electors’ assemblies for the election of the national councils

-                                        Joint elaboration of the Strategy for the Integration of the Roma

-                                        Implementation of the ‘Door to Door’ campaign in the south of Serbia aimed at the promotion of the Law on the Protection of Freedoms and Rights of National Minorities and building tolerance

-                                        Implementation of the project for the setting up of multiethnic police in the south of Serbia 

3. The protection of national minorities and freedoms and rights of persons belonging to these minorities is ensured also by Yugoslavia’s domestic legal system.

First and foremost, the Constitution of FR Yugoslavia guarantees the protection of the courts in the case of violation of freedoms and rights recognized and guaranteed by the Constitution (Article 67, paragraph 4), which applies also to the same rights of persons belonging to national minorities.

The provision of Article 26, paragraph 1, of the Constitution of FR Yugoslavia lays down that every person shall be entitled to equal protection of his rights in a legally prescribed procedure.

At the same time, Article 26, paragraph 2, guarantees to every person the right of appeal or other legal remedies against a decision which infringes his right or legally founded interest.

In addition, the provision of Article 119, paragraph 1, of the Constitution stipulates that an appeal may be made to the competent authority against decisions and other rulings by judicial, administrative and other state authorities, as well as against similar first instance decisions by agencies and organizations performing public powers.

Pursuant to Article 120, paragraph 1, of the Constitution, the legality of final administrative rulings is determined by the authorized court in an administrative suit, unless some other legal remedy has been provided for by the law.

On the strength of Article 124, paragraph 1, item 6, of the Constitution, the Federal Constitutional Court shall rule, inter alia, on constitutional complaints about a ruling or action violating the rights and freedoms of man and the citizen enshrined in the Constitution. [19]

Finally, attention should also be paid to the provision of Article 123, according to which everyone shall be entitled to compensation for damages sustained as a result of unlawful or improper actions of an official or state agency or organization which exercises public powers, in conformity with the law. The state shall be obliged to pay compensation for damages. The injured party shall have the right, in accordance with law, to demand compensation directly from the individual responsible for the damage.

All these issues are more specifically regulated by relevant federal laws. In the protection of human and minority rights, the Law on General Administrative Procedures and the Law on Administrative Litigation are of particular importance.

Among various arrangements provided for by other federal laws, one should especially point out the provision of Article 23, paragraph 1, of the federal Law on the Protection of Freedoms and Rights of National Minorities, under which persons belonging to national minorities and councils of national minorities as their representatives, can file a suit for damages with the competent court, in order to protect their rights.

The provision of paragraph 2 of the same Article of the Law on the Protection of Freedoms and Rights of National Minorities specifies that, in compliance with the provisions of the Law on the Federal Constitutional Court, the Federal Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities and a national council of a national minority shall be empowered to lodge a constitutional complaint with the Federal Constitutional Court in case they have assessed that the constitutional rights and freedoms of persons belonging to national minorities have been violated or if a person belonging to a national minority, who believes his constitutional rights and freedoms have been violated, approaches them.

Similar, albeit not identical arrangements are provided for by the republican Constitutions, i.e. legislation.

Thus, Article 22, paragraph 1, of the Constitution of the Republic of Serbia sets forth that everyone shall be entitled to equal protection of his rights in court proceedings, or proceedings before any government or other agency or organization. The provision of paragraph 2 of the same Article of the RS Constitution guarantees to everyone the right of appeal or other legal remedy against a decision which infringes with his right or legally founded interest.

Article 25 of the Constitution of the Republic of Serbia specifies that everyone shall be entitled to compensation for material or non-material damages sustained as a result of unlawful or improper actions of an official or state agency or organization which exercises public powers, in conformity with the law. The provision of paragraph 2 of the same Article lays down that the Republic of Serbia or organization which exercises public powers shall be obliged to pay compensation for damages.

Finally, also worth mentioning is the provision of Article 124/1 of the Constitution of the Republic of Serbia, which provides for the rule concerned with the right of appeal, by specifying that against decisions and other rulings by judicial, administrative and other state authorities, as well as against similar first instance decisions of agencies and organizations which exercise public powers, an appeal may be lodged with the competent authority. This arrangement, too, may be of great significance in practice, not only in general terms, but particularly for persons belonging to national minorities.

The Constitution of the Republic of Serbia does not provide for the possibility to file a constitutional complaint with the Constitutional Court of that Republic.

Similar to the above arrangements, the Constitution of the Republic of Montenegro, in Article 17, specifies that everyone shall be entitled to the protection of his freedoms and rights in legally prescribed procedures, as well as that everyone’s right to appeal or other legal remedy against a decision which infringes his right or legally founded interest shall be guaranteed.

In addition, the provision of Article 113, paragraph 1, item 4, stipulates that the Constitutional Court of that Republic, inter alia, shall decide on constitutional complaints against a violation, by individual decisions or actions, of freedoms and rights of man and the citizen provided for by the Constitution, in cases where that protection is not in the competence of the Federal Constitutional Court and where no other judicial protection has not been provided for.

The provision of Article 74, paragraph 2, of the Constitution of the Republic of Montenegro should be particularly pointed out, as it, inter alia, stipulates that persons belonging to national and ethnic groups shall have the right to approach international institutions for protection of their freedoms and rights guaranteed by the Constitution.

Article 2

The provisions of this framework Convention shall be applied in good faith, in a spirit of understanding and tolerance and in conformity with the principles of good neighborliness, friendly relations and co-operation between States.

1. FR Yugoslavia’s Constitution stipulates that FR Yugoslavia honors its commitments arising from international treaties to which it is a Contracting Party in good faith (see the section on relations between international and domestic law).

2. Resolved to conscientiously meet the commitments undertaken by the Framework Convention, FR Yugoslavia has, inter alia, taken a range of measures to be discussed later in the report. In that context, one should in particular emphasize the adoption of the federal Law on the Protection of Freedoms and Rights of National Minorities, which regulates the subject matter of minority rights and their protection in keeping with the commitments arising from the Convention, the work on the conclusion of a series of bilateral agreements the aim of which is to, in great detail, regulate with the neighboring countries the protection of national minorities, the development and implementation of a new minority policy, etc.

3. FR Yugoslavia is sincerely devoted to the principles enshrined in the UN Declaration on the Rights of Persons Belonging to National or Ethnic, Religious and Language Minorities, the UN Declaration of the Principles of International Law, the OSCE documents from the OSCE meetings on human dimension, etc.

4. The promotion of the spirit of understanding and tolerance and the development of international relations in line with the principles of good neighborliness, friendly relations and cooperation among states has particularly come to the fore in the meetings of FR Yugoslavia’s highest-ranking state representatives with representatives of the countries in the region. The meetings that Dr. Vojislav Kostunica, FR Yugoslavia’s President, had with heads of state or government of the countries in the region and visits by delegations of the Federal Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities to Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary, Croatia and Slovakia are of great importance for the promotion of cooperation in the field of minority issues. FR Yugoslavia’s commitment to the principles of good neighborliness, friendly relations and cooperation among states particularly comes to the fore in FR Yugoslavia’s participation in all regional integrations and initiatives.

5.  Good neighborliness, friendly relations and cooperation of FR Yugoslavia with some of the neighboring states are regulated by contract. The Agreement on Friendship, Good Neighborliness and Cooperation with Romania includes provisions in principle on national minorities. Article 20 of the said Agreement sets forth that each Contracting Party shall ensure in its territory the protection of and respect for the rights of persons belonging to national minorities in conformity with UN and OSCE documents.

Aware of the significance of the protection of national minorities for normalization of relations, FR Yugoslavia and the Republic of Croatia stipulated in the Agreement on the Normalization of Relations that national minorities shall be guaranteed all the rights pertaining to them under international law. Furthermore, in their meetings, Presidents of FR Yugoslavia, DR. Vojislav Kostunica and the Republic of Croatia, Stjepan Mesic, pointed to the importance of the respect for the rights of the Serbian minority in the Republic of Croatia and of the Croatian minority in FR Yugoslavia.

Article 3

Every person belonging to a national minority shall have the right freely to choose to be treated or not to be treated as such and no disadvantage shall result from this choice or from the exercise of the rights which are connected to that choice.

Persons belonging to national minorities may exercise the rights and enjoy the freedoms flowing from the principles enshrined in the present framework Convention individually as well as in community with others.

Paragraph 1

1.   In FR Yugoslavia national minorities are all the groups of Yugoslav citizens who have a long-lasting connection with the territory of FR Yugoslavia and possess features such as language, culture, nationality, origin or religion that differentiate them from the majority of the population and whose members are characterized by the fact that they are concerned with the joint maintenance of their common identity, including culture, tradition, language or religion. The above definition of a national minority is provided for by Article 2, paragraph 1, of the Law on the Protection of Freedoms and Rights of National Minorities and constitutes the first legally binding definition of a national minority in FR Yugoslavia. Bearing in mind that legal enactments passed before the adoption of the Law on the Protection of Freedoms and Rights of National Minorities used different and disparate terms and that minority communities, too, define themselves in different manners, the Law on the Protection of Freedoms and Rights of National Minorities specified in its Article 2, paragraph 2, that national minorities shall be also all the groups of citizens who call or define themselves as peoples, national or ethnic communities, national or ethnic groups, nationalities and ethnicities, and fulfill the conditions referred to in paragraph 1 of Article 2 of the Law. Such arrangement is in conformity with the Constitution of FR Yugoslavia, which generally guarantees the rights of national minorities and does not use other terms to denote groups of population that are different from the majority by its culture, language, religion, origin, etc. The above arrangement in the Law on the Protection of Freedoms and Rights of National Minorities enables practically all interested communities, i.e. persons belonging to them, to define themselves as minorities and thus enjoy the rights guaranteed by the Law. The above arrangement also harmonizes the terminology which was very disparate until the adoption of the Law on the Protection of Freedoms and Rights of National Minorities (legal enactments referred to communities protected by the Framework Convention as nationalities, national communities, national and ethnic groups, ethnic minorities, ethnicities, minority communities, etc.). In appropriate places in the report the term national minorities was always used, as a term in the spirit of the Framework Convention and the new Law on the Protection of Freedoms and Rights of National Minorities (the Appendix citing the provisions of the applicable laws governing the status of national minorities in FR Yugoslavia provides an insight into the utilization of different terms).

2. The Constitution of FR Yugoslavia in its Article 45, paragraph 1, guarantees freedom of expression of national sentiments and culture, as well as the use of one’s mother tongue and script. At the same time, Article 45, paragraph 2, of the Constitution of FR Yugoslavia stipulates that no one shall be obliged to declare his nationality. The above arrangement is of crucial importance to the protection of national minorities in a democratic society.

The arrangement according to which no one shall be disadvantaged because of his choice to be treated or not treated as a person belonging to a national minority or because of the exercise of rights which are connected to this choice arises from Article 20, paragraphs 1 and 2, of FR Yugoslavia’s Constitution which lay down that citizens shall be equal irrespective of their nationality, race or any other personal status, as well as that they shall all be equal before the law. Article 50 of FR Yugoslavia’s Constitution stipulates that any incitement or encouragement of national, racial, religious or other inequality or other inequality as well as the incitement and fomenting of national, racial, religious or other hatred and intolerance shall be unconstitutional an punishable. In the spirit of the Framework Convention, the Law on the Protection of Freedoms and Rights of National Minorities, in its Article 5, paragraph 1, explicitly sets out that in conformity with the freedom of national affiliation and expression of nationality proclaimed by the Constitution of FR Yugoslavia, no one may sustain damage because of his choice or expression of his nationality or because of refraining from such act. Moreover, the provision of paragraph 2 of the same Article of the Law on the Protection of Freedoms and Rights of National Minorities prohibits any registration of persons belonging to national minorities which obliges them to declare their nationality contrary to their will.

3.The provisions proclaiming freedom of national affiliation and expression of nationality are contained in the Constitutions of the Yugoslav federal units as well. Article 49 of the Constitution of the Republic of Serbia guarantees freedom of expression of national sentiments and culture and freedom of the use of language and script and concurrently stipulates that no one shall be obliged to declare his nationality. Article 13 of the Constitution of the Republic of Serbia lays down that all the citizens shall be equal in rights and duties and have equal protection before state and other agencies irrespective of their race, language, nationality, religion or other personal status. By proclaiming equality, the Constitution of the Republic of Serbia actually prescribes that no one, including persons belonging to national minorities, shall be disadvantaged on account of their nationality or the exercise of rights connected to their national sentiments. In the same fashion, the Constitution of the Republic of Montenegro in its Article 34, paragraphs 2 and 3, guarantees, inter alia, freedom of expression of nationality, culture and the use of one’s mother tongue, and specifies that no one shall be obliged to declare his nationality. In addition, the provision of Article 15 of the Constitution of the Republic of Montenegro sets forth that citizens shall be free and equal, irrespective of any specific feature or personal status, as well as that they shall all be equal before the law, thus legally preventing unfavorable treatment of persons belonging to national minorities because of their nationality or the exercise of rights connected to their national affiliation.

4.The Federal Bureau of Statistics is an institution which is in FR Yugoslavia entrusted with the task of officially processing statistical data. The Yugoslav Constitutions have guaranteed freedom of expression of nationality, and therefore there has been no obligation to declare nationality in providing data for statistical purposes. However, most persons belonging to national minorities choose to declare their nationality in censuses. The Law on the Census of the Population, Households and Apartments in 2001 prescribes that a person covered by the census shall not be obliged to declare his nationality and that census questionnaires must contain such instructions (Article 8, paragraph 3). The Methodological Instructions for the preparation, organization and taking of the census drawn up by the Federal Bureau of Statistics set out the format of the census questionnaire to be used for taking census. The census questionnaire contains boxes for entering information on nationality, mother tongue and religion. Under the Methodological Instructions, the census-taker is under obligation, when asking about nationality, to “enter the exact words of the respondent in reply to that question”, i.e. to write down that the respondent chose not to declare his nationality, if a citizen denied answer to the question about his nationality. A reply to the question about nationality for children under 15 years of age is provided by one of the parents, an adoptive parent or a foster parent. Similarly, with respect to the question about the mother tongue, “the census taker shall not influence or exert any pressure on the respondent, i.e. the person who is the subject of the census.”

Personal data are legally protected in FR Yugoslavia. The Law on the Protection of Personal Data sets forth that a database of personal data, part of it or individual pieces of data may be used for scientific, educational or similar purposes in the form which prevents the identification of individuals (Article 6, paragraph 2). On the basis of Article 11 of the Law on the Protection of Personal Data, citizens in FR Yugoslavia are entitled to know which databases store their personal data, to find out which pieces of data on them are processed, who is processing them, for which purposes and on which grounds, who are users of the personal data on them and on which grounds. Especially important is the provision of Article 18 of the Law on the Protection of Personal Data which lays down that data on racial origin, nationality, religious or other beliefs, political and trade unionist affiliation and sexuality may be collected, processed and made available for use only upon obtaining a written consent of the individual concerned.

Paragraph 2

1.In line with the wording of the relevant international documents and the practice of comparative law, the Constitution of FR Yugoslavia defines as holders of most minority rights persons belonging to national minorities.

However, the Constitution of FR Yugoslavia in its Article 11 deviates to a certain extent from this concept by stipulating that FR Yugoslavia recognizes and guarantees the rights of national minorities (minorities as collectivities) to the maintenance, development and expression of their ethnic, cultural, linguistic and other specificity, as well as the use of national symbols, in conformity with international law. On the basis of the above arrangement, it may be concluded that, under the Constitution itself, the holders of certain rights are minorities as collectivities.

In the spirit of the above provision of the Constitution of FR Yugoslavia, the recently enacted Law on the Protection of Freedoms and Rights of National Minorities recognizes collective rights of minorities. Although it uses the term persons belonging to national minorities in a number of places, there is no doubt that the Law on the Protection of Freedoms and Rights of National Minorities recognizes, in addition to individual, also the collective rights of minorities. The provision of Article 1, paragraph 1, of the Law on the Protection of Freedoms and Rights of National Minorities explicitly specifies that it “shall regulate the manner of exercising individual and collective rights, which are guaranteed to persons belonging to national minorities by the Constitution of FR Yugoslavia or international treaties.” The said Law, in Article 1, paragraph 2, specifies collective rights, by determining that its provisions govern the protection of national minorities against any form of discrimination in the exercise of freedoms and rights and provide for instruments for safeguarding and protecting special rights of national minorities to autonomy in the fields of education, the use of language, information and culture, and establish institutions for facilitating the participation of minorities in power and administration of affairs.

2. The Constitution of the Republic of Serbia contains provisions on the rights of persons belonging to other peoples, i.e. national minorities. The Constitution of the Republic of Montenegro contains provisions on the rights of persons belonging to national and ethnic groups, i.e. national minorities.

3. The right of persons belonging to national minorities to enjoy in community with others the guaranteed freedoms and rights is exercised in FR Yugoslavia without major obstacles. In confirmation of that, it will suffice to point to the fact that there is special minority education (minority schools) and at all levels at that, that persons belonging to national minorities in reality have numerous cultural, artistic and other associations and organizations, and even their own political parties which actively participate in society’s political life (see the comment on Article 7 of the Framework Convention).

Article 4

The Parties undertake to guarantee to persons belonging to national minorities the right of equality before the law and of equal protection of the law. In this respect, any discrimination based on belonging to a national minority shall be prohibited.

The Parties undertake to adopt, where necessary, adequate measures in order to promote, in all areas of economic, social, political and cultural life, full and effective equality between persons belonging to national minorities and those belonging to the majority. In this respect, they shall take due account of the specific conditions of the persons belonging to national minorities.

The measures adopted in accordance with paragraph 2 shall not be considered to be an act of discrimination.

Paragraph 1

1.Equality before the law and equal legal protection are essential to the protection of national minorities. Equality and prohibition of unlawful differentiation have been proclaimed by all Yugoslav Constitutions.

The Constitution of FR Yugoslavia stipulates in its Article 20 that citizens shall be equal irrespective of their nationality, race, sex, language, faith, political or other beliefs, education, social origin, property or other personal status. By stipulating that citizens are equal irrespective of the personal statuses specifically listed in it, the Constitution of FR Yugoslavia has in effect prohibited discrimination on the basis of these criteria. Paragraph 2 of Article 20 of the Constitution of FR Yugoslavia sets out that all shall be equal before the law.

The Constitution of the Republic of Serbia in its Article 13 stipulates that citizens shall be equal in their rights and duties and that they shall enjoy equal protection before state and other agencies irrespective of their race, sex, birth, language, nationality, social origin, property or other personal status. Similar to the federal Constitution, the Constitution of the Republic of Serbia, too, prohibits discrimination in an indirect manner, by stipulating that citizens shall be equal irrespective of the specifically listed personal statuses. Article 1, paragraph 1, of the Constitution of the Republic of Serbia guarantees to everyone equal protection in proceedings before a court of law, other state agency or any other agency or organization.

The Constitution of the Republic of Montenegro in its Article 15 specifies that citizens shall be equal irrespective of any specificity or personal status and that they shall all be equal before the law.

2.  The constitutional proclamation of equality and prohibition of discrimination are more specifically governed by a series of regular laws which have been adopted at the federal level or the levels of the federal units. The Law on the Protection of Freedoms and Rights of National Minorities in its Article 3, paragraph 1, explicitly stipulates that any kind of discrimination shall be prohibited, be it on the basis of nationality, race, language, against persons belonging to national minorities. The provision of paragraph 2 of the same Article specifies that agencies of the federation, republic, autonomous province, city and municipality may not adopt legal enactments or take measures in violation of paragraph 1 of that Article. Discrimination is a criminal offence in the Yugoslav legal system. Proceeding from the provision of the Constitution of FR Yugoslavia which stipulates that any incitement or encouragement of national, racial, religious or other inequality shall be unconstitutional and punishable, FR Yugoslavia’s Criminal Code in its Articles 134, 154, paragraph 1, and 186 provides for imprisonment for a term of 3 months to 5 years for persons who violate human rights of persons belonging to national minorities, foment racial, religious or other intolerance or commit any discrimination, or grant a privilege, in an official procedure on grounds of national, ethnic or religious affiliation. The laws on schools adopted at the levels of federal units also penalize discrimination in education. The Law on Elementary Schools of the Republic of Serbia, by virtue of its Article 7, prohibits all activities in schools which threaten or disparage groups or individuals on the basis of race, nationality, language, religion or sex, i.e. political affiliation, as well as the incitement of such activities. That law provides for fines for persons who threaten or disparage groups or individuals on the basis of race, language, religion or sex. The Law on Secondary Schools of the Republic of Serbia contains analogous provisions. Discrimination is prohibited also in the field of labor relations. The Law on the Basic Principles of Labor Relations of FR Yugoslavia and the Law on Labor Relations in Government Agencies of the Republic of Serbia do not contain an explicit provision on the prohibition of discrimination, but stipulate that employment shall be available to every person who meets requirements for a particular job (such as: that they are medically fit, that they have the required educational level, that they are of age, etc.). The new Law on Labor of the Republic of Serbia in its Article 12 prescribes the prohibition of discrimination by specifying that a person seeking job, as well as an employee, may not be treated unfavorably relative to others on grounds of his sex, birth, language, race, nationality, religion, etc. Discrimination is forbidden also in the area of public information. The Broadcasting Law of the Republic of Serbia in its Article 3, item 6, sets out that the regulation of relations in the area of broadcasting shall be based, inter alia, on the principles of objectivity, prohibition of discrimination and transparency of the procedure for granting broadcasting licenses. The prohibition of discrimination in the said law is more specifically governed by a number of other provisions. Article 38 of the Broadcasting Law lays down that a license for broadcasting radio and TV programs shall be granted under equal conditions. Article 77 of that Law prescribes that public interest in the area of the public broadcasting service shall be pursued by ensuring that the programs produced and broadcast within the framework of the public broadcasting service secure diversity and mutual harmonization of the contents fostering democratic values of contemporary society and, in particular, the respect for human rights and cultural, national, ethnic and political pluralism. With a view to pursuing public interest in the area of the public broadcasting service, Article 78 of the Broadcasting Law of the Republic of Serbia specifies that the organizations authorized to perform public broadcasting services shall be obliged to produce and broadcast programs intended for all segments of society without discrimination and with special attention paid to specific social groups such as children and youth, minority and ethnic groups, the handicapped, the socially and medically vulnerable, etc. Article 5 of the Law on Public Information of the Republic of Montenegro provides for the right of all natural and legal persons to participate under equal conditions in public information.

3. Roma organizations and associations point to the fact that in the reality of social life there are cases of discrimination against the Roma. Especially important is the case of the eviction of the Roma from their settlements Tošin Bunar and Gazela in Belgrade, which was carried out in 2002. The eviction is a consequence of unsettled ownership issues. The state will, in agreement with the Belgrade City Council, find alternative accommodation for the evicted Roma families in reply to their justified objections.

 

Individual cases of discrimination against the Roma have been solved in judicial proceedings in which the rights of the Roma have been protected. Thus, in the Municipal Court in Sabac, a case of racial discrimination was tried, which is one of rare examples of such trials in this region. A non-governmental organization for the protection of human rights, the Humanitarian Law Center, pressed charges against a manager and owner of a Sabac firm because three Roma were denied admission to the swimming pool owned by him on 8 July 2000, with an explanation that «the Roma are not allowed to enter the pool area». The Municipal Court in Sabac ordered in its ruling of 2002 that Sports and Recreational Center to run an advertisement at its expense in the daily paper Politika with a public apology to the Roma whose rights had been violated by the said act of discrimination. The same ruling ordered the Sports and Recreational Center to put an end to any discrimination in providing services, thus completely honoring the request from the charges pressed by the Humanitarian Law Center. Still, despite the above examples of efforts to prevent discrimination, i.e. to redress its consequences, it is beyond doubt that in the reality of social life a lot more has to be done in the eradication of that problem. Some of the measures described in the comment on paragraph 2 of Article 4 of the Framework Convention constitute genuine efforts on the part of the authorities to advance the status of the Roma national minority.

Paragraph 2

1.   The Constitution of FR Yugoslavia in its Article 19 prescribes that the freedoms, rights and duties of man and the citizen which ensure the equality of people and citizens in FR Yugoslavia shall be laid down by the Constitution itself. The above provision of the Constitution of FR Yugoslavia in effect prescribes that the equality of people in FR Yugoslavia is secured by determining equal and the same freedoms, rights and duties and that these freedoms and rights, as well as duties, are enshrined in the Constitution itself. In other words, people are equal because they enjoy freedoms and rights on an equal footing, i.e. they have equal duties. In the reality of social life, in the exercise of the freedoms and rights guaranteed by the Constitution of FR Yugoslavia, conditions for full and effective equality are not always in place. To that effect, it is possible to take measures for achieving full and effective equality, despite the fact that freedoms, rights and duties are proclaimed by the Constitution. The Constitution prescribes a legal framework and necessary conditions for the equality of people in society. The effective equality, particularly in different areas of social life, is difficult to foresee and secure, and therefore, it is possible, without infringing upon the equality of enjoying the same freedoms and rights guaranteed by the Constitution, to prescribe the measures for its achievement by enactments of lower legal rank. To that end, the federal Law on the Protection of Freedoms and Rights of National Minorities in its Article 4, paragraph 1, stipulates in general terms that the authorities in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia may, in accordance with the Constitution and law, adopt regulations, bylaws and take measures with a view to securing full and effective equality between persons belonging to national minorities and members of the majority nation. Taking into account a specially difficult economic, social and other status of the Roma, the provision of paragraph 2 of the same Article specifies in particular that the authorities shall adopt legal enactments and take measures aimed at advancing the status of persons belonging to the Roma nationality. Thus, while with respect to other minorities the Law provides for a possibility to adopt relevant regulations, bylaws and measures aimed at securing full and effective equality of these collectivities, i.e. persons belonging to them, if appropriate, when it comes to the Roma minority, the Law itself explicitly provides for an obligation of the authorities to take concrete steps in order to improve its status.

By virtue of a number of laws enacted at the federal level and the levels of the federal units, measures have been prescribed whose basic goal is the promotion of equality. Such measures are prescribed also by numerous bylaws.

2. In the field of economic life measures have been taken for the promotion of equality in the regions inhabited by national minorities, which are underdeveloped in comparison with other regions in FR Yugoslavia.

2.1. It should be specially pointed to a series of measures taken in the domain of economic life in three municipalities in the south of Serbia inhabited by the Albanian national minority. The Coordination Body of the federal and republican governments for the south of Serbia spent 500 million dinars in 2001 out of the Budget of the Republic of Serbia for a number of activities aimed at promoting full and effective equality in the domain of economic life between persons belonging to national minorities and the majority. The above amount was mainly spent on support to business activities of firms in the municipalities of Presevo, Bujanovac and Medvedja. Part of the resources was spent on paying minimum wages in certain firms in that region. Companies which received assistance employ around 1,200 workers, and in such a manner, by means of financial incentives, their living standards have significantly improved and confidence in public institutions restored. The companies that received assistance are ‘Kristal, ‘Termovent’, ‘Prolece’, ‘Gumaplastika’, ‘Integral’, etc. Bearing in mind that in the municipalities in the south of Serbia livestock breeding is an exceptionally important economic activity, the Coordination Body set aside resources in the course of 2001 also for the insemination of cows and procurement of cattle, as well as for the development of hunting. In the domain of infrastructure in the south of Serbia, aid was afforded for building, reconstruction, resurfacing and winter maintenance of local roads and urban traffic routes. By funding repairs of the local hydro-systems and irrigation system not only water supply was improved but new jobs for the local population were also created. In 2002, the Coordination Body continued to provide material and financial, as well as professional and technical assistance for initiated and newly contracted activities in order to create more favorable conditions for life and work of the entire population of the south of Serbia. In the first six months of 2002, 340 million dinars out of FR Yugoslavia’s and Republic of Serbia’s budgets was spent. In 2002, in the south of Serbia, the work on economic rehabilitation of companies was continued, through assistance for launching production programs. A number of companies covered by that program employ a large number of Albanians from the south of Serbia. A program for rapid employment, implemented in the south of Serbia in cooperation with UNDP, is of special importance to the advancement of full and effective equality in the domain of economic life. Also important for the economy of the south of Serbia are the programs for reconstruction of power transmission grids in certain units of local self-government and the continuation of artificial insemination of cattle, which is of special significance to that cattle-raising region.

2.2 A special measure for the promotion of equality in the domain of economic life is the holding of a mini-donor conference for the Municipality of Dimitrovgrad, inhabited by persons belonging to the Bulgarian national minority. The Conference was held under the auspices of the Federal Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities on 25 and 26 May 2002 with the participation of several international organizations active in FR Yugoslavia. The Conference deliberated on aid projects for the construction of local infrastructure and projects for assistance to small- and medium-sized enterprises in that municipality.

3. The most important measures taken with a view to promoting effective equality in the domain of social life have been taken with an aim to recruit persons belonging to the Albanian national minority in the police force. It is part of a broader plan for the reintegration of the Albanian national minority into FR Yugoslavia’s social life – the Program for the Settlement of the Crisis, which broke out as a result of activities of Albanian extremist groups in the municipalities of Presevo, Bujanovac and Medvedja, developed by the Coordination Body for the south of Serbia. In that context, after numerous meetings with representatives of the Albanian community and the OSCE, agreement was reached on the necessity to form a multiethnic police force in the three municipalities in the south of Serbia populated by the Albanian national minority. The Multiethnic Police in the south of Serbia is not a separate police force of that region, but an integral part of the Republic of Serbia’s police. A specific feature of the Multiethnic Police is that its establishment facilitates the employment of the Albanians in the police of the Republic of Serbia, thus building confidence among different national communities in that region. The facilitating of the employment of Albanians in the police force was made possible by establishing a special national composition key for the enrolment of candidates in training courses, of which there were three kinds, with four groups of takers. The national composition which was envisaged for the first group of takers was 65 percent of Albanians and 35 percent of Serbs, and for the second group it was envisaged that the candidates belonging to the Albanian national minority account for 60 percent of the takers, for the third group it was envisaged that the takers belonging to the Albanian national minority account for 55 percent of takers, while for the fourth and last group it was envisaged to have the same percentage of Serbian and Albanian takers. Persons belonging to the Roma nationality were also admitted to the training for the Multiethnic Police. The training program for the Multiethnic Police commenced on 6 August 2001, with the beginning of the first course, and was completed on 27 June 2002. A total of 435 candidates completed the courses and they have been included in the police units of the Republic of Serbia performing regular activities in the municipalities in the south of Serbia. Out of 435 takers who completed the course, 276 are Albanians, 155 are Serbs and 4 others (Roma and Montenegrins).

4. In the domain of political life in the Republic of Montenegro there are legal arrangements by means of which certain forms of affirmative action in favor of persons belonging to the Albanian national minority have been introduced. The Law on the Election of Councilors and Deputies of the Republic of Montenegro provides for such measures at the stages of nomination of candidates and distribution of seats won in an election. Article 43 of the Law on the Election of Councilors and Deputies stipulates that for political parties or groups of citizens representing the Albanians in Montenegro, a slate of candidates for councilors of local councils of units of local self-government shall be approved if supported by the signatures of not less than 200 voters, i.e. that a slate of candidates for deputies to the Assembly of Montenegro shall be approved if supported by the signatures of not less than 1,000 voters. The above arrangements reduce the threshold for approving slates of candidates as prescribed for other parties and groups of citizens, which is 1 percent of the number of voters in an electoral precinct (for local elections, the electoral precinct is a whole unit of local self-government, while for a parliamentary election, the electoral precinct is the whole of the Republic of Montenegro). As for the distribution of seats won in a parliamentary election, it is prescribed that by virtue of a decision of the Assembly of the Republic of Montenegro special polling stations shall be determined where five deputies shall be elected out of the total number of deputies. The Assembly of the Republic of Montenegro has determined that the special polling stations are in the areas populated by the Albanian national minority. This form of national gerrymandering should facilitate the election of Albanian representatives to the Parliament of the Republic of Montenegro, i.e. it is supposed to ensure full and effective equality with respect to the election of popular representatives.

5.The largest number of measures for the promotion of full and effective equality is envisaged in the domain of cultural life and education.

5.1.The Law on the Protection of Freedoms and Rights of National Minorities stipulates that a minimum number of students may be prescribed for the exercise of the right to education in the languages of minorities, but that the said number may be even lower than the minimum statutory number of students required for ensuring appropriate forms of instruction and education. The laws of the Republic of Serbia on schools set out that elementary and secondary schools shall organize instruction for persons belonging to national minorities if not less than 15 students have applied, which is less than the number required for the instruction in the Serbian language (up to 30 students). The curricula in the language of a national minority may be taught to a smaller number of students, provided that the Minister of Education agrees to that. The above example is not the only case of statutory regulation of a basis for the taking of measures for the promotion of equality in the field of culture and education. Article 14, paragraph 4, of the Law on the Protection of Freedoms and Rights of National Minorities sets forth that the state shall encourage international cooperation with a view to enabling persons belonging to national minorities to study abroad in their mother tongue and to have their degrees recognized in keeping with the law. Article 5, paragraph 3, of the said Law specifies that the state shall ensure certain privileges or exemptions from dues in the case of a financial or other donation from a domestic or foreign organization for the purpose of education in the languages of minorities. Article 17, paragraph 2, of the Law on the Protection of Freedoms and Rights of National Minorities stipulates that the state shall ensure in the programs of public service radio and television broadcasts from the field of culture in the languages of national minorities. Other legal arrangements whose aim is to promote the overall status of national minorities will be further elaborated in the comments on the implementation of other Articles of the Framework Convention.

5.2.Recognizing school diplomas from Kosovo and Metohija, previously recognized by the UNMIK Administration, constitutes a special form of taking measures for the promotion of full and effective equality. Bearing in mind that the holders of these diplomas are mainly persons belonging to the Albanian community, it is obvious that the mentioned measure contributes to their integration into FR Yugoslavia’s social life.

5.3. The measures for the promotion of full and effective equality in the field of culture and education have been taken also with respect to persons belonging to the Roma national minority. For 2002, the Federal Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities and the Ministry of Education of the Republic of Serbia have issued a decision to provide free textbooks to all students in the territory of the Republic of Serbia belonging to the Roma national minority. Moreover, the Federal Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities secures free transportation from home to school for students of Roma nationality in the municipality of Presevo in the south of Serbia.

5.4.The opening of Internet Centers in Presevo, Bujanovac, Prijepolje and Novi Pazar, and a planned opening of a center of that type in Backi Petrovac, where persons belonging to the Slovak national minority live, constitutes a special form of taking measures for the promotion of full and effective equality in the field of education. The Internet Centers have been opened under the auspices of the Federal Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities with the basic goal to enhance computer literacy and provide free access to the Internet.

Paragraph 3

1.The federal Law on the Protection of Freedoms and Rights of National Minorities in its Article 4, paragraph 3, explicitly prescribes that regulations, bylaws and measures passed, i.e. taken, with a view to ensuring full and effective equality among persons belonging to national minorities and those belonging to the majority nation may not be considered an act of discrimination.

Article 5

1.      The Parties undertake to promote the conditions necessary for persons belonging to national minorities to maintain and develop their culture, and to preserve the essential elements of their identity, namely their religion, language, traditions and cultural heritage.

2.      Without prejudice to measures taken in pursuance of their general integration policy, the Parties shall refrain from policies or practices aimed at assimilation of persons belonging to national minorities against their will and shall protect these persons from any action aimed at such assimilation.

Paragraph 1

1.The promotion of conditions necessary for the maintenance and development of the culture of persons belonging to national minorities and the preservation of the essential elements of their identity is carried out in FR Yugoslavia by means of provisions of certain laws and a special, new minority policy. The Constitution of FR Yugoslavia in its Article 11 stipulates that FR Yugoslavia shall guarantee the rights of national minorities to preserve, foster and express their ethnic, cultural, linguistic and other peculiarities. A similar provision is in the Constitution of the Republic of Montenegro, which in its Article 67, paragraph 1, guarantees to persons belonging to national minorities the protection of their national, cultural, linguistic and religious identity. The preservation of the identity of minorities is not explicitly mentioned in the Constitution of the Republic of Serbia, but the obligation to protect the identity of minorities can be derived from the interpretation of Article 3, paragraph 2, of the Constitution, which guarantees personal, political, national, economic, social, cultural and other rights of man and the citizen. The promotion of conditions necessary for the maintenance and development of the culture of persons belonging to national minorities and the preservation of the essential elements of their identity is more specifically governed by a series of relevant federal and republican regulations. Among them, the most important certainly is the Law on the Protection of Freedoms and Rights of National Minorities, which in its Article 12, paragraph 1, explicitly sets out that expressing, preserving, fostering, developing, conveying and publicly demonstrating national and ethnic, cultural, religious and linguistic peculiarities as part of the tradition of citizens, national minorities and persons belonging to them, shall be an inalienable individual and collective right. The provision of paragraph 2 of the same Article specifies that with a view to preserving and developing national and ethnic peculiarities, persons belonging to national minorities shall be entitled to set up their own cultural, artistic and scientific institutions, societies and associations in all fields of cultural and artistic life. The provision of paragraph 3 of the mentioned Article lays down that such institutions, societies and associations shall be independent in their work and that the state shall co-finance them commensurate with its abilities. For the encouragement of and support to these institutions, societies and associations special foundations may be established, as provided for by Article 12, paragraph 4, of the Law on the Protection of Freedoms and Rights of National Minorities.

2.The preservation of religion and language as essential elements of the identity of persons belonging to national minorities is described in the comment on the implementation of Articles 8 and 10 of the Framework Convention.

2.1  The maintenance and development of the culture of persons belonging to national minorities and the preservation of their tradition and cultural heritage is governed by a set of laws. The Law on the Protection of Freedoms and Rights of National Minorities in its Article 12, paragraph 5, explicitly stipulates that the museums, archives and institutions for the protection of cultural monuments, which have been founded by the state, shall ensure presentation and protection of cultural and historical heritage of national minorities from its territory, as well as that representatives of the national councils shall participate in the decision-making about the manner in which the cultural and historical heritage of their communities is to be presented. The law of the Republic of Serbia on the activities of public interest in the field of culture sets out that public interests in the field of culture shall be programs related to the culture of national minorities and care for the protection of their cultural heritage (Article 2, item 20). It is worth mentioning, as an illustration, also the provision of Article 10, item 2, of the Law on the Librarianship of the Republic of Serbia, which lays down that public interest in this field shall be the preparation of the current retrospective and other bibliography of the Serbian people and national minorities living in the Republic of Serbia.

2.2 In FR Yugoslavia, it is the ethnic cultural institutes,[20] communities[21] and societies[22] of the minority population that take care of their interests in the area of artistic creation and culture by developing programs and pursuing activities for the preservation and promotion of minority languages, literature, arts and folk dances. The protection of cultural heritage and the promotion of the cultural identity of minority communities are developed the most in Vojvodina, where the rich tradition of cultural creativity of minorities is either institutionalized or expressed through the work of amateur associations.

2.2.1. Theaters in the languages of national minorities are of special significance to the promotion and development of the culture of national minorities. In addition to professional theaters in the Hungarian language in Novi Sad, there are numerous amateur drama ensembles of the Slovak, Romanian and Ruthenian minorities in nine theaters. Festivals of folklore, literature and other cultural achievements and scientific gatherings in the minority languages are held on an annual basis.

Theaters by Language in Which They Perform in FR Yugoslavia[23]

Types of theaters and languages in which they perform

1998/1999[24]

FR Yugoslavia

Montenegro

Serbia total

Central Serbia

Vojvodina

Kosovo and Metohija

1.Professional theaters

41

2

39

27

12

 

Serbian

37

2

35

27

8

 

Serbian and Hungarian

1

-

1

-

1

 

Hungarian

3

-

3

-

3

 

Other languages

-

-

-

-

-

 

2. Children theaters

12

1

11

7

4

 

Serbian

9

1

8

7

1

 

Serbian and Hungarian

1

-

1

-

1

 

Serbian, Hungarian, Romanian, Ruthenian, Slovak

2

-

2

-

2

 

3. Amateur theaters

42

-

42

25

17

 

Serbian

31

-

31

23

8

 

Serbian and Slovak

1

-

1

-

1

 

Serbian and other languages

2

-

2

2

-

 

Hungarian

3

-

3

-

3

 

Romanian

1

-

1

-

1

 

Ruthenian

2

-

2

-

2

 

Slovak

2

-

2

-

2

 

Types of theaters and languages in which they perform

1999/2000[25]

FR Yugoslavia

Montenegro

Serbia total

Central Serbia

Vojvodina

Kosovo and Metohija

1. Professional theaters

41

2

39

26

13

 

Serbian

36

1

35

26

9

 

Serbian and Hungarian

1

-

1

-

1

 

Hungarian

3

-

3

-

3

 

Other languages

1

1

-

-

-

 

2 Children theaters

12

1

11

7

4

 

Serbian

8

1

7

7

1

 

Serbian and Hungarian

2

-

2

-

2

 

Serbian, Hungarian, Romanian, Ruthenian, Slovak

2

-

2

-

2

 

3. Amateur theaters

39

-

39

26

13

 

Serbian

30

-

30

25

5

 

Serbian and Slovak

1

-

1

-

1

 

Serbian and other languages

1

1

1

-

 

Hungarian

3

-

3

-

3

 

Romanian

-

-

-

-

-

 

Ruthenian

1

-

-

1

 

Slovak

3

-

3

-

3

 

In addition to theaters in the minority languages, there is also a range of activities for the preservation and promotion of minority languages, literature, arts, folk dances.

2.2.2.The ‘Sarvaš Gabor’ linguistic days, the writers’ meetings ‘Sentelekijevi dani’, the poets’ meetings ‘Ferenc Feher’ and festivals featuring art and folklore ensembles  ‘Durindo’ and ‘Đenđešbokreta’, as well as festivals ‘Vive-Vitkijevi dani’ and ‘Zasviraj sviralo, zasviraj’(Play, My Flute, Play), in the Hungarian language, are all traditionally held events.

In addition, the Vojvodina Hungarians, in cooperation with the Serbian Writers’ Club, the Serbian Cultural and Publishing Society and the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Serbia, organize a Literary Colony in Kanjiža and each year in September, an event in memory of Eržebet Berček, an authoress who lived and wrote in Vrsac, is held in that town. Also traditional are the linguistic days ‘Barci Geza’, organized by the Hungarian Language Department of the Faculty of Philology in Novi Sad, and a reciters’ contest ‘Nemeš Nađ Agneš’ in Subotica. Various art colonies organized in many towns of the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina are also traditional.

2.2.3. In addition to a regular festival of amateur theater ensembles, persons belonging to the Slovak national minority organize ‘Winter Meetings of Slovakists’ devoted to fostering and promoting literature in the Slovak language. Their accomplishments in the field of culture and folklore the Slovaks present also in traditional events such as ‘Slovak Popular Festivities’ [26], ‘ Sing and Dance’, ‘The Pivnica Field’, ‘Dance, Dance’ [27], ‘The Golden Dam’, etc. The Slovak national minority is famous for its naïve painting, which is associated in particular with the place called Kovačica. Entrusted with a task of caring for the art of naïve painters is the Ethno-Center ‘Babka’ from Kovačica. It is also the place where the World Day of the Mother Tongue is celebrated and as part of these celebrations also scientific symposia are held on the role of the mother tongue in the preservation of identity of all minorities. On 24 April 2002, under the aegis of the Federal Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities, an international gathering was held on the occasion of the 200th anniversary of Slovak settlement in the territory of Vojvodina.

2.2.4..Persons belonging to the Romanian national minority in Vojvodina hold literary meetings ‘Dr. Radu Flora’, gatherings of amateur theaters of Romanians in Vojvodina organized by the association of amateur theaters from Alibunar and festivals of folklore ensembles. In the organization of the Community of Romanians in Yugoslavia, the ‘Festival of Fanfare’ is held in Vrsac each year in November. In the organization of the Romanian Foundation for Ethnography and Folklore the ‘Children’s Festival of Romanian Music and Folklore’ is held in Alibunar (the recently held one was the eighth) and on Christmas, the ‘Holiday of Winter Customs’ is traditionally celebrated in Begejci. The literary artistic society ‘Tibiskus’ from Uzdin in AP Vojvodina, with the financial assistance of the state, is the organizer of the Meeting of Romanian Writers.

2.2.5.In the Ruthenian language, similar annual meetings are organized of theater, folklore and literary societies, and especially prominent in terms of their subjects are scientific gatherings devoted to Ruthenian ethnic schools and philological problems. Specially important are the annual festival of the amateur drama of the Ruthenians and Ukrainians ‘Petro Riznić Đađa’, the annual festival of music and folklore ‘The Red Rose’, the annual festival of authentic folklore of the Ruthenians and Ukrainians ‘The Kucur Harvest’, etc.

2.2.6.Persons belonging to the Ukrainian national minority foster their cultural heritage in an organized fashion, through various cultural and artistic societies. With a view to fostering the Ukrainian language, the Society for the Ukrainian Language, Literature and Culture was established, which organizes summer camps of Ukrainian studies.

2.2.7.Also traditional are the days of culture organized by persons belonging to the Hungarian, Slovak and Roma national minorities in Vojvodina, and an example of good practice of living in a multicultural environment is ‘Družjanica’ – a series of ethno events of the Croats, Bunjevci, Sokci and Hungarians celebrating the end of harvest in the area of northern Backa in Vojvodina. Persons belonging to the Croatian national minority organize a festival of children’s folklore ‘Children are the Embellishment of the World.’

            There are other parts of Serbia inhabited by persons belonging to national  minorities where their cultural associations are also active, thus contributing to cultural heritage of both its ethnic and the entire multicultural Yugoslav community.

2.2.8.In Sandzak, persons belonging to the Bosniac national minority, organized in several non-governmental organizations and associations, are trying to protect the heritage of the region, which is part of Oriental and European cultural heritage. In that area artistic and scientific associations, such as the Cultural Society «Revival», «The Sandzak Intellectual Club» and the «Cultural and Publishing Society of the Bosniacs» are working on the revitalization of the autochthonous values of the Bosniac identity. The Cultural and Educational Community of the town of Sjenica, with the assistance of the Federal Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities was the organizer of several literary events.

Persons belonging to the Roma, Bulgarian and Vlach minorities have their cultural and folklore associations in Central Serbia  (excluding Vojvodina), which organize their annual festivals of arts and culture, as well as literary and art colonies.

2.2.9.  Achievements of modern culture and arts of the Roma national minority are presented during the ‘Roma Culture Week’. It is specially important to point out that the ‘Festival of Cultural Achievements of the Roma’ has been held in Yugoslavia for decades now, as well as that the World Day of the Roma, 8 April, was celebrated under the auspices of the Federal Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities, with the participation of several Roma organizations which prepared special programs for that occasion (the association ‘Roma Music’, the Roma Information Center, the publishing house ‘Rominterpres’, etc.). The Roma Cultural Center from Leskovac organized in 2001 and 2002 the Festival of Knowledge, Sports and Culture for Roma children and its representatives took part in the Festival of Ethnic Film in Poland.

2.2.10. In Bosilegrad, which is mainly inhabited by persons belonging to the Bulgarian national minority, an exhibition was organized, while in Belgrade, in June 2002, with the assistance of the Federal Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities, the National Library from Dimitrovgrad and the Bosilegrad Cultural Hall organized exhibitions of paintings and literary evenings of the Bulgarian national minority.

2.2.11. Cultural life of the Vlach national minority has found its expression in the work of a range of folklore societies which cherish and pass on the picturesque tradition, and their most famous traditional annual events are ‘Slatina Gathering’, ‘Motifs of Homolje’ and the festival of cultural clubs entitled ‘From May to May’.

2.2.12. Persons belonging to other national minorities also cooperate with the state in various cultural activities which improve conditions necessary for the maintenance and development of culture and identity of national minorities. The Cultural and Publishing Society of the Ashkali, the national minority on whose identity opinions differ both in science and social practice, in the course of 2001 and 2002, substantially assisted by the Federal Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities, was the organizer of a number of cultural and artistic events. Special attention needs to be drawn to the celebration of the Ashkali Day, 15 April.

2.2.13. In the nineties, the German Popular Alliance was established in FR Yugoslavia. With the establishment of this organization, cultural activities of the German national minority were renewed, the most prominent among them being the women’s choir and the drama club. The German Alliance founded also a special library with more than 2,000 volumes. The Association of the Germans called ‘Donau’ organized in 1993 the first German ‘Brezel’ ball, and after that a series of cultural events.

2.2.14. Persons belonging to the Bunjevci national minority traditionally hold their Festival of Popular Culture each September.

2.2.15. In the Republic of Montenegro, persons belonging to national minorities cherish and develop their culture by being active in non-governmental and cultural associations, such as the Croatian cultural society ‘Napredak (Progress)’, Bosniac/Moslem associations ‘Revival, ‘Almanach’ and the ‘Center for Studies of Cultural Heritage of Moslems – Bosniacs in Montenegro’, the ‘Moslem Cultural and Publishing Society’, Albanian institutions ‘Art Club’ and ‘Don Djon Buzuku’, etc.

2.2.16. The Federal Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities initiated the organization of the Days of Culture of National Minorities. The underlying idea of the project is to present cultural achievements of each national minority living in FR Yugoslavia in Belgrade, through separate events.

3.Specialized publishing houses were entrusted with the publishing activity in the languages of national minorities, which used to publish dozens of new titles a year until the mid-nineties. Just one of them, ‘Forum’, which publishes books in the Hungarian language, in the period from 1953, which is the year of its foundation, to 1995, published more than 2,000 titles. In the early nineties, ‘Forum’ used to publish about 40 books a year on average (with the average circulation of 1,000 copies), 7 in the Slovak language (with the circulation of 500 copies), and the figures for titles and circulation of editions in the Romanian and Ruthenian languages are close to the above mentioned.

There are also smaller, but of no less cultural significance, publishing houses, such as ‘Kultura’, which publishes books in the Slovak language, ‘Libertatea’ and ‘Tibiskus’ in Romanian, ‘Ruske slovo’ in Ruthenian, ‘Bratstvo (Brotherhood)’ in Bulgarian, ‘Romainterpress’ in the Roma language. In addition to these publishing houses, there are also other publishers specialized in editions in the minority languages. The founder of the majority of publishing houses in AP Vojvodina is the Assembly of that autonomous province.

Books and Brochures in Vojvodina
in the Most Widely Spoken Minority Languages

(1989-1997)[28]

 

Hungarian

Romanian

Slovak

Total

Year

Number

Circulation in thousands

Number

Circulation in thousands

Number

Circulation in thousands

Number

Circulation in thousands

1989

116

403

43

26

48

66

207

495

1990

60

147

26

15

19

22

105

184

1991

58

173

26

16

23

28

107

217

1994

42

127

8

4

11

13

61

144

1995

63

189

18

13

33

34

114

236

1996

80

190

6

6

32

28

118

224

1997

62

134

12

9

28

37

102

180

                     

 

Publishing Activity by Language and Script in 2000

 

Books and Brochures

Newspapers

Magazines

Total

In Cyrillic

In Latin

In Cyrillic and Latin

Total

In Cyrillic

In Latin

In Cyrillic and Latin

Total

In Cyrillic

In Latin

In Cyrillic and Latin

1. Total

5886

2522

2419

845

629

368

250

11

564

213

341

10

Serbian

5036

2615

1915

506

572

360

204

8

457

206

244

7

Albanian

11

-

8

3

...

-

...

-

...

...

...

...

Bulgarian

7

7

-

-

2

2

-

-

1

1

-

-

Slovak

46

-

27

19

7

-

7

-

5

-

5

-

Hungarian

193

-

164

29

23

-

23

-

9

-

9

-

Romanian

43

-

34

9

9

-

9

-

2

-

2

-

Ruthenian

-

-

-

-

3

3

-

-

2

2

-

-

Turkish

4

-

4

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

In several languages

377

-

168

209

9

1

5

3

19

2

14

3

Other languages

169

1

100

68

4

2

2

-

69

2

67

-

2. Total circulation in thousands

11081

6874

2024

2183

307430

233984

64458

3168

4153

1267

2842

43

Serbian

9183

6866

1531

787

300974

239561

58273

3139

3974

1259

2672

42

Albanian

11

-

8

3

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

Bulgarian

7

6

-

1

100

100

-

-

1

1

-

-

Slovak

34

-

22

12

388

-

388

-

20

-

20

-

Hungarian

270

-

188

82

5540

-

5540

-

20

-

20

-

Romanian

29

-

23

6

234

-

234

-

3

-

3

-

Ruthenian

-

-

-

-

16

16

-

-

4

4

-

-

Turkish

4

-

3

1

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

In several languages

1082

-

175

906

56

6

21

29

21

1

19

1

Other language

461

2

75

384

122

121

1

-

110

2

108

-

                               

 In Vojvodina’s network of libraries, percentages of books in the languages of national minorities in their respective holdings are proportionate to the ethnic composition of its population: 76.67 percent is in Serbian, 15.65 percent in Hungarian, 1.12 percent in Slovak, 1.04 percent in Romanian and 0.22 percent in the Ruthenian language.

Data on the library holdings in the languages of minorities for the rest of the country have not been updated, with the exception of the library in Dimitrovgrad, where one third of the holdings is in the Bulgarian language. The Federal Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities secured substantial resources for the procurement of books for a library of the Slovak national minority in Bački Petrovac.

4. National symbols, insignia and holidays are a special form of tradition and cultural heritage of national minorities, which enjoys legal protection in FR Yugoslavia.

Proceeding from the realization that the possibility to show in public national symbols not only contributes to the preservation of national identity, but also to the feeling of genuine freedom and equality, the federal Constitution in its Article 11 stipulates that FR Yugoslavia shall recognize and guarantee the right of national minorities to the use of national symbols. The said right is explicitly guaranteed by this constitutional provision in accordance with international law. The Constitution of the Republic of Montenegro by virtue of its Article 69 also proclaims the right to the use and public display of national symbols, but recognizes this right as the right of persons belonging to national minorities. The use of national symbols is more specifically regulated by the federal Law on the Protection of Freedoms and Rights of National Minorities, which in its Article 16 specifies that persons belonging to national minorities shall have the right to choose and use national symbols and insignia. Paragraph 2 of Article 16 of the Law on the Protection of Freedoms and Rights of National Minorities lays down that the national symbol and insignia of a national minority may not be the same as the symbol, i.e. insignia of another state. The intention of the legislator obviously was to find symbols which would represent a national minority as a whole, and not some other state. Such arrangement does not hinder the choice and use of traditional symbols which may even be similar to the symbols and insignia of other states, but under no circumstances may they be identical to them. The Law on the Protection of Freedoms and Rights of National Minorities provides for a special procedure for establishing national symbols, holidays and insignia. Symbols, holidays and insignia of national minorities should be proposed by their respective national councils and confirmed by the Federal Council on National Minorities. Also a very liberal arrangement provided for by the Law on the Protection of Freedoms and Rights of National Minorities is that the symbols and insignia of national minorities may be displayed on official occasions, on public holidays and holidays of a national minority, on buildings and premises of local organs and organizations performing public powers in those regions where the language of a national minority is in official use, but that it is obligatory to display, together with the insignia and symbols of a national minority when used on official occasions, also the insignia and symbols of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, i.e. a member Republic. Provisions of republican laws provide for different arrangements. The Law on Local Self-Governance of the Republic of Serbia sets out that on official premises of a body of a local self-government unit only state symbols and symbols of the local self-government unit may be displayed (Article 118, paragraph 2). The above arrangement is not harmonized with the provisions of the Law on the Protection of Freedoms and Rights of National Minorities and therefore a procedure has been instituted before FR Yugoslavia’s Constitutional Court for the assessment of how harmonized this provision of the republican Law on Local Self-Governance is with the federal Law on the Protection of Freedoms and Rights of National Minorities. The procedure is underway and a ruling of the Federal Constitutional Court is expected. The Law on the Use of National Symbols of the Republic of Montenegro specifies that in units and direct structures of local governments in the regions where persons belonging to national minorities constitute the majority population, on public holidays of the Republic of Montenegro, apart from state symbols, also the national symbols of national minorities shall be displayed.

5. With a view to exercising individual and collective rights of national minorities and improving conditions necessary for the maintenance and development of their identity, several bodies have been set up in FR Yugoslavia.

5.1. The Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities has been established at the federal level, and is in charge of affairs in the field of the exercise of minority rights. It is particularly important to point out that the Ministry monitors the situation and proposes measures related to the exercise of rights of national minorities. Through the Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities, the Federal Government of FR Yugoslavia is in permanent contact with minority political, cultural and educational associations. The Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities opened its Office in Bujanovac, which pursues activities in the territory of three municipalities in the south of Serbia. The Office receives complaints about all kinds of violation of human rights, provides free legal aid to the local population and works on the implementation of the Law on the Protection of Freedoms and Rights of National Minorities.

   5.2.   The federal Law on the Protection of Freedoms and Rights of National Minorities stipulates that, in addition to the Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities, also a Federal Council on National Minorities shall be established at the federal level. The Federal Council on National Minorities will be a body of FR Yugoslavia’s Federal Government, and therefore the Government will determine its composition and competencies. A specific feature of the Federal Council on National Minorities will be mandatory participation of representatives of national councils of national minorities in its work. By virtue of the Law on the Protection of Freedoms and Rights of National Minorities, the Federal Council on National Minorities will be in charge of confirming the choice of national symbols, insignia and holidays of minorities.

  5.3.    The national councils of national minorities are under the Law on the Protection of Freedoms and Rights of National Minorities bodies elected by persons belonging to national minorities. The national councils of national minorities shall represent national minorities in the fields of the official use of language, education, culture and information in the languages of minorities. Article 19, paragraph 7, of the Law on the Protection of Freedoms and Rights of National Minorities specifies that the councils shall decide on particular issues in those fields, and thus the Law has created a legal basis, but also imposed an obligation on the state, to delegate to the national councils the exercise of certain public powers in the fields of importance to the preservation of identity of national minorities. In this manner, in FR Yugoslavia a process has been opened of creating a special form of cultural autonomy of national minorities, and the national councils will have no characteristics of associations of citizens. Instead, they will be authorized representatives of minorities as collectivities. The process of setting up national councils and the Federal Council on National Minorities is underway. In late July, the Rules on the Manner of Operation of Electors’ Assemblies for the election of the councils of national minorities were published, as a bylaw whose adoption was necessary for the beginning of the process of constituting national councils. After the publication of the Rules, the registration of electors for the election of national council started, and the first electors’ assemblies are expected to be held in September and October.

5.4.In the Republic of Montenegro, the Constitution stipulates that the Republican Council for the Protection of the Rights of Persons Belonging to National and Ethnic Groups shall be set up for the purpose of preserving and protecting national, ethnic, cultural, linguistic and religious identity of persons belonging to national groups. This body in the Republic of Montenegro is chaired by the President of the Republic. Members of the Council, at the proposal of the President of the Republic, are elected by the Assembly of the Republic of Montenegro. The Council will be responsible for monitoring relations and phenomena of importance to the exercise of and respect for the rights of persons belonging to national minorities as proclaimed by the Constitution of the Republic of Montenegro and for informing competent authorities of its observations, opinions and proposal for the purpose of taking appropriate measures. Under Article 5 of the Decision on the Competencies and Composition of the Republican Council for the Protection of the Rights of Persons Belonging to National Minorities, the Council shall institute a procedure for rescinding or overturning bylaws of agencies and organizations, which violate the rights of persons belonging to national minorities. Paragraph 2 of the same Article empowers the Council to propose to the competent authority, i.e. organization, the suspension of the implementation of bylaws or other legal enactments, adopted outside an administrative or judicial procedure, i.e. of an act, if the implementation of that enactment or performance of the act would result in violation of the rights of persons belonging to national minorities. Resources for the operation of the Council are secured in the Budget of the Republic. In the Government of the Republic of Montenegro, there is a separate agency, the Ministry of National Minorities and Ethnic Groups. In Montenegro a decision was recently passed on the setting up of a Center for the Preservation and Development of Culture of National and Ethnic Groups. The Center is supposed to cooperate with mother countries of persons belonging to national and ethnic groups, develop publishing activity, encourage public debates, organize seminars and presentations. The Center has not yet started to work because its setting up is underway.

5.5. In the Republic of Serbia, within the National Assembly, a special Committee on Inter-Ethnic Relations has been set up. Under Article 50 of the Rules of Procedure of the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia, the Committee on Inter-Ethnic Relations reviews draft laws, other regulations and general enactments, as well as other issues “from the point of view of exercising national rights and inter-ethnic relations in the Republic.” The Rules also determine that the Committee comprises 21 members. In practice, 19 members take part in the work of the Committee. Out of that number, 3 Committee members are Hungarians, 2 are Bosniacs, and one Committee member is a Romanian. During the current tenure of the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia (since the December 2000 election), the Committee has met four times and gave its opinions on six bills of importance to the exercise of the rights of national minorities.

In the Republic of Serbia, two separate interministerial groups have been set up, comprising representatives of several relevant ministries. These are the Group for Roma Issues and the Group for National Minorities. Their primary task is to consider issues of importance to national minorities, for whose settlement interaction among different government agencies is necessary.

Several special Offices or Centers have been established in the Republic of Serbia, with the primary task of promoting and developing conditions required for the maintenance and development of culture of persons belonging to national minorities. The Multicultural Center in Belgrade, founded under the auspices of the Federal Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities in cooperation with non-governmental organizations, in order to ensure a more comprehensive presentation of the culture of national minorities is of special importance. The Multicultural Center has so far organized several exhibitions of paintings by academic painters from among the ranks of national minorities, as well as exhibitions of other works of art (naïve painting and works of art by Roma women), literary evenings of Bulgarian, Slovak and Ruthenian authors, language courses, etc. A special library, which is part of the Center, possesses in its holdings not only books in minority languages but also literature on minorities and minority rights and a collection of relevant documents.

In the Republic of Serbia, as an agency of AP Vojvodina’s government, the Provincial Secretariat for Regulations, Administration and National Minorities has been set up. On the basis of the Decision on the Provincial Administration, the Provincial Secretariat for Regulations, Administration and National Minorities performs tasks which are related to the exercise of rights of national minorities in the Province, the protection and promotion of collective and individual rights of national minorities in the Province, monitoring, analyses of the situation and the drawing up of draft regulations as well as the taking of other measures in the areas of the protection and exercise of rights of national minorities, cooperation with and assistance to social organizations, associations of citizens belonging to national minorities, the translation of regulations and bylaws into the languages of national minorities, monitoring and analyses of the situation of religions, churches and religious communities and it also proposes necessary measures in compliance with the regulations governing this area.

The Law on Local Self-Governance of the Republic of Serbia provides for the setting up of bodies at the local level, which will be responsible for reviewing the issues of realization, protection and promotion of national equality. Such bodies will be councils for inter-ethnic relations set up within the administrations of local self-government units in nationally mixed units of local self-government. The Law on Local Self-Governance of the Republic of Serbia sets forth that the nationally mixed units of local self-government shall be those units where one national community accounts for more than 5 percent of the total population, or where all minority national communities together account for more than 10 percent of the total population, based on the data from the most recent census. The Law on Local Self-Governance specifies that the councils for inter-ethnic relations shall be set up after the holding of next elections for councilors of assemblies of local self-government units.

6. After the democratic change in FR Yugoslavia, in October 2000, the pursuance of a new minority policy started. Through the mentioned agencies and organizations, the state provided financial and organizational support to a large number of cultural organizations of minorities and a number of minority cultural events, with a view to maintaining and developing culture of persons belonging to national minorities. In the course of 2001 and 2002, the Federal Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities organized and financially, or in some other manners, supported the holding of 86 cultural events and projects of importance to the cherishing of the culture of national minorities. Most of them (46) are newly established cultural events (music festivals, theatrical days, exhibitions of paintings, literary events, various art festivals, guest performances of various kinds abroad, etc.). Attention was also paid to the marking of traditional events and jubilees, and in the above-mentioned period, assistance was provided for the holding of 24 such events. Similarly, special attention was paid to capital investment in the renovation of cultural-historical and other facilities which are important to the preservation of essential elements of the identity of persons belonging to national minorities (16). Other agencies in charge of promoting conditions necessary for the maintenance and development of the culture of persons belonging to national minorities pursued similar activities. The Federal Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities paid special attention to projects in the publishing trade. In the course of 2001, the Ministry financed the publication of 12 titles. Of special importance are books in the Roma language – the magazine for children ²Čavrikano lil², the journal «Romology», «Primer of the Rights of the Child», «Children’s Book of Poems», the publication ‘We Are a Nation, and Not Gypsies’, as well as a special educational publication ‘Health Reader’. Assistance in the publishing of textbooks in minority languages is described in the comment on another Article of the Convention.

Information on the assistance provided by other government agencies (ministries of culture and ministries of education of Serbia and Montenegro) to minority associations and cultural events will be submitted at a later date.

Paragraph 2

1. FR Yugoslavia is truly committed to the building of a multicultural society. There is no state culture or state religion in the country. A whole set of legal and political documents partially presented in this report is aimed not only at the maintenance but also a further development of the national identity of national minorities. That is why the fact that in FR Yugoslavia there are no complaints about national minorities being exposed to assimilation contrary to the will of persons belonging to them does not come as a surprise.

There is a whole range of norms in the Yugoslav legal system, which specifically prohibit, i.e. prevent any measures and activities that are not based on free will, and are aimed at assimilation of minorities. The federal Law on the Protection of Freedoms and Rights of National Minorities in its Article 5, paragraph 1, explicitly stipulates that any act or measure of forced assimilation of persons belonging to national minorities shall be forbidden. In the said manner, the Law puts a ban on any measure of forced assimilation of minorities, irrespective of its originator (government agencies or some other entities).

There are also other provisions in the Law on the Protection of Freedoms and Rights of National Minorities which are aimed at the prevention of assimilation. Article 8 of the said Law provides for the protection of rights acquired by minorities before its coming into force, while Article 22 prohibits the taking of measures which change the population make-up in the areas inhabited by national minorities and which aggravate the enjoyment and exercise of rights pertaining to persons belonging to national minorities.

2.  It should be particularly emphasized that Yugoslav legislation provides also for a range of penal provisions, setting out penalties for the situation which leads or might lead to forced assimilation of minorities.

Likewise, the Criminal Code of the Republic of Serbia (Article 61) and the Criminal Code of the Republic of Montenegro (Article 43, paragraph 2) define as criminal offences, punishable by imprisonment, denying or restricting the right of persons belonging to national minorities to use their mother tongue and script. The above provisions are of particular importance in light of the fact that the prevention of free use of one’s mother tongue constitutes the fastest way to assimilation.

Article 6

The Parties shall encourage a spirit of tolerance and intercultural dialogue and take effective measures to promote mutual respect and understanding and co-operation among all persons living on their territory, irrespective of those persons' ethnic, cultural, linguistic or religious identity, in particular in the fields of education, culture and the media.

The Parties undertake to take appropriate measures to protect persons who may be subject to threats or acts of discrimination, hostility or violence as a result of their ethnic, cultural, linguistic or religious identity.

Paragraph 1

1.1. Encouragement and cherishing of a spirit of tolerance and intercultural dialogue is precious to multiethnic and multicultural societies, such as Yugoslav society. Mutual respect, understanding and cooperation among people of different nationalities, languages and religions, as well as among nationals of different states residing in the territory of FR Yugoslavia are one of the main objectives of the new minority policy in FR Yugoslavia. The creation of a society where the spirit of tolerance and intercultural dialogue would be well developed is a difficult task in a country in whose neighborhood inter-ethnic conflicts took place, resulting in hundreds of thousands of refugees fleeing them. After the democratic change in the country, a special Commission on Truth and Reconciliation was set up.

1.2.The cherishing of the spirit of tolerance and intercultural dialogue was the subject of some of the joint projects of non-governmental organizations and government agencies. In nationally mixed areas, round tables on tolerance and multiethnic sporting events were organized.

1.3.Considering that the lack of tolerance is most pronounced in the area of inter-ethnic relations and that national minorities would be true beneficiaries if tolerance were encouraged, the Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities launched in 2001 a special media campaign entitled ‘Tolerance’. It is a unique campaign for the promotion of tolerance and multiethnicity. The goals of the campaign are twofold: 1. It is a direct goal of the campaign to initiate the process of changing attitudes toward minority groups and develop a positive view on the minority issue; 2. An indirect goal of the campaign is to create awareness in the domestic and foreign public opinion that, after a while, FR Yugoslavia has become a region of tolerance, understanding and recognition for the richness through diversity.  There are three subjects of the campaign: 1. Relations between the majority and the minority; 2. The necessity of and richness through diversity; 3. The problem of discrimination. As part of the campaign, a whole spectrum of activities was initiated aimed at winning recognition for tolerance – in addition to an aggressive media campaign (videos on tolerance in the electronic media and advertisements in the press), the Federal Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities also promoted tolerance in schools and sporting competitions. To this end, special workshops were organized in schools, which were devoted to tolerance (April 2001 – Month of Tolerance in Schools – literary and art contests and prizes for the schools which are the most successful in developing tolerance), and in the region of southern Serbia, the Federal Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities was a sponsor of several multiethnic sporting competitions. A special aspect of the campaign ‘Tolerance’ was the sponsorship by the Federal Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities of concerts held under the title ‘Tolerance’, featuring the Nis Symphony Orchestra, in some of the nationally mixed places (e.g. Bujanovac). The campaign ‘Tolerance’ is one of the best-received media campaigns in FR Yugoslavia. According to opinion polls[29], 65,3 percent of respondents assessed that the campaign on tolerance was necessary. The campaign itself was rated 3.9 on a scale from 1 to 5. Certainly the most important result of the campaign so far is the reduction in ethnic distance by two degrees in the group of respondents who noticed the campaign relative to those respondents who did not notice the campaign.

1.4.The promotion of tolerance and intercultural dialogue is carried out also through the operation of other agencies and centers. The Coordination Body for the south of Serbia, as part of its project for the integration of Albanians in social life, had a separate campaign for the development of a multiethnic society in the south of Serbia. The Multicultural Center organized in Belgrade weekend workshops for children with the topic ‘Struggle Against Prejudices’.

1.5. special measure which should contribute to the integration of Albanians in Republic of Serbia’s social life, and thus to the creation of a multicultural society, is an amnesty for certain criminal offences committed in the south of Serbia. The Law on Amnesty stipulates that amnesty shall be granted to those Yugoslav citizens who committed in the territory of three municipalities of southern Serbia (Preševo, Medvedja and Bujanovac), i.e. with respect to whom there are reasonable grounds to believe that they have committed, the criminal offence of terrorism and the criminal offence of association for the purpose of pursuing subversive activities. The amnesty included all the persons who were members of the so-called Liberation Army of Preševo, Bujanovac and Medvedja.

2. Within its abilities, FR Yugoslavia is seeking to take effective measures for the promotion of respect, understanding and cooperation among people of different nationalities. Such measures are taken in various fields of social life.

2.1.In the field of education, by virtue of the Law on the Protection of Freedoms and Rights of National Minorities, it is envisaged that curricula in educational institutions and schools with instruction in the Serbian language contain teaching material on history, culture and status of national minorities, as well as other information which enhances mutual tolerance and co-existence. Furthermore, with a view to enhancing tolerance to national minorities, Article 13, paragraph 7, of that Law explicitly stipulates that curricula in educational institutions which give instruction in the Serbian language, in those areas where the language of a national minority is in official use, should include the possibility of learning the language of the national minority. In faculties of philology and philosophy, which are parts of various universities in FR Yugoslavia, there is a possibility to study languages and literatures of all the peoples to which national minorities in FR Yugoslavia belong.

A special form of political education utilized in FR Yugoslavia for the promotion of respect, understanding and cooperation among people of different nationalities are multiethnic educational camps initiated by the Federal Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities, under the title ‘The Culture of Co-Existence’. Since mid-2001, seven such camps were organized in different places (Belgrade, Novi Pazar, Novi Sad, Zrenjanin, Belgrade, Bujanovac, Niš). In each of the camps participated several dozen young people, mainly university students, from all parts of FR Yugoslavia, representatives of national communities, non-governmental organizations and youth clubs of political parties. In the camps, the instruction was held every day, thus offering to these young people an opportunity not only to be together, but also to receive education on various topics related to the basic topic The Culture of Co-Existence (freedom of religion, discrimination, chauvinism) and to learn in psychological workshops to combat prejudices and stereotypes.

Despite the fact that a system is in place in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia of education of minorities in their mother tongue at all the levels, some of minority organizations express their dissatisfaction with curricula. With the implementation of the new Law on the Protection of Freedoms and Rights of National Minorities this issue will be settled by including national minorities themselves, through the participation of their national councils, in the decision-making on curricula and teaching materials. The Federal Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities has set up an expert team whose tasks are as follows:

1.        to make a complete analysis of textbooks in minority languages;

2.        to propose a list of teaching materials that could be offensive and which should be altered or excluded;

3.        to propose new teaching materials;

4.        to propose teaching materials which would be taught as part of the instruction in the Serbian language, geared to presenting the life and customs of minorities.

The expert team of the Ministry carried out an analysis and proposed alterations in the teaching materials which might be offensive to the religious and national feelings of persons belonging to national minorities. A big conference held in Belgrade on 1 and 2 August 2002 under the auspices of the Federal Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities and the Ministry of Education of the Republic of Serbia was devoted to the above problem.

2.2. In the field of the media, efficient measures for the promotion of mutual respect, understanding and cooperation are based on the legal provisions of the laws of the Yugoslav federal units which govern the basic principles of broadcasting radio and TV programs, and which in the field of public information specify that the orientation in programming of the media should ensure the respect for and expression of cultural and linguistic identity of national minorities (Article 78, item 4, of the Broadcasting Law of the Republic of Serbia and Article 25, paragraph 2, of the Law on Public Information of the Republic of Montenegro). The harmonization of the programming of the media with the programming principles is overseen by special bodies whose composition is mixed. As for the Republic of Serbia, it is envisaged that the Council of the Broadcasting Agency, which adopts all the decisions falling in its competencies, comprises nine members, of whom two are appointed by the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia, at the proposal of churches and religious associations, i.e. local non-governmental organizations and associations of citizens primarily dealing with the protection of the freedom of speech, the protection of the rights of national minorities and the protection of the rights of the child, through mutual agreement (Article 23 of the Broadcasting Law of the Republic of Serbia).

3. Efficient measures for the promotion of mutual respect, understanding and cooperation are taken also at the local level. By means of the round tables entitled ‘Role of the Local Community in Building Inter-Ethnic Confidence’ which started in Prijepolje on 18 May 2001, the Federal Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities sought to advance inter-ethnic dialogue and building political culture of dialogue and tolerance between representatives of minority and majority populations in the local governments, representatives of parliamentary and non-parliamentary parties from that area, representatives of local non-governmental organizations and representatives of the republican and federal authorities. A total of 10 round tables were held in local self-government units populated by persons belonging of different national minorities (Prijepolje, Novi Sad, Niš, Kovačica, Bujanovac, Dimitrovgrad, Medvedja, Subotica, Bački Petrovac and Bosilegrad).

Paragraph 2

1.  In addition to guaranteeing to national minorities and persons belonging to them the right to preservation, development and expression of their ethnic, cultural, linguistic, religious and other peculiarities, the Yugoslav legal system provides also for efficient measures for suppressing discrimination, i.e. threats, hostilities or violence directed against an individual because of his ethnic and other peculiarity. Thus, the Constitution of FR Yugoslavia in its Article 42, paragraph 1, prohibits, inter alia, activities of political, trade union, and other organizations aimed at violation of the guaranteed rights and liberties of man or the incitement of national, racial, religious or other intolerance and hatred. Furthermore, the Constitution in its Article 52 stipulates that any incitement and fomenting of national, racial, religious or other inequality, as well as incitement and fomenting of national, racial, religious and other hatred and intolerance shall be unconstitutional and punishable. In addition, Article 38, paragraph 2, of the Constitution specifies that, by way of exception, one may deviate from the principle of freedom of press and information and prevent the of distribution of the press or dissemination of other information, if it has been determined by a court decision that they call for, inter alia, violation of guaranteed freedoms and rights of man and the citizen or incitement of national, racial or religious intolerance and hatred.

The Constitution of the Republic of Serbia is somewhat more restrictive, but in its Article 44, paragraph 2, in a similar way, specifies inter alia that activities shall be forbidden, whose aim is to violate constitutionally guaranteed freedoms and rights of man and the citizen, incitement or fomenting of national, racial and religious intolerance and hatred, while in Article 46, paragraph 6, it exceptionally provides for a possibility to stop the distribution of the press or dissemination of other information if it has been determined by a decision of the competent court that they call for, inter alia, violation of guaranteed freedoms and rights of man and the citizen or incitement and fomenting of national, racial or religious intolerance and hatred.

The Constitution of the Republic of Montenegro provides for almost identical provisions. In its Article 42 it stipulates, inter alia, that activities of political, trade union, and other organizations aimed at violation of the guaranteed rights and liberties of man or the incitement of national, racial, religious or other hatred of intolerance shall be prohibited. The provision immediately following the above stated specifies that any incitement and fomenting of national, racial, religious or other inequality, as well as incitement and fomenting of national, racial, religious and other hatred and intolerance shall be unconstitutional and punishable. Finally, the provision of Article 37, paragraph 2, by way of exception, provides for a possibility to stop the distribution of the press or dissemination of other information, all on the basis of a court decision, if it was determined that they call for violation of guaranteed freedoms and rights or incitement of national, racial and religious hatred or intolerance.

In criminal-law terms, the protection against discrimination and violence is envisaged in the legal order of FR Yugoslavia and its federal units and enjoyed under equal conditions by all the citizens, including persons belonging to national minorities. The Criminal Code of FR Yugoslavia (Articles 134, 154, paragraph 1, and 186) provide for a prison sentence of 3 months to 5 years for persons who violate human rights of persons belonging to national minorities, foment racial, religious or national intolerance or commit any discrimination in an official procedure, or grant a privilege, on the basis of nationality, ethnicity or religion. It is of particular importance to stress that the Code penalizes as an aggravated form of the criminal offence of incitement of national, racial and religious hatred and intolerance an offence committed by means of coercion, ill-treatment or threatening one’s safety and that in such cases the penalty is more severe, i.e., it may be punished with up to eight years in prison. Similar arrangements are provided for by the Criminal Code of the Republic of Serbia and the Criminal Code of the Republic of Montenegro.

Appropriate measures for protection of persons subject to threats or discrimination, hostility or violence are provided for by a whole set of relevant laws, stipulating the responsibility for a misdemeanor or disciplinary responsibility of organizations and persons that commit or incite such act. The Law on Official Use of Language and Script provides for fines in the case of breach of the provision of Article 19 of that Law, specifying that in the areas where languages of national minorities are in official use names of places and other geographical names, names of streets and squares, names of agencies and organizations, traffic signs, public information and warnings and other public inscriptions shall be written in the languages of national minorities as well. Likewise, the Law on Official Use of Language and Script provides for fines in the case of breach of the provision of Article 20 of that Law, which sets out that the logo of the firm, institution or other legal entity shall be written also in the language of a national minority which is in official use. The laws on schools of the Republic of Serbia provide for a fine of 10,000 to 50,000 dinars for elementary and secondary schools, if groups and individuals are threatened or humiliated in them on the basis of their race, nationality, language, religion or sex, i.e. if schools incite such activities or fail to take measure to prevent them (Article 140 of the Law on Elementary Schools of the Republic of Serbia and Article 109 of the Law on Secondary Schools of the Republic of Serbia). Appropriate measures for the protection of persons subject to threats or discrimination, hostility or violation are provided for by the media laws as well. The new Broadcasting Law of the Republic of Serbia in its Article 8 authorizes the Broadcasting Agency to take measures in the field of broadcasting geared to preventing broadcasting of programs which contain information that incites discrimination, hatred or violence against persons or groups of persons because of their belonging or non-belonging to a particular race, religion, nation, ethnic group or sex.

2.In FR Yugoslavia there are certain marginal social groups (the so-called skinheads) that are violent to the Roma. Based on the records of the Federal Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities, in the course of 2001 and 2002, there were 36 incidents in which the victims were Roma. In 2001, in the territory of FR Yugoslavia, there were 16 persons against whom criminal charges were pressed for a criminal offence of inciting national, racial and religious hatred. All these cases were registered in the territory of central Serbia, i.e. Serbia Proper. Out of the above number, 4 persons of age were convicted of that criminal offence.

Article 7

The Parties shall ensure respect for the right of every person belonging to a national minority to freedom of peaceful assembly, freedom of association, freedom of expression, and freedom of thought, conscience and religion.

1. The rights provided for by this Article of the Framework Convention in FR Yugoslavia fall into the corpus of constitutionally guaranteed fundamental human freedoms and rights and as such they belong to all people or all citizens of FR Yugoslavia, including persons belonging to national minorities.

The Constitution of FR Yugoslavia guarantees to citizens the freedom of assembly and other peaceful gathering, without the requirement of a permit, subject to prior notification of the authorities. This freedom may be temporarily restricted by a decision of the competent authorities only if it is aimed at obviating a threat to public health or morals or for the protection of the safety of human lives and property. The freedom of assembly and other peaceful gathering is guaranteed in an identical manner also by the Constitutions of the Republic of Serbia (Article 43) and the Republic of Montenegro (Article 39).

2. The Constitution of FR Yugoslavia in its Article 41 guarantees to citizens the freedom of political, trade union and other association and activities, without the requirement of a permit, subject to registration with the competent authorities. The freedom of association is guaranteed also by the Constitutions of the Republic of Serbia and the Republic of Montenegro in an identical manner. The Federal Constitution in its Article 47 prescribes that persons belonging to national minorities shall have the right to establish educational and cultural organizations or associations, in conformity with the law, which are financed on the principle of voluntary contributions, and may also receive assistance from the state.

The Law on the Protection of Freedoms and Rights of National Minorities provides for the possibility to elect special national councils of national minorities for the purpose of exercising the right to self-governance in the fields of the use of language and script, education, information and culture. Article 19 of the Law stipulates that the national councils shall represent national minorities in the said fields of social life and that they shall perform certain public legal powers that are to be delegated to them in the stipulated fields. Until the adoption of a separate law governing that field, the national councils will be elected by national minority electors’ assemblies. The electors of national minorities may be federal, republican or provincial deputies who have been elected for these offices because of their belonging to a national minority or who declare their belonging to a national minority and speak the language of the minority. The electors of national minorities for the election of national councils may also be councilors who belong to national minorities and have been elected in local self-government units where a minority language is in official use. Likewise, every citizen who declares his belonging to a national minority and his candidacy is supported by at least one hundred persons with voting rights belonging to a national minority or who is nominated by a national organization or an association of a national minority will have the right to be an elector. The national councils will be set up based on the principle of voluntary participation, proportionality and democratic conduct of business.

 3.   The Constitution of FR Yugoslavia in its Article 35 guarantees to everyone the freedom of conviction, conscience, thought and public expression of opinion. In addition to that, the provision of Article 36, paragraph 2, explicitly lays down that citizens shall have the right to express and publish their opinions in the mass media. Related to the freedom of expression of opinion is also the provision of Article 44, paragraph 1, which specifies that a citizen shall have the right to publicly criticize the work of government and other agencies and organizations and officials, to submit representations, petitions and proposals and to receive an answer if so requested. The citizen, under Article 44, paragraph 2, of the Constitution of FR Yugoslavia may not be called to account or bear any other consequences for opinions expressed in the course of public criticism or in a submitted representation, petition or proposal, unless they have thereby committed a criminal offence. Similar provisions are provided for also by the relevant Articles of Constitutions of the Member Republics.

4.In practice, persons belonging to national minorities widely use the

constitutionally guaranteed freedom of association.

4.1. Persons belonging to the Albanian national minority have several cultural, educational and other associations. In the area of southern Serbia, the Albanian cultural society ‘Prospective’ is active, as well as the Human Rights Committee, Association for the Protection of Women, the Solidarity Fund, the Youth Center, etc. The Albanians in the Republic of Serbia are organized in two political parties – the Party for Democratic Activity and the Party for Democratic Unification of Albanians. The registration of the third party of Albanians in Serbia – the Movement for Democratic Prosperity, founded by former members of the so-called Liberation Army of Preševo, Bujanovac and Medveđa, is underway. The most influential political parties of Albanians in Montenegro are the Democratic Union of Albanians, the Democratic Alliance of Albanians and the Party of Democratic Prosperity.

4.2. The Ashkali are organized in the «Cultural and Publishing Society of the Yugoslav Ashkali ».

4.3. Persons belonging to the Bosniac national minority in FR Yugoslavia are gathered in several cultural associations – the Cultural Society ‘Revival’, the Sandzak Intellectual Club, the Cultural and Publishing Society of the Bosniacs, the Cultural and Publishing Society of Moslems in Montenegro, the Helsinki Committee for Human Rights from Sandzak, the Sandzak Human Rights Committee, etc. The Bosniacs in Serbia are politically organized through political parties active predominantly in the area of Sandzak, with the most influential ones among them being the Party of Democratic Action and the Sandzak Democratic Party. The political parties of the Bosniacs are also the Party for Sandzak, the Liberal-Bosniac Organization and several other minor political organizations.

4.4. Persons belonging to the Bulgarian national minority are gathered in several associations. The most significant organizations of the Bulgarians in FR Yugoslavia are the Democratic Alliance of the Bulgarians in Yugoslavia, the Municipal Committee for the Protection of Human Rights of the Bulgarians in Dimitrovgrad and the Helsinki Committee for the Protection of Freedoms and Rights of the Bulgarians in FR Yugoslavia.

4.5. The Bunjevci are gathered around the Bunjevci Cultural Center, while the political interests of the Bunjevci are represented by the Bunjevci and Sokci Party.

4.6. Persons belonging to the Croatian national minority are gathered in several cultural and political associations. Cultural organizations of the Croats are: the Croatian Cultural Center, the Croatian Cultural and Educational Society «Matija Gubec», the Cultural Society «Jovanka Gabošac», the Cultural Club «Vladimir Nazor», the Cultural Club «Silvije Strahimir Kranjčević», the Cultural Association of Croats from Montenegro «Napred (Forward)», etc. Apart from the above-mentioned organizations, the Croats are also gathered in the Croatian Cultural and Publishing Society, Croatian Academic Society and the Catholic Institute «Ivan Antunović». In the territory of FR Yugoslavia, two political parties of the Croats are active – the Democratic Alliance of the Vojvodina Croats and the Croatian Popular Alliance.

4.7. The Federation of Jewish Communities is an ethnic and religious non-political and non-profit community which represents the Jews in Yugoslavia.

4.8. Persons belonging to the Hungarian national minority have a very wide range of cultural, professional and specialized associations. Those among them that should be mentioned here are: the Cultural Alliance of the Vojvodina Hungarians, the Folklore Center of the Vojvodina Hungarians, the Vojvodina Society for the Hungarian Language, the Scientific Society for Hungarological Studies, the Society for Hungarian Culture in Yugoslavia, the Scout Federation of the Vojvodina Hungarians, the Federation of Hungarian Pedagogues of Vojvodina, the Scientific Society of the Vojvodina Hungarians, the Federation of Students Vojvodina Hungarians, the Vojvodina Hungarian Youth, the Organization of the Vojvodina Hungarian Youth, the Organization of Young Radio Journalists Vojvodina Hungarians, etc. On the political scene, several parties of the Vojvodina Hungarians are active – the Alliance of the Vojvodina Hungarians, the Democratic Community of the Vojvodina Hungarians, the Democratic Party of the Vojvodina Hungarians, the Christian Democrat Movement of the Vojvodina Hungarians, the Civic Movement of the Vojvodina Hungarians and Christian-Democrat Unification.

4.9. Small in numbers, the German national minority is organized in five associations. In the territory of Vojvodina, where persons belonging to the German national minority live the following organizations are active: the German Popular Alliance from Subotica, the Association of Germans «Donau» from Novi Sad, the German Association «Adam Berenc» from Apatin, the Association «Karlovic» from Sremski Karlovci and the Association of Germans of the Municipality of Odžaci.

4.10. The biggest grass-roots social and cultural organization of Romanians in FR Yugoslavia is the Community of Romanians in Yugoslavia. Also active is the Romanian Foundation for Ethnography and Folklore. Persons belonging to the Romanian national minority do not have their own national political organization.

4.11. Persons belonging to the Ruthenian national minority are organized in several cultural and educational associations. The Ruthenian Cultural and Publishing Society is an organization of the Yugoslav Ruthenians associated for the purpose of exercising rights and interests in the fields of fostering, developing and popularization of the Ruthenian language, science, literature, education, arts and culture. A specialized social organization is the Society for the Ruthenian Language, Literature and Culture of Vojvodina. Important organizations of the Ruthenians are also the Alliance of the Ruthenians and Ukrainians of Yugoslavia, the Academic society of the Ruthenians and Ukrainians and the Cultural Club «Žetva (Harvest)». Some of the mentioned associations, as their names suggest, gather also persons belonging to the Ukrainian national minority.

4.12. Persons belonging to the Roma national minority are active in several associations and organizations. The most important associations are the Federation of the Roma of Serbia, the Federation of the Serbian Roma Societies, the Coalition of Roma Organizations «Anglunipe» (comprising more than 80 Roma organizations). The political associations of the Roma are the Democratic Political Party of the Serbian Roma and the Roma Congress Party.

4.13. The most important umbrella and coordinating social organization of the Slovaks in FR Yugoslavia is the Slovak Cultural and Publishing Society. Associations of persons belonging to the Slovak national minority which are also significant are the Society of Slovakists of Vojvodina and «CENTRUM-Slovak Cultural Coordination».

4.14. In addition to the joint associations with persons belonging to the Ruthenian national minority, the Ukrainians in FR Yugoslavia are organized also in the cultural clubs «Ivan Senjuk» and «Karpati (the Carpathians)».

4.15. The Vlachs in FR Yugoslavia are organized in political organizations -«Movement of Romanians and Vlachs of Yugoslavia » and «National Autonomous Party of the Vlachs». The most important social organization of the Vlachs in FR Yugoslavia is the «Forum for Vlach Culture».

Article 8

The Parties undertake to recognise that every person belonging to a national minority has the right to manifest his or her religion or belief and to establish religious institutions, organisations and associations.

1.1.  In FR Yugoslavia, on the basis of Article 18, paragraph 1, of the Constitution, church and state will be separate and, in keeping with this, there is no “official”, “state” or in some other manner institutionalized “majority” religion, i.e. church. Under paragraph 2 of the same Article of the federal Constitution, churches are free and equal in conducting religious affairs and in the performance of religious rites.

1.2. The religious freedom in FR Yugoslavia is enjoyed as individual freedom which is in practice exercised in most of the cases in community with others. The Constitution of FR Yugoslavia in its Article 43 guarantees the freedom of religion, public or private profession of religion and performance of religious rites. The Constitution specifies that no one shall be obliged to reveal his religious beliefs. Similar provisions are provided for also by the Constitutions of the Yugoslav federal units.

1.3. Free expression of religious beliefs in FR Yugoslavia is made possible also by legal arrangements which allow believers to be absent from work on major religious holidays. Thus, Article 4 of the new Law on Public Holidays of the Republic of Serbia sets forth that Christian believers may be absent from work on the first day of Christmas and during Easter holidays celebrated by different religious communities according to varying calendars (Orthodox Christians may be absent from work also on their patron-saint’s day[30]), that the Moslem believers may be absent from work on the first day of Ramadan Bayram and Kurban Bairam and that members of the Jewish community may be absent from work on the first day of Yom Kippur. The Law on the Celebration of Religious Holidays of the Republic of Montenegro provides for different arrangements enabling believers to have a longer paid leave from work during religious holidays. Unlike the Serbian Law, this Law lays down that the right to paid leave, for the purpose of celebrating religious holidays, shall pertain to Christian believers, in addition to the first day of Christmas and the second day of Easter, also on Christmas Eve and Good Friday. The Orthodox may also be absent from work on their patron-saint’s day, and Roman Catholics for All Saints’ Day. The Moslems are entitled to a three-day absence from work during both Ramadan Bayram and Kurban Bairam. The Jews are guaranteed the right to paid leave of absence for two days of Yom Kippur and two days for Passover. Unlike the Republic of Serbia’s Law, the Law on the Celebration of Religious Holidays of the Republic of Montenegro provides for liability for a petty offence punishable by a fine for the responsible person in an enterprise, institution, other legal entity, government agency and for an entrepreneur, if they fail to enable an employee to have paid leave for the purpose of celebrating a religious holiday.

1.4. Free expression of religious beliefs in FR Yugoslavia is reflected also in the religious instruction in elementary and secondary schools. Thus, in the Republic of Serbia, after the latest amendments (in 2002), the Law on Elementary Schools and the Law on Secondary Schools, for the first time after World War II, provide for the introduction of religious instruction into schools. The attendance of this instruction is based on student’s or his parents’ free choice. Students who do not want to attend religious instruction may opt for another subject dealing with ethics or liberal arts, as determined by the Minister of Education.

According to the adopted arrangements, the curricula of religious teaching in the Republic of Serbia are agreed upon and passed by the Minister of Education and the Minister of Religion, at an agreed proposal of churches and religious communities – the Serbian Orthodox Church, the Islamic Community, the Catholic Church, the Slovak Evangelical Church, the Jewish Community, the Reformation Christian Church and the Evangelical Christian Church in accordance with the law. Members of the above-mentioned churches are also persons belonging to national minorities in FR Yugoslavia. It is important to stress that the Decree on the Organization of Religious Instruction, adopted by the Government of the Republic of Serbia stipulates that the religious instruction in the Republic of Serbia shall be organized and carried out for those churches and religious communities irrespective of the number of believers in a particular place.

The Government of the Republic of Serbia is setting up a commission for the harmonization of the proposals for religious instruction of traditional churches and religious communities, draft textbooks and other teaching aids, giving opinions to the Minister of Education in the procedure for selecting educational advisers for the religious instruction as well as for the monitoring of the organization and implementation of religious instruction. Textbooks and other teaching aids fore the religious instruction are authorized by the Minister of Education at the agreed proposal of churches and religious communities, in accordance with the law.

It is particularly important to underline that the type of education of religious teachers is determined by the Minister of Education, but solely at the joint proposal by the Ministry of Religion and the traditional churches and religious communities. A list of religious teachers is determined by the Minister of Education at the proposal by t the traditional churches and religious communities. For every school year, traditional churches or religious communities will send religious teachers from the established list into schools.

2.1. The establishment of religious institutions, organizations and associations in the Republic of Serbia was governed by the Law on the Legal Status of Religious Communities of 1977, which was rescinded in 1993. In the Republic of Montenegro, the establishment of religious institutions, organizations and associations is governed by the Law on the Legal Status of Religious Communities, which stipulates that citizens shall have the right to freely establish religious communities, subject to mandatory registration of their establishment or termination with a unit of the government agency responsible for internal affairs in the territory of the local self-government unit where the seat of a newly established or terminated religious community, or its organ, i.e. organization, is located. More detailed regulations on the establishment of the religious communities at the federal level are expected after the adoption of a new law on religious freedom. A draft law on religious freedom, proposed by the Federal Government, has been submitted to the parliament and its adoption is expected in September 2002.

2.2. Religious communities in FR Yugoslavia freely acquire movable and immovable property and have the right of fully and without limitations dispose of it. The educational system religious communities organize according to their needs, and the adoption of curricula, as well as the recruitment of staff are decided upon by the competent church authorities. The publishing activity and the publication of religious newspapers and magazines depend on the material and organizational capacities of religious communities and their leaderships. The ties of those religious communities whose mother churches are abroad with them are free and unlimited in every way, as well as unconditional.

The Constitution of the Republic of Serbia sets out that the state may materially aid religious communities (Article 41, paragraph 4), while the Constitution of the Republic of Montenegro lays down such an obligation on the part of the state (Article 11, paragraph 4). Government aid to religious communities was reflected in paying part of social security and pension contributions for clergymen, but mostly in investment in sacral facilities, particularly in the protection of those sacral facilities which are also considered to be cultural monuments.

          3.1. The Law on the Protection of Freedoms and Rights of National Minorities in       defining national minorities underscores that religion may be one of the features which differentiates a group of citizens of FR Yugoslavia, constituting a national minority, from the majority population. In FR Yugoslavia there are examples that persons belonging to the same national minority belong to different religions. Most Albanians in FR Yugoslavia are of Islamic faith, though there are Christians among them, members of the Catholic Church. The Bosniacs are Moslems. The Bulgarians are mostly Orthodox Christians, although a big enclave in the Banat village of Ivanovo is made up of Catholics. Persons belonging to the Croatian national minority in FR Yugoslavia are Catholic. The Hungarians in FR Yugoslavia are mainly Catholics, while a smaller number of them are followers of the Christian Reformation Church. Persons belonging to the Roma national minority in FR Yugoslavia are predominantly Orthodox, though there are Moslems and members of other religious communities among them. The Romanians are Orthodox. The Ruthenians and Ukrainians are Uniates, i.e. members of the Greek Catholic Church. The Slovaks are members of the Slovak Evangelical Methodist Church. The Vlachs are Orthodox. Other smaller national communities are mainly of Christian faith.

            3.2.1. Believers who belong to the Albanian and Bosniac national minorities in FR Yugoslavia belong to Islamic communities. Part of Roma believers also belongs to the Islamic communities. Contrary to the practice applied in new states established after the SFR of Yugoslavia ceased to exist, for the territory of FR Yugoslavia no single Islamic community was organized. The actual situation is such that in the territory of the Republic of Serbia three independent Islamic communities are active. The Muftikhat in Belgrade opted for independence back in 1990. Today there are 4 mosques and 4 masjids in the district of the Muftikhat. Ten imams[31] have been engaged with appropriate qualifications. The Islamic community of Kosovo comprises believers from among the ranks of the Albanian community in Kosovo and Metohija. This religious community has 401 mosques, 77 masjids, 42 Moslem primary schools, 19 Moslem monasteries, 29 domed burial sites. The personnel members are educated in the boys’ and girls’ medreses in Priština and in boys’ medreses in Gnjilane and Prizren. The Islamic community for Sandžak was formed in 1993. The personnel for the needs of this Islamic community are educated in boys’ and girls’ medreses in Novi Pazar. In the Republic of Montenegro, the Islamic community has 82 mosques.

            3.2.2. The Catholic Church was unified in the former Yugoslavia and highest body in its hierarchy was the Bishops’ Conference, comprising all archbishops and bishops. After SFR Yugoslavia ceased to exist, the archbishops and bishops from FR Yugoslavia’s territory attended for a while as guests the meetings of the Bishops’ Conference of Croatia, but their connection to the Holy See today is manifested through cooperation with the papal nuncio accredited to FR Yugoslavia. The Catholic Church in Yugoslavia comprises:

-                                        The Belgrade Archdiocese where there are 20 different sacral facilities. The Archdiocese has 19 active clergymen, of whom 10 monks and 9 diocesan priests and 39 nuns (3 novices).

-                                        The Subotica Diocese, which covers the area of Bačka, has 124 churches and around 100 clergymen. In Subotica is also the preparatory seminary with around 80 students.

-                                        The Zrenjanin Diocese covers the area of Banat. There are 40 churches, and priests of all ranks 31.

-                                        The Djakovo – Srem Diocese covers the area of Srem, including New Belgrade and Zemun (parts of Belgrade). There are 29 parish churches, 12 filial ones and 4 monasteries. The number of active priests is 18.

-                                        The Skoplje-Prizren Diocese in the territory of FR Yugoslavia covers the area of Kosovo and Metohija. It has 17churches.

3.2.3. The Christian Reformation Church has its seat in Feketić, in AP Vojvodina. There are three dioceses within this Church – for Bačka, Banat and Baranya. The clergymen are educated abroad, in theological colleges in Vienna, Budapest, Debrecen and Cluj (Romania). The Christian Reformation Church issues a monthly entitled ‘Reformatus elet’ in the Hungarian language and a yearbook entitled ‘Reformatus evgoni’. The Church has 13 ministers and over 20 places of worship.

3.2.4.The Vicary of the Romanian Orthodox Church in the Yugoslav part of Banat was established in 1971, with the seat in Vršac. The Vicary comprises three metropolitan bishoprics with 39 parishes and affiliates. Romanian priests from the Vicary are educated in the theological college in Caransebes in Romania and the Theological Faculty in Timisoara, Romania. The Vicary issues a paper entitled ‘The Sower’ in 3,000 copies and the Yearbook.

3.2.5.The Križevci Diocese of the Greek Catholic Church has its seat in Križevci, in the Republic of Croatia. The majority of its followers are in Vojvodina, in Ruski Krstur. In FR Yugoslavia there are three districts of this diocese: the Srem district with the seat in Sremska Mitrovica, the Bačka district with the seat in Ruski Krstur and the Banat district with the seat in Belgrade. The Križevci Diocese issues the magazine ‘Dzvoni’.

3.2.6.The seat of the Slovak-Evangelical Church is in Novi Sad. This Church has 26 parishes and 12 affiliates. The Church had 19 priests also dealing with administrative matters and one bishop in 1998. From among active priests in 1998, three were women. The personnel for the needs of this Church are educated in Bratislava. The Slovak-Evangelical Church issues its ‘Yearbook’ in 1260 copies, a wall calendar in 15,000 copies, ‘The Evangelical Herald’ in 3,150 copies and liturgical books.

3.2.7.The Evangelical – Methodist Church has its seat in Novi Sad. In the territory of AP Vojvodina, this Church has 13 local churches, seven ordained priests, three retired priests and eight lay preachers. The Church is under the jurisdiction of the Swiss episcope. It educates its personnel with the Baptists in the Biblical Center Logos in Novi Sad, at the Faculty ‘Jan Hus’ in Prague, in Birmingham, etc. They issue papers entitled The Voice of Life in the Serbian language and the Road of Life in the Slovak language.

3.2.8The Jewish Religious Office operates within the Federation of the Jewish Communities of Yugoslavia. The Federation comprises 11 Jewish communities: Belgrade, Novi Sad, Subotica, Pančevo, Zemun, Niš, Priština, Sombor, Zrenjanin, Kikinda and Senta and the total number of believers is around 3,000. Synagogues exist in Belgrade, Novi Sad, Subotica and Sombor. Active synagogues are in Belgrade and Subotica, and occasionally in Sombor and Novi Sad. They issue no religious publications, but a bulleting of the Federation of Jewish Communities of Yugoslavia, which is not of a religious nature, but may include religious subjects, if need be.            
 

[1]  For issues concerning the population of Yugoslavia in the period 1880-1990 and appropariate statistics see:  Breznik D.: Population of Yugoslavia, Titograd 1991.

[2] The table is taken (with necessary corrections) from: National minorities in FR Yugoslavia, published by the Federal Ministry of National and Ethnic Communities, Belgrade 2001, p. 6.

[3] Cited according to: Lučić M.: op. cit., p..10.

[4] The former Yugoslavia ratified it on 12.7.1967. Succession for FR Yugoslavia on 12.3.2001

[5] The former Yugoslavia ratified it on 30.1.1971. Succession for FR Yugoslavia on 12.3.2001

[6] It was ratified on 22.6.2001. It came into effect for FR Yugoslavia on 6.12.2001

[7] The former Yugoslavia ratified it on 12.3.1975. Succession for FR Yugoslavia on 12.3.2001

[8] The former Yugoslavia ratified it on 18.12.1990. Succession for FR Yugoslavia on 12.3.2001

[9] FR Yugoslavia joined the Convention on 11.5.2001, at the invitation of the Council of Ministers, based on its Article 29, paragraph 1. The Convention came into effect for FR Yugoslavia on 1.9.2001

10 This paragraph is verified also in the Yugoslav law. See, for example, Jankovic B.M., Radivojevic Z.: International Public Law, Nis 1995, p.19

[11] It was already explained previously that the other autonomous province of the Republic of Serbia – Kosovo and Metohia – will not be covered by this Report because of well known reasons.

[12] Ratified by the former Yugoslavia on 12 July1967. Succession for FR Yugoslavia on 2 March 2001. By virtue of a Note of the Permanent Mission of the FR of Yugoslavia to the UN of 26 June 2001 the competence of the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination was accepted in conformity with Article 14 of the Convention.

[13] Ratified by the former Yugoslavia on 30 January 1971. Succession for FR Yugoslavia on 12 March 2001.

[14] Ratified on 30 January 1971. Succession for FR Yugoslavia on 12 March 2001.

[15] Ratified on 22 June 2001. Entered into force for FR Yugoslavia on 6 December 2001.

[16] Ratified by the former Yugoslavia on 12 March 1975. Succession for FR Yugoslavia on 12 March 2001.

[17] Ratified by the former Yugoslavia on 18 December 1990. Succession for FR Yugoslavia on 12 March 2001.

[18] FR Yugoslavia, at the invitation of the Committee of Ministers, on the basis of Article 29, paragraph 1, of the Convention accessed to it on 11 May 2001. Convention entered into force for FR Yugoslavia on 1 September 2001.

[19] The Federal Constitutional Court, however, decideds on a constitutional complaint only in case no ther legal protection is available (Article 128 of the Constitution of FR Yugoslavia).

[20] Ethnic institutes are social organizations whose primary tasks are teh expression, cherishing and preservation of the national identity and collective interesta of persons belonging to a particular national minority.

[21] Social and cultural organizations open to all citizens regardless of their nationality, religion or social bacground, but whose activities are oriented above all to the cherishing and presevation of national identity of a particluar national minoirty in the territory of FR Yugoslavia.

[22] Societeis for language, literature and culture of persons belonging to national minorities in FR Yugoslavia are nonparty, nonpolitical social organizations which, on the basis of full freedom and civic rights, enable the cherishing and recognition of national values in the fields of language, culture, arts, information and education.

[23] Statistical Yearbook of FR Yugoslavia in 2001, p. 387

[24] Without data for Kosovo and Metohija, since they are not available

[25] Without data for Kosovo and Metohija, since they are not available

[26] During these celebrations in 2000, in addition to the ceremony marking the 10th anniversary of the resumption of activity of the Slovak Cultural Institute, 24 different functions and cultural events were held.

[27] The thirtieth gathering of the folklore groups of the Vojvodina Slovaks in 2000 brought together 1,400 participants from 27 cultural and artistic societies of the Slovaks in FR Yugoslavia.

[28] Statistical Yearbook for Serbia 1992; Statistical Yearbook for FR Yugoslavia 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998.

[29] The opinion poll was carried out by the Strategic Marketing and Media Research Institute from Belgrade and the Center for Social Research from Subotica. A total of 1358 respondents of both sexes were interviewed, in three regions: Belgrade (20.5 percent of respondents), Vojvodina (24.8 percent of respondents) and Central Serbia  (54.7 percent of respondents). A sample used in the poll was the stratified three-stage random sample, representative for the population of Serbia (excluding Kosovo and Metohija).

[30] A specific religious holiday which is one of the essential characteristics of the Orthodox Serbs and Montenegrins.

[31] All the data on the number of the clergy and places of worship are from 1998