European Court of Justice Dismisses Minority SafePack Appeal

July 23, 2025

European Court of Justice Dismisses Minority SafePack Appeal

On June 5, 2025, the European Court of Justice conclusively rejected an appeal by the Minority SafePack European Citizens’ Initiative (MSPI). This decision effectively voids 15 years of civic mobilization on behalf of the initiative.

The goal of the Minority SafePack was for the European Union to adopt comprehensive legislation to ensure the protection, support, and fair treatment of indigenous national minorities.  Although the EU member states are obligated by treaty and domestic law to provide such protections, the EU as a whole has no effective mechanism for enforcing these obligations or investigating violations. The MSPI sought to remedy this lack of EU-level legislation – a major step which could affect the 50 million citizens of the EU who belong to indigenous national or linguistic minorities.

Using a mechanism called the European Citizens Initiative (ECI), the MSPI in 2017-2018 successfully gathered signatures from more than one million European citizens from 11 states, easily surpassing the minimum required to validate such an initiative; the MSPI was declared valid in 2020.

In addition, the MSPI won the support of three-quarters of the European Parliament, the German Bundestag, the Hungarian National Assembly, and several regional European parliaments, further underlining the broad support it enjoyed throughout Europe.

Nevertheless, in January 2021, the European Commission decided not to act on the MSPI, claiming that minority rights protection is the responsibility of the Member States – not the EU as a whole. Moreover, the European Commission claimed that the situation of minority rights has been resolved. This decision by the European Commission was upheld the following year by the General Court of the European Union.

In response, the MSPI submitted an appeal to the European Court of Justice in 2023. This year, on June 5, 2025, the Court issued a final rejection of the appeal without addressing any of its substantive arguments.

Decision Comes as a Blow

“The EU has rejected an opportunity to create a more equal, inclusive, and fair European Union for its autochthonous national minorities,” stated Loránt Vincze, Member of the European Parliament, co-author of the Minority SafePack Initiative, and President of FUEN (Federal Union of European Nationalities).[1]

In what he characterized as “an unjust and unfair decision,” Vincze sharply criticized the Court’s refusal to engage with the legal and substantive arguments of the MSPI. He added:

“What happened is outrageous. This is not a real judgment but a technical rejection, following 15 years of delay.”

In a televised interview[2] the same day, Vincze deepened his critique. According to him, the European Commission deliberately avoided genuine dialogue with the initiative’s authors. While it engaged constructively with other, less-supported initiatives, it completely shut out the Minority SafePack.[3] “Not once were they willing to meet us in an unofficial setting,” he declared.

The Struggle Continues – FUEN Will Not Back Down

FUEN, the umbrella organization for Europe’s 50 million ethnic and linguistic minorities, summarized the ruling as follows: “They heard us loud and clear and chose to do nothing.”[4]

According to the FUEN statement issued June 5,  “the rights of national minorities and language groups in Europe have regressed over the past decade. Many communities face cultural assimilation and the loss of their languages. European institutions and national governments still fail to grasp the gravity of the situation.”

Despite the Court’s rejection of the Minority Safepack, FUEN and its partners are continuing to create new alliances and partners to promote EU legislation on the rights of national minorities. As Vincze declared: “We may have lost the case, but we have gained something even more important: European solidarity.”

Conclusion from the Hungarian Human Rights Foundation

The Hungarian Human Rights Foundation believes that the long-term success of European integration is inconceivable without genuine protection and participation of national minorities. The recent outcome of the Minority SafePack appeal represents a significant missed opportunity for the European Union to advance minority rights.

In particular, the European Commission avoided genuine dialogue with the initiative’s authors. Considering that the MinoritySafePack Initiative enjoyed broad support from European citizens and the European Parliament, the Commission’s total lack of substantive engagement with the Initiative’s arguments is insufficient and troubling.

The Court’s recent decision also demonstrates the limitations of the current European Citizens’ Initiative (ECI) framework in enabling citizens to participate meaningfully in the democratic life of the Union. For this reason, its decision is not only disappointing for national minority and minority language communities but also undermines the trust of all European citizens who seek to use democratic mechanisms to advance fundamental rights in the EU.

The Hungarian Human Rights Foundation calls upon the European Commission to begin open and substantive dialogue with representatives of national minorities. It also calls on the European Parliament to issue a resolution reiterating its support for citizens’ initiatives, particularly the MCPI’s efforts to promote legislation for the protection of national minorities.

[1] Lóránt Vincze, Facebook post, June 5, 2025

[2] Erdély Television’s “24Plusz” newsmagazine, June 5, 2025.

[3] For a “sobering perspective” on European Citizens Initiative, read Alberto Alemanno’s legal and policy-based insights here (June 19, 2025): „Despite positioning the EU as a pioneer in participatory governance, the ECI’s promise remains largely unfulfilled, leading to widespread disenchantment among citizens”.

[4] Federal Union of European Nationalities, Facebook post, June 11, 2025

 

November 29, 2024

Szilágyi Zsolt at the UN Minority Forum: Stronger International Protection for Hungarians in Romania 

At the 17th United Nations Minority Forum held in Switzerland in December 2024, Zsolt Szilágyi, Head of the Foreign Policy Cabinet of the Hungarian Alliance of Transylvania (EMSZ), called for stronger international protection for the Hungarian community in Romania. The annual forum brought together hundreds of minority leaders, activists, and experts from around the world to discuss the protection and promotion of minority rights. The forum’s goal is to advance the improvement of minorities’ situation globally and to highlight the need for international protection.

Szilágyi emphasized that while the Hungarian community in Romania has been fighting for equal rights, educational rights, cultural autonomy, and restitution of assets seized during the communist regime since 1989, the Romanian government refuses to engage in open dialogue on these issues. He stressed that the role of state authorities and public figures is key to combating the widespread prejudice and hate speech faced by the Hungarian community in Romania, which continues to be evident in the media, public life, and even sports events.

Historic Challenges and Social Expectations

Szilágyi also pointed out that there are many international examples of successful minority rights recognition and autonomy, such as in South Tyrol, the Åland Islands, and the agreements between Slovenia and Serbia. These models demonstrate that protecting minority rights is not only possible but desirable in a democratic and stable society. He emphasized that the Romanian government continues to refuse dialogue, preventing progress on territorial autonomy and self-determination for the community.

“Minority rights are not only domestic matters, but also international legal and diplomatic issues. The Romanian government’s refusal to engage in democratic dialogue on autonomy is unacceptable,” said Szilágyi. He added that the Minority SafePack initiative, rejected by the European Commission, and the newer Citizens Initiative for National Regions would be the next steps to raise awareness of the need for stronger international protection and safeguarding minority rights.

The Importance of International Solidarity

In his conclusion, Szilágyi urged that the fight must continue for the rights and protection of the Hungarian community in Romania. “European national communities and minorities need stronger, more accountable international norms and protections,” he stated.

Also speaking at the forum, Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó expressed concern about the situation of Hungarians in Transcarpathia, particularly regarding threats to their mother-tongue education. Gergő Kartai, a lawyer from Slovakia, also highlighted the autonomy demands of the Hungarian community in Slovakia.

The Minority Forum and the Role of the UN

The UN’s Minority Forum was established in 2007 with the goal of providing a platform for minority leaders from around the world to share best practices and support the work of the UN Minority Rights Commissioner. The forum aims to develop proposals that contribute to the protection and promotion of minority rights, particularly in countries where minorities face discrimination and disenfranchisement.

This year, the forum again underscored the importance of minority protection and discussed the measures necessary to ensure that minorities can live in safety and dignity in the future.

Conclusion

Szilágyi Zsolt’s speech at the UN Minority Forum sent a clear message: the Hungarian community in Romania needs stronger international protections. The forum provided an opportunity for minority rights leaders and activists to unite and work together toward global protection for minorities. For the Hungarian community in Romania, international attention and support are key to future progress.

Source: Ehir.ro

January 13, 2023

Minority SafePack: the Citizens’ Committee is set to appeal the General Court’s decision

UPDATED: After a thorough analysis of the decision of the General Court of the European Union from 9 November 2022 in the case of the Minority SafePack Initiative vs the European Commission, the MSPI’s Citizens’ Committee and the FUEN Presidium took the decision to bring an appeal before the Court of Justice against the decision of the General Court. The appeal was filed on January 23.

“The court’s November decision stands in sharp contrast to the previous case-law of the European courts in ECI matters. Their communication starts by stating that “The action already taken by the European Union to emphasise the importance of regional or minority languages and to promote cultural and linguistic diversity is sufficient to achieve the objectives of the initiative”. This is clearly a political statement, and all European minorities know it to be false” – FUEN President MEP Loránt Vincze pointed out. “Our legal advisors assessed that there are a handful of problematic issues which make the November judgement doubtful from a legal point of view and are working on the appeal which we will bring before the Court of Justice before the deadline”, he added.

Following the Commission’s decision on 14 January 2021 not to initiate legal acts based on the proposals of the MSPI, on 24 March 2021 the Citizens’ Committee of the MSPI filed at the General Court of the European Union a request for the annulment of the European Commission’s decision on the initiative. The Citizens’ Committee, the FUEN – coordinator of the European signature collection campaign, and their legal representatives, based the submission on a careful legal examination of the Commission’s response. They concluded that the communication is deeply flawed by the fact that in it the European Commission infringed its legal obligation to state reasons and committed manifest errors of assessment. Hungary intervened in the case on behalf of the MSPI, while Greece and Slovakia on behalf of the Commission.

On 9 November 2022 the General Court of the European Union delivered its judgment in the case of the Minority SafePack Initiative vs the European Commission. The press release on the Court decision states that the EC proceeded correctly in refusing to propose legal acts based on the MSPI.

Background

In the European Union there are approximately 50 million persons belonging to autochthonous national minorities or speaking minority languages. Started in 2013 by the initiative of the FUEN, RMDSZ, SVP and YEN, the Minority SafePack is a European Citizens’ Initiative asking for European protection and promotion of their languages, cultures and rights. It is considered to be the most important initiative for minority rights in the last 30 years.

After an initial refusal of registration by the Commission, the MSPI was finally registered following a European Court decision in 2017. In a Europe-wide campaign coordinated by FUEN, 1,123,422 validated statements of support were collected, and the Minority SafePack Initiative became the fifth successful ECI ever. It also obtained the support of the Bundestag, the Hungarian Parliament, the lower chamber of the Dutch parliament, many regional parliaments, and, most importantly, the European Parliament, which voted a resolution in its support in December 2020. Despite this, the European Commission decided not to propose legal acts based on its proposals.

Further information: http://minority-safepack.eu

Source: https://fuen.org

September 18, 2021

Minority SafePack: The European Commission turned its back on national minorities

Despite more than one million European citizens giving their signatures for the Minority SafePack Citizens’ Initiative and despite the European Parliament supporting it with a three-quarter majority and the German Bundestag also adopting a resolution in support of it, the initiative, which aimed to create EU protection for indigenous national minority communities, seems to have now failed after the European Commission rejected its legislative proposals.

“The Commission rejected the request of those for whom preserving Europe’s linguistic and cultural heritage is not merely a good-sounding slogan but a daily challenge. The position of the Commission is nothing more than a patronizing pat on our shoulders, while 1,128,385 signatories were waiting for concrete measures and actions.” – Lóránt Vincze, President of FUEN (Federal Union of European Nationalities), commented on the European Commission’s decision.

“The Commission has now let down the approximately 50 million citizens of the Union who belong to national and linguistic minorities. Millions of them already live in a situation of inequality in their own country; now the European Commission, which is supposed to be the guardian of democracy, the rule of law, dignity and justice, is also turning its back on them,” he said.

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On February 5, 2020 in Brussels, Belgium, representatives of the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Romania (RMDSZ) and the Federal Union of European Nationalities (FUEN) presented legislation proposals to the European Commission for the Minority SafePack Initiative.

The signature drive initiated by RMDSZ, which is Romania’s ethnic Hungarian party, and coordinated by the Federal Union of European Nationalities was launched in April 2017.

The Minority SafePack Initiative calls upon the EU to adopt a set of legal acts to improve the protection of individuals belonging to national and linguistic minorities and to strengthen the cultural and linguistic diversity of the Union. The initiative was signed by 1,128,385 citizens of the 28 member states of the European Union, which makes it the fifth most successful European Citizens’ initiative.

Background

The European Commission first refused to register the initiative in 2013, prompting the organizers to appeal to the General Court of the EU. Later, in 2017, the court allowed it to proceed, and in the following year, organizers gathered more than 1.1 million supporting signatures across Europe, reaching the necessary thresholds in 11 Member States.

After this, the organizers could finally present their legislative proposals at the European Parliament, and the EP reacted to them very positively. In December 2020, the European Parliament decided to support the initiative with a three-quarter majority (524 MEPs voted in favor, 67 against, 103 abstentions). But the EP was not the only one; for example, even the German Bundestag unanimously adopted a resolution appealing to the European Commission to implement the Minority SafePack.

Despite all of the above, in January 2021, the European Commission finally decided against implementing the demands of the initiative.  According to their explanation, since the submission of the Minority SafePack in 2013, a wide range of measures have already undertaken various aspects of the initiative. Because of this, the Commission would not propose any further legal acts, as the European Union would meet the objectives of the initiative, including the protection of minorities, with the full implementation of the already existing legislation and measures. “While no further legal acts are proposed, the full implementation of legislation and policies already in place provides a powerful arsenal to support the Initiative’s goals,” said the European Commission’s statement released on January 15.