The Working Group of German Minorities - statement in regards to the German Bundestag elections

The Working Group of German Minorities (AGDM), under the umbrella of the Federal Union of European Nationalities (FUEN), met in Berlin from 19 – 21. of June 2017. They sent out an appeal to all German parties taking part in the German Bundestag elections on 24th September 2017, to include the issue of the German minorities living abroad in their respective election programs.

The German culture and language in the respective countries, where German minorities live is endangered. On the one hand, there is a danger of assimilation, which can occur naturally, while on the other hand are enforced assimilation also taking place. The development of linguistic and cultural autonomy by the policies of the respective countries, sometimes due to the size of the minorities living within those nations, is hindered or complicated. The lack of European instruments and institutions, which not only set certain standards but also respect the implementation of the instruments, will lead to very different policies for every minority group.

That is why we support the Minority SafePack Initiative by the FUEN, which promotes and supports the objectives of national minorities and language communities in the European Union.
 
We welcome the unanimous adoption, from the Bundestag on June 2nd 2017, about the strengthening of cultural and linguistic diversity in the European Union, by means of appropriate measures for the Charter.
 
In these circumstances a clear policy from Germany, with regards to German minorities living abroad, is essential. From the perspective of the minorities represented in the AGDM, these respective policies should be formed across all parties, since the cultivation of German culture and language abroad is in the interest of the Federal Republic of Germany for several reasons. On the one hand, the German minorities, especially in the Central Eastern European states, have a distinctly pro-European discourse, which is soothingly different from the nationalist tendencies of some countries. On the other hand, they are an authentic bridge to Germany, whose business locations abroad benefit from a good German-speaking education. And last but not least, as they are rooted in two cultures, they are a particularly good mediator of a modern image of Germany - often the only one on the ground.
 


Background information - The Working Group of German Minorities (AGDM)
 
There are German minorities living in 28 European (and successor states of the Soviet Union) countries Most of them belong to the working group of German minorities (AGDM), which is part of the Federal Union of European Nationalities (FUEN), located in Flensburg.

The AGDM is a body which allows the exchange and cooperation of minority associations. The annual meetings serve the direct meeting of the actors, the articulation of their concerns and the dialogue with political decision-makers.

The AGDM was founded in 1991 in Budapest and currently brings together 21 associations from the following countries: Denmark, France, Estonia, Georgia, Hungary, Croatia, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Moldova, Poland, Romania, Russia, Slovenia, Slovakia and the Czech Republic , Serbia, Ukraine, Uzbekistan and partner organizations from Belgium and South Tyrol.

In order to visualise the work of the german minorities, the AGDM coordination office, funded by the Federal Ministry of the Interior, was established in Berlin in 2015.