Our values

#solidarity #equality #participation #diversity #minorityrights #traditions

We live in Europe for centuries. We are autochthonous and traditional people, many of us saw borders shifted and live today in minority. It is not a choice, but it is the reality for us. We have chosen to continue to live in our homeland.

We are one hundred million Europeans, fifty million in the EU, members of autochthonous national minorities, nationalities, ethnic communities, regional and linguistic groups. Our ancestors created a unique cultural wealth, they spoke their own languages, and followed their own traditions and customs. We aim to preserve and develop our identity, our cultures, and our languages.

We speak our mother tongue, and we want to be able to use it in everyday life and in the administration. We wish that our children were able to learn in their mother tongue in schools and to pass it to the next generations.

Different norms and different standards are applied by the states in the field of minority protection: some don’t recognize and disregard the aim of minorities, while others active­ly promote and protect them. We believe that the situation of European minorities can not be considered solely the internal affair of the states. Our objective is to strengthen the Council of Europe’s legal instruments and sanction mechanism, while in the EU our goal is to create a legal framework on the protection of national minorities and language groups.

We have a dream about a European society where all languages and communities are equal, respected and cherished.