The annual congress of the Federal Union of European Minorities (FUEN) is being held in Wrocław, the European Capital of Culture, from 18 to 22 May 2016. The congress agenda of the biggest umbrella organisation of the autochthonous, long established minorities in Europe includes the situation of the 13 minorities in Poland – including the German minority – the present European refugee crisis and the role of the minorities in dealing with conflicts. The participants at the delegate conference will also be electing a new FUEN executive board on 21 May. The keynote speaker at the annual congress is Astrid Thors, High Commissioner for National Minorities at the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE). 

“We are looking forward to an interesting congress where each of our members can bring their opinions and questions into the discussion. The issues of re-nationalisation, the construction of borders in Europe, refugee and migration policy and worldwide peace policy are important for us all”, explains FUEN president Hans Heinrich Hansen shortly before the start of the annual congress, which FUEN is organising in cooperation with the Association of the German Socio-Cultural Organisations in Poland (VdG), the umbrella organisation of the German minority in Poland. 

FUEN, which represents the interests of these European minorities at regional, national and especially European level, has developed its own action programme in the year of the German OSCE chairmanship, which deals with issues including the situation of the minorities in the Ukraine, in the Baltic States and in Kazakhstan. The participation of OSCE High Commissioner Astrid Thors emphasises the importance of FUEN and the cooperation between OSCE and FUEN. “We are glad that High Commissioner Astrid Thors is coming to share her experiences and thoughts about the protection of minorities in Europe. The OSCE is also FUEN’s partner because it also deals with security and human rights”, says Hans Heinrich Hansen. 

The last day of the congress is devoted to the election of a new executive board. After nine successful years in office, Hans Heinrich Hansen is standing down as FUEN president. Candidates as his successor are the present vice-president Loránt Vincze, international secretary of the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Romania (Romániai Magyar Demokrata Szövetség, RMDSZ) and Dieter Paul Küssner, from the Sydslesvigsk Forening (SSF), the Danish minority in Germany.

There are a total of seven candidates for the offices of six vice presidents: Olga Martens, International Association (IVDK), Daniel Alfreider, South Tyrolean Peoples’ Party (SVP), Bernhard Ziesch, Domowina Association of Lusatian Sorbs, Halit Habipoglu, Federation of West Thracian Turks in Europe (ABTTF), Koloman Brenner, National Self-Government of the Hungarian Germans (LDU), Gösta Toft, Association of Germans in North Schleswig (BDN), Bernard Gaida, Association of the German Socio-Cultural Organisations in Poland (VdG), Lorant Vincze, Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Romania (RMDSZ) and Dieter Paul Küssner, South Schleswig Association (SSF). The new executive board will be elected for a three-year term. All full and associate members are eligible to vote. Also being elected in Wroclaw are the auditors and members of the European Dialogue Forum, which is also responsible for the regular exchange information with members of the European Parliament.

About FUEN
FUEN represents the interests of these European minorities at regional, national and especially European level. It sees itself as a community of solidarity that advocates peaceful coexistence in Europe. It maintains a large network of political policy makers, scientific institutes, cultural and educational institutions, youth organisations, media and other partners. FUEN is committed to the maintenance and promotion of the identity, language, culture, rights and uniqueness of the European minorities. It is their mouthpiece in international organisations, especially in the European Union, the Council of Europe, the UN and the OSCE. FUEN was established in Paris in 1949. Today it has three offices, in Flensburg, Berlin and – since 2015 – Brussels.

More information at www.fuen.org.
Contact: Susann Schenk (Secretary General), eMail: info@fuen.org, Tel.: + 49 461 128 55.