Tim za socijalno uključivanje i smanjenje siromaštva

The director of the Office for Human and Minority Rights, Suzana Paunović, spoke to the participants at the National Assembly public hearing dedicated to the work and functioning of national councils of national minorities. She gave a review of the activities implemented by the Office for Human and Minority Rights aiming to protect and realize the rights of national minorities in Serbia. During 2015, the budget of the Republic of Serbia secured funds amounting to 245,000,000 dinars for national councils, said Paunović, funds the Office for Human and Minority rights distributes for financing the activities of national councils in the field of education, culture, information and the official use of language and script.

The Government of the Republic of Serbia endeavors to have representatives of the national councils participate in issues regarding the authorizations of national councils. Following the Constitutional Court decision determining that certain provisions of the Law on the National Councils of National Minorities are not in accordance with the Constitution, at the request of the national councils, the Office, along with the line minister, called a meeting wherein it was agreed that the already completed amendments to the Law on the National Councils of National Minorities would be forwarded to the National Assembly for adoption using the urgent procedure, so that the elections for the national councils could be implemented using a clear, unambiguous and precise legal procedure. On this occasion an agreement was made that the working group would include representatives of national councils.

For the fifth year in a row the Office is implementing a program of internship for young members of national minorities in state bodies in Serbia, attended by 39 interns thus far, while currently 10 interns are participating, engaged at the Office for Human and Minority Rights, Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Development, Ministry of Culture and Information, Ministry of Health, the Coordination Body of the Government of the Republic of Serbia for the Municipalities Preševo, Bujanovac and Medveđa, the Social Inclusion and Poverty Reduction Unit and the Office for Cooperation with Civil Society.

Paunović noted that the Office undertook an active role in preparing the Action Plan for minorities, and that it would continue using its capacities in the future to provide support in drafting this important document, and continue coordinating between the Government ministries and practitioners.

The hearing was organized by the Committee for Human and Minority Rights and Gender Equality of the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia.

The meeting was attended by representatives of the national councils of national minorities, the ombudsman and provincial ombudsman, civil society organizations, international organizations, and interns of the Program of Internship for Young Members of Minorities in State Institutions in Serbia.

Source: www.ljudskaprava.gov.rs