Opening Statement by Ms. Viktória Mohácsi at the First Forum on Minority Issues 15 December, 2008. Geneva Madam High Commissioner, Madam Independent Expert on Minority Issues, Distinguished Delegates, honourable colleagues, dear friends, It is indeed an honour and privilege for me to be present at the very first session of the Minority Forum. On behalf of my country, I would like to express my deep gratitude for having this unique opportunity to chair this Forum. I would not have been able to do all this work without the enormous help provided by Ms. Gay McDougall, the Independent Expert. Thank you very much for all your work! In our globalized world we could hardly find a country where everyone speaks the same language, shares the same culture, beliefs and traditions. The international community should realize that the presence of different national, ethnic, linguistic or religious groups within one country is not simply an asset, but also a source of social and cultural enrichment. History has clearly shown that the acceptance of the legitimate aspirations of the minorities to preserve their identity through their culture, language and religion has not undermined, but strengthened the stability of the states concerned. Just think of our host country Switzerland as a good example. Most major crises of the past decades have been triggered by conflicts in which ethnic identity was a prominent source of divide. Protection and promotion of the identity of national and ethnic minorities ensuring their institutional participation in public affairs are not only requirements evolving from human rights. They also form the basic premises of the non-discriminatory functioning of a democratic state. Ladies and Gentlemen, More than one year has passed since the adoption of the resolution on the creation of the Minority Forum, and now we can finally launch the work of this important body. At the same time, I cannot deny that our task will be challenging, since minority issues have never belonged to the simple and easily-to-solve areas. Therefore in 2008, I would say that our work is more needed than it has been any time before. I believe that through this Forum, our aim can be, and I hope will be, realized, and that this Forum will ensure that minority issues will be dealt with at the highest possible level. In this regard, it is very important that not only representatives of minorities, governments, and international actors can participate at the Forum, but also non-governmental organizations, which is very important and we must highlight it. It is my firm belief that the work of this Forum will successfully complement the mandate of the Independent Expert on Minority Issues by providing a useful and unique forum for expert discussion for governments, NGOs and minority representatives on sensitive and topical questions with regard to minorities.