Hungarian system of minority self-governments is not a perfect one but a continually developing basis for the effective political participation of minorities. Though all Hungarian political actors support the issue, the question of direct representation of minorities on a parliamentarian level is not yet solved since the political parties could not reach a compromise about the exact details of that. That is why the parliament created a special advisory organ, namely the Forum of National and Ethnic Minorities living in Hungary being a temporary solution until the issue can be reassuringly settled. Furthermore it is important to note that the very first ethnic Roma Members of the European Parliament ever were elected in Hungary in 2004. According to Hungarian scholars and experts and following from the facts mentioned before Hungary can be considered a multicultural State. Ladies and gentlemen allow me to share with you some facts regarding the real experiences as well. According to the research work of certain research institutions the legal and institutional framework of minority protection established in the early 1990s contributed to a kind of renaissance of minorities living in Hungary. Even though minority groups living in Hungary were largely assimilated till 1990 (except the Roma) after the adoption of the legal documents mentioned before, a kind of revitalisation of minority cultures can be observed in Hungary, for instance the number of minority self-governments is more and more from an electoral year to another shows a dynamic growth. The number of minority self-governments tripled since 1994 and currently there are around 2000 minority self-governments in Hungary. Summarizing the reality, minorities living in Hungary were able to create the conditions of their self-management based on the legal framework of the relevant Hungarian constitutional and legal provisions. Thank you for your kind attention.

Select target paragraph3