They discussed the position of the Romanian and Vlach ethnic minority in Serbia on the eve of the upcoming visit of the members of the Parliamentary Friendship Group with Romania to Bucharest in February 2012 aimed, among other things, at expediting the SAA ratification process at the Romanian Parliament.
The representatives of national councils, political parties and associations of Romanians and Vlachs in Serbia briefed the Parliamentary Friendship Group members on the exercise of their rights guaranteed by the Constitution, stressing that the Law on National Councils of National Minorities was being implemented in full in Vojvodina, while it experienced difficulties primarily in east Serbia. They informed the Parliamentary Friendship Group members of their positions on the national identity of Vlachs and Romanians which range from the claim that the distinction was artificial to claiming that Vlach were an authentic old Balkan people with a developed culture, tradition and language.
The Head of the Parliamentary Friendship Group with Romania Sinisa Stamenkovic said that Serbia respected the established international standards of ethnic minority rights guaranteed both by the Constitution of the Republic of Serbia and the Law on National Councils of National Minorities. Stamenkovic deemed that the authorities cannot arbitrate on the national identity of a people, rather the citizens should be free to declare their nationality. The disputes in the Vlach National Council and disputes with the National Council of Romanians in Serbia both stem from the fact that the national identity of Vlachs in Serbia ranges from that of an autochthonous people to a people of Romanian descent.
The Head of the Parliamentary Friendship Group with Romania commended the cooperation with the national councils of Romanians and Vlachs and proposed to meet regularly so that the MPs could be better informed and able to help them exercise their rights.
In addition to the Head of the Parliamentary Friendship Group with Romania, the meting was attended by Konstantin Arsenovic, Srboljub Zivanovic, Jon Magda, Radoslav Milovanovic and Arpad Fremond, members of the Parliamentary Friendship Group, as well as Miletic Mihajlovic, Chairman of the Inter-Ethnic Relations Committee.