Employment of minorities remains as key challenge, OSCE Mission Head says

ZAGREB, 27 November 2006 - Local and regional officials need to plan for the employment of national minorities, participants in a roundtable meeting co-organized by the OSCE Mission to Croatia concluded today.

The discussion, held in the Parliament, focused on implementation of an article of the Constitutional Law on the Rights of National Minorities that guarantees employment of national minorities in the administrative bodies of local and regional self-government units.

Ambassador Jorge Fuentes, the Head of the OSCE Mission to Croatia, said practical steps, such as developing employment plans during the annual budget process, were needed to implement the law.

"Creating a favorable environment for minorities to invoke their employment rights would be an important step forward to implement the law fully," he said.

Antun Palaric, State Secretary of the Central State Administration Office, said the law had been fully implemented in elected bodies, and almost fully implemented in executive bodies, while minority employment in administrative bodies still had only reached half of the goal set out in the law.

He welcomed today's meeting:

"Such events, by giving direction and setting guidelines to promote implementation of minority rights, contribute to the democratisation of the Croatian society," he said.

The event, co-organized by the Parliamentary Committee for Human Rights and Rights of National Minorities and the Central State Administration Office was attended by local officials, representatives of the Central State Administration Office and national minorities.

Conclusions of the roundtable will be distributed to media later this week.