Federal Union of European Nationalities

Rainbow-Vinozhito is one of the most important organisations promoting the Macedonian cause. Its membership in FUEN and the European Free Alliance (EFA) in the European Parliament is making it impossible for the Greek government to deny the existence of minorities in Greece.

CONTACT INFORMATION

RAINBOW - VINOZHITO

STEPHANOU DRAGOUMI 11
PO BOX 51
53100 FLORINA
GREECE

Tel - Fax: ++ 23850 46548
Tel: ++ 23850 46548

E-mail: vinozito@otenet.gr or rainbow@florina.org

Website: www.florina.org

Account Number for Donations:

ALPHA BANK FLORINA BRANCH (855)
ACC/ NO 855002310009316
SWIFT CODE: CRBAGRAAXXX


FUEN GENERAL ENGLISH

Objective

According to its statutes, the Federal Union of European Nationalities serves the ethnic groups in Europe and pursues the goal of preserving their national identity, their language, culture and the history of national minorities.

This objective is pursued only by peaceful means. It decisively takes a stand against separatism and the violent moving of national borders, and works towards a neighbourly, peaceful coexistence of majority and minority in one state or region. FUEN has now been convinced since 1949 that a minority can only find a harmonious relationship with the majority population on the basis of free democratic and constitutional principles in peaceful and constructive dialogue through the negotiation of political solutions.

This is why the FUEN supports all state activities aimed at peaceful re-conciliation of interests and democratic minority policy. In its work, it attempts to convince European parliaments and governments that part of the peaceful development of Europe involves taking account of the interests national minorities and ethnic groups are entitled to in preserving their original identity and helping them to preserve their traditional culture. This includes the international standards of minority protection. FUEN first presented the main principles for European minority rights in 1967 which were revised and supplemented in 1985.

From 1991, FUEN developed these principles further into a draft for a convention on the basic rights of European ethnic groups, and submitted its proposals to the international endeavours of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE), the UN, the Council of Europe and the European Parliament. Of course, FUEN supports all endeavours of the Council of Europe in this respect. It places great hope in the new mechanisms taking effect this year, in the European Charter on Regional and Minority Languages and in the Convention for the Protection of National Minorities, and hopes that these will be accordingly ratified by all member states of the Council of Europe and implemented in the sense the documents lay down.

Consultative status

In recognition of its efforts towards attaining protection for European minorities, the FUEN obtained consultative status to the Council of Europe in 1989 and a consultative status to the United Nations (UN) in 1995. It is also represented atOSCE (the former CSCE) conferences concerning national minorities and ethnic groups.