Decisions Made By Szeckler County Officials Should Be Ignored - Romanian Interior Min

"I made it very clear. They are Romanian citizens too and have the right to express their opinions," said Blaga, adding that, those who convened in Sfantu Gheorghe town to vote Hungarian the official language of the Szeckler county, do not represent any institutionalized forum of the country and their decisions should not be minded.

Blaga said Romania's Constitution states clearly that the official language of the country is Romanian.

The Assembly of Local Officials in the Szeckler county, held in Sfantu Gheorghe town, in central Romanian county of Covasna, on Friday voted, among others, to make Hungarian the official language of the Szeckler county, a region in eastern Transylvania populated mostly by ethnic Hungarians.

The draft decision on the status of the Hungarian language in the region also stipulates that any resident of the Szeckler county is entitled to freely speak and write both Romanian and Hungarian, that the local authorities in the region will ensure the official use of both languages, by adopting normative acts and providing conditions to ensure impartial use of both languages, and the Assembly's Standing Committee, alongside public administration specialists, will draft the list of public positions that can only be filled by people who speak and write both languages.

The draft decision regarding the regulation on the organization and functioning of the Assembly of Local Officials in the Szeckler county stipulates the Assembly includes local and county councilors and mayors and that Romanian and Hungarian are the official languages of the Assembly.

Nearly 300 local and county councilors, mayors and deputy mayors in central Romanian counties of Covasna, Harghita and Mures attended Friday afternoon the second Assembly of Local Officials in the Szeckler county, held in Sfantu Gheorghe town.

Dan Manolachescu, head of the local branch in Sfantu Gheorghe of Romania's ruling Democratic Liberal Party (PDL), on Saturday said the decisions adopted Friday by the Assembly will not materialize and they should not be regarded as claims of the entire ethnic Hungarian community in the region.

Manolachescu added the decisions adopted by the Assembly will only be "processed on an emotional level."

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