Preface

The EU Accession Monitoring Program of the Open Society Institute was initiated in 2000 to encourage independent monitoring of the process by which the European Union is considering applications for membership from the ten candidate states of Central and Eastern Europe. The Program aims to contribute to this historic process by producing monitoring reports to complement the evaluations already being conducted by the European Commission, as reflected in its annual "Regular Reports" on candidate states' progress towards meeting accession criteria. The enlargement of the European Union is a positive development, and independent monitoring is one means of magnifying its beneficial effects, both within the candidate countries and in the EU itself.

In keeping with the larger aims of the Open Society Institute, the Program is monitoring compliance with the political criteria for membership as defined by the European Council in Copenhagen in 1993:

Membership requires that the candidate country has achieved stability of institutions guaranteeing democracy, the rule of law, human rights and respect for and protection of minorities

In order to determine more specific topics for monitoring, the Program looked to the Regular Reports to identify certain aspects of the political criteria frequently highlighted by the Commission itself: minority rights, judicial independence and corruption. Monitoring was also initiated with regard to a fourth topic of importance to both the Commission and OSI: equal opportunities for women and men.

Monitoring reports were elaborated by independent experts and/or organisations in each of the ten candidate countries on the basis of a methodology developed by OSI with the assistance of an international advisory board. This methodology draws upon existing international standards for minority protection to provide a framework for analysis of corresponding legislation, institutions and practice in the candidate countries.

As explained more fully in this document, using the rubric of "minority protection" these reports adopt the approach of the Commission in addressing both non-discrimination and minority rights, including the rights of members of minority groups to preserve and cultivate their identity, language, and culture.

The Program's reports follow the Commission Regular Reports for 2000 in focusing on the situation of the Russian-speaking minority in Estonia and Latvia, and the Roma in Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, and Slovenia. Examination of one highly vulnerable group in each country is intended to underline the universality of these norms for minorities throughout Europe.

First drafts of each report were reviewed by a national expert and an international advisory board. Subsequently, round-table meetings were organised in eight of the ten candidate countries in order to invite critique of the draft from government officials, civil society organisations, minority representatives, and from the Commission itself. In countries where it was not possible to organise a round-table, the draft was submitted for comment by mail. The final reports underwent significant revision on the basis of the comments and criticisms received during this process. The Program assumes full editorial responsibility for their final content.