Govt: Signatures in support of minority rights exceed expectations

The number of signatures in support of a European Union citizens' initiative on minority rights has exceeded expectations, a government official said on Thursday. The number of signatures in support of the Minority SafePack initiative are well in excess of the one million required, Arpad Janos Potapi, state secretary at the prime minister's office, noted in a statement. Altogether, 1.2 million signatures were collected. The success of the initiative sends a strong message to the EU concerning the rights of the continent's indigenous minorities, he said. Hungarians in the Carpathian Basin have also shown unprecedented unity, he added. Fidesz's parliamentary group leader Gergely Gulyas hailed the outcome at a press conference, saying Brussels was bound to take national minority issues seriously thanks to the successful campaign. The aim now is to make sure the European Parliament and the European Commission legislate accordingly, he said.