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Article 10 1. The parties undertake to recognise that every person belonging to a national minority has the right to use freely and without interference his or her minority language, in private and in public, orally and in writing. 2. In areas inhabited by persons belonging to national minorities traditionally or in substantial numbers, if those persons so request and where such a request corresponds to a real need, the Parties shall endeavor to ensure, as far as possible, the conditions which would make it possible to use the minority language in relations between those persons and the administrative authorities. 3. The Parties undertake to guarantee the right of every person belonging to a national minority to be informed promptly, in a language which he or she understands, of the reasons for his or her arrest and of the nature and cause of any accusation against him or her, and to defend himself or herself in this language, if necessary with the free assistance of an interpreter. Paragraph 1.
From the jurisdiction of the Ministry of public administration: The Constitution of the Republic of Croatia and Constitutional Law on human rights and freedoms of ethnic and national communities or minorities in the Republic of Croatia distinguishes private, public and official use of a minority language. Thus the official use is realised exclusively in the work of the bodies of local self-government units and administrative authorities, that is in procedures where individuals accomplish their rights and perform obligations in the procedures in front of the administrative bodies or in the courts. The private and public use of the minority language is free on the basis of the provision of the article 7 paragraph l. of the Constitutional Law on human rights and freedoms and on the rights of national and ethnic communities or minorities in the Republic of Croatia. This means that it is not a subject to any legal system or limitation. In relation to the official use of the minority language it has been emphasized that a local self-government unit is authorised to introduce a minority language and script into the official use on its area and mode of its application shall be determined by the law. Since the law which shall resolve these questions has not been passed yet, although in the parliament procedure it is about to be passed, thus the local self-government units, for the time being, prescribe also the mode of its application. Therefore, for the time being, there are differences in the scope of rights which are realised by members of the national minority in individual local self-government units. The importance attributed by the Republic of Croatia to the protection and affirmation of minority languages is obvious from the fact, that ale Republic of Croatia was the fifth state to join the European chart on regional or minority languages and Croatia announced its decision to join that document when it came into effect already in 1992, when was not yet a member of the Council.
The constitution of the Republic of Croatia Article 12. "The Croatian language and the Latin script shall be in official use in the Republic of Croatia". In individual local units another language and the Cyrillic or some other script may, along with the Croatian language and the Latin script, be introduced into official use under conditions specified by law." The constitutional law on human rights and freedoms and on rights of ethnic and national communities or minorities in the Republic of Croatia. Article 7. "The members of all ethnic or national communities or minorities in the Republic of Croatia are entitled to the free use of their language and script both publicly and privately.
Article 9, paragraph 1. "Possession and use of national or ethnic emblems and symbols of national or ethnic communities or minorities shall be free."
From the jurisdiction of the of the Ministry of public administration: The Republic of Croatia, both in its legal organisation and in practice promotes cultural autonomy of the members of national minorities. The funds for cultural and other programs of minority associations are provided each year by the state budget. The Republic of Croatia guarantees to the members of national minorities all acquired rights in the official use of the language ensuring rights of the members of the national minorities for the official use of minority languages. For that purpose the Republic of Croatia Joined European chart on regional and minority languages and the Government of the Republic of Croatia proposed passing of the law which will grant the members of all national minorities the highest level of the rights to the official use of minority languages. Paragraph 2.
From the jurisdiction of the Ministry of the public administration: Regulatory co-ordination of the rights of the members of the minority to communicate with administration authorities in, the minority language has been cited in a large part in the paragraph 1. Particular separate laws regulating procedure in front of the administrative or legal bodies (Law on the general administrative procedure, Law on civil procedure and Law on criminal proceeding) also co-ordinate the rights of the national minorities to communication with administration authorities in the language they understand, that is with assistance of an interpreter. Difficulty emerges in respect of implementation of these solutions because an separate law has not been passed yet which would arrange mode of the official use of minority language, so certain vagueness occurs in practice during application of this minority right in front of the administration authorities or judicial bodies, when such court commitments cannot be applied consistently, as it is possible in front of administrative authorities of local self-government unit. Actually, the resolution regarding implementation of minority language into the official use is passed by a representative body of the local self-government unit, which is not superior to the bodies of governmental administration which are organised on the level of counties, with its branch offices in individual towns and they perform the tasks of governmental administration m the first level. The bodies of the governmental administration are not responsible to act upon resolutions of the local self-government units, so the rights of the members of national minorities are achieved in front of them in the way determined by special administrative regulations which do not arrange these questions to a sufficient extent. This means that a member of national minority may use his language, but with assistance of a interpreter and handling of the procedure itself is not guaranteed in the minority language. Since the law on the official use of language and script used by members of national minorities in the Republic of Croatia is expected to come into force shortly (fee law is being in the process of passing), these problems will be eliminated by its coming into force.
The majority of it has been cited with the paragraph 1. The law on general administrative procedure Article 15. "(1) Administrative procedure is executed in the language and script which are in the official use with a body where the procedure is executed. (2) The members of all nationalities and minorities are entitled to free use of their own language and script in the administrative procedure, under the terms determined by the separate law."
From the jurisdiction of the Ministry of public administration: When the members of national minority in the individual local selfgovernment unit make the majority of the inhabitants, minority language and script along with Croatian language and Latin script, is in the official use, based on the provisions of article 7 paragraph 2 of the Constitutional law on human rights and on rights and freedoms of ethnic and national communities or minorities in the Republic of Croatia. An individual local self-government unit is authorised to introduce minority language into official use, when the members of national minority make less than 50% of the inhabitants on the territory of the local self-government unit, on the base of the article 8 of the Constitutional law on human rights and freedoms and on rights of ethnic and national communities or minorities in the Republic of Croatia. The local self-government units regulate these questions by their statute. The local self-government units were authorised to introduce minority languages into official use even before the passage of the Constitution of the Republic of Croatia, so that in certain areas members of national minorities traditionally achieve these rights. Passage of the Law on the territories of counties, towns and municipalities, in the Republic of Croatia in 1992, founded instead of earlier 103 municipalities, 123 towns and 420 municipalities. In the areas where the members of national minorities achieved their rights to the official use of their language, this right was considered as acquired and new local self-government units arranged them by their statutes. Application of the provision of the Law on the general administrative procedure is executed by Parliamentary commissioner in the Ministry of the public administration and he may undertake measures determined by separate law for the assurance of the application of the Law.
From the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Public administration: The Government of the Republic of Croatia performs on the legislation co-ordination with accepted international documents. Besides, by comprehending the significance of the official use of the minority languages in front of administrative and judicial bodies as a specially significant instrument for realisation of minority rights, the Government of the Republic of Croatia proposed to the Parliament of the Republic of Croatia passage of the separate law which will govern these questions. Proposed law is in the course of discussion and passage.
(Previously cited) Paragraph 3.
Members of the national minorities are entitled to use their language in any court procedure while undertaking process actions, in civil procedure (civil lawsuit), extra-judiciary procedure and court proceedings.
From the Constitution of the Republic of Croatia "No one shall be arrested or detained without a written court order based on law. Such an order shall be read and served to the arrested person at the moment of arrest. The police may without a court older arrest a person, reasonably suspected of having committed serious criminal offence defined by law, and shall immediately hand him over to the court.
Any person arrested or detained shall have the right to appeal to the court which shall without delay decide on the legality of the arrest. From the law on the civil proceeding Article 6. "Civil proceeding is conducted in Croatian language and with use of Latin script if the other language or some other scripts has not been introduced by the law for the use in certain courts. The stated principle has been worked out in the following provisions of this law: Article 102. "Parties and participants of the proceeding are entitled during participation in hearings and at oral undertaking of other proceedings in font of the court, to use their language. If the proceeding is not conducted in the language of the party, that is in the language of other participants in the proceeding, oral interpreting into their language of what is stated on hearing will be provided as well as oral interpreting of the documents which are used at the hearing as evidence. Parties and other participants of the proceeding will be instructed on their right to follow oral procedure in front of the court in their own language with assistance of a interpreter. They-may renounce die right to interpreting if they declare that they understand the language of the proceeding. It will be recorded in the-minutes that they received instructions, and statements of the parties, that is participants, will be recorded too. The interpreters perform translations. Article 103. "The summons. judicial verdicts and other written documents are sent to the parties and other parties and other participants of the proceeding in the Croatian language and Latin script. If other language or script is also in official use in the court, the court will submit on that language legal documents to those parties and participants in the proceeding who used this language in the proceeding, that is script. Parties and ether participants in the proceeding may require for the legal documents to be supplied in the language of the proceeding". Article 104. "Parties and other participants of the proceedings lodge their claims, complains and other applications in the language which is officially used in the court". Article 105. "The expenses of translation into the language of people and minorities which emerge from application of provisions of the Constitution of the Republic of Croatia and this Law and other laws on right of the members of the people and minorities to use their language, will be settled from the court founds." From the court standing orders/rules/rules of procedures "Article 88. paragraph 2. The first copies of verdicts, compromises and other documents are being kept in a corresponding file, and are supplied to the parties in an authorised copy, that is an authorised translation if request for issue of the verdict in the language of the national community or minority is based on the law or international agreement." From the law on criminal proceeding The use of a language of the members of national minorities has been standardised in details by the article 7. of the taw on criminal proceeding, and infringement, that is denial of this right to use his language in the criminal proceeding, is determined as essential infringement of provisions of criminal proceeding, by the Law in the article 367 paragraph 1 point 3, because of which, the verdict may be refuted. Article 6. "(1) Anyone suspected or accused of a penal offence shall be immediately informed on the reasons of his arrest and shall be instructed not to testify against himself, and on the right to the professional assistance of the defence counsel chosen by him, and that the authorised body will inform his family on his arrest upon the request, or any other person whom he will identify''. Article 7. "(1) Croatian language and Latin script is used in criminal proceeding, if another language or an script has not been introduced by law in certain areas of the courts. (2) Parties, witnesses and other participants of the proceedings have right to use their language. If the proceeding is not carried out in the language of that person, oral interpreting of the statement of the accused person or any other persons will be provided for, as well as translation of documents and other written evidence. An interpreter performs translations. (3) A person will be instructed on his right to the interpreting from paragraph 2 of this article, which right be may renounce if be understands the language of the proceeding. It' will be noted in the minutes that instructions were given and statement of the participants will be noted too. (4) A court sends summons and verdicts in Croatian language and Latin script. Charges, claims and other requests are supplied to the Court in Croatian language and Latin script. If in an individual judicial area another language or script has been also introduced for the official use, requests maybe submitted to a court in that language or script too. After the beginning of the primary hearing a submitter of the request may not without court approval recall his decision on the language which he will use in the proceeding. (5) Translation of the summons, verdict and request will be sent to an arrested person, or a suspect who is detained as well as to a person who is imprisoned in the language which he uses in the proceeding. (6) A foreigner who has been detained, may supply to the court, at a primary hearing a request in his language, and before and that, only under condition of reciprocity/mutuality." Article 367. "Essential infringement of the provisions of criminal proceeding exists: 1) If the court was irregularly constituted or if a judge or a lay juror participated in pronouncement of judgement and he did not participate in the primary hearing or was exempted by the valid resolution from the trial; 2) if a judge or lay juror who should have been exempted, participated at the primary hearing (articte36. Paragraph 1.); 3) if a primary hearing was held without a person whose presence at the primary hearing is obligatory by the law or if an accuser, defender, damaged party as a prosecutor or private prosecutor, against his request, was domed to use his language at the primary hearing and to follow the course of the hearing in his language (article 7.); In respect of the paragraph 3 article 10. of the Frame convention, provision of the article 24, paragraph 2 of the Constitution and article 6 of the Law on the criminal proceeding should be noted too.
In the jurisdiction of the Ministry of justice
In the jurisdiction of Ministry of justice: The courts in the Republic of Croatia apply the cited provisions, bringing resolutions by application of rules of civil procedure (civil, lawsuit), extra- judiciary procedure and criminal proceeding, entitling the members of national minorities to use their language in court proceedings when undertaking oral process activities. It should especially be pointed out, that not meeting the request of a party to use his language and script and to follow course of the proceeding in his language in accordance with provisions of the Law on civil procedure represents absolutely essential infringement of the provisions of civil lawsuit, because of which complaint against the judgement may be lodged, on a occasion of which a court of appeals, if it determines that such infringement exists, will abolish first degree verdict and return a subject to I court of first instance for repeated resolution passing. A question of application of the Law on general absolution/amnesty shall be solved so that the courts and other administration authorities of the Republic of Croatia, each in its own domain, implement the stated Law consistently.
Besides, the Ministry of justice has provided to the Joint Municipal Council in Vukovar and to UNTAES resolution on the absolution of criminal penalty and proceeding for 13.575 persons from the area of Croatian Podunavlje and thus political intention of the Republic of Croatia for amnesty and reconciliation has been expressed. The Parliament of the Republic of Croatia on its meeting held on 26 October 1997, accepted a Law on co-validation, which co'-validates individual resolutions of various bodies and legal entities who have public authorisation passed in judicial and administrative matters on the areas which were, that is, are under protection of United Nations, if they are in accordance with the Constitution of the Republic of Croatia, Constitutional law on human rights and freedoms and on rights of ethnic and national communities or minorities in the Republic of Croatia and laws of the Republic Croatia.
From the Ministry of justice: Croatian legislation has been applied from 1 June 1997 on the area of Croatian Podunavlje, and this also means application of constitution of the Republic of Croatia, as well as laws, international agreements and other regulations on that area. Declaration between UNTAES and the Government of the Republic of Croatia was signed in Vukovar on 30 September 1997, on the terms of legislation reintegration of the region, which is under UNTAES supervision, into judicial system of the Republic of Croatia. Upon signing of this Declaration work of the Croatian judicial bodies has started in Croatian Podunavlje and national constitution of head officials has been agreed upon and also officers and employees, 60% of Croats and others and 40 % of Serbs, and this representation will be applied also on future nominations of judicial head officials and admission of officials and employees. State panel of judges appointed judges sad state attorneys in accordance with Letter of Intent of the Government of the Republic of Croatia at the sessions held on 14 August and 29 November 1997, who are the members of Serbian national minorities for judicial bodies on the territory of Croatian Podunavlje, and the Parliament of the Republic of Croatia appointed a deputy to state attorney of the Vukovarsko-srijemska county on its session held on 30 January 1998, (head of the office in Vukovaru), and on 27 March l998, also deputy of state attorney of Osjecko-baranjska county (Branch office Beli Manastir), being also a member of Serbian national minority. National structure of judges and other judicial head officials in Croatian Podunavlje, including also officers and employees is as follows:
Accordingly, in all judicial bodies in Croatian Podunavlje in accordance with the Letter of Intent of the Government of the Republic of Croatia 40% representation of Serbian national minority has been attained. We would like to note that the appointed deputy of the state attorney of Vukovarsko-Srijemska county (head of the office in Vukovaru) and deputy of the state attorney of Osjecko-baranjska county (Branch office Beli Manastir) are both the members of Serbian national minority and this has not been presented in the table.
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