§ Mr. DrewTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what monitoring is occurring of attacks on religious minorities in(a) Serbia and (b) Montenegro. [130572]
§ Mr. MacShaneThe implementation of the Charter on Human and Minority Rights and Fundamental Freedoms in Serbia and Montenegro, including the protection and promotion of national minorities (whether religious, ethnic or otherwise), is closely monitored by the Organisation for Security and Co operation in Europe (OSCE) and the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (UNHCHR). Non-Government Organisations (NGOs) also monitor observance of human rights in Serbia and Montenegro and include Amnesty International, the Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Serbia (HCHRS) and Human Rights Watch.
Serbia and Montenegro is also subject to a number of the Council of Europe's human rights monitoring mechanisms, including those provided for under the Framework Convention on National Minorities which was ratified by the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (now Serbia and Montenegro) on 11 May 2001.