The Serbski Sejm at the 2nd Saxon Rule of Law Conference in Leipzig

On 28 September 2023 in Leipzig, Lawyers of the Serbski Sejm, the Lusatian Sorbian/Wendish Parliament in Germany, highlighted the non-respect of minority rights in Germany with respect to the Sorbian/Wendish people living in Saxony and Brandenburg and questioned the Ministry of Justice, Democracy, Europe, and Equality of the Free State of Saxony (SMJusDEG) in this respect.

In the Federal Administrative Court in Leipzig, Prof. Marc WELLER (Uniwersytet w Cambridge; Doughty Street Chambers, radca prawny specjalizujący się w prawie międzynarodowym, Londyn) asked Mathias WEILAND, the State Secretary in the Saxon Ministry of Justice, Democracy, Europe and Equality, why minorities rights are not respected in Saxony and the Serbski Sejm is not invited to consultations on Sorbian issues on an equal basis with other Sorbian/Wendish institutions and organizations by the Saxon government. This question has been raised by Prof. WELLER in the presence of Katja MEIER (Minister of Justice), Dr Franziska BRANTNER (State Secretary at the Federal Ministry of Economics), Prof. Dr. Eva Inés OBERGFELL (Rector of Leipzig Uni), and the diplomatic corps’ & academic sphere representatives.

A specific meeting between Mathias WEILAND and Prof. WELLER as well as the representatives of the SERBSKI SEJM has been agreed to this end, in the aftermath of the conference.

This same issue has been discussed in Leipzig with Didier REYNDERS, EU Commissioner of Justice, and his Cabinet as well as with Dr. Sergey LAGODINSKY, Member of the European Parliament and Vice-Chairman of its Legal Committee. Both promised help and support from their side.

Although the Sorbs / Wends are recognized as a national minority in Germany, they are struggling for more self-determination and to preserve their language and culture, which are under threat. For these reasons and because Serbski Sejm is not permitted to hold talks at either the state or federal level, with the help of the London international lawyers of Doughty Street Chambers, Serbski Sejm prepares lawsuits against the Federal Republic of Germany before national and international institutions and courts, as a last step in the case of unsuccessful talks or offers of talks to federal German authorities.