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The Government of the Republic of Serbia

In the service of citizens

European integrations must include society as a whole

Subotica, 11 May 2005

Serbian Deputy Prime Minister Miroljub Labus stated today in Subotica, during the continuation of the ongoing “Europe Knocks on Your Door" campaign that all segments of society must work together if we wish to become part of the EU.

Serbian Deputy Prime Minister Miroljub Labus

Author: Fonet

Labus told a press conference that a new constitution needs to be adopted as soon as possible, as it represents the identity card of every country.

He underlined that if the population is adequately educated, we will be prepared to become part of the EU in a few years.

According to Labus, society as a whole must be included in the European integration process, as everyone has their place and role in this process.

The Serbian Deputy Prime Minister headed the delegation in Subotica which included Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Management Ivana Dulic-Markovic, Minister of Health Tomica Milosavljevic, Secretary of the EU Integration Office Tanja Miscevic, Hungarian Ambassador Jozsef Pandur and Polish Ambassador Tadeusz Diem.

The delegation held talks in the Subotica municipal building with local self-government representatives and then visited the Subotica Health Centre. In the afternoon, the Serbian government representatives talked with farmers and students in Subotica.

During his visit to the Subotica Health Centre, Serbian Minister of Health Tomica Milosavljevic stated that €2,5 million will be invested in this centre for medical and non-medical equipment.

He reminded that investment in the Subotica Health Centre is part of a larger project of emergency intervention in 20 hospitals throughout Serbia, whose total value is €50 million. One fourth of that amount will go to the reconstruction of health centres in Sremska Mitrovica, Kikinda and Pancevo, all in Vojvodina.

Milosavljevic also announced that there would be a tender in June for the Subotica Health Centre equipment amounting to €2,5 million. According to him, the non-medical equipment is already on its way, while the medical equipment will arrive shortly.

Hungarian Ambassador in Serbia-Montenegro Jozsef Pandur said that the doors of the EU were wide open to Serbia-Montenegro.

Poland and Hungary, as new EU member states are prepared to offer every kind of assistance to Serbia on its path towards European integrations, Pandur said and emphasised that a political consensus in Serbia was the most important thing on the path towards the EU.

Polish Ambassador in Serbia-Montenegro Tadeusz Diem stressed that besides a political consensus, strengthening state institutions and their participation in educating the population was also of exceptional importance for joining the EU.

Diem gave the example of farmers in Poland, who offered the most resistance to European integrations, but after Poland joined the EU and received annual donations from Brussels of €450 per hectare, 70 percent of farmers assessed Poland’s entry into the EU as positive.

Secretary of the EU Integration Office Tanja Miscevic said that the basic aim of the “Europe Knocks on Your Door" campaign was to explain in the simplest way possible the importance of European integrations to people all over Serbia.

Our intention is to show to everyone why we want to enter the EU and what we will gain by doing so, Miscevic said and added that it was very important for Serbia to accept EU standards and general European values.

Brochures entitled “My Town in Europe – What I Need to Know about Europe” were handed out in front of the Subotica municipal building as part of the educational campaign programme.