U.S. English Foundation Research

SLOVAKIA

Language Research

The Constitution of the Slovak Republic, adopted on September 1, 1992

Law of the National Council of the Slovak Republic on the State Language of the Slovak Republic, from November 15, 1995

Law on the Use of Minority Languages, from July 11, 1999

Updated (January 2002)

The Chronology of Events connected with the implementation of the Law on Hungarians living in Neighboring Countries, which came into force on January 1, 2002 and covers persons of Hungarian nationality residing in Croatia, Yugoslavia, Romania, Slovenia, Slovakia, and Ukraine (Austria was excluded from the implementation):

• On April 23, 2001 the Slovak Prime Minister Dzurinda met Hungarian Prime Minister Orban to discuss, among other things, this law, however, without any significant results.
• On June 7, 2001 SR representatives delivered their reservations regarding the law to the Hungarian counterpart.
• On October 22, 2001 the Venice Commission of Council of Europe issued a report on “Preferential Treatment of National Minorities by Kin-States” and proposed application of the law based on the mutual meetings between the states' representatives (Romanian example).
• On November 22, 2001 negotiations between Zsolt Németh, State Secretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Hungary, and his Slovak counterpart Jaroslav Chlebo took place in Bratislava. The goal of the meeting was to acquaint the Hungarian partners with the principal objections to the law. Both sides agreed that the law should not become a political problem.
• On December 15, 2001 the Association for Common Goals was established by the Hungarian Coalition Party (SMK-MKP) and four other Hungarian organizations in Slovakia to implement the law in the country.
• On January 14, 2002 Slovak negotiators at a bilateral meeting with their Hungarian counterparts proposed to exclude Slovakia (Austria's case) from the implementation of the Act. Hungary has rejected this proposal.
• On January 16, 2002 the President of SR Rudolf Schuster, who had lately criticized the attitude of the Prime Minister Dzurinda and the Minister of Foreign Affairs Kukan for not solving the problem as soon as possible, stated that the law shouldn't deteriorate the relationships with Hungary.
• On January 23, 2002 the meeting was held in Budapest (Mr. Chlebo and Mr. Németh discussed the implementation of the Law in Slovakia, the goal was to reach the similar agreement as the one between Hungary and Romania)

The reaction in Slovakia, home to some 600,000 ethnic Hungarians, was simply a demand to discuss the law bilaterally before it was implemented. The Slovakian political parties and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs do not object to the law itself, while it is implemented solely on the Hungarian territory (the extra-territorial character of the law). Regarding the paragraphs, the Slovak side is particularly concerned about the explanation of the following:

§ 18 (1) – to clarify the way how to support financially organizations operating in Slovakia

§ 20 (1) – to clarify the role of recommending organizations founded on the territory of the Slovak Republic

§ 25 (1) – to clarify a law order according to which the foreign public benefit organizations will be established

SR emphasized it supports the development of cross-border cooperation but total liberalization in this matter is not acceptable. The most radical attitude was issued by the right-wing Slovak National Party (PSNS), calling for stopping the immunity of the Hungarian MP's who will apply for the Hungarian ID-card. The Slovak Nationalist Party (SNS) has proposed that politicians from the Hungarian Coalition Party (SMK), who decided to apply for the Hungarian ID's should be forced to leave Parliament. Opposition leader Vladimir Meèiar described the law as an “unacceptable” infringement of Slovakia's principle of equal treatment of all its citizens. The only party supporting the implementation of the law is the Hungarian Coalition Party (SMK).

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Updated (September 2003)

LEGAL USE OF MINORITY LANGUAGES MIGHT BE BROADENED

A draft law aimed to amend the 1999 Slovak Law on the Use of Minority Languages has been submitted to the Slovak Cabinet by the Party of the Hungarian Coalition (SMK). In contrast to the current law, which only deals with the use of minority languages in official contacts with local self-governments and allows the use of such languages in municipalities where minorities make up at least 20 percent of the population (Article 2.1), the draft law stipulates that the minority population threshold should be lowered to 10 percent.

The SMK; however, has encountered opposition from its government coalition partners, who consider the current legislation to be sufficient.

On the other hand, the SMK has long advocated the establishment of a Hungarian-language university and its demands have been finally realized. The Slovak Cabinet has just approved the creation of such university in Komárno, (southern Slovakia), where 80-90 percent of the population are ethnic Hungarians, according to the 1991 Census. The new university is to begin its activities in September 2004.

Source: Mercator News, August 2003, http://www.ciemen.org/mercator/index-gb.htm

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Updated (February 2004)

HUNGARIAN UNIVERSITY OFFICIALLY SET UP IN SLOVAKIA

The Hungarian-language Janos Selye University was officially established in the southwestern Slovak city of Komárno on January 17.

The Slovak Parliament approved the establishment of the university last year. The first 300 students will be enrolled in the fall, with plans to enroll 2,000 students within five years.

The university is expected to house the Department of Economics, Theology, and Pedagogy for Hungarian schools.

Source: Minelres News, http://lists.delfi.lv/pipermail/minelres/2004-January/003155.html, RFE/RL NEWSLINE Vol. 8, No. 11, Part II, January 20, 2004

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Updated (May 2004)

ACT ON BROADCASTING AND RETRANSMISSION AND ON AMENDMENTS OF ACT NO. 195/2000 COLL. ON TELECOMMUNICATIONS, NO. 308/2000 (Adopted on September 14, 2000)

§ 16. Basic duties of broadcasters

A broadcaster has the duty:

[...]

g) to ensure the use of the state language and the languages of national minorities in accordance with special regulations in the broadcasting of programs and other elements of the program service.

The current Slovak Radio and Television Acts state that radio and television must provide programming that contributes to the development of national minorities living in Slovakia.

SLOVAK RADIO ACT, NO. 255/1991 COLL.

§ 5 (2) Slovak Radio ensures by means of radio broadcasting in mother tongues the exercise of the interests of nationalities and ethnic groups living in the Slovak Republic.

§ 6: Slovak Radio fulfils the following tasks in particular:

[...]

d) contribute by radio broadcasting to the development of the national culture and the cultures of nationalities living in the Slovak Republic as well as transmitting the cultural values of other nations.

SLOVAK TELEVISION ACT, NO. 254/1991 COLL.

§ 3 (3): Slovak Television also caters for the interests of the national minorities and ethnic groups living in the Slovak Republic through television broadcasts in their respective mother tongues.

§ 6 Slovak Television fulfils the following tasks:

[...]

(j) it contributes, by means of television broadcasting, to promoting national culture and the cultures of the minorities living in the Slovak Republic, and to mediating the cultural values of other nations.

A bilateral treaty with Hungary provides for the right of Hungarians living in the Slovak Republic to have access to the public mass media on a nondiscriminatory basis and also to establish and operate their own media.

Source: Minority-language Related Broadcasting and Legislation in the OSCE, Program in Comparative Media Law and Policy (PCMLP), Center for Socio-Legal Studies, Wolfson College, Oxford University & Institute for Information Law (IViR) (http://www.ivir.nl/index-english.html), Universiteit van Amsterdam (Study commissioned by the OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities), April 2003, edited by T. McGonagle (IViR), B. Davis Noll & M. Price (PCMLP), http://www.ivir.nl/publications/mcgonagle/Minority-language%20broadcasting.pdf

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Updated (April 2005)

THE RIGHTS OF NATIONAL MINORITIES THAT CONSTITUTE 20 PERCENT OF THE MUNICIPALITY'S POPULATION

Act No. 184/1999 Coll. provides that if the citizens of the Slovak Republic belonging to national minorities constitute at least 20 percent of the population of a municipality according to the latest census (2001), they can use their language in official communication. Thus, in conformity with this provision:

• a citizen of the Slovak Republic belonging to a national minority shall have the right to file petitions to local State administration or local government authorities written in a minority language,

• the public administration body that handles the petition shall reply both in the state and minority language, except for public instruments,

• the decision of the public administration authority that handles the petition shall be issued, if so requested, also in a minority language as a counterpart to the decision issued in the state language,

• names on the buildings of public administration authorities shall be displayed also in a minority language,

• local self-governing authority in a municipality shall issue official forms within its competence in the state language and, where so requested, also in a minority language,

• deliberations of local self-governing authorities may be conducted also in a minority language, subject to the consent of all those present,

• municipal council members have the right to use their minority language during the deliberations of that body; interpretation is arranged for by a local authority,

• entries into the memorial book of a municipality may be written also in a minority language,

• street signs and other local topographical indications may be displayed also in a minority language,

• important information, in particular warnings, cautions and health information, shall be posted in publicly accessible sites in both the state and a minority language,

• the right to use a minority language in court proceedings or in other areas is provided for under separate laws.

According to the 2001 Census, the above-mentioned provisions of Act No. 184/1999 Coll. apply to 655 municipalities. Out of these, in 502 municipalities Hungarians constitute 20 percent of the total population, in 6 municipalities this threshold is reached by the members of the Ukrainian national minority, in 92 by those belonging to the Ruthenian national minority, in 54 municipalities by the Roma and in one municipality by the German national minority.

The list of municipalities, where the members of national minorities constitute at least 20 percent of the total population (according to the 1991 Population and Housing Census) is given in Government Ordinance No. 221/1999 Coll. This list, however, is not identical with the list of municipalities based on the 2001 Population and Housing Census.

A comparison between the 1991 and 2001 Census reveals that the number of the Hungarian municipalities has dropped from 512 to 502, those with the Roma minority from 57 to 54 and those with the Ukrainian minority from 18 to 6. The only increase (from 68 to 92 municipalities) was recorded for the Ruthenian national minority.

MINORITY EDUCATION

The following measures were taken in the area of minority education:

• maintaining bilingual pedagogical records in schools providing instruction in a minority language and issuing bilingual school report cards,

• entrance examinations to Slovak-language secondary schools for pupils coming from primary schools with a minority language as the language of instruction include a test of the Slovak language and literature at the level taught in primary schools and a test of another profile subject held in the language, in which it was taught in the primary school attended,

• introduction of "zero grades" in primary schools and the position of a "teacher assistant" (as a member of pedagogical staff) in kindergartens, primary and special primary schools,

• transfer of certain competences from state administration authorities to municipalities and to self-governing regions with effect from July 1, 2002.

The National Program for Development of Education and Instruction in the Slovak Republic for the next 15 to 20 years, approved by the Government (Government Resolution No. 1193 of December 19, 2001) and the Parliamentary Committee on Education, Science, Youth and Sports (Resolution No. 368 of May 7, 2002) provided for the gradual implementation of educational reforms in primary and secondary schools.

The Government declared in its program (November 2002) that, as regards minority education, it would focus mainly on:

• enacting a new school act on education and instruction,

• establishing a university for Hungarian students with a view to eliminate the differences in level and structure of education,

• creating opportunities for the Ruthenian and Roma minorities to receive education in their mother tongue,

• finalizing solutions of the funding issue for the public school system,

• equal conditions for the establishment and development of religious and private schools,

• expanding the range of courses in minority languages for university training of teachers.

Source: Second Report submitted by the Slovak Republic pursuant to Article 25, Paragraph 1 of the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities (received on January 3, 2005), http://dev.eurac.edu:8085/mugs2/do/blob.pdf?type=pdf&serial=1109605194031

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Updated (March 2006)

The use of minority languages in Slovakia is strictly an individual right. People belonging to national minorities must acquire the state language, which has an integrating function. The legal status of minorities and their languages is determined at the highest level by the Constitution and by international documents accepted in the Slovak Republic.

The international documents concerning language use in Slovakia are the following:

• The 1990 Document of the Copenhagen Talk of European Security and Cooperation Meeting

• Recommendation No. 1201 of the Parliamentary Assembly of the European Council (1993)

• The Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities signed in 1995 (in force since 1998)

• The European Charter for Regional and Minority Languages signed in 2001 (operative since 2002)

• The Slovak-Hungarian Basic Treaty accepted in 1996 (operative since 1997)

The Slovak language spoken by the majority was codified as the state language by the Constitution and accepted on 1 September 1992. However, national minorities and ethnic groups have the right to spread and take in information in their mother tongue, to have their cultural institutions and to use their first language in official relations. Language use in Slovakia is regulated by two laws, the Law on the State Language (1995) and the Law on Minority Language Use (1999)), and several provisions of law.

According to the Law on the Minority Language Use, minorities may use their language when addressing the local government and state administration organs if the proportion of the minority population at the territory is over twenty percent. However, those who established the current territorial-administration division did their best to keep the number of administrative units where this would apply to an absolute minimum as, for example, was the case in defining the county borders.

The use of the state language is required in economy-related areas, in services and in health care. In advertisements and other commercial publications, the minority language can also be used following the Slovak-language text. On the contrary, official documents must be written only in Slovak.

The use of personal names is regulated by the 1993 Law on Names and Surnames, which allows the registration of minority first names, and by the Registers Act (1994) allowing women to use their last names according to their first language. The Law on Denomination of Communities in the Language of National Minorities (1994) grants the use of bilingual signage at those localities where the proportion of the minority population reaches at least twenty percent.

In compliance with international documents and practice, both the Civil Code and the Criminal Code make oral use of minority languages possible.

Source: Mercator Education, Regional Dossiers, The Hungarian Language in Education in Slovakia, http://www1.fa.knaw.nl/mercator/regionale_dossiers/regional_dossier_hungarian_in_slovakia.htm

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Updated (November 2006)

THE NATIONAL MINORITIES AND MINORITY LANGUAGES IN SLOVAK LAWS

Individuals belonging to ethnic and linguistic minorities are entitled to the same human rights and freedoms as members of the majority. According to the Constitution of the Slovak Republic (Art. 12), no discrimination is allowed, all individuals have the right to choose their nationality, and attempts aiming at depriving a person’s original nationality are prohibited. At the same time, Slovakia regards minority rights as individual rights (and does not recognize them as collective rights), which means that individuals and not communities are endowed with language rights. Thus, according to the opinion of Slovak legal experts and the majority of Slovak politicians, rights grouped in the category of collective rights are individual rights, realized in groups. The Slovak government supports the principle of non-discrimination, and the Slovak legal system does not recognize the principle of positive discrimination towards members of minorities.

Although the terms "national minority" (národnostná menšina in Slovak) and "ethnic groups" (etnické skupiny in Slovak) appear in the Slovak Constitution and in other official documents, the law does not provide any definition for them, nor does it name any national or ethnic minority specifically. Other official documents name a various range of minorities. According to Slovakia's Reports I and II on the enforcement of the Framework Convention for the protection of National Minorities, there are 11 national minorities living in Slovakia: Hungarians, Roma, Czechs, Ruthenians, Ukrainians, Germans, Moravians/Silesians, Croats, Jews, Poles, and Bulgarians. Report II indicates that in 2003 the Russian minority also received support in the form of cultural funding.

The European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages concerns the following languages in Slovakia: Bulgarian, Croatian, Czech, German, Hungarian, Polish, Romani, Ruthenian, and Ukrainian. This is the first document that differentiates among the various languages, by assigning them into three groups based on the total number of the minority as well as the actual public use of their languages:

1^st group: Bulgarian, Croatian, Czech, German, Polish, and Romani;

2^nd group: Ruthenian and Ukrainian; and

3^rd group: Hungarian.

The commitments are different for the various languages and concern four areas: Education (Article 8), Judicial Authorities (Article 9), Administrative Authorities and Public Services (Article 10), and the Media (Article 11). Specifically, it is only for Hungarian that Slovakia committed to the following: Article 8, paragraphs 1/a/i, 1/b/i, 1/c/i, 1/d/i, 1/e/i, and 1/f/i; Article 9, paragraph 2/a; Article 10, paragraphs 1/a/ii and 3/b; Article 11, paragraph 1/f/i. It is only for Ruthenian and Ukrainian that Slovakia committed to the following: Article 8, paragraphs 1/a/ii, 1/b/ii, 1/c/ii, and 1/d/ii. As it has been mentioned above, the language policy document concerning the state language does not deal with the minority language policy of the state. Only the Initial Periodical Report of the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages contains reference to it: "The demographic indicators serve as the basis for Slovakia's policy towards its autochthonous national minorities. The dominant role of the state policy in this area is to preserve the cultural and linguistic identity of citizens belonging to national minorities and to provide for their nondiscriminatory treatment in the social, cultural and educational systems. It is indisputable that language as one of the key symbols of cultural identity plays a token role in the preservation and development of minority communities, which pass the values and attributes of their culture from generation to generation."

Minority language rights are listed among fundamental rights and freedoms of Section IV of the Constitution. In accordance with Articles 33 and 34 of the 1992 Constitution, individuals belonging to minorities have the following rights: the rights to receive and disseminate information in their mother tongue; to receive education in their mother tongue; to use their mother tongue in official relations; and also to learn the official language.

As stated above, the use of the Slovak language in the public domain is regulated in a comprehensive manner by the Law on the State Language (Law No. 270 of 1995). On the other hand, the use of minority languages is not regulated in a comprehensive manner in any single law: different laws touch upon various aspects of their use.

Official materials produced by the Slovak government mention various numbers of laws with language use relevance: Report I (1999) on the Enforcement of the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities talks about 26 laws and decrees, whereas the Initial Periodical Report (2003) of the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages refers to 45. A considerable number of the laws these documents mention deal with general constitutional or human rights, and can only indirectly be considered relevant to minority language rights. Laws that explicitly concern language rights of persons belonging to minorities number only: the Act on the Use of National minority languages (No. 184/1999) and the Act on Denomination of Communities in the Language of National Minorities (No. 191/1994) completely, and fifteen laws concern them in 1 or 2 sections each.

Personal names and surnames

According to Law on First Names and Surnames, minority names can be officially registered. For instance, Hungarian (Károly) or German (Karl) equivalents of Charles can be registered, as can the Slovak equivalent (Karol). According to the Registers Act, family names of women whose mother tongue is not Slovak can be written in official documents without the –ová ending. In the Slovak language, the family names of women end in -ová, which grammatically marks the person as a female. Some of the minorities living in Slovakia (such as Germans or Hungarians) do not have a grammatical gender marker like this in their language; for example in Slovak Kováč is the last name of a male, Kováčová is of a female, but in Hungarian only Kovács is used for members of both genders. For a long time, however, the family names of Hungarian or German women could only be registered with the -ová ending, even though that is not how they used their names.

In accord with these regulations, Slovakia undertook Article 10, paragraph 5 of the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages concerning all of its minority languages: "The Parties undertake to allow the use or adoption of family names in the regional or minority languages, at the request of those concerned".

Local names and topographical designations

At the end of World War I when the territory of present-day Slovakia ceased to be a part of Hungary in Austro–Hungarian empire and became a part of the newly formed Czechoslovakia, the former Hungarian official names of most of the villages and towns (including municipalities where minorities lived) were changed: they received Slovak names. Thus, for instance, the new official name of Dunaszerdahely (Hungarian-populated town) became Dunajská Streda. Between the two world wars, some municipalities had both Slovak and Hungarian versions, and some smaller villages had only Hungarian names. After 1948, every town and village could have only one official name - Slovak - in which road signs, seals or other official documents could be written. The situation changed in part in 1994 when the Act No. 191 came in force. This Act stipulates that at those localities where the proportion of the minority population reaches at least 20%, the name of the locality can be written in the minority language in addition to Slovak on the road signs which signal the beginning and the end of the locality. In other contexts, such as in postal services, on official rubber stamps, and on maps the names of places can only be written in Slovak. Other topographical names (such as names of mountains, plains, rivers, and lakes etc.) in maps can be also written in Slovak.

A further limitation is that names of localities named after Slovak personalities cannot be also given in minority languages even if the minority in question constitutes over 20% of the population of the given locality. There are 12 such villages and towns, populated by Hungarians: these historically had only Hungarian names; their present-day Slovak names were introduced in 1948.

According to the law on minority language use (Law 184 of 1999), in localities where the proportion of the given minority is at least 20% of the total, the local council can install, in addition to those in Slovak, street signs in the minority language, and administrative office buildings have to be marked by signs in the minority language as well (on these, however, the name of the locality where the building is located can only be written in Slovak). In connection with this, it is important to mention that Slovakia undertook Article 10, section 2/g of the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages concerning all of its minority languages: "In respect of the local and regional authorities of whose territory the number of residents who are users of regional or minority languages is such as to justify the measures specified below, the Parties undertake to allow and/or encourage: the use or adoption, if necessary in conjunction with the name in the official language(s), of traditional and correct forms of place-names in regional or minority languages."

Public displays

According to the Law on the State Language, paragraph 8: "All notices (signs), advertisements and announcements determined for informing the public, especially in shops, at sports centers, in pubs, in streets, along roads and above them, at airports, in bus stations and railway stations, in rail wagons and in mass transport vehicles must be stated in the state language. They may be translated into other languages, but different language texts follow after the equally large text in the state language".

Education

Some minority groups, for example Hungarians, Germans, Ruthenians, and Ukrainians have long-standing traditions of education in their mother tongue. According to the Law on Public Education (which was modified several times, and whose full text was published under No.350/1994), the language of the minority can be used as the medium of instruction in pre-school, primary and secondary education. Article 3, paragraph 1 of this law states that "Training and education are carried out in the state language. Citizens of Bohemian [Czech], Hungarian, German, Polish and Ukrainian nationality are ensured the right to education in their own language to an extent proportional to the interests of their national development."

Traditionally, the Hungarian minority has had the most elaborately developed school system in Slovakia. Hungarian is used as a medium of instruction on all educational levels in public education as well as on the primary and secondary levels in church or private schools.

Moreover, the Law No.542/1990, modified by the Law No.5/1999, made it possible again, beginning in 1999, to issue bilingual school documentation (record cards among them). According to the regulation of the Ministry of Education regarding secondary school entrance examinations, students graduating from minority language primary schools and applying to Slovak language secondary schools take their entrance examinations in the basic subjects in the language of instruction of their primary school.

Mass media

According to the Law No. 619/2003 concerning the Slovak Radio and the Law 16/2004 concerning Slovak Television, the state provides minority language broadcasting by public radio and television stations. For instance, in 2004 the Slovak state television broadcast 89.5 hours of programming (news and magazine programs) in Hungarian and 37.7 hours in other minority languages. The radio station "Radio Pátria" broadcasts in minority languages with 56 hours a week in Hungarian (in daily segments), 30 minutes twice a week in Romani, 13.5 hours total per week in Ruthenian and Ukrainian (alternating, in daily segments), 30 minutes a week in German, 60 minutes per month in Czech, and 20 minutes per month in Polish. Television and radio signals of many TV and radio stations (public and private) based in neighboring countries can be received in the Slovak Republic.

However, the Law on the State Language (Article 5, paragraph 4) reads: "Broadcasting of regional or local stations, radio stations and radio facilities is performed, in principle, in the state language. Other languages may be used before a particular program is broadcast in the state language." This effectively means that local television stations cannot broadcast live programs in the minority language.

According to the Constitution (Article 26 on the freedom of speech), no permission is required for the publication of media products. Furthermore, Slovakia has committed to Article 11, point 1/e/i for all of its minority languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages "to encourage and/or facilitate the creation and/or maintenance of at least one newspaper in the regional or minority languages".

The Law on the State Language (Article 5, paragraph 6) states: "Occasional printed material for the public, such as gallery and museum catalogs, programs of libraries, cinema, theatre, concerts and other cultural events are published in the state language. In case it is necessary, they may contain translations into different languages."

Judicial proceedings

In accordance with international documents and practice and the Slovak Constitution, both the Civil Code and the Penal Code, as well as the 335/1991 Law on Courts and Judges, make the spoken language use of minority languages possible in judicial proceedings (for the parties, suspects and witnesses through the help of court interpreters), while judicial proceedings are carried out in Slovak. Private individuals can use their mother tongue both in communication with the ombudsman (Act No. 564 of 2001) and at the Constitutional Court (Act No. 38 of 1993).

Under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages (Article 9), Slovakia committed to the following for all minority languages: in criminal proceedings "to guarantee the accused the right to use his/her regional or minority language" and "to provide that requests and evidence, whether written or oral, shall not be considered inadmissible solely because they are formulated in a regional or minority language". In civil proceeding and proceedings before courts concerning administrative matters, it guarantees "to allow, whenever a litigant has to appear in person before a court, that he or she may use his or her regional or minority language without thereby incurring additional expense" and "to allow documents and evidence to be produced in the regional or minority languages". It also stipulates that it is important to take steps to ensure that the application of the above-mentioned measures and any necessary use of interpreters and translations do not involve extra expense for the persons concerned.

Official relations, authorities, local governments, and state administration

According to the Law on the State Language of 1995, the language of administrative offices, and generally, of state and local administration, is Slovak. The Law on National Minority Language Use, however, makes it possible for members of minorities to use their mother tongue in spoken and written official discourse in municipalities where the proportion of the minority is at least 20 percent of the total population. In these places, official applications can be submitted to the local government and authorities of state administration in the minority language as well, and these applications have to be answered in the minority language. On request of the applicant, certain resolutions can be issued, in addition to the Slovak language original, in the minority language. On the other hand, public documents can be issued only in the state language, but in administrative offices, important information has to be posted in the minority language as well. The staff of these offices, however, is not required to have proficiency in the minority language.

In accordance with this law and according to the figures of the latest census, there are 501 localities where Hungarian should be a legally possible means of communication with administrative offices – this would involve localities for 89.5% of all Hungarians of Slovakia. Corresponding figures for the other minorities are as follow: 83 localities (37.8%) for Ruthenians, 6 localities (3.9%) for Ukrainians, and 54 localities (22.1%) for the Roma. On the district level, only 60% of all Hungarians and 20% of all Ruthenians can use their mother tongue, while none of them can use it with authorities of the state and local administration on the regional level since these operate in municipalities where the proportion of the minorities is well below the 20% threshold.

The meetings of local government members can be held in the minority language as well – if all members present agree to that. On the level of higher government bodies, however, Slovak is the only accepted language, and minority languages cannot be used to address the parliament.

According to Law No. 211 of 2000 on the public nature of data of public interest (and, in general, on free access to information), in localities where the minority language law is in effect, information of public interest has to be made public in the minority language as well.

Religious life

The language of religious life and ceremonies is not regulated by any law, and it is, thus, usually the mother tongue of the congregation.

Cultural life

The Constitution guarantees the right to create and maintain minority language cultural institutions. The language of cultural events is regulated by the Law on the State Language, in accordance with which cultural events of national minorities or ethnic groups can be held also in the minority language, but the presentation of the program should first be expressed in the state language.

Source: Mercator Legislation, Regional Dossier No.23, Language Policy and Language Rights in Slovakia http://www.ciemen.org/mercator/pdf/wp23eng.pdf

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Updated (November 2007)

SLOVAK GOVERNMENT TAKES STEPS TO PROMOTE THE SLOVAK LANGUAGE IN THE COUNTRY

The Slovak Government has recently announced new proposals aiming to favor the use of the Slovak language in the country, which according to ethnic Hungarians, seem to be detrimental to national minority languages.

The Slovak Minister of Education has issued an order regulating the use of geographical names and names of historical places in Hungarian minority textbooks – all the names must be in the Slovak language and their Hungarian counterparts can come only afterwards, in brackets.

Then, the Ministry of Culture proposed that all public servants working in state administration would be obliged to regularly attend lectures on the proper use of the State Language and new employees would have to pass a Slovak language exam.

Furthermore, however, it is not clear yet if the successful exam would constitute a precondition for getting the job.

According to the Ministry, no journalist could be employed in public service media without passing a Slovak language test. It also recommends that Slovak television should systematically broadcast programmes on the correct use of the state language.

The Ministry would also support the dubbing of films in order to broadcast more Slovak-speaking films on the different TV channels. All advertisements should first run in Slovak and only afterwards in a different language.

The actual bill has to be submitted by the Slovak Minister of Culture within one year.

Source: Eurolang News, November 27, 20007 by Judit Solymosi

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