Council of Europe publishes report on minority languages in Hungary

Strasbourg, 25.06.2007 – The Council of Europe Committee of Ministers
has just made public the third report on the situation of regional or
minority languages in Hungary.

On the basis of this report, the Council of Europe calls on Hungary to
improve its legislative framework in favour of minority language
protection.
In particular, it asks the Hungarian authorities to actively promote the
establishment of further bilingual schools at all stages of education
and to
increase accordingly the number of teachers able to teach subjects in
these
languages.

Further to the report, the Committee of Ministers has adopted a series
of
recommendations addressed to Hungary. These include inter alia:

– improvement of the financial situation of minority language education
and
increased stability of resourcing;
– improvement of the offer of minority language programmes in the media;

– improvement of the conditions for the transferral of educational and
cultural bodies and institutions to minority self-governments.

The report has been drawn up by a committee of independent experts which
monitors the application of the European Charter for Regional or
Minority
Languages.

In Hungary, 14 regional or minority languages are protected under the
Charter: Armenian, Beás, Bulgarian, Croatian, German, Greek, Polish,
Romany,
Romanian, Ruthenian, Serbian, Slovak, Slovenian and Ukrainian.

< irs/local_and_regional_democracy/regional_or_minor ity_languages/2_Monitoring/2.3_Committee_of_Expert s’_Reports/Hungary_3rd_report.pdf> Full text of the report

< CM/RecChL(2007)4&Language=3DlanEnglish&Ver =3Doriginal&BackColorInternet=3D9999CC&Bac kColorIntranet=3DFFBB55&BackColorLogged=3D
FFA C75> Recommendation CM/RecChL(2007)4

Further information can also be found on the
<;
Charter’s website or by contacting the Charter Secretariat (Council of
Europe, F-67075 Strasbourg, [email protected], Tel. +33 (0)3 88 41 34
48)

Press Release
Council of Europe Press Division
Ref: 439a07
Tel: +33 (0)3 88 41 25 60
Fax:+33 (0)3 88 41 39 11
[email protected]
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A political organisation set up in 1949, the Council of Europe works to
promote democracy and human rights continent-wide. It also develops
common
responses to social, cultural and legal challenges in its 47 member
states.

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