BRATISLAVA, September 9, (WEBNOVINY) — The ruling coalition of center-right parties in Slovakia plans to change the state language law. Culture Minister Daniel Krajcer wants to start the legislative process so that the Parliament could discuss it in October. The minister met Tuesday with ruling coalition deputies and presented them his proposal. However, MOST-HID party has certain objections as well as Christian Democrats (KDH). MOST-HID objects to existing sanctions and the KDH criticizes suggested omission of the provision in the law stating that civil servants have to speak the state language.
Chairman of MOST-HID deputy faction Laszlo Solymos confirmed their objections to sanctions to journalists. “We had objections to sanctions. This will be discussed further on. They are included in the ministry’s proposal to some extent. We are discussing it. The law is prepared based on a compromise. There are no serious objections,” he stated.
According to the deputy chairwoman of KDH Jana Zitnanska, the representatives of coalition parties have to meet and discuss it again so that the result is approved by everybody. She denied speculations that the Christian Democrats tries to strike a nationalist chord with their objections. “The KDH never plays the nationalist chord,” she stated.
Minister Krajcer underscored that the bill of the State Language Act is a sensitive legal norm that is why he met the coalition deputies before submitting it for interdepartmental review. He wanted to create space for discussion on this bill. He informed that a lot of issues were worked on in communication between MOST-HID and Deputy Prime Minister for Human Rights Rudolf Chmel. In his opinion, the goal of the law is protection of the state language and on the other hand it will eliminate absurd restrictions affecting ethnic minorities. There is still room for improvement; sanctions being the area where most changes occurred and which will be further discussed.
SITA