Večer comments on Carinthia election and minority issues
Ljubljana, 6 March - The newspaper Večer comments on the parliament election in the Austrian state of Carinthia on Monday. Despite the fact the nationalist Freedom Party did not win the vote, many issues remain, including increasing poorer Slovenian language skills of the young generation of the Slovenian minority, the paper says.
A day after the election, it is clear that at least one minority member will sit in the provincial parliament, former Mayor of Železna Kapla/Eisenkappel Franc Jožef Smrtnik, well known for his activist advocacy for the minority.
Talking to Večer last night, Smrtnik vowed to continue fighting for the minority, listing the need for more bilingual preschools and a broader use of Slovenian in the justice system, as two of his priorities.
Večer also talked to Zdravko Haderlap, farmer and film maker from Lepena, a village not far from Železna Kapla/Eisenkappel, who said tolerance for the minority among the majority population was good. But more should be done to preserve the minority and its language.