Pirc Musar meets minority reps, secondary school students

Pirc Musar told the minority representatives that Slovenia would continue dialogue with Austrian officials at all levels.

"I'm convinced that ethnic minorities are the salt of democracy and that their activities benefit the whole of society, which is why I also believe in the possibility of a more productive, intensive dialogue between minorities and regional and federal Austrian authorities," she was quoted as saying in the statement.

Bilingual education from pre-school to the end of secondary school is crucial for the survival of the ethnic community, said Pirc Musar.

The president also considers it essential to move forward with the bilingual judiciary and to extend it to the whole bilingual area.

She thus expects to get clear answers and specific assurances from Carinthian Governor Kaiser about when the rights of the Slovenian minority will be fully provided.

Slovenia also expects the announced changes to the level of proficiency in German for Slovenian pre-school teachers to be implemented as soon as possible.

Minority rights are guaranteed in Article 7 of the Austrian State Treaty, while minority organisations warn that more efforts are needed to fully implement it.

Pirc Musar thus said yesterday, 69 years after the treaty was signed, that Slovenia acts as a protector of the Slovenian minority.

The president met secondary school students at the Bilingual Business Academy and the Slovenian Gymnasium in Klagenfurt, focussing on the EU's challenges regarding green transition and gender equality.

She is also due to attend the gymnasium's gala academy, where she will draw attention to the importance of preserving the Slovenian language.

She will also highlight a project for which the school was awarded the EU's Seal of Approval for innovative language projects in 2000.

As Slovenia and Austria have close economic ties, Pirc Musar also met business executives and visited the company Urbas Machinenfabrik before completing her working visit.