Slovenian minority in Austria welcomes coalition agreement
Klagenfurt, 27 February - An umbrella organisation of the Slovenian minority in Austria has welcomed the coalition agreement that would serve as the basis for the formation of the new Austrian government, noting that it mentions ethnic minorities in Austria, including the Slovenian one.
The National Council of Carinthian Slovenians (NSKS) said on Thursday that the People's Party (ÖVP), the Social Democratic Party (SPÖ) and NEOS have committed to strengthening all six ethnic minorities, including the Slovenian one.
In the section on fundamental and human rights as part of the chapter on the constitution, human rights and administration, the parties said that the minorities will be "anchored in the constitution and will thus be clearly recognised".
While noting that the mention of the minorities is brief, as a whole page was devoted to them in the most recent government programme, the NSKS said that what is more important is whether the promises, especially in education, will be fulfilled.
The umbrella organisation elaborated by saying that it is in education that the Slovenian minority in Austria has suffered the greatest damage.
It mentioned the closure of small bilingual schools, the abolition in 1958 of the obligation of schools in the state of Carinthia to teach also in Slovenian, and children failing to master Slovenian in four years due to the poor quality of teaching in some schools.
The organisation said that NSKS president Valentin Inzko has been in touch with representatives of the three parties in the last few weeks and that he will continue to do so when it comes to the implementation of the new government's programme.