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DE RUEHSL #0320/01 2011533
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P R 201533Z JUL 09
FM AMEMBASSY BRATISLAVA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 0048
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE
RUEHSL/AMEMBASSY BRATISLAVA 0072

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 BRATISLAVA 000320 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR EUR/CE JAMIE LAMORE; PLEASE PASS HELSINKI COMMISSION 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM LO
SUBJECT: SLOVAK LANGUAGE: "THE GLUE THAT HOLDS US TOGETHER"? 
 
REF: BUDAPEST 501 
 
BRATISLAVA 00000320  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
¶1. Summary: On June 30, the Slovak Parliament passed the 
now-infamous Amendment to the State Language Act.  Seventy-nine 
of the 136 parliamentarians voted in favor of the amendment, 
which Culture Minister Madaric promoted as an attempt to protect 
the national language and "unite society," despite the 
introduction of fines for improper use of Slovak.  Many see this 
as an attempt on behalf of politicians from coalition leader 
SMER to gain ground with Slovak National Party (SNS) Chairman 
Jan Slota's nationalist electorate.  Hungarian Coalition Party 
(SMK) Chairman Csaky labeled the law "the worst of its kind . . 
. containing elements of linguistic imperialism."  The Amendment 
was signed by President Gasparovic on July 7.  Both SMK and the 
coalition have convoked meetings with the diplomatic community 
to explain their perspectives on the law.  It remains unclear 
how strictly the law will be implemented, leaving localities 
with mixed populations with more questions than answers.  End 
Summary. 
 
Background on the Amendment 
 
¶2. In March 2009, Prime Minister Fico's coalition Cabinet (with 
members from his own party, SMER, as well as SNS and Vladimir 
Meciar's HZDS) approved the Culture Ministry's Amendment to the 
State Language Act.  In April 2009, the Parliament had its first 
reading of the bill, which Minister Madaric said is "natural and 
pragmatic...[as] the state language should integrate all 
people~[and] has a natural role in public communication as a 
united communication tool."  The Amendment had its second 
reading on June 25; during both sessions of Parliament SMK asked 
for the debate to be suspended; the request was denied.  On June 
30, the Amendment passed with the approval of 79 of the 136 
parliamentarians present. 
 
Most Controversial Elements of the Amendment 
 
¶3. When completed, we will send an English translation of the 
entire text of the approved amendment to EUR/CE, but in the 
interim we note some of the more controversial elements of the 
law: 
 
--Section 5, paragraph 3a restricts the use of minority 
languages in geographical names. 
 
--Section 6 requires that Slovak be used first for all public 
announcements on loudspeakers, as well as requiring all schools 
to have internal documents written in Slovak, Slovak to be used 
at all cultural events, and all advertisements and commercials 
to be in Slovak. 
 
--Section 6 also calls for the compulsory use of Slovak on all 
monuments, tombstones, and memorials. 
 
The law does not prohibit the use of other languages in addition 
to Slovak. 
 
¶4. Most often mentioned by opponents is Section 10, paragraph 
9a, which provides for fines administered by the Ministry of 
Culture, ranging from 100 to 5,000 euros for organizations, 
institutions, and legal entities that violate the terms of the 
law.  Madaric has stressed that this provision will not apply to 
individuals, and was added to improve enforcement of the 
legislation, so that it was not just something that existed "on 
paper." 
 
A Slight Improvement 
 
¶5. The new law may actually expand the use of minority 
languages--or at least Hungarian--in broadcast media.  According 
to Section 5, paragraph 1, the broadcasting of radio and 
television programs must be performed in Slovak except for the 
broadcasting of (a) other language television programs with 
subtitles in Slovak or with immediate rebroadcast in Slovak, and 
(b) other language radio programs with immediate rebroadcast in 
Slovak, or regional or local radio programs broadcast for 
members of national minorities, including live broadcasts. 
Independent media analysts have said that this provision will 
improve the live coverage opportunities for minority radio in 
particular.  However, OSCE Representative on Freedom of the 
Media Miklos Haraszti has said this rule is "technically and 
financially prohibitive and therefore restricts broadcasting 
pluralism and the free flow of information." 
 
Madaric Defends His Bill to the Diplomatic Corps 
 
¶6. On the morning of June 30, CDA was invited, along with the 
COMs of the EU 27 in Bratislava, to a lunch with Minister 
Madaric and Speaker of Parliament Paska to "reflect on the 
adoption" of the new Act.  Madaric and Paska spent considerable 
time explaining to the diplomatic corps that the law was "no 
real change" and in fact "increased the use of minority 
 
BRATISLAVA 00000320  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
languages."  Madaric provided a handout to everyone with the 
1995 version of the law and new version.  He downplayed 
international community concerns, especially about the 
imposition of fines, and noted that a written warning and 
deadline for corrections must precede any penalty. 
 
SMK Speaks to Those Who Listen 
 
¶7. On July 2, SMK Chairman Pal Csaky invited the EU and U.S. 
COMs to his own briefing on the Act, which he characterized as 
reflecting a backward, 19th Century tendency to restrict the use 
of minority languages, rather than to widen their usage as 
Slovakia agreed to do when it ratified the European Charter on 
Regional and Minority languages.  Csaky acknowledged that his 
constituents still have many concrete questions about how the 
law will be implemented, and said that SMK will appeal this law 
to the Constitutional Court, and will attempt to engage the EU, 
OSCE, and Council of Europe. 
 
Local View 
 
¶8. On a recent trip to the Southeastern towns of Kralovsky 
Chlmec (population est. 8,000, roughly 80 percent Hungarian 
speaking and 20 percent Slovak speaking) and Roznava (population 
est. 20,000, roughly 35 percent Hungarian speaking, 50 percent 
Slovak speaking, 10 percent Romani speaking, and the remainder a 
mixture of Czech and German), we heard from mayors and activists 
alike deep skepticism about the implementation of the law.  In 
Kralovsky Chlmec, local municipal council meetings are currently 
held in Hungarian, a practice which will have to change after 
the law goes into effect.  Both towns' mayors said that their 
ethnic Hungarians speak Slovak and their ethnic Slovaks speak 
Hungarian.  The mayor of Roznava, Vladislav Laciak, opined that 
this law might make sense to people who live in homogenous 
cities, but will put a great and useless burden on 
municipalities with a mixed population.  Neither mayor was sure 
who would inspect their towns' adherence to the new law.  Both 
agreed that the law would not contribute to any antipathy 
between citizens, however, because their communities are quite 
peaceful and have enjoyed a tradition of inter-ethnic harmony 
for centuries. 
 
Relations with Hungary 
 
¶9. As reported by our colleagues in Budapest (reftel), the 
Parliament's passage of the law has further soured 
Hungarian-Slovak relations.  On July 17, a Slovak-Hungarian 
commission for minorities met in Budapest to discuss the law, 
which is blamed for impeding progress on a Bajnai-Fico meeting 
in Budapest this July.  However, a second secretary at the 
Hungarian Embassy in Bratislava told us that the meeting was 
never more than provisional, and plans had never been finalized. 
 The GOH was taken aback by the Slovak government's presentation 
of it as an agreement that was cancelled as opposed to an idea 
that never came to fruition. 
 
Comment 
 
¶10.   Prime Minister Fico said on July 5 that "Protection of the 
Slovak State language must be the first pillar of every Slovak 
government's program.  It is namely the way to defend oneself 
from the dangerous irredentism that has been breathed from over 
the Danube ever more strongly."  But if one takes Fico and 
Madaric at their word, the law will have little real effect.  In 
that case, the law can be interpreted as a blatant ploy to gain 
ground with nationalistic voters or as a gratuitous slap at the 
Hungarian-speaking minority.  What will be most telling is how 
aggressively this law will be enforced, particularly in the 
run-up to the 2010 Slovak elections.  End comment. 
EDDINS