Ukraine has agreed to a number of Hungary's demands regarding the rights of national minorities
Ukraine and Hungary have reached preliminary agreements on changes in the education sector and the expansion of rights for national minorities, which could help unblock the negotiation process regarding Ukraine’s accession to the EU.
This was reported by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, citing a document outlining the agreements between Kyiv and Budapest.
According to the document, students in classes taught in the languages of national minorities will be able to use their native language not only during lessons but also when communicating with each other and with teachers.
Schools with classes or groups taught in the language of a national minority will also be eligible for special status. In such institutions, signs and informational materials may be duplicated in the language of the relevant community, and school administrators must be proficient in that language.
At the request of parents, educational documents may also be issued in the language of the national minority. For graduates of such schools, there is a provision for the translation of external independent assessment tasks, with the exception of tests in the Ukrainian language and Ukrainian history.
The document also provides for the expansion of national minorities’ rights in the sphere of local self-government. In particular, community representatives will be able to use their native language when communicating with government authorities, and local councils will have the right to install bilingual signs on buildings and duplicate street names and place names.
In addition, the bill proposes making consultations with representatives of national minorities mandatory during the drafting of legislation concerning their legal status.
Certain provisions also concern the conduct of public events in the native language, the use of minority languages in electronic correspondence with government agencies, and the provision of election materials in the native languages of national communities in areas where they live in compact communities.
Source: Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty.
Hungary’s new Prime Minister, Péter Magyar, made high-profile statements regarding the situation of the Hungarian national minority in Ukraine and the European Union’s future economic relations with the Russian Federation.
The foreign ministers of Ukraine and Hungary, Andriy Sibiga and Anita Orbán, held their first in-person meeting on May 22. During the talks in Helsingborg, the parties agreed to hold a second round of expert-level consultations next week to further discuss bilateral issues.
