Slovak Republic: The situation of ethnic Hungarians (January 1998 - March 1999)
| Publisher | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada |
| Author | Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board, Canada |
| Publication Date | 1 March 1999 |
| Citation / Document Symbol | SLK31427.E |
| Cite as | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Slovak Republic: The situation of ethnic Hungarians (January 1998 - March 1999), 1 March 1999, SLK31427.E, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/3ae6ab5b6c.html [accessed 19 October 2022] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
The 21-27 December 1998 issue of the Slovak Spectator states:
Bugar's [Bela Bugar, leader of the Hungarian Coalition Party] stubbornness is legendary among his political colleagues, and is the principal reason that Slovakia's Hungarian minority is represented in government for the first time. In 1998, Bugar presided over the transformation of the three-party Hungarian Coalition into a single party, the SMK, of which he was named chairman. He also survived a challenge to his leadership by outspoken Hungarian MP Miklos Duray, and managed to guide the SMK to three cabinet berths and roles in state firms and administration.
In their reaction to the formation of the government [following the parliamentary elections of 25-26 September 1998], both EU and US diplomats have repeatedly stressed the importance that they attach to the participation of Hungarians in the Slovak government. Weak legislation to protect the rights of the country's Hungarian minority, which makes up 11% of the population, has been a key feature of international criticism of Slovakia in the past.
The following are excerpts from an interview with Bela Bugar [in the above-mentioned article]:
The Slovak Spectator: You are in a coalition government with the SDL reformed communist party, a party which does not recognise the existence of political parties based on minority or ethnic lines. They also say that they will do anything to prevent such parties from contesting the next election in 2002. How do you feel about that?
BB: That's the art of politics(you have to be able to sit at one table with a person who's against your political ideas....
The Slovak Spectator: Do you think that hatred against Hungarians is on the rise now that the Hungarian Coalition Party is a member of the government?
BB: I can't say. It's a long process. We inherited the hatred from the time of Meciar...
The following articles have been obtained from the Website of the New York-based Hungarian Human Rights Foundation:
After talks with Education Minister Milan Ftacnik, a teacher at the Hungarian-language primary school in Trstice/Nadszeg, Bela Agocs, ended his four-day sit-down strike when the minister promised an independent investigation on the person who had humiliated and discriminated against him during the previous regime. Agocs was well-known for consistently issuing bilingual report cards despite the official ban imposed by the previous government of Vladimir Meciar. The ethnic Hungarian teacher insists that the officials who mistreated him be removed from office. [Forum Institute (Galanta/Galanta), Jan. 22, 1999]
The National Council of the Hungarian Coalition Party (HCP) decided that the government's planned 34.7 million Slovak Crowns subsidy for minority cultures is unacceptable. HCP President Bela Bugar said his party is considering to voting against the 1999 state budget since the government program stipulates reasonable support for minority cultures. Until 1994, 140 million Crowns were allocated for minority cultures, but that figure was drastically cut to 50 million Crowns by the Vladimir Meciar-led government [Uj Szo (Bratislava/Pozsony), Feb. 15, 1999].
No additional information on the situation of ethnic Hungarians in the Slovak Republic could be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate.
This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum. Please find below the list of additional sources consulted in researching this Information Request.
References
Hungarian Human Rights Foundation. [Internet].
The Slovak Spectator. 21 - 27 December 1998. Slavomir Danko and Tom Nicholson. "Bela Bugar: Hatred 'Inherited From Meciar'." [Internet]
Additional Sources Consulted
Electronic sources: IRB databases, Internet, NEXIS/LEXIS, REFWORLD, WNC.
Nationalities Papers [Abingdon, Oxfordshire, UK.]. March 1998 - December 1998.
Transitions [Prague]. January 1998 - January 1999.
Resource Centre country file on the Slovak Republic. January 1998 - January 1999.
