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On
the rights of ethnic minorities in Latvia and Estonia
LIST
OF MAIN CLAIMS AND RECOMMENDATIONS OF INTERNATIONAL
ORGANIZATIONS AND NGO TO LATVIA AS REGARDS RIGHTS OF
NATIONAL MINORITIES
I.The
Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE)recommendations
on correcting the situation with rights of national minorities
are set forth in Resolution 1236 adopted in 2001 on
completion of monitoring Latvia ’s compliance with its
commitments as a member of the Council of Europe.The resolution,inter
alia,encourages Latvia:
“5.i.to
ratify as a matter of priority the Framework Convention
for the Protection of National Minorities (signed
by Latvia on 11 May 1995) and to amend and implement legislation,in
particular the amended State Language Law,in conformity
with the provisions and the spirit of the Framework Convention;
5.ii.to
give further encouragement to non-citizens to apply for
citizenship -through media campaigns and public statements
by the political leadership.Despite significant progress
made in the naturalisation process,sustained efforts are
imperative to produce further results in this field by,for
instance,combining the compulsory tests for naturalisation
with centralised final school exams,targeting language
training for naturalisation candidates and reducing the
cost of the application for naturalisation;
5.iii.to
provide additional resources to the Naturalisation Board
and the National Programme for Latvian Language Training;
5.iv.to amend and implement the Education Law of October
1998 in accordance with the provisions and spirit of the
Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities;
5.v.to devise and adopt a law on the protection
of national and language minorities and establish
a state body in charge of minority affairs;
5.vi.to
ratify as a matter of priority the Social Charter of the
Council of Europe;
5.vii.to
speed up the implementation of the Social Integration
Programme.” In case of Latvia,of particular significance
is the position of the PACE, which,in its Recommendation
1500 (2001)“Participation of immigrants and foreign
residents in political life in the Council of Europe member
states ”,emphasizes that “democratic legitimacy requires
equal participation by all groups of society in the political
process,and that the contribution of legally resident
non-citizens to the country ’s prosperity further justifies
their right to influence political decisions in the country
concerned ” ((para.4).In this connection the PACE “urges
the governments of member states to grant the right
to vote and stand in local elections to all immigrants
legally established for at least three years irrespective
of their origin ”.If the PACE recommends to grant
such a right even to foreigners,it would be ever
more reasonable to grant it to Latvian non-citizens,who
have no other citizenship and who exclusively or mostly
resided in Latvia.
II.In
its Concluding Observations adopted after consideration
of the initial report of Latvia the UN Committee on the
Rights of the Child (January 2001)called upon the
Latvian authorities to comply with the provisions of Articles
29 and 30 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child
with a view to ensuring that children belonging to
national minorities can use their own language in secondary
education.
III.The
report on Latvia (October 2001)of the Open Society Institute
within the framework of its EU Accession Monitoring Program
points out to the following.
In
1991 the Supreme Soviet of the Republic of Latvia restored
citizenship only to those individuals,who were Latvian
citizens before the Second World War,and to their descendents.The
right to be automatically admitted to citizenship was
refused to all others.The report of the UN Committee
on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination for 2001 emphasized
the indirect discrimination triggered by that decision:
“More
than 25 per cent of the resident population,many of them
belonging to non-Latvian ethnic groups,have to apply [for
citizenship ] and are in a discriminatory position ”(CERD/C/304/ADD.79,2001,para
12). The pace of naturalization remains slow which
precludes any possibility to admit to citizenship multitudes
of non-citizens in the near future. The language rights
of minorities acquire particular importance due to the
fact that the Lettish language is not the mother tongue
for approximately 38 per cent of the Latvian population.The
Law on the State Language declares as foreign all other
languages,including those spoken by minorities,and prohibits
their use in contacts with public institutions.Lack
of sufficient knowledge of the Lettish language contributed
not only to underrepresentation of Russians among civil
servants and in bodies making publicly important decisions
but also to a notably higher level of unemployment among
minorities.On June 14,2001,the Parliament introduced penalties
for language violations,including for “non-respect for
the State language.”
The
reform of education represents a particularly controversial
issue.According to the 1998 Law on Education by 2004
all secondary and professional schools owned by State
or local government bodies go over to teaching in the
Lettish language.The Law was adopted without any consultations
with the minorities and provides for a discriminatory
rule prohibiting private minority schools to obtain public
subsidies.
The
ban on the use of minority languages at State agencies
and local government bodies and the liquidation of
the system of secondary education and professional training
in the minority languages financed by the State and local
government bodies pose a real obstacle to ratification
of the Framework Convention for the Protection of National
Minorities.The 2001 Council of Europe report noted
that although the Latvian Parliament had not yet ratified
the Framework Convention this situation
was governed by the Vienna Convention on the Force of
Treaties signed by Latvia on May 4,1993.According to this
Convention after signing a treaty a State must refrain
from actions running counter to the goals and objectives
of this treaty {Committee on the Honouring of Obligations
and Commitments by Member States of the Council of Europe
Report, Doc.8924 (10 January 2001,para.21).
Latvia
has no comprehensive legislation in the area of minority
rights.Latvia has not yet ratified the Framework Convention
for the Protection of National Minorities.The Latvian
anti-discriminatory legislation does not meet the requirements
of the EU Racial Equality Directive. The recommendations
by the authors of the report to the Government of Latvia:
1.To
consider a possibility of extending the system of bilingual
education to secondary schools ,and a possibility
of expanding the programs ensuring adequate training of
teachers for minority schools,in particular for the Russian
minority.
2.To
ratify the Framework Convention for the Protection of
National Minorities and to bring the legislation in line
with the norms of the Convention,especially with respect
to the use of minority languages in contacts with authorities,education
in minority languages, private television and radio broadcasting
in minority languages.
3.To
take all the necessary steps to speed up naturalization,including
to ensure candidates ’ preparatory training,,to ease requirements
concerning some groups,and to carry out information campaigns
in mass media.It is also necessary to take measures to
overcome the feeling of alienation from,and distrust toward,the
State which appeared among minorities as a result of the
State policy of the past.
4.To
grant resident non-citizens the right to vote at local
elections for further integration of the Latvian society
at the local level.To lift the existing restrictions
on the “non-political ” rights of resident non-citizens,thus
ensuring general equality of conditions and an equal access
to the labor market.
5.To
revise the Program of Integration of the Latvian Society
with the active participation of minorities themselves
so as to turn it from an “export ” declaration of intent
into a plan of specific actions.Necessary funding should
be provided to implement the Program. IV.The report prepared
by the Open Society Institute in December 2002
and devoted to the evaluation of the government program
“Social Integration in Latvia ”states that “a
broad consensus on its content has not been reached
in the society.” The authors of the report see the
main obstacle in the fact that the Program of
Integration is built upon the “legislative basis existing
in the country and the state policy which is criticized
by many representatives of national minorities, especially
in the field of education.” Other shortcomings include::“insufficient
attention of the Program of Integration itself and the
policy of the authorities as a whole to society ’s
concerns with the state of affairs in the area of
ensuring such rights of national minorities as a broader
access to education and electronic mass media in the native
language,support for minority languages,promotion of dialogue
between minorities and the State,and effective participation
of national minorities in social life ”.
V.The
2002 Report of the European Commission on the progress
made by EU pre-accession countries especially notes
that Latvia “refused to ratify the Framework Convention
for the Protection of National Minorities.”The
European Commission urged Riga to ratify this instrument
of the Council of Europe. The document points out
the “still slow ” pace of naturalization of non-citizens.
The European Commission has criticized the rules of
use of the state language,“some of which are worded
in such a way that they could give rise to different interpretations.”
The
amendments to the Law on the Local Authorities,which
declare Lettish the working language,represent,in the
authors’ opinion, “a potential risk to the opportunities
that exist in practice for the use of ethnic minority
languages in contacts with public authorities ”. The
report notes that the “exclusion of non-citizens from
a number of professions (lawyers,armed security guards,private
detectives) limits the integration of non-citizens
into the economic sphere.”
VI.The
report of the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance,of
July 23,2002,highlights the “serious problems ”experienced
by the Russian-speaking population in Latvia. The Commission
believes that the difficulties experienced by one part
of the population of Latvia and the imbalances between
its situation and that of the rest of the population should
be addressed and remedied as a matter of priority.This
would not only improve the enjoyment of civil,
political, social, cultural and economic rights by
a substantial part of the Latvian population and counter
its possible marginalisation and disaffectedness from
mainstream Latvian society ,but also avoid,in the
long term,the creation a climate where social tensions
could arise.
ECRI
stresses the importance of a clear public recognition
of the fact that Latvia is a multicultural society,of
which all minority groups are an integral part.It
should be made clear that,given the current imbalances
in the situation of minority groups,and notably the Russian-speaking
population,time and resources must be devoted to providing
this part of Latvian society with increased opportunities,including
for participation in the public life of the country.Such
recognition should be reflected in consistent policies
at legislative and other levels. In this regard the
Latvian authorities were encouraged:to promote the
process of admittance to Latvian citizenship through naturalization;
to monitor the effects of the legislation in the field
of language;to provide an access to education in the mother
tongue;to grant voting rights to resident non-citizens
in local elections;to remove unjustified restrictions
on non-citizens to work in a number of professions.
VII.The
conclusions of the OSCE and PACE observer mission to the
parliamentary elections in Latvia held on October 5,2002,contain
a number of assessments of the human rights situation
in Latvia and recommendations for the development of the
democratic process in Latvia. The mission drew attention
to the problems of mass statelessness in this country
and slow pace of naturalization of non-citizens
who were denied the right to vote in either national or
municipal elections,which,in the observers ’ opinion,,created
“a serious and long-term democracy deficit ” in Latvia..In
this context,it was noted that the Council of Europe and
the Council of Baltic Sea States had previously addressed
the issue of granting the non-citizens the right to vote
in the municipal elections as was the practice in Estonia.
The observers recommended that Latvian authorities “review
Articles 5,13 and 15 of the Saeima Election Law still
restricting the right of a person to be nominated as a
candidate on the grounds of his/her past political party
and security service affiliations ”.It was also noted
that these articles were inconsistent with article 7.5
of the CSCE Copenhagen Document (1990),which urged all
member states of the OSCE “to respect the right of citizens
to seek political or public office,individually or as
representatives of political parties or organizations,without
discrimination.”
VIII.During
his visit to Riga in December 2002 R.Ekeus,the
OSCE High Commissioner for National Minorities,urged the
Latvian authorities to ratify the Council of Europe
Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities
and Protocol No.12 to the European Convention for
the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms,and
expressed his concern over the slow pace of non-citizen
naturalization and inadequate Naturalization Board budget.
IX.On
March 4,2003,the PACE Monitoring Commission held a
meeting in Paris,where it considered,inter alia,the
Latvian issue (the Head of the Commission Josette Durrieu
visited Riga before that).The main concerns expressed
by foreign representatives to Latvian authorities related
to the following:the Framework Convention of the Council
of Europe for the Protection of National Minorities has
not been ratified so far; non-citizens are denied the
right to vote and to be elected to local government bodies;a
discriminatory Law on Education has been passed.
Some speakers noted that it was unadvisable to stop
monitoring that early and suggested that another visit
to Riga be paid in the nearest future,which the Commission
decided to do.
X.A
similar interpretation of the state of affairs in
ensuring the rights of the Russian-speaking minority in
Latvia was given by the Commissioner of the Council
of Baltic Sea States for Democratic Development,Helle
Degn,who visited Latvia in February 2003.
XI.In
its findings published in Geneva on 22 August 2003,the
Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination
(CERD) expressed its concern over the discrepancy between
the Latvian legislation and the practical application
of the International Convention on the Elimination of
All Forms of Racial Discrimination. The main recommendations
given by the CERD to Latvia are as follows:
-to
continue efforts aimed at preparing a comprehensive
law against discrimination and amend the Labour Law;
-to
integrate into the national legislation the definition
of discrimination given in the Convention and develop
special laws on organized racist activities and propaganda;
-to
ensure that the State Language Law does not result in
unnecessary restrictions which may have the effect of
creating or perpetuating ethnic discrimination;
to
facilitate the integration process by making it possible
to participate in local elections for all those non-citizens,who
are long-time residents;
-to
develop a strategy aimed at accelerating the pace of naturalization;
-to
reduce the list of occupations restricted to citizens
alone;
-to
approach the education reform with care and flexibility,maintaining
a close dialogue with the public,schools,parents and students;to
monitor the reform process to ensure that a high quality
of education is maintained;to consider an extension
of the transition period to bilingual education.
XII.During
his visit to Riga at the beginning of October 2003 in
connection with the consideration by the Council of Europe
Monitoring Commission of an enquiry by G.I.Churkin,deputy
to the State Duma of the RF,“On the status of the Russian-speaking
population in Latvia ”, A.Gil-Robles,CE Commissioner
for Human Rights,called on the Latvian authorities,inter
alia,“to facilitate to a maximum degree the naturalization
process ” and “to allow non-citizens to participate in
the municipal elections.”
XIII.Taking
into account public statements by some Latvian officials
suggesting postponing or possible exemptions in case of
ratification of the Framework Convention for the Protection
of National Minorities it should be reminded that the
recent PACE recommendation 1623 (2003)calls on
“member states who have signed but have not ratified to
swiftly ratify,without reservations or declarations,the
Framework Convention ”.It stressed that “persistent
refusal to sign or ratify this instrument,and to implement
its standards,should be the subject of particular attention
in the monitoring procedures conducted by the
Committee
of Ministers,the Parliamentary Assembly and the Congress
of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe.”
XIV.The
Commission of the European Communities ’s Report on
Latvia ’s preparations for membership in the European
Union,published on November 5,2003,urges the authorities
of this country:
-to
promote integration of the Russian minority by,in particular,continuing
to accelerate the speed of the naturalization procedure
and by taking other proactive measures to increase the
rate of naturalisation;
-to
ensure sufficient flexibility regarding transition
to bilingual education in minority schools;
-to
ensure that at all levels the implementation of the
language law respects the principle of justified
public interest and proportionality, as well as Latvia
’s international obligations.
XV.The
regular session of the Human Rights Committee,held
in Geneva from October 20 to November 7,2003 examined
Latvia ’s 2nd periodic report on implementation of the
provisions of the International Covenant on Civil and
Political Rights of 1966.In concluding observations
of the Committee published on November 6,2003,the
Committee expresses concern about a large number
of non-citizens in Latvia, slow rate of their naturalization,obstacles
to receiving Latvian citizenship posed by the requirement
to pass a language examination,lack of effective enjoyment
of political rights by non-citizens,the possibility to
occupy certain state and public positions,to exercise
certain professions in the private sector,to communicate
with public authorities in the mother tongue,restrictions
in the area of ownership of agricultural land,as well
as social benefits,the education reform. The Committee
recommended that Latvia should: -further strengthen
its efforts to effectively address the lack of applications
for naturalization as well as obstacles posed by the requirement
to pass a (Latvian)language examination;
-take
all necessary measures to further encourage registration
of children as citizens;
-facilitate
the integration process by enabling non-citizens who
are long-term residents of Latvia to participate in
local elections and to limit the number of other restrictions
on non-citizens in order to facilitate participation
of non-citizens in public life in Latvia;
-facilitate
communication of non-Latvian speakers with public authorities;
-take
all necessary measures to prevent negative effects
on minorities of the transition to Latvian as the language
of instruction in secondary schools,and provide state
subsidies to private schools in a non-discriminatory manner.
The Committee urged Latvia,without waiting for the
next periodic report to be presented in 2008,to forward
within 12 months information on the implementation of
recommendations regarding the problems of naturalization,the
status of non-citizens,the language policy and the education
law which are most important for the Russian-speaking
population of this country.
XVI.The
Report presented on 27 January 2004 by A.Gil-Robles,CE
Commissioner for Human Rights,on his visit to Latvia
in October 2003 reflects the following points.
The
quoted official figures provide evidence that the naturalization
rate has not achieved its targeted level and the annual
number of people receiving citizenship remains on the
low side.The existence of very large numbers of non-citizens
in any democratic country cannot be regarded as normal.The
problem must be tackled,as the national authorities in
fact recognize. First of all,consideration should be given
to making the language exameasier for the most vulnerable
groups,starting with the elderly.It is important for everyone
to know the country ’s official language. However,it would
be unfair to expect the older generation to have the same
command as is required of young people compulsorily taught
Latvian at school.I think that the naturalization charge
should gradually be abolished,starting with pensioners
and children. It seems reasonable that people who
for many years have lived in a locality,pay their local
taxes and are bringing up their children there should
have some say in purely local affairs.As of 1 May 2004,when
Latvia becomes a member of the European Union,all citizens
of European Union countries residing in Latvia will
have the right to vote in local elections there.The
Latvian authorities should give serious thought to granting
the same right to people who have lived in Latvia for
many years or, indeed,since birth. The Latvian authorities
should endeavour to provide more support to members of
language minorities and,in particular,allow them to use
their mother tongues for official business,as suggested
in Para 10 of the Framework Convention.A gesture of support
on the part of the state would certainly be very beneficial
in terms of strengthening national cohesion.In addition,it
might well motivate members of minorities with inadequate
command of the official language to improve their knowledge.
Many
parents of children from minority groups are worried about
the situation with the education reform.They believe that
the ground has not been properly prepared for the switch.Minority
schools do not have enough teachers able to teach their
subjects in Latvian,and the imposed change is likely to
result in a lower standard of teaching,and this would
be damaging for the pupils. Indeed,it is extremely important
that all young people leave secondary school with a good
command of the official language.But learning the official
language must not lower the standard of teaching in other
subjects.The authorities need to take great care of the
above-mentioned issues,for
no member of a national minority can feel comfortable
in a country where there is no evidence of respect from
officialdom or the majority population.Mutual respect
is essential to collectively building a prosperous future
for Latvia. In the light of the preceding findings,and
with the aim of assisting Latvia in the promotion of the
respect for human rights,the Commissioner makes the following
recommendations in conformity with Article 8 of Resolution
(99)50: accelerate the naturalization of non-citizens
and in this context facilitate the naturalization,particularly
for the vulnerable groups,such as the elderly,the disabled
and the young;examine the possibility of providing the
naturalization procedure free of charge;
-with
a view to encouraging non-citizens to naturalize and promoting
their integration,increase their participation in the
political life of the country,notably by examining the
possibility of granting them,amongst others,the right
to vote in local elections;
-strengthen
the protection of minorities by ratifying the CE Framework
Convention for the Protection of National Minorities;
-facilitate
the use of minority languages,including in written correspondence
with the authorities;
-increase
the financial resources of Latvian language training programmes,so
as to enable all members of national minorities desiring
to improve their knowledge of the official language to
do so without charge;
-provide
the support and protection of the State to the functioning
of secondary schools teaching in minority languages;
-ensure
that the reform of the education system in Latvia maintains
the current high quality of teaching;
-strengthen
the cooperation between the Ministry of Education,teachers
and parents in the process of defining the best model
and time scales in the implementation of the reform.
XVII.On
11 May 2004 the European Parliament adopted the “Comprehensive
monitoring report on the state of preparedness for EU
membership ”,with its section on Latvia recommending the
authorities of this country to take the following steps
in the field of human rights and rights of national minorities:
-to
promote actively the naturalization process,for instance
through establishing minimal requirements for command
of the Latvian language by elderly people;
-to
give non-citizens who have lived in the country for a
long period of time the right to vote in local elections;
-to
ratify the Framework Convention for the Protection of
National Minorities;
-to
ensure flexible implementation of the Law on Education
in order to promote integration of the Russian-speaking
minorities and to ease tension in society.
XVIII.The
13th OSCE Parliamentary Assembly session (Edinburgh,5-9
July 2004)adopted the Edinburgh declaration containing
a special resolution on national minorities.
The
above-mentioned Resolution of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly:
calls upon national parliaments and governments of Latvia
and Estonia to approve comprehensive legislation prohibiting
discrimination based on race,color,language,religion,sex,national
origin and other grounds in the fields of education,employment
and social welfare,as well as excluding decision-making
directed towards assimilation of national minorities;
calls upon the Latvian authorities at the earliest possible
date and without reservations to ratify the Framework
Convention for the Protection of National Minorities as
well as Protocols No.12 and No.13 to the European Convention
on the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms;
-strongly
recommends that the Latvian authorities create conditions
for participation of stateless persons in the political
life of the country by granting them the right to vote
in local elections.
LIST
OF MAIN CLAIMS AND RECOMMENDATIONS AS REGARDS THE RIGHTS
OF NATIONAL MINORITIES OFFERED BY INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
AND NGO TO ESTONIA .
The
Opinion of the Council of Europe Advisory Committee on
the Framework Convention for the Protection of National
Minorities on the Report of Estonia on the implementation
of this instrument adopted on September 14,2001 notes
the following. The Advisory Committee believes that the
declaration made in connection with ratification by the
Estonian Parliament of the European Framework Convention
for the Protection of National Minorities that applies
the instrument only to the citizens of Estonia is restrictive
in nature (Section III,Art.3,para.17)and calls upon
the Estonian authorities to reexamine such interpretation
(Section III,Art.3,para.18). Noting the continued
slow rate of naturalization experts of the Council
of Europe believe that one of the obstacles to acquiring
citizenship are strictest Estonian language requirements
(Section III,Art.4,para.26). Assessing the efforts
taken by the Estonian authorities to integrate society
the drafters of the Opinion emphasize a biased nature
of Estonian policy in the sphere of integration and
note that relevant public efforts are focused on the
Estonian language training (Section III,Art.5,para.27).
The Advisory Committee challenged the Cultural Autonomy
Act of 1993 in terms of its impact on the practical
situation faced by national minorities in Estonia and
expressed a need to revise or replace relevant
legislation (Section III,Art.5,para.29).
With
respect to access of national minorities to information
the Opinion notes inadequacy of TV broadcasting in
Russian (1 hour of broadcasting daily)that,as the
Council of Europe sees it,should be reviewed (Section
III,Art.9,para.37).At the same time it is noted that the
implementation of Art.25 of the Language Act that
strictly prescribes to provide Estonian translation of
TV broadcasting in a minority language bars the implementation
of Art.9 of the Framework Convention by causing undue
difficulties for persons belonging to national minorities
in their efforts to create their own media (Section III,Art.9,para.38).
The
Advisory Committee notes that standards on the status
and protection of minority languages are limited,inter
alia,in their scope (Section III,Art.10,para.39).
As regards the situation with the right of national minorities
to education, the Opinion notes the absence of any
provisions in the Basic Schools and Upper Secondary
Schools Act providing guarantees for,or encouraging
the implementation of,the possibility of using the minority
language as the main language of instruction.The Advisory
Committee expresses regret that the choice of the main
language of instruction in municipal and state basic schools
is left solely to the discretion of the local government
council and the Ministry of Education (Section
III ,Art.14,para.53).
II.The
Second report of the European Commission against Racism
and Intolerance of April 23,2002 addressing the situation
in this field in Estonia draws attention to the slowing
down of the naturalization process and recommends to take
measures to encourage non-citizens to apply for Estonian
citizenship (Section O,Art.64).The document also notes
that “despite the amendments introduced to the Law
on Citizenship its requirements are still reported to
be a barrier for many persons wishing to acquire Estonian
citizenship ”(Section B,Art.9). The authors of the
report also critically assess the Estonian authorities
’ efforts in society integration,first of all in the political
sphere.The document expresses concern that non-citizens
cannot participate in the national elections and cannot
stand as candidates in local elections or be members of
political parties (Section G,Art.40).The European
Commission notes that the Russian-speaking population
is at risk of marginalization,exclusion from social structures
and decision-making process; is under represented in private
businesses and among elite groups in society.
The
document states that the economic and social situation
of this group of people is steadily deteriorating relative
to that of ethnic Estonians (Section N,Art.58).The
Commission stresses that such a situation is likely
to lead to the appearance of marginalized social strata
and to emergence of inter-ethnic tensions (Section
N,Art.59).The drafters encourage the Estonian authorities
in their efforts to integrate both ethnic Estonians
and minority groups into one society,and hope that this
issue will continue to be given a high priority (Section
N,Art.60).
The
part that deals with the language issues points out to
the persisting restrictions on labor in the Language
Act (Section B,Art.13).The report also notes that
broadcasting in Russian is rather limited on Estonian
television (Section M,Art.55).The European Commission
encourages printing press,for example,simultaneously
in both languages and broadcasting more television programs
of interest to both communities and made accessible to
all residents in Estonia (Section M,Art.56). The
situation as regards the application of the Cultural Autonomy
Act is subjected to substantial criticism in the report
(Section B,Art.16). The European Commission highlights
the issue of granting citizenship to the former Soviet
military and members of their families.Authors of the
report express concern about the fact that spouses
and children of former military and security service personnel
are deprived of the right to acquire Estonian citizenship,“though
they themselves have played no military or security service
role ” ((Section B,Art.12). The report urges Estonian
authorities to take necessary steps to ratify the UNESCO
Convention against Discrimination in Education,as well
as the European Convention on the Participation of Foreigners
in Public Life at Local Level.
III.The
Resolution of Committee of Ministers of the Council of
Europe of June 13,2002 (ResCNM (2002)8)on the implementation
of the Framework Convention for the Protection of National
Minorities by Estonia notes the need for further efforts
in order to promote the process of naturalization,bearing
in mind that the number of stateless persons remains high
(Art.1,para.4). It is also noted in the Resolution
that it is essential that the provisions aimed at increasing
knowledge of the Estonian language are coupled with improved
guarantees for persons belonging to national minorities
to receive instruction in or of their language.(Art.1,para.5).
IV.Concluding
observations of the UN Committee on the Elimination of
Racial Discrimination of November 1,2002 to Estonia
’s report on the implementation of the respective Convention
contains the following recommendations.
In
the section of the document related to Tallin ’s policy
in the field of citizenship,concern is expressed about
the very high number of stateless persons residing in
Estonia (Section C,Art.353)and barriers to the
acquisition of citizenship by former Soviet Union military
personnel residing in Estonia (Section C,Art.354).
Concluding
observations also give a critical assessment of the restrictive
definition of national minorities contained in the
Cultural Autonomy Act of 1993.In the opinion of UN experts,such
a narrow definition may limit the scope of the State
integration programme and have the effect of transforming
a policy of integration into a policy of assimilation
(Section C,Art.355).Besides,concern is expressed
about the situation of the Russian-speaking minority residing
in Estonia,especially in relation to economic,social and
cultural rights,including the rights to employment,health
care and education (Section C,Art.357). The UN Committee
also draws attention to the situation in the language
area,noting that the level of requirements set forth
by the Language Act in its part concerning the sphere
of labour,especially in the private sector,can lead to
the discrimination of national minorities in violation
of Art.5 of the Convention on the Elimination of Racial
Discrimination (Section C,Art.356)The Committee in its
Concluding observations emphasizes the importance of
allowing municipal authorities in the areas of compact
settlement of the Russian-speaking population to conduct
clerical
work in the mother tongue and invites the Government of
Estonia in its next report to give more details on the
progress in this sphere (Section C,Art.359).
As
for the respect for political rights of national minorities
the UN experts express their concern over the fact
that the Estonian law establishes a linkage between the
right to membership in political parties and the Estonian
citizenship.
The
Concluding observations contain recommendations to the
Government of Estonia to join a number of UN human
rights instruments,such as the Convention on the Reduction
of Statelessness of 1961,the Convention relating to the
Status of Stateless Persons of 1954,and the UNESCO Convention
against Discrimination in Education of 1960 (Section
C,Art. 361)
V.The
UN Committee against Torture in its Concluding observations
of November 21,2002,on Estonia ’s report on the implementation
of the respective Convention expresses concern over
the great number of Russian citizens and apatrides detained
in Estonian prisons.The Committee recommends to examine
and report on the reasons for such a great number of Russian
citizens in custody (Section C,Art.5,para.f).The document
recommends to ratify the Convention on the Reduction of
Stateless Persons of 1961 (Section D ,Art.6,para.i).
VI.The
report of the Open Society Institute prepared in
November 2002 within the framework of the EU Accession
Monitoring Program related to Estonia points out to the
absence of the consensus perception of the issues of integration
by the Estonian society and expresses the fear that the
intention of the authorities to unite the society on the
basis of the Estonian language will not contribute to
attaining the goal (Section 4).In its report the Institute
makes critical remarks in connection with the lack
of information and discussions concerning the purposes
and principles of the Program for the integration of society
during its elaboration,which was repeatedly stressed
by representatives of national minorities (Section 4).
In order to increase the effectiveness of its integration
policies,the following measures are recommended to be
implemented by the Estonian Government:
to
simplify the naturalization process for stateless persons,to
provide framework for a more active involvement of non-Estonians
in public life (Section 4);
to
rationalize the legal and administrative procedures with
a view to reducing the number of non-citizens and making
naturalization process more acceptable to non-citizens;
to
develop partnerships between state bodies,local authorities
and national minorities (Section 5,para.3). The report
also recommends to revise and amend the Cultural Autonomy
Act making its application more effective in view
of the fact that it is not being fully applied now (Section
3,para.4).
VII.In
its comments of November 29,2002 on the Estonia
’s report on the implementation of the International Covenant
on Economic,Social and Cultural Rights,the UN Committee
on Economic,Social and Cultural Rights expresses concern
about lack of regard for the language and cultural rights
of national minorities,including the right to education
in the mother tongue (Section D,Art.32). The Committee
recommends to revise the Cultural Autonomy Act with
a view to fully recognizing the rights of national minorities.The
Committee call upon Estonia to provide national minorities
with an opportunity to be educated in the mother tongue
as well as to use it in public life (Section E,Art.57).
The Committee expresses concern about the fact that the
rate of unemployment among national minorities (around
16.6 per cent)exceeds the average of 9.9 per cent for
the country (Section D,Art.12).In this connection,the
drafters of the document call on the Estonian authorities
to increase investment in the development of the country
’s regions with the highest rate of unemployment with
a view to employing the workers affected by the restructurization
programs,particularly in the basic industries and agricultural
sector (Section E,Art.34).
VIII.The
report of the mission of the OSCE Office for Democratic
Institutions and Human Rights of February 18,2003
draws attention to the still high rate of stateless persons.It
is pointed out that the acceleration of the naturalization
process is hampered by the existence of significant administrative
barriers (Section E).
The
report points to the need to abolish restrictions on
national minorities ’ membership in political parties
in Estonia ((Section 4,para.3).The OSCE experts believe
that Estonian authorities should “explore possibilities
to significantly increase representation of national minorities
in Parliament (Riigikogu)and other political institutions
”.The document also recommends to ensure translation
of elections information into other languages than
Estonian especially in those areas where national minorities
prevail (Section 4,para.4).
The
drafters note the need for Estonian authorities to
reconsider their approach and explore possibilities to
include national minorities,especially non-citizen,into
the Annex to the Framework Convention on the Protection
of National Minorities (Section E).
IX.The
recommendations of the UN Committee on Human Rights of
April 3,2003 on Estonia ’s report on the implementation
of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
express concerns regarding noncompliance by Estonia
with the previous recommendations on naturalization and
the continued high level of stateless persons.In this
context,the Committee recommends that Estonian authorities
should reconsider their approach towards granting citizenship
to persons who had citizenship of another country during
the transition period,as well as to stateless persons
(Section C,Art.14).The document also voices concerns
on the legislative ban regarding the participation
of non-citizens in political parties ’ activities and
notes the need to lift restrictions in this field (Section
C,Art.17)
The
UN Committee on Human Rights notes the need to ensure
non-discriminatory implementation of laws governing rights
of national minorities to use their language and culture
(Art.16).
X.The
European Commission ’s Report on Estonia ’s preparations
for membership in the European Union,dd.November 5,2003
(chapter 13), urges the authorities of this country:
to
further promote integration of the Russian minority by,in
particular,continuing to increase the speed of naturalisation
procedures and by taking other proactive measures
to increase the rate of naturalisation;
-to
ensure the effective and flexible implementation of the
planned transition by 2007 to bilingual education in non-Estonian
speaking schools;
-to
ensure that at all levels the implementation of the Language
Act respects the principle of justified public interest
and proportionality,as well as Estonia ’s international
obligations.
XI.In
the Report by A.Gil-Robles,Council of Europe Commissioner
for human rights (January 2004)the following recommendations
were made:
1.Take
further measures to make naturalisation of non-citizens
more accessible,by,inter alia, ensuring that the language
requirements required for obtaining Estonian citizenship
do not create an insurmountable obstacle for
obtaining
citizenship by adapting the application procedures for
citizenship for newborn children so as to ensure that
all new-born children of non-citizens acquire a citizenship
from birth;
2.Increase
investment in language training programmes in order
to ensure that the language requirements for upper secondary
schools do not have detrimental effects for students with
native language other than Estonian;
3.Take
further measures to ensure the preservation of minority
languages,and to increase the possibilities of using minority
language in relations with the authorities in communities
with substantial minority communities,where an
ethnic mimority does not exceed 50%of the population (Art.61).
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