Language Research

Although rich in culture and natural resources, Romania has long been one of Europe's poorest and least developed nations. Foreign powers, including the Ottoman and Austro-Hungarian empires, controlled the country for much of its history. In 1948 Communists took control of Romania and modeled the government and economy after those of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR).

In the 1960s Romania's Communist leaders began to distance themselves from the USSR and develop their own domestic and foreign policies. Romania's economy grew during the 1960s and 70s. By the 1980s most Romanians were suffering from food shortages and other economic hardships. In 1989 the Romanian people revolted against the repressive dictatorship of Nicolae Ceausescu, the country's President and Communist Party leader. Ceausescu was executed, and a non-Communist government was installed. The first free multiparty elections took place in Romania in 1990.

Independence achieved from Turkey in 1881. Republic proclaimed on December 30, 1947.

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Updated (May 2005)

Romania is a country of several national, linguistic and religious minorities. This diversity was confirmed by the last 2002 Census, according to which, more than 25 national minorities live in Romania, of which the largest are the Hungarians, the Romany (also referred to as Roma or Gypsies), the Germans, the Russian-Lipovians and the Turks. All the minorities together speak more than 25 languages and share more than 15 faiths. Since the fall of the communist regime, their status has improved significantly.

Although currently Romanian minority legislation is in accordance with international standards, there are still several touchy issues between the minorities and the majority group. One of them is a political debate between Romanians and Hungarians on local self-governments and academic education in the Hungarian language.

SIGNIFICANCE OF TRANSYLVANIA

The Hungarians' claim on Transylvania ("Transylvania" in Romanian, "Erdély" in Hungarian and "Siebenbürgen" in German) is the root of tensions between Romanians and Hungarians. Historiographers from both sides differ in opinion about the chronological preeminence in Transylvania and the Hungarian rule in this area.

Transylvania stretches in the north of Romania and includes the Szekler Country, a great plain 350 km away from the Hungarian border, which is primarily inhabited by the Szekler Hungarians. The remaining area of Transylvania is populated by the ethnic Romanians. For both Hungary and Romania, Transylvania is the cradle of culture and civilization so the question arises who was first on this territory.

Romanian historiographers expound the Dacian-Roman continuity theory. In the 1st and 2nd Century AD, the Dacian Kingdom was conquered and annexed to the Roman Empire. Dacian and Latin cultures fused and resulted in the creation of Dacian-Romanian culture. When Roman legions left, Dacian-Romans continued living in Transylvanian woods and mountains, preserving their language and culture, despite periodic invasions of Avars, Scytians, or Huns.

Therefore, Romanian historiographers believe that at time when the Szekler Hungarians entered into the Carpathian Basin, they found a large ethnic Romanian population in Transylvania.

However, Hungarian historiographers reject the Dacian-Roman continuity theory, claiming that before the Hungarian conquest of the Danube Basin in the 9^th Century, Transylvania was "terra inoccupata". They believe that the Hungarians crossed the Eastern and Southern Carpathians on their way to the Pannonian Plain. According to this version, the Romanians came later (only in the 13^th Century) and were permitted to stay due to magnanimity of the Hungarian landlords.

Hungarians see Transylvania as a part of the Hungarian medieval Kingdom, which was at the height of its powers in Europe in the 15^th Century and argue that the Romanian contribution to the region’s institutional development was slight. On the other hand, Romanian historians claim that Transylvania was never an integral part of the Hungarian Kingdom but enjoyed an extensive political-administrative autonomy. They emphasize the importance of the Romanian majority to the historical development of Transylvania.

Another point of dispute between the two ethnic groups is the interpretation given to the post-First World War territorial settlement and political developments. During the war Romania joined the Allied Forces and could; therefore, claim territorial expansion during the peace negotiations. As an outcome, the Romanian Kingdom (founded in 1878) gained Transylvania, Banat, Crisina and Maramures.

Hungary lost two-thirds of its territory under the 1920 Trianon Treaty and about three million ethnic Hungarians now live outside their historic homeland.

HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENTS

By the end of the communist 80s, the situation of minorities started to change. Villages inhabited by minorities were demolished; the number of Hungarian classes and departments within schools were reduced; ideological censorship on Hungarian publications was considerately intensified; broadcasting of Hungarian territorial radio stations was stopped and geographical and Christian names in the languages of minorities were prohibited.

The fall of the Communist regime was initiated by the Hungarian Reformed pastor, Laszlo Tokes, in Timisoara, when he incited actions amongst the Hungarians. They began to protest and soon were joined by the Romanians and others who also whished to utter their discontent with the regime. In support of revolutionaries, on December 21, the Hungarian government decided to abrogate its 1972 friendship treaty with Romania. After a provisional government, calling itself the National Salvation Front (FSN), came to power; the Hungarian press proclaimed a new era of Romanian-Hungarian relations. With the change of government and the plans for democratic elections, the Hungarians in Romania assumed that they would see the return of educational and other institutions lost during communism.

At the time the new minority policies were announced, the political landscape of Romania was, at best, confusing. New political parties began to take shape in January 1990. While the FSN was initially responsive to the Hungarian request to guarantee minority rights in its policy statements, it failed to foresee that other political groups would not be willing to approve such concession.

The restoration of educational establishments to the Hungarian minority involved removing Romanian pupils from mixed schools. Break-up of the Babes-Bolyai University in Cluj before the beginning of a new academic year resulted in demonstrations of Romanian pupils and teachers. Moreover, demands for the return of the Bolyai High school in Targu-Mures led to violent clashes between Hungarians and Romanians living in the city¹.

In 1990s, several Romanian nationalistic parties were established (the Romanian Heart Union (UVR) and its political arm, the Party of National Unity (PUNR) and the Great Romania Party (PRM).

Under these circumstances, Romania’s new Constitution was adopted on December 8, 1991. However, the provisions related to the official language and protection of minority rights fell short of minorities’ expectations, because the constitution formally established the dominant position of the Romanian majority and language. The main points of discontent were: the proclamation of Romania as nation-state and of the official monolingualism and the fact that national minorities were mentioned several times, but were never precisely defined.

Before the Constitution was adopted, parliament passed the Law on Local Public Administration that required the use of Romanian in relations between citizens and local public administration authorities. Moreover, it demanded proceedings to be held in the official language but permitted administrative decisions to be given jointly in a mother tongue and in Romanian in those administrative units where national minorities are numerous. Minorities could use their language in communications with local authorities; however, only if formal requests were accompanied by an official translation. For oral communication an interpreter was to be provided, although the law did not specify whether this is the responsibility of local authorities, or of the petitioner.

In June 1995, one of the most criticized laws, the Law on Education, was passed by parliament. This law failed to meet linguistic needs of the Romanian minorities, giving a narrow interpretation of the 1991 constitutional provision assuring the right of people belonging to national minorities to learn their mother tongue and to be educated in it.

By the end of 1996, no genuine progress had been achieved on the legislative level.

IMPROVEMENT OF ROMANIAN-HUNGARIAN RELATIONS IN 1996

The first significant step in the bilateral reconciliation process between Romanian and Hungarian politicians was the Treaty of Mutual Understanding, Co-operation and Good Neighborhood between Hungary and Romania signed on September 16, 1996. This treaty was inspired by a French-German model and instituted a permanent dialogue between Romania and Hungary.

After the Treaty with Hungary was signed, another significant breakthrough in the Romanian-Hungarian relations occurred. In 1996, the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Romania (RMDSZ) began to participate in the government for the first time². After forming of the new government, the dilemma arose how to establish a workable balance between ensuring that all ethnic groups have reasonable knowledge of the official language and providing them with some degree of control over education in their mother tongue. Thus, from 1996, the Romanian leadership appeared to acknowledge the existence of cultural diversity and accepted the fact that minority rights need to be secured by policies and laws.

RMDSZ had an immediate impact on the minority issues in Romania, as it conditioned its participation in the governing coalition on changing the legislation regarding the protection of national minorities. As a result, the Romanian government adopted two emergency decrees in 1997: one amended the Law on Local Public Administration and the other one the Law on Education.

The Hungarian minority demanded the provision which would allow them to study History and Geography in their mother tongue and to establish a state-supported Hungarian university. In 1959, the Bolyai University was merged with the Romanian-language Babes University. For the Hungarians autonomous control over a higher education institution was essential. On the other hand, the Romanians considered such an arrangement as the first step towards ethnic separation and ultimately a threat to the territorial integrity of the country.

After the RMDSZ warned that it would withdraw from the coalition, parliament eventually agreed to negotiate a solution that would accommodate the interests of both parties. The outcome was a dramatic legislative process, extended over two years of negotiations, which finally led to a compromise. Linguistic minorities got the right to set up their private institutions of higher education as well as to open departments and faculties with tuition in their mother tongue in state-funded universities. However, the establishment of monolingual higher education institutions in languages other than Romanian still remains an unresolved problem because many Hungarians see a multicultural university as a compromise to their needs.

ELECTIONS IN 2000: NATIONALIST REVIVAL

In the 2000 elections, the communist PDSR (Democratic Social Party of Romania) and the nationalistic PRM restored their power.

The PDSR, despites its refusal of the RMDSZ’s demand to establish a Hungarian university, reassured the Hungarian minority that progress in minority rights’ reforms will continue. The protocol was signed on December 27, 2000. It encouraged the adoption of the Law on Local Administration and provided for the use of bilingual inscriptions and minority languages in official communication in the areas where minorities represent more than twenty percent of the population. If at least one third of deputies belonged to an ethnic minority, local council meetings could be also held in the minority language.

The protocol guaranteed that the RMDSZ is consulted about the design and implementation of both minority laws and Romania’s domestic and foreign policy agenda. In turn, the RMDSZ pledged to provide the PDSR with parliamentary support.

Finally, the protocol offered a framework for the continuation of a confidence-building process between Hungarian and Romanian political elites. The PDSR promised to continue with the implementation of the Law on Education through financing the access of minorities to higher education institutions in their languages.

Source: ECMI – European Center for Minority Issues, Ethnopolitical Map of Southeastern Europe, Romania, http://www.ecmi.de/emap/, http://www.ecmi.de/emap/ro.html

1. on March 19 and 20, 1990

2. The coalition consisted of the Democratic Convention (CDR), which was composed of several parties: the National Christian Democratic Peasant Party of Romania (PNTCD), the National Liberal Party (PNL), the Social Democratic Union (USD), and RMDSZ.

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Updated (February 2008)

UNPO REPORT ON HUMAN RIGHTS IN ROMANIA

The Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization (UNPO) has recently launched a report on the state of minorities living in Romania, focusing primarily on how the Government addressed the demands of the Hungarian minority.

The Hungarians in Romania make up one of the largest national minorities in Europe and are the largest ethnic minority in the country. (There are approximately 1.4 million Hungarians, making up roughly 6.6 percent of the total population of Romania (the 2002 Census). For historic reasons, most of them in Romania live in what is today known as Transylvania. There they make up about 20 percent of the population. In Szeklerland (Harghita and Covasna Counties), they form the majority.

According to the UNPO report, only some of their demands have been addressed by the Romanian Government. The grievances of the Hungarian minority have been focused on these issues:

1. Restitution of church property confiscated by the communist regime;
2. The right to use their mother tongue in their public administration and tribunals;
3. The right to have instruction at all levels of education in their mother tongue; and
4. Limited local autonomy in the regions where they form the majority.

Having been a member of the EU since 1 January 2007, UNPO expected Romania to increase its attempts to address human rights issues both before and after the accession; however, human rights abuses continue to occur.

Public Administration Reform

One of the most important changes of the last decade was the constitutional referendum held in Romania on 18-19 October 2003, in order to pass several constitutional amendments perceived as necessary for the EU accession.

While Article 119 of the new Constitution ensures the use of native languages of national minorities in the public administration, Article 124 paragraph 2 ensures the use of their mother tongues within the administration of justice. The regulation refers both to civic and criminal proceedings and cannot create additional costs for the ones concerned. In other words, national minorities should have the right to use their native language in dealing with government administration and courts.

According to the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA), which is in charge of monitoring the human rights situation in EU candidate countries before and after accession, the amendments do improve the Constitution, yet further steps are required.

Romania needs to ensure the sustainability of the public administration reform. Hence, UNPO calls upon the Government of Romania to fully meet the linguistic terms set out in the constitutional amendments.

Law on Education

Article 14 paragraph 2 of the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities states that “in areas inhabited by persons belonging to national minorities traditionally or in substantial numbers, if there is sufficient demand, the parties shall endeavor to ensure, as far as possible and within the framework of their education systems, that persons belonging to those minorities have adequate opportunities for being taught the minority language or for receiving instruction in this language.”

In areas with significant proportion of the Hungarian minority, for example in Transylvania and Szeklerland, there exists sufficient demand for educational instruction in Hungarian. As such, this Convention should guarantee them instruction at all levels of education in their mother tongue. Nevertheless, these goals have not yet been fully implemented by Romanian authorities.

The Romanian Law on Education, adopted in 1999, sets the grounds for education in languages of national minorities, however, limits this right by specifying that the geography and history of Romania should be taught only in the Romanian language. This law clearly contradicts Romania's previous commitment to the Framework Convention. UNPO therefore calls for a modification of the Law on Education, giving national minorities the right to be taught the geography and history of Romania in their native languages.

Additionally, Romanian authorities should consider amending the Law on Education to allow for all children of national minorities access to classes in learning Romanian as a foreign language.

Recent Ratification of the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages

On 29 January 2008, Romania approved the Law on the Ratification of the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages and became the 23rd Member State of the Council of Europe to ratify it. The Charter will enter into force on 1 May 2008.

The law on the ratification states that the provisions of the Charter will apply to ten minority languages used in Romania, including Hungarian. The Charter is intended to ensure, as far as is reasonably possible, that regional or minority languages are used in education and in the media, to permit and encourage their use in legal and administrative contexts, in economic and social life, for cultural activities and in trans-frontier exchanges.

A Member of the Romanian Parliament, Mr. Árpád Márton, stated that as far as the opportunities to use the Hungarian language are concerned, the ratification will not significantly change the existing situation, but it can contribute to the adoption of new, improved legislation in the area of education and minority protection in general.

UNPO hopes that new, improved legislation in the area of education and minority protection will follow, and authorities will fully comply with the Charter standards.

Draft Law on the Statute of National Minorities

One of the main achievements of the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Romania in the period of 2004-2007 is the elaboration of the Draft Law on the Statute of National Minorities living in Romania. Unfortunately, the main political parties in Romania have lately turned their back on the draft law that is still being discussed in Parliament.

According to the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA), this legislative process needs to be followed closely. UNPO urges the main political parties concerned to adequately address the Draft Law on the Statute of National Minorities, taking the measures required to facilitate its prompt adoption.

While Romania certainly seems to have stepped up its efforts to ensure minority rights within the country, certain concerns persist. Despite improvements, ethnic rights of the Hungarian minority have so far not reached the level desired by this community.

UNPO therefore suggests that Romania increases the pace of property restitution to the Hungarian minority; ensures the sustainability of the public administration reform; modifies the Law on Education; adopts the Draft Law on the Statute of National Minorities; and complies fully with both the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities and the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages.

Source: Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization website, News, February 12, 2008 http://www.unpo.org/article.php?id=7581

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