Strasbourg, 1 December 2006 ACFC/SR/II(2006)008 [English only] SECOND REPORT SUBMITTED BY AUSTRIA PURSUANT TO ARTICLE 25, PARAGRAPH 1 OF THE FRAMEWORK CONVENTION FOR THE PROTECTION OF NATIONAL MINORITIES Received on 1 December 2006 ACFC/SR/II(2006)008 TABLE OF CONTENTS PART I...................................................................................................................................5 I.1. General Remarks..............................................................................................................5 I.2. Comments on the Questions and the Resolution of the Council of Europe ........................7 PART II ...............................................................................................................................17 II.1. The Situation of the National Minorities in Austria .......................................................17 II.1.1. The History of the National Minorities .......................................................................18 The Croat minority in Burgenland ........................................................................................18 The Slovene minority ...........................................................................................................19 The Hungarian minority .......................................................................................................21 The Czech minority..............................................................................................................21 The Slovak minority.............................................................................................................22 The Roma minority...............................................................................................................23 The Numerical Strength of the Minorities.............................................................................24 II.1.2. The Legal Situation ....................................................................................................25 Constitutional provisions ......................................................................................................25 Simple-Law Provisions and Ordinances................................................................................27 Case Law..............................................................................................................................29 II.2. As to the Individual Provisions of the Framework Convention ......................................30 Article I................................................................................................................................30 International Cooperation in the Protection of Minorities......................................................30 Article 2 ...............................................................................................................................31 International agreements.......................................................................................................31 Article 3 ...............................................................................................................................31 Ad paragraph 1: Freedom to declare one’s affiliation with a national minority......................31 Ad paragraph 2: Individual rights and collective rights .........................................................32 Article 4 ...............................................................................................................................32 Ad paragraph 1: Ban on discrimination – legal basis.............................................................33 Ad paragraphs 2 and 3: Supporting measures and the principle of equality ...........................35 Article 8 (2) of the Federal Constitution Act:........................................................................35 Article 5 ...............................................................................................................................36 Ad paragraph 1: Promotion of national minorities.................................................................36 Development of the funding by the Federal Chancellery for the promotion of the national minorities: ............................................................................................................................36 Criteria for the distribution of promotional funding ..............................................................38 Process of awarding promotional funding .............................................................................40 Guidelines for special promotional grants.............................................................................41 The Slovene Minority: ..........................................................................................................44 The Hungarian Minority:......................................................................................................48 The Czech Minority:.............................................................................................................49 The Roma Minority...............................................................................................................51 Article 6 ...............................................................................................................................53 Ad paragraph 1: Encouraging a spirit of tolerance and mutual respect ..................................53 Ad paragraph 2: Protection against discrimination and violence............................................56 Article 7 ...............................................................................................................................57 Article 8 ...............................................................................................................................58 Article 9 ...............................................................................................................................58 Statutory Situation:...............................................................................................................59 Press Promotion Act of 2004 ................................................................................................59 The Austrian Broadcasting Corporation (ORF) Act ..............................................................59 2 ACFC/SR/II(2006)008 The programs offered by the ORF in detail...........................................................................59 Burgenland...........................................................................................................................59 Radio broadcasts:.................................................................................................................60 Television broadcasts:..........................................................................................................60 Radio broadcasts:.................................................................................................................61 Television broadcast: ...........................................................................................................61 Radio Vienna........................................................................................................................62 ORF 2 ..................................................................................................................................62 3sat.......................................................................................................................................63 The programs offered by the ORF to the national minorities in the year 2005: .....................63 Internet.................................................................................................................................64 Teletext ................................................................................................................................65 Private Radio Stations ..........................................................................................................65 Radio Agora/Radio dva ........................................................................................................65 Radio MORA – A multilingual, open radio station ...............................................................66 The Print Media....................................................................................................................66 The Burgenland-Croat minority............................................................................................66 The Slovene minority ...........................................................................................................68 The Hungarian minority .......................................................................................................68 The Czech minority ..............................................................................................................68 The Slovak minority.............................................................................................................68 Article 10 .............................................................................................................................69 Ad paragraph 1: Free use of one’s language..........................................................................69 Ad paragraph 2: Official language ........................................................................................70 a) the Croat minority:...........................................................................................................71