Doc. 8496

6 September 1999

Honouring of obligations and commitments by Slovakia

Report

Committee on the Honouring of Obligations and Commitments by Member States of the Council of Europe (Monitoring Committee)

Rapporteurs: Mr Göran Magnusson, Sweden, Socialist Group and

Mr Juris Sinka, Latvia, European Democratic Group

Summary

The Slovak Republic joined the Council of Europe in 1993. A monitoring procedure was opened initially under Order No. 488 (1993) and subsequently under Order No. 508 (1995). Under the terms of Resolution 1115 (1997), the Monitoring Committee took over the procedure in 1997.

The report presents an essentially positive assessment of developments in the Slovak Republic, in particular after the parliamentary elections of September 1998 and the direct presidential elections of May 1999. In the light of the progress achieved, the draft resolution proposes that the current monitoring procedure be closed. The draft recommendation proposes that the Committee of Ministers (i) help the Slovak Republic complete the undertaken reforms, notably regarding the justice system, local and regional self-government, freedom of the media and protection of minorities, through its Programme of Activities for the Development and Consolidation of Democratic Stability (ADACS); (ii) verify progress made in the implementation of these reforms in the framework of its own monitoring procedure; (iii) address the minority issues mentioned in the text when monitoring the implementation of the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities.

I.       Draft resolution

1. The Slovak Republic became an independent state in 1993, on dissolution of the Czech and Slovak Federal Republic. It joined the Council of Europe on 30 June 1993, pursuant to Assembly Opinion No. 175 (29 June 1993) and to the Committee of Ministers Resolution (93) 33.

2. In observance of its commitment under paragraph 7 of the Assembly Opinion No. 175, the Slovak Republic became party to the European Convention on Human Rights and its Protocols with effect from 1 January 1993. The Slovak Republic has also ratified, amongst others, the European Convention for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities and the European Social Charter. With the ratification of these instruments, the legal system of the Slovak Republic is in alignment with international standards.

3. In the period after independence, changes of government following elections in 1994 and 1998 have shown the stability of the democratic process. The parliamentary elections of September 1998, which were observed by a delegation of the Parliamentary Assembly, were conducted in a proper and lawful manner. The subsequent constitutional reform which allowed the election of the President of the Republic by direct universal suffrage and the holding of such an election, in May 1999, in conformity with domestic law and international standards, has further consolidated democracy.

4. In the framework of the Assembly’s monitoring procedure since 1996, the following have been the principal issues for dialogue with the Slovak authorities:

i. the rights of the opposition, notably its participation in the parliamentary committees for the oversight of the activities of the intelligence services (control committees);

ii. independence of the judiciary, notably procedures for the election of judges and the appointment of presidents and vice-presidents of courts, case-load of courts, implementation of decisions of the Constitutional Court, amnesty issues and the creation of the institution of Ombudsman;

iii. local and regional self-government;

iv. freedom of the media, including during electoral campaign;

v. protection of minorities, notably the consequences of the law on the state language and the need for a law on the use of minorities languages;

vi. measures to address the problems of the Roma population.

5. The Assembly notes that following the parliamentary elections of September1998:

i. the opposition is sufficiently represented in the parliamentary control committees and has the chair of one of them;

ii. amendments to the Constitution, the law on courts and judges and other legislation are being prepared (for submission to parliament in the course of September 1999) in order to:

(a) strengthen the independence of the judiciary inter alia by providing for the election of judges for life, the creation of a Supreme Judicial Council as a self-governing body, and financial autonomy of the judiciary;

(b) increase the powers of the Constitutional Court and clarify its relation with the general courts;

(c) reduce the current excessive case-load;

(d) repeal the possibility to grant an amnesty while a criminal investigation is imminent or pending;

(e) possibly create the institution of Ombudsman;

iii. legislation on the restructuring of the administration is being prepared with the aim of

(a) increasing the powers of local self-government authorities,

(b) introducing regional self-government; following the adoption of the law, regional councils should be elected by the end of 2000 or beginning of 2001 and the European Charter of Local Self-Government (signed in February 1999) should be ratified;

iv. amendments to the electoral law have been passed to allow electoral campaigning also in private electronic media; the objectivity of public television has been positively assessed during the recent presidential electoral campaign; the status and composition of the radio and television broadcasting council should, however, be reconsidered since they do not guarantee its independence;

v. the post of a Deputy Prime Minister for human rights, minorities and regional development and a parliamentary committee for human rights and minorities have been created; bilingual certificates are used in schools with instruction in a minority language; a law was adopted on 10 July 1999 to regulate, in conjunction with other specific laws, the use of minority languages in official communications: according to the new law, persons belonging to national minorities are entitled to use their language in communications with organs of public administration and of local self-government in those municipalities where the minority constitutes at least 20% of the population; the law which restores previous practice - interrupted by the adoption of the state language law - and satisfies a constitutional requirement, was adopted after consultations with the OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities, the European Union and the Council of Europe and is welcomed; other problems, however, arisen from the state language law with regard to freedom of expression, as well as the use of minority languages in other settings, notably education, need still to be regulated, in conformity with recommendations by the three international organisations; the ratification of the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages is also strongly recommended;

vi. as regards the Roma minority in particular, programmes have been put into place to promote education of Roma pupils (e.g. school text books in Roma language) and motivate school attendance and further integration, including through co-operation with non-governmental organisations; measures have been taken to better monitor and prevent racially motivated attacks; the post of a government commissioner and an advisory parliamentary committee to deal with the problems of the Roma population have been created; the situation of the Roma minority is closely followed inter alia by the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance which will assess existing measures and make further proposals in its second stage report on Slovakia to be prepared by the end of 1999.

6. The Assembly welcomes the progress which has thus been made by the Slovak Republic, in particular after the parliamentary elections of September 1998, to consolidate democracy and the rule of law, to promote respect for human rights and to bring both law and policy into line with the principles of the Council of Europe. It encourages the Slovak government to further pursue its policy towards European integration.

7. In the light of the above considerations, the Assembly considers the current monitoring procedure, opened under Order No. 508 (1995), as closed. It will pursue its dialogue with the Slovak authorities for the issues referred to in paragraph 5, or any other issues arising from the obligations of the Slovak Republic as a member state of the Council of Europe, with a view to reopening procedure in accordance with Resolution 1115 (1997), if further clarification or enhanced co-operation should seem desirable.

II.       Draft recommendation

1. The Assembly refers to its Resolution … (1999) on the honouring of obligations and commitments by the Slovak Republic in which it:

i. underlines that

a. the Slovak Republic has become party to many Council of Europe conventions, notably the European Convention on Human Rights and its Protocols, the European Convention for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities and the European Social Charter;

b. changes of government following elections in 1994 and 1998 have shown the stability of the democratic process; the parliamentary elections of September 1998 were conducted in a proper and lawful manner; the subsequent constitutional reform which allowed the election of the President of the Republic by direct universal suffrage and the holding of such an election, in May 1999, in conformity with domestic law and international standards, has further consolidated democracy;

ii. notes that following the parliamentary elections of September 1998

a. regarding democracy: the opposition is sufficiently represented in the parliamentary control committees;

b. regarding the justice system: amendments to the Constitution and legislation are being prepared in order to strengthen the independence of the judiciary, increase the powers of the Constitutional Court and clarify its relation with the general courts, reduce the excessive case-load of courts, repeal the possibility to grant an amnesty while a criminal investigation is imminent or pending, and possibly create the institution of Ombudsman;

c. regarding local and regional self-government: legislation on the restructuring of the administration is being prepared with the aim of increasing the powers of local self-government authorities and introducing regional self-government; following the adoption of the law, regional councils should be elected by the end of 2000 or beginning of 2001 and the European Charter of Local Self-Government (signed in February 1999) should be ratified;

d. regarding freedom of the media: amendments to the electoral law have been passed to allow electoral campaigning also in the private electronic media; the objectivity of public television has been positively assessed during the recent presidential electoral campaign; the status and composition of the radio and television broadcasting council should, however, be reconsidered since they do not guarantee its independence;

e. regarding minorities: the post of a Deputy Prime Minister for human rights, minorities and regional development and a parliamentary committee for human rights and minorities have been created; bilingual certificates are used in schools with instruction in a minority language; a law was adopted on 10 July 1999 to regulate, in conjunction with other specific laws, the use of minority languages in official communications: the law which restores previous practice - interrupted by the adoption of a law on the state language - and satisfies a constitutional requirement, was adopted following consultations with the OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities, the European Union and the Council of Europe and is welcomed; other problems, however, arisen from the state language law with regard to freedom of expression, as well as the use of minority languages in other settings, notably education, need still to be regulated, in conformity with recommendations by the three international organisations; the ratification of the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages is also strongly recommended;

f. regarding the Roma minority in particular: programmes have been put into place to promote education of Roma pupils (e.g. text books in Roma language) and motivate school attendance and further integration, including through co-operation with non-governmental organisations; measures have been taken to better monitor and prevent racially motivated attacks; the post of a government commissioner and an advisory parliamentary committee to deal with the problems of the Roma population have been created; the situation of the Roma minority is closely followed inter alia by the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance which will assess existing measures and make further proposals in its second stage report on Slovakia to be prepared by the end of 1999;

iii. welcomes the progress which has thus been made by the Slovak Republic, in particular after the parliamentary elections of September 1998, to consolidate democracy and the rule of law, to promote respect for human rights and to bring both law and policy into line with the principles of the Council of Europe, and encourages the Slovak government to further pursue its policy towards European integration;

iv. considers the current monitoring procedure, opened under Order No. 508 (1995), as closed and decides to pursue its dialogue with the Slovak authorities for the issues referred to in sub-paragraph ii above, or those arising from any other obligations of the Slovak Republic as a member state of the Council of Europe, with a view to reopening procedure in accordance with Resolution 1115 (1997), if further clarification or enhanced co-operation should seem desirable.

2.       Therefore, the Assembly recommends that the Committee of Ministers:

i.       help the Slovak Republic complete the reforms undertaken regarding the justice system, local and regional self-government, freedom of the media and protection of minorities through its Programme of Activities for the Development and Consolidation of Democratic Stability (ADACS);

ii.       verify progress made in the implementation of these reforms in the framework of its own monitoring procedure when dealing with the relevant themes;

iii.       address the minority issues mentioned above in paragraph 1 (ii), indents e and f, when monitoring the implementation of the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities by the Slovak Republic.

III.       Explanatory memorandum by MM Magnusson and Sinka

Table of contents

I. INTRODUCTION       8

II. DEMOCRACY       9

A. The parliamentary elections of September 1998       9

      i.       The pre-electoral period       9

ii. The elections and their impact       11

B. Other issues related to the democratic functioning of parliament       12

i. The Gaulieder case       12

ii. Secret services and parliamentary control committees       12

C.       The presidential elections of May 1999       13
D.       Local and regional self-government       14

i. Planned reforms       14

ii. Local self-government and minorities       15

iii. The municipal elections of December 1998       15

III.       THE RULE OF LAW        16

A. The review of constitutionality: the Constitutional Court       16

B. The organisation of courts       17

C. Independence of judges       18

i. Self-government of the judiciary       18

ii. Election of judges       19

iii. Election of presidents and vice-presidents of courts       19

D. Case-load       20

E. The Public Prosecutor’s Office       20

F. Lawyers       21

G.       Amnesty issues       21

II. HUMAN RIGHTS AND FUNDAMENTAL FREEDOMS       21

A. General observance       21

i. Signature and ratification of Council of Europe conventions       21

ii. The prison system       22

iii. Freedom of expression       22

B. Minorities        23

i. Protection of minorities       23

ii. Use of minority languages       24

iii. Roma minority       26

III. CONCLUSIONS        27

Appendix I:       Opinion n°175 (1993) on the application by the Slovak Republic

      for membership of the Council of Europe       30

Appendix II:       Programme of the co-rapporteurs' visit from 31 May to 3 July 1999       32

Appendix III:       Signatures and ratifications of Council of Europe Conventions        34

Appendix IV: Activities for the development and consolidation of democratic

stability (ADACS) Programme 1999, Slovakia        37

I.       INTRODUCTION

1.       The Slovak parliament proclaimed its sovereignty in July 1992 and the Slovak Constitution was adopted on 1 September of the same year. It came into force on 1 October 1992 but some of its provisions became operative only as from 1 January 1993, when the Slovak state officially came into being, following the dissolution of the Czech and Slovak Federal Republic pursuant to a law passed by the Czechoslovakian federal parliament.

2.       Slovakia, which has a population of approximately 5.4 million¹, has been a member of the Council of Europe since 30 June 1993. It therefore subscribed to the general obligations of all member states in accordance with Article 3 of the Statute, ie acceptance of the principles of democracy, of the rule of law and of the enjoyment by all persons within its jurisdiction of human rights and fundamental freedoms. The specific commitments it entered into are listed in Opinion No. 175 on its application for membership (paragraphs 7 to 11), adopted by the Assembly on 29 June 1993. They mainly concern the protection of the rights of minorities (Appendix I).

3. Mr Schwimmer (Austria, EPP/CD), Rapporteur for the Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights, Sir Anthony Durant (United Kingdom, EDG), Rapporteur for the Political Affairs Committee and Mr John Cummings (United Kingdom, SOC), Rapporteur for the Committee on Relations with European Non-Member Countries, visited Slovakia on 14 and 15 March 1996 as part of the monitoring procedure undertaken on the basis of Order No. 508 (1995). They drew up an introductory memorandum in December 1996 [AS/Jur (1996) 36], on which the Slovak parliamentary delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly and the government of the Slovak Republic submitted their observations [AS/Jur (1996) 73].

4. The Committee on the Honouring of Obligations and Commitments by Member States of the Council of Europe (“Monitoring Committee”) took over this procedure in accordance with Resolution 1115 (1997) and appointed as rapporteurs on Slovakia Mr Lesein (France, SOC) and Mr Leoni (Italy, LDR). They visited Slovakia from 26 to 30 July 1998 and drew up a preliminary draft report, dated 23 October 1998 [AS/Mon (1998) 50]. The Slovak authorities submitted their position on this preliminary draft report on 18 March 1999 [AS/Mon (1999) 10]. Their position takes into account comments by parliamentary factions, including those of the ruling coalition and opposition ones, and by the government. Both the preliminary draft report and the position thereupon are public documents and can be obtained at the Secretariat of the Monitoring Committee.

5. MM Lesein and Leoni no longer being members of the Parliamentary Assembly, the Monitoring Committee appointed us rapporteurs in the course of spring 1999 and authorised us to visit Slovakia as soon as possible. We did so from 31 May to 3 June 1999. Our report is based on the preliminary draft report by MM Lesein and Leoni, the position thereupon of the Slovak authorities, our visit to the country and other documents.

6.       We would like to thank the Slovak authorities for the excellent organisation of the visit and their hospitality. Our thanks go in particular to Mr Fico, Chairman of the Slovak parliamentary delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly, and the Secretariat of the delegation.

7.       This draft report takes up the questions dealt with in the preliminary draft report of October 1998 and in the Slovak authorities’ observations of March and July 1999, as well as other questions that have arisen meanwhile, under the following headings: democracy (section II), the rule of law (section III), and human rights and fundamental freedoms (section IV). Section V contains our conclusions.

II. DEMOCRACY

A. The parliamentary elections of September 1998

8. Parliamentary elections were held on 25 and 26 September 1998. Political history since 1997² accounts for the atmosphere of general distrust prior to the elections. Furthermore, the electoral law, which was amended four months ahead of the elections, has attracted much criticism.

i.       The pre-electoral period

a.       The electoral law

9.       The electoral law was amended on 20 May 1998 on a motion by the then ruling majority, led by Mr Meciar. The system is still proportional, but the amended law established a single constituency covering the entire country and extended the 5% threshold already applied to individual parties to those forming an electoral coalition. The objective of the amendment was to reduce the number of parties represented in parliament.

10.       Article 23 of the electoral law,³ concerning the media, has given rise to extremely harsh criticism. This article forbids political parties from campaigning via private electronic media during the electoral period which begins thirty days before the elections and ends forty-eight hours before the opening of the polling stations. Party candidates can only present themselves on Slovak Radio and Television within the broadcasting time limits accorded by the law (twenty-one hours equally divided between the parties contesting the election). The Radio and TV Broadcasting Council can impose very heavy fines – ranging from 50 000 to 5 million Slovak Crowns - for breaches of the electoral law, including this provision.

11.       The then ruling party (Movement for Democratic Slovakia – HZDS) claimed that these provisions were justified by the desire to ensure that all parties had equal access to the electronic media. However, the OSCE and various NGOs stressed the lack of clarity in the clauses concerning the media and infringements of freedom of expression.

12.       In June 1998, replying to the criticism, the Radio and Television Broadcasting Council published “Recommendations on the conduct of the electronic media during the election campaign, the moratorium and elections to the National Council of the Slovak Republic”. These recommendations were, however, not binding.

13.       The role of the administrative organs of the Ministry of the Interior has also been increased to the detriment of the Central Electoral Committee (CEC).

14.       Prior to the elections, the opposition asked the Constitutional Court to rule on the constitutionality of the amended electoral law. The Constitutional Court announced that it would not hand down its decision until after the legislative elections.

15.       In March 1999, the Constitutional Court declared the unconstitutionality of certain provisions of the electoral law, including Article 23. Amendments to this law to ensure conformity with the Constitution and allow campaigning via private electronic media have been passed in first reading. The following two readings should take place during the September 1999 session of the parliament.

b.       Restructuring of the opposition parties

16.       As there was no longer any advantage in forming a pre-electoral coalition, the main opposition parties, which initially formed coalitions, decided to merge into political parties. The Slovak Democratic Coalition became the Party of the Slovak Democratic Coalition (SDK), headed by Mr Dzurinda. The new party was the result of the merger of the following five parties:

—       Christian Democratic Movement (KDH);

—       Democratic Party (DS);

—       Democratic Union (DU);

—       Social Democratic Party of Slovakia (SDSS);

—       Green Party of Slovakia (SZS).

17.       The three Hungarian parties — Hungarian Christian Democratic Movement (MKDH), Hungarian Civic Party (MOS) and Cohabitation Party — also merged to form the Party of the Hungarian Coalition (SMK).

18.       The HZDS lodged an appeal with the Supreme Court against the registration of the SDK, the biggest opposition party, accusing it of being a coalition and not a party within the meaning of the electoral law. The Supreme Court upheld the registration of the SDK.

19.       Seventeen political parties were finally authorised to take part in the elections.

c.       The election campaign

20. The campaign was on the whole calm, despite the extreme polarisation of the country and the tense atmosphere of general distrust.

21. Particular attention was focused on the media owing to the difficulties of interpreting and applying the electoral law. Voters were able to obtain information from various backing supporting the different political parties. Public television did not, however, give a balanced view of the campaign. Public television programmes, the only televised source of information covering the whole country, were heavily biased in favour of the outgoing government. The programmes of the main private channel (Markiza) were, for their part, biased in favour of the opposition parties.

22.       During this period, the Radio and Television Broadcasting Council ruled that several media had violated Article 23 of the Electoral Law.

ii.       The elections and their impact

      a.       the ballot

23.       The elections were held during two half-days (25 and 26 September 1998) and were monitored by many foreign observers. A delegation from the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, chaired by Mr Adamczyk (Poland, EPP/CD),⁴ observed the elections. The delegation included one of the former co-rapporteurs (Mr Leoni).

24.       The regulations were generally complied with. Mr Adamczyk said that the elections “could be described as free and, despite some grievances connected with the pre-election period, fair”. The concerns expressed prior to the elections (possibilities of fraud, particularly during the night or during the counting of votes) proved unfounded. The 84.2% turnout reflected the importance of these elections for the country and the keen interest of the population.

b.        the results

25.       The parties obtained the following results:

% of votes       seats

—       HZDS (Movement for Democratic Slovakia)       27.00       43

—       SDK (Slovak Democratic Coalition)       26.33       42

—       SDL (Party of Democratic Left)       14.66       23

—       SMK (Hungary Coalition Party)       9.12       15

—       SNS (Slovak National Party)       9.07       14

—       SOP (Party of Civic Understanding)       8.01       13

26.       The other parties did not secure the required minimum of 5% and are therefore not represented in Parliament.

c.       impact of the elections

27.       Mr Meciar’s party came first with 27% of the votes. However, the opposition parties (SDK, SDL, SMK and SOP) secured a total of ninety-three seats compared to fifty-seven for the HZDS and its ally, the SNS. These elections therefore mark a turning-point in Slovakian political life. They also showed that a very large majority of voters wanted a change of government.

28. The election of a new government has been broadly welcomed by the international community. Although the European Commission had given a negative opinion on Slovakia’s accession to the European Union in 1997, in its first regular report on progress made towards accession of November 1998, the Commission felt that the recent elections offered an opportunity for Slovakia to address the political weaknesses outlined in the Opinion.

29.       The Joint Parliamentary Committee of the European Union and the Slovak Republic at its session held from 20 to 22 January 1999 welcomed the fact that "the elections of 25 and 26 September 1998 were free and correct, and the participation of voters was extraordinarily high". It also "welcomed the programme of the new Slovak Government presented on 19 November 1998, and especially its commitment to meet the political and economic criteria for European Union membership. Within this context it "invited the European Council to take a flexible approach to re-assessment of the application of Slovakia for membership, and to decide on opening negotiations based on results of the current political and economic reforms. So that after a positive re-assessment, to be prepared by the European Commission as soon as possible, a resolution of the European Council can be adopted at its Helsinki Summit in December 1999".

B. Other issues relating to the democratic functioning of parliament

i. The Gaulieder case

30.       Mr Gaulieder, one of the founding members of the HZDS, lost his mandate as member of parliament in December 1996 after having publicly criticised the government and left the HZDS parliamentary group.

31.       On 24 July 1997 the Constitutional Court held that Parliament had infringed Mr Gaulieder’s constitutional rights. However, it decided to submit his reinstatement to a vote in parliament. On 28 August Mr Meciar declared that the Court’s decision was not binding on parliament and the latter voted against the reinstatement of Mr Gaulieder.

32.       Since the Slovak parliament took no step to rehabilitate the infringement of Mr Gaulieder’s rights, he filed an application with the European Commission of Human Rights.

33.       The latter declared part of his application admissible. On 18 December 1998, the parliament adopted a resolution by which it acknowledged the ruling of the Constitutional Court of 24 July 1997 and expressed its regret for not having adopted any measures to implement this ruling, in its first office term. It also stated that Mr Gaulieder, after being relieved of his MP mandate in December 1996, applied the relevant legal title and accepted from the parliament five MP salaries as a severance pay. Currently negotiations are on-going with a view to a friendly settlement of the complaint between the Slovak government and Mr Gaulieder. The government is willing to close this case within the shortest possible time in respect of the contents of the Constitutional Court’s judgement.

ii.       Secret services and parliamentary control committees

34.       In 1994 the parliamentary majority set up a review committee to supervise the national intelligence services (SIS) and another to supervise the intelligence services of the armed forces.

35.       There were no plans for the opposition to participate in these committees on the basis of proportional representation, and the ruling majority refused to accept the members of parliament nominated by the opposition.

36. In late November 1997, the ruling majority finally appointed opposition members to the parliamentary committee set up to supervise the national intelligence services. But complaints persisted.

37.       After the parliamentary elections of September 1998 there is a proper representation of the opposition in the control bodies of the Slovak parliament. The opposition chairs one of the two control committees.

38.       The control committee and subsequently the parliament discuss once a year a report on the activities of the intelligence services. At least every three months the review committee looks at the individual segments of the intelligence services, including management of its budget.

39. An amendment to the law on the intelligence services has been passed in first reading to strengthen the powers of the control committee and ensure a more democratic election of the SIS’s head. Currently the head of the SIS is appointed by the Prime Minister. According to the amendment, it will be the President of the Republic to appoint him or her upon the proposal of the government.⁵

C. The Presidential elections of May 1999

40.       The 1992 Constitution provided for the election of the President of the Republic by parliament, by a 3/5 majority of the votes, for a five-year term (renewable only once). In January 1993, the Slovak Parliament elected as President of the Republic Mr Kovac, Vice-Chairman of the HZDS. When President Kovac’s term of office came to an end, in March 1998, Parliament was very divided and was unable to agree before the general election of September 1998 on a candidate likely to secure the 3/5 majority required. Since 2 March 1998, most of the presidential powers have thus been exercised by Prime Minister Meciar, in accordance with Article 105 of the constitution. From 3 March onwards Mr Meciar used these presidential powers to take a number of controversial decision.

41.       One of the first tasks that the new parliament had to accomplish was thus either to elect a new president or to pass a constitutional law enabling the president to be elected by direct suffrage. The parliament opted for the second solution. The Constitutional Law No. 9/1999 amends the Constitution of the Slovak Republic and regulates the method and conditions for direct election of the head of state - a President of the Slovak Republic - for a period of five years, based on universal suffrage by casting a ballot. It also regulates who can be elected a president, his or her constitutional position, rights and obligations.

42.       The Constitutional Court of the Slovak Republic decides about the constitutionality or legality of the presidential elections. It has also jurisdiction over disputes concerning the right of the president to resign from his office, as well as the possibility of the citizens to recall the president from his office by a popular vote before his office term elapses.

43.       The two rounds of the presidential elections took place on 15 and 29 May 1999. Six candidates run for office. The results of the first round were as follows:

Rudolf Schuster (SOP) 47.4%

Vladimir Meciar (HZDS) 37.2%

Magdaléna Vasaryova 6.6%

Ivan Mjartan 3.6%

Jan Slota (SNS) 2.5%

Boris Zala (SDSS) 1 %

44.       At the second round, Mr Schuster won over Mr Meciar with 57.2% of the votes cast and thus became the first President of the Slovak Republic directly elected by the Slovak people.

45.       According to the preliminary statement by the OSCE/ODIHR Election Observation Mission, the presidential election was held in accordance with the Slovak electoral provisions. The Slovak authorities administered the election process efficiently and the voting and counting procedures on election day were carried out in accordance with OSCE commitments. The mission welcomed the decision of the Central Electoral Commission to accredit both domestic observer groups thus increasing the transparency of the process. The Slovak public television provided a balanced coverage of the electoral campaign, although not all media outlets respected the provisions related to the campaign silence period. A fine was imposed on the Slovak television amounting to 1 million Slovak Crowns (approx. 150 000 FF) for violating the campaign silence period, a fact which confirms the objectivity of the control media bodies.

46.       The opinion that the public television coverage had been balanced and objective was shared also by the ambassadors of members states of the Council of Europe and the journalists we met during our visit to Slovakia.

47.       The election of the new President of the Slovak Republic in respect of national law and international standards constitutes an important achievement of democracy in Slovakia and should further facilitate democratic reforms.

D. Local and regional self-government

i.       Planned reforms

48.       Decentralisation of the state seems to be one of the priorities of the new government. For this purpose, in February 1999, the government appointed a commissioner to make proposals in this field. It hears the views of the Association of Towns and Communities of Slovakia whose members are mayors and municipal councillors. A draft law on the restructuring of the administration is being prepared by the government. Two are the main objectives of the reform: a) to increase the powers of local self-government authorities, and b) to introduce regional self-government which is currently lacking.

49.       As regards the first matter, the President of the Association of Towns and Communities of Slovakia, Mr Sykora, told us that the share from the state budget which is given to the local self-government authorities should be increased at the same time as new competencies will be recognised for them. While this share amounts today to only 6% of the state budget, the local authorities are asking for 20 or 30%. As regards the second matter, Mr Sykora said that at present what is under discussion is the scope and powers of the regional councils to be created, and not the number of regions. The regional councils should not take away any of the powers of the municipal councils but regulate issues of regional character currently belonging to the competence of state administration. Following the adoption of the law, regional councils should be elected by the end of 2000 or beginning 2001.

50.       Slovakia signed the European Charter of Local Self-Government in February 1999. The Government of the Slovak Republic in its Programme Declaration stated that it will ratify the obligatory provisions of the Charter and will also study the possibility of implementation of other provisions of the Charter into the national legislation. But implementation of the Charter provisions requires adoption of relevant legislative measures. Thus, ratification of the Charter will probably follow the adoption of the new law on restructuring of the administration (end 2000 or beginning 2001).

ii.       Local self-government and minorities ⁶

51.       The Slovak Constitution recognises individual but not collective rights of minorities in the sense of Recommendation 1201 (1993) whose Article 11 stipulates that: “in the regions where they are in a majority the persons belonging to a national minority shall have the right to have at their disposal appropriate local or autonomous authorities or to have a special status, matching the specific historical and territorial situation and in accordance with the domestic legislation of the state”. This article has aroused fears that the Hungarian minority might use it as a pretext for asking for full territorial autonomy.

52.       When it ratified the friendship and co-operation treaty with Hungary which was signed in March 1995, the Slovak Parliament added a declaration refusing to recognise collective rights or the establishment of autonomous administrative structures with an ethnic basis.

iii.       The municipal elections of December 1998

53.       On 1 July 1998, the previous parliament amended the law on municipal elections and the organisation of municipalities. Under the new law, each municipality, regardless of its population, would form an electoral constituency.

54.       Seats in ethnically mixed municipalities would be distributed in accordance with ethnic criteria. The law contained special statutory provisions for municipalities where between 5% and 95% of the population belong to national minorities. According to the Meciar government, this provision was designed to ensure that citizens of Slovak descent would be represented in municipalities where they were in the minority.

55. The Association of Towns and Municipalities, had expressed disagreement and submitted the law to the Constitutional Court arguing that it is incompatible with the Constitution, in particular with the principle that all citizens are equal irrespective of ethnic origin.

56.        The Constitutional Court found that the electoral law was indeed incompatible with the Constitution of the Slovak Republic. In conformity with this judgement, the parliament amended the relevant legislation. Local elections took place in compliance with the new law on 18 and 19 December 1998. Elections were controlled by the Central Electoral Committee; in districts, towns and communities local electoral commissions were set up, on which representatives of candidate political entities nominated the members. The political parties, political movements and their coalitions for each electoral district, and independent candidates submitted lists of candidates for municipal councils. Lists of candidates, according to the law, are registered by the local electoral commission. The decision of the latter can be appealed before the court, which will decide with final validity on registration. The electoral law anchors the majority election system, that is, the elected deputies of the council or the mayor of the community are those candidates who gained the highest number of valid votes in their constituencies.

57.       We did not hear any complaints about the fairness of the local elections of December 1998.

III. THE RULE OF LAW

58.       The principle of the independence of the judiciary is enshrined in Article 141 of the Slovak Constitution which, in its substantial part, came into force on 1 October 1992.

59. The judicial system is governed by section VII of the Constitution, the first part of which concerns the Constitutional Court and the second the judiciary. Section VIII concerns the Public Prosecutor’s Office.

A. The review of constitutionality : the Constitutional Court

60. The Constitutional Court is independent of the executive and the legislature. It is composed of ten judges appointed for seven years by the President of the Republic from a list of candidates proposed by the Parliament.

61.       The main function of the Court is to verify whether laws, decrees and orders are in conformity with the constitution and the international instruments to which Slovakia is party.

62.       The following are entitled to bring cases before the Constitutional Court:

-       1/5 of the members of the Parliament;

-       the President of the Republic;

-       the government;

-       any court;

-       the General Prosecutor;

-       any citizen alleging a violation of human rights, save in cases where another court has jurisdiction.

63.       Under Articles 133 and 144 of the Constitution, the decisions of the Court are final and binding. This means that its decisions are a binding source of law not only for the other courts but also, in keeping with the Constitution (see especially Article 75 on the oath taken by PMs), for members of parliament and the government.

64. Prior to the parliamentary elections of 28 September 1998, on at least two occasions, the parliament and government had not given appropriate follow-up to the decisions of the Constitutional Court, notably in the Gaulieder case, where the Court stated that the rights of Mr Gaulieder had been infringed, and in the case concerning the withdrawal, during the May 1997 referendum, of the question relating to the election of the President of the Republic by universal suffrage (in which the Supreme Court had held a different view than the Constitutional Court). The new government and parliament appear determined to respect the rulings of the Constitutional Court. The conclusion of a friendly settlement, which is now in negotiation, between Mr Gaulieder and the government, will allow respect of the ruling of the Constitutional Court in this case.

65. All representatives of the judiciary and the President of the Bar Association we met stressed that the Constitutional Court is indispensable in the Slovak Republic. The President of the Association of Judges said that the term of office of the judges of the Constitutional Court should be prolonged and that its composition should be renewed in such a manner as to ensure that not all members would change at once. According to the comments submitted by the Slovak authorities, an amendment to the Constitution has been prepared and will be submitted to the parliament in its September 1999 session to increase the powers of the Constitutional Court and clarify its relation with the general courts. We hope that the amendment will take into account the views of the Association of Judges and that in future all judgements of the Constitutional Court will be fully executed and respected.

B. The organisation of courts

66.       There are three levels of courts in Slovakia, in accordance with the law on the judiciary:

      -       district courts;

      -       regional courts;

      -       the Supreme Court.

67.       The district courts are courts of first instance which sit either as specialised chambers or with a single judge. There are currently fifty-five of them and eight regional courts.

68. The eight regional courts are at one and the same time courts of appeal and, in certain cases, courts of first instance.

69. Lay assessors participate in labour cases in the proceedings at first instance and in criminal proceedings in cases stipulated by the law.

70.       The Supreme Court is the highest judicial body in the Slovak Republic. It is a court of cassation, but in cases judged at first instance by a regional court it can operate as an appeal court. If the appeal on points of law is lodged against a decision handed down by a chamber of the Supreme Court sitting as an appeal court, the issue is dealt with by another chamber of five judges.

71.       The Supreme Court also oversees the uniform interpretation and application of laws and regulations. Depending on their specialisation, its judges form criminal, civil, commercial and administrative divisions, but it is the plenary assembly of the Supreme Court which decides whether laws and regulations have been uniformly interpreted in cases giving rise to controversy or falling within the jurisdiction of several divisions.

72.       Finally, the Slovakian judicial system comprises military courts and a military high court which rules on criminal cases involving the armed forces.

73.       In the Slovak Republic there is neither a mediator nor an administrative court.

74.       Disputes with the administration are dealt with by district courts, regional courts and the Supreme Court, which have administrative chambers for legal review of responsible for monitoring the decisions taken by the administrative authorities. The monitoring may take the following forms:

-       decisions following an appeal against the decisions of administrative bodies;

-       review of the lawfulness of an administrative decision for the purpose of either upholding or overturning the decision.

75.       In the administrative matters, the Supreme Court has jurisdiction to decide on the merits of decisions taken by central administrative authorities, state administrative authorities with powers covering the entire country, and independent bodies and other legal entities authorised by law to take decisions in the sphere of competence of a public administration.

76.        In accordance with the Constitution, the courts and tribunals are empowered to request the Constitutional Court to rule whether decisions taken by the executive are in conformity with the law, and to stay their decisions until the Court has pronounced. The decision of the Constitutional Court on the lawfulness of the decision in question is binding on the courts.

C.       independence of judges

i. Self-government of the judiciary

77. Dissatisfaction of the majority of judges with the lack of competence in solving the problems of the judiciary led to a compromise between the Association of Judges and the Ministry of Justice consisting in the creation of “judicial councils” as self-government bodies within the judiciary. The new institution was created by an amendment to the law on courts and judges which came into force on 1 January 1996. The judicial councils are attached to each of the eight regional courts. They sit whenever necessary and submit their opinions in the form of recommendations on all important questions concerning the staff, material and technical equipment of the court and also on draft laws. They submit their views in the form of recommendations to the President of the respective regional court who is appointed by the Minister of Justice (see below).

78.       As a collective body, the judicial councils are active in choosing candidates for the judicial function, expressing their views on the career of judges etc. However, we agree with the Slovak judges that their role which at present is only advisory should be increased. Indeed, at present, there can be a collision of interests between the judicial councils, as a self-governing body of the judiciary, and the president of the court who is appointed by the Minister of Justice and represents the state administration.

79.       For the above-mentioned reasons, in the framework of the preparation of a new law on courts and judges, the proposal is being considered to increase the tasks of the judicial councils and give them direct decision-making power (and not simply an advisory role) in material, staff and legislative issues concerning the region in which the respective regional court belongs. Strengthened judicial councils should in future fulfil the task of the professional collective body of judges as regards questions of career and promotions, a task currently accomplished by the president and vice-presidents of courts in co-operation with the Ministry of Justice.

80.       According to information submitted to us in the Ministry of Justice, the envisaged timetable for entry into force of such a new law on courts and judges is approximately second half of 2001.

81.       Moreover, an amendment to the Constitution has been prepared and will be submitted to parliament at its September 1999 session, which provides for the creation of a collective body composed of all the judicial councils, to be called “Supreme Judicial Council”. According to the amendment, this council will take over part of the powers of the Minister of Justice in issues related to the staff of courts and the career of judges. It will in particular be entrusted with the task of submitting proposals to the parliament for the election of judges (instead of the government, as is currently the case – see below).

82.       We think that the creation of such a body is of crucial importance for strengthening the independence of the judges in Slovakia and solving a number of outstanding issues such as those related to the election of judges and of the presidents and vice-presidents of the courts. It could also be responsible for proposing the budget for the judiciary since financial autonomy of the latter will further strengthen its independence.

ii.       Election of judges

83.       There are currently 1 200 judges in Slovakia, elected by the Parliament on a proposal by the government.

84. Judges are initially elected for a four-year trial period after which, on a proposal by the government, they may be elected for life by the Parliament. The preliminary draft report drawn up by MM Lesein and Leoni had criticised this procedure as limiting the independence of the judges.

85. We were happy to learn that an amendment has been prepared to the Constitution, according to which the election of the judges for an initial four-year period will be abolished; judges will be elected directly for life after fulfilment of the qualification requirements, including a training period, and successful passing of judicial exams. The training period will be prolonged and a higher age limit for being elected a judge will be fixed to guarantee that the elected judges would have enough experience.

86.       Amendments to the law on courts and judges are also being prepared to deal with these and other more detailed issues.

87.       As was said above, besides the abolition of the four-year trial period, the independence of judges will be further strengthened by the creation of the Supreme Judicial Council which will submit the proposals to the parliament for the election of judges.

iv.       Election of presidents and vice-presidents of courts

88. Another problem in the context of the independence of the judiciary is that the Minister of Justice appoints, replaces and dismisses the presidents and vice-presidents of district and regional courts.

89.       We share the fears expressed by the Slovak Association of Judges but also by the experts of the European Commission that such a power of the Minister of Justice is an interference with the independence of the judges in particular given that the president of the courts distribute cases to the judges so that that they can give the most difficult cases (from a factual or legal point of view) to “disobedient” judges. Moreover, the disciplinary panels of judges are also appointed by the president of the court.

90.       In an attempt to address these shortcomings, the Minister of Justice of the present government made a “gentlemen’s agreement” with the Slovak Association of Judges by which he committed himself to appoint to the posts of presidents and vice-presidents of courts those judges who would be elected by the judges themselves following a secret ballot and recommended by the judicial councils. Thus, between December 1998 and March 1999, for the first time, direct elections took place in all 55 district and 8 regional courts of the country in which judges elected candidates for the posts of presidents and vice-presidents of courts. In the big majority of cases, the Minister of Justice, in appointing the presidents and vice-presidents of courts, followed the proposal of judges, of judicial councils and of the Slovak Association of Judges.

91.       This step has de facto contributed to strengthening the independence of judges. But this issue should also be settled de lege and the entire procedure for the election of presidents and vice-presidents of courts should be revised by the new law on courts and judges.

D.       Case-load

92.       Delays in the administration of justice are caused by the excessive case-load, a problem which seems to worry greatly Slovak judges. The Slovak authorities underline that this phenomenon is mainly due to the economic and legal transition in the country since 1989. They are fully aware of this problem which has also given rise to the first decisions of the European Court of Human Rights and of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe (following a report by the European Commission of Human Rights) finding a violation of the right to trial “within a reasonable time” (Article 6, para. 1 ECHR) in view of the length of procedure before the Slovak courts.

93.       According to information received in the Ministry of Justice, measures are being considered to help reducing the large number of pending cases. One of these measures would be the adoption of a law on high court clerks who would take over some of the work of purely administrative character currently done by the judges. Another measure currently under consideration is the amendment of the code of civil procedure and the introduction of the adversary system in the civil proceedings, according to which it will be for the parties to submit all necessary evidence to support their arguments and no longer for the judges to examine them ex officio, as is the case at present.

94.       Another explanation for the case-load is also the shortage of judges in the country which in its turn is due, in the opinion of the judges, to the low salaries paid which makes many judges move to the private sector. The Slovak authorities agree that the private sector is more lucrative. They nevertheless point out that the average salary of a judge, fixed by law, represents a salary of a member of parliament and cannot thus be considered very low.

E. The Public Prosecutor’s Office

95.       Public prosecutors are answerable to the General Prosecutor, who is appointed and removed from office by the President of the Republic on a proposal by the Parliament. Under Article 149 of the constitution, public prosecutors are responsible for protecting the interests and rights of both the state and of individuals and legal entities, which is a blatant contradiction in cases where a citizen or private enterprise is in dispute with the state or the administration.

96.       On 4 March 1998, the Constitutional Court ruled that a number of provisions of the law of 23 October 1996 on the public prosecutor’s department were unconstitutional. Non-conformity of some provisions of this Act with the Constitution has been removed by the adoption of two amendments in the course of 1998.

97.       Further changes should still take place to ensure full conformity of the Prosecutor’s Office with Council of Europe standards. In particular, the above-mentioned provision of Article 149 of the Constitution should be amended. The rights of citizens would certainly be defended better by an independent body such as an ombudsman. Other competencies of the Public Prosecutor’s Office in administrative matters could be transferred to the courts.


98.       In our meeting with the General Prosecutor, a former judge and barrister, we were impressed by his openness and determination to further reforms of his office.

99.       As regards in particular the idea of creating the institution of Ombudsman, a debate on this issue is currently ongoing in Slovakia. There are different views as regards the contents and scope of the Ombudsman’s powers but on the whole one can detect a political will to introduce this institution. Mr Fogas, Deputy Prime Minister, told us that this issue was discussed in the framework of the amendments to the Constitution which are being prepared. In his view, it would be necessary to establish clearly the relations between the Ombudsman, on the one hand, and parliament, judiciary and Public Prosecutor’s Office, on the other. No time-table was given to us for the introduction of the institution of Ombudsman.

F. Lawyers

100.       The President of the Bar Association assured us that the association is completely independent from the state and political parties. It grants licences to barristers and is responsible for disciplinary matters.

G. Amnesty issues

101. A final point for concern worth noting in this context concerns amnesties. Shortly after assuming most of the presidential prerogatives, Mr Meciar granted an amnesty in the interests of "reconciliation" to a number of public officials, including Mr Krajci, the Minister of the Interior, who played a part in the failure of the May 1997 referendum which was supposed to cover, inter alia, the election of the President of the Republic by universal suffrage - a question left out in the ballot papers printed on the instructions of Mr Krajci. Mr Meciar also granted an amnesty to the director of the intelligence services, Mr Lexa, and other intelligence agents suspected of having organised the abduction of President Kovac’s son in August 1995.

102.       The new Prime Minister, Mr Dzurinda, using the presidential powers (according to article 105, para. 1 and 102 i of the constitution) omitted by his resolution of 8 December 1998 on amnesty the controversial decisions on amnesty adopted by Mr Meciar. On 28 June 1999, the Constitutional Court ruled that Prime Minister Dzurinda was not authorised to reverse the amnesties granted by his predecessor, Mr Meciar. It is currently unclear what follow-up will be given to the court’s decision.

103.       We consider that, regardless of the individual cases at stake, the possibility offered by Slovakian law of granting an amnesty during an investigation, and even before it has begun, is not compatible with the requirements of the rule of law. We are happy to learn that amendments are being prepared in order to repeal this possibility.

IV.       HUMAN RIGHTS AND THE FUNDAMENTAL FREEDOMS

A.       General observance

i.       Signatures and ratifications of Council of Europe conventions

104.       Slovakia is party to many of the Council of Europe’s conventions or protocols (see Appendix III).

105. Since the Slovak Republic came into being on 1 January 1993, it has become a contracting party to the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), on the basis of a specific declaration accepted by the Council of Europe with a view to ensuring the continued application of the ECHR on Slovak territory. It accepted the right of individual petition (Article 25 of the Convention) as well as the principle of the compulsory jurisdiction of the Court (Article 46), in accordance with Opinion No. 175 (1993) of the Assembly. It has also ratified all the protocols to the Convention, including Protocol No. 6 on abolition of the death penalty and Protocol No. 11 on the restructuring of the control machinery set up by the ECHR.

106. Slovakia ratified the Convention for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (1994), the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities (1995) and the European Social Charter (1998) and should be congratulated for doing so. It also signed the European Charter of Local Self-Government on 23 February 1999 (see above). It has neither signed nor ratified the Charter of Regional or Minority Languages.

107.       With respect to the European Charter of Regional or Minority Languages, the Government of the Slovak Republic in its Programme Declaration expressed its determination to secure the implementation of the standards of the Council of Europe and to support the signing of this Charter. No time-table has so far been given to us for the signing or ratification of this Charter. We strongly recommend its ratification, notably after the recent adoption of the law on the use of minority languages in official communications (see below).

ii.       The prison system

108.       Slovakian prisons are not overcrowded. There is a special prison for juveniles, another for women and a specialised hospital for the prison system. The Committee for the Prevention of Torture visited Slovakia in 1995. Its report, as well as the observations of the Slovak government thereupon, are public and the rapporteurs refer to them. We have not heard any criticisms or special concerns with regard to the prison system by the representatives of the judiciary or of the NGOs we met. According to the report by the US State Department on Human Rights Practices in Slovakia in 1998, prison conditions meet international minimum standards. It is also worth noting that no complaint has so far been filed with the European Commission or the European Court of Human Rights with regard to the conditions of detention in Slovak prisons although detainees are informed of this possibility.

iii.       Freedom of expression

109.       Freedom of expression, including freedom of the press, is safeguarded by the constitution and are generally upheld. There is a high degree of pluralism in the press and the electronic media. This opinion was shared by the majority of the representatives of the media themselves, the representatives of the NGOs and the diplomats we met during our visit.

110.       However, the composition and status of the Radio and Television Broadcasting Council, which has mainly two functions, licensing and regulating, are not entirely satisfactory. Indeed, seven of the nine members are nominated by the parties of the ruling majority and two by the opposition parties, while decisions are adopted by a majority of five votes. The Radio and Television Broadcasting Council is answerable to parliament, not to an independent authority. This is clearly incompatible with the independent nature of the institution.

111.       The representatives of the media we met told us that there is definitely room for improvement as regards the law on the Radio and Television Broadcasting Council but that most problems in the past were mainly to the persons sitting at the council rather than the law as       such. Following the elections of September 1998, the Council was restructured. Four new members were appointed in the Council in February 1999.

112.       According to the Slovak authorities, amendments to the Acts on Radio and Television Broadcasting Council and on the Radio and Television Broadcasting could eventually be adopted with a view to further strengthening the independence of the Council. The rapporteurs cannot but encourage such legislative changes in order to exclude abuses in future.

113.       Under the Meciar government, the HZDS had increased its control over Slovak Television (STV). After the elections of September 1998, the general director of the Slovak Television was replaced.

114.       The objectivity of the state television was positively affirmed during the presidential campaign (see above).⁷

115.       The existence of the private television Markiza helped to maintain a degree of balance in Slovak television even under the previous government. During the September 1998 election campaign, the dismissal of Mr Rusko, the Director General of Markiza, by the new majority owners revealed a power struggle within the governing board of Markiza and gave rise to demonstrations of popular support for Mr Rusko. Today, the private television Markiza continues to play an important role in guaranteeing pluralism in the electronic media in Slovakia.

B.       Minorities

i.       Protection of minorities

116.       The different minorities seem to live in relative harmony with the Slovak population. However, there is some tension between Slovaks and the Hungarian and Roma minorities. Slovakia’s commitments with regard to the minorities, contained in Opinion No. 175 (1993) on Slovakia’s application for membership, are generally respected, although there is room for improvement. The situation of the Roma, however, gives cause for concern.

117.       According to the last census in 1991, 10.8% of the population is Hungarian, 1% Czech, 0.25% Ukrainian and 0.4% Polish. With regard to Roma, only 1.6% of the population declared themselves as belonging to this national minority. According to estimates, in reality Roma make up 4.8% to 10% of the population. The next census is expected in 2001. According to the Constitution of the Slovak Republic (Article 12, paragraph 3) everyone has the right to freely decide about his/her nationality. Any influence over this decision and all methods of pressure directed towards denationalisation are prohibited.

118. Slovakia offers a particularly high level of protection to its minorities. Firstly, the constitution gives minorities the right to develop their culture and receive information and education in their mother tongue, as well as the right to participate in decisions concerning them (Articles 33 and 34 of the constitution). There are no specific provisions of law concerning their representation in Parliament, but the Hungarian minority had seventeen members in the parliament following the 1994 elections. It now has fifteen in the new parliament that resulted from the September 1998 elections.

119.       The Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities was ratified on 14 September 1995. It should be pointed out that Slovakia brought its legislation into line with the recommendations in paragraph 9 of Opinion No. 175 by adopting a law “granting to every person belonging to a minority the right to use his/her surname and first names in his/her mother tongue and, in the regions in which substantial numbers of a national minority are settled, the right for the persons belonging to this minority to display in their language local names, signs, inscriptions and other similar information, in accordance with the principles contained in Recommendation 1201 (1993)”. This right has been applied in areas where minorities constitute over 20% of the population, even prior to the adoption of the new law on the use of minority languages (see below).

120.       The current government took further steps towards protection of national minorities. One of them was the creation of the position of the Deputy Prime Minister for human rights, minorities and regional development. The representative of the Hungarian Coalition Party, Mr Csaky, became the Deputy Prime Minister. The activity of the Council of National and Ethnic Minorities was renewed and it was provided that the majority of its members would be representatives of minorities. A new committee was created within the parliament for human rights and minorities, chaired by a representative of the Hungarian Coalition Party, Mr Nagy. Representation of the Hungarian minority in the bodies of public administration created for the first time a realistic opportunity for the members of this minority to participate in the decision-making process.

ii. Use of minority languages

a. the minority language law

121. Article 34 of the Slovak Constitution expressly stipulates that the minorities have the right to use their language in “official communications” and that a law must set forth the exact conditions under which this right is to be exercised.

122.       The legal vacuum on the use of minority languages became apparent mainly after the adoption by the previous parliament of a law on the use of the state language. In August 1997, the Constitutional Court held that article 3 section 5 of this language law, stating that written communications intended for public-legal administration matters must be in the state language, was contrary to the Slovak Constitution. Following this ruling, the previous government committed itself to adopt a law on the use of minority languages in official communications which would ensure conformity with the Constitution.

123.       The Meciar government issued a Memorandum in November 1997 on the issue and invited the OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities, the Council of Europe and the European Union to participate in expert discussions. These took place in March and May 1998 but gave no tangible results.

124.       The present government included the adoption of a law on the use of minority languages among its priorities. It was also considered to be one of the conditions for the Slovak Republic to join accession discussions with the European Union.

125.       When discussing the issues of the minority language law with almost all representatives of government, parliament, NGOs and minorities, we gained the impression that the issue had been highly politicised. The opposition but also some members of the coalition parties were against the adoption of the new law arguing that it was unnecessary since there were already several laws (numbers varied between 26 to 36) on the use of minority languages. Another point of disagreement was the scope of the new law, namely whether it would only cover the use of minority languages in official communications or the use of these languages also in other fields, in particular education⁸. Finally, there was the question of the percentage of minority population required in a locality for the law to be applicable (namely 10% or 20%).

.

126.       As far as minority members themselves were concerned, we discussed the issue with the ethnic Hungarian Mayor and members of the municipal council of Komarno, locality in which Hungarians constitute the majority of the local population (over 70%). They assured us that often in practice state officials would use the Hungarian language in official communications with them. Nevertheless, strictly speaking, officials often violated the legislation in force by doing so. As regards the argument about the existence of several laws already in this field, this did not change the necessity for a new act on the use of minority languages to be passed in order to clarify the legal situation and bring the existing provisions on the use of minority languages under one law in conformity also with the constitutional requirement.

127.       Few days after the end of our visit, on 9 June 1999, the leadership of the ruling coalition approved a draft which was backed by three out of the four parties of the coalition but not by the Hungarian Coalition Party (SMK). The latter had prepared a different draft.

128. The draft approved by the coalition leadership was discussed with the experts of the three international organisations on 15 June 1999. When submitted to parliament, the government draft included a provision, according to which its provisions and those of other laws regulating the use of minority languages should be applied ahead of the provisions of the state language law. This provision aimed at securing legal certainty precisely because of the fact that several laws on the same matter existed. Following an amendment, this provision was removed during the parliamentary debate and replaced by a much less clear text. This was one of the reasons why the Hungarian Coalition Party, which had initially abstained from the vote, finally voted against the text.

129. As adopted on 10 July 1999 and promulgated by the President of the Republic on 20 July 1999 (with effect as from 1 September 1999), the new law on the use of minority languages in official communications grants citizens in localities with a minority population of 20% or more the right to use their mother tongue in official contacts with the public administration organs and organs of local self-government. Its adoption after years of internal and international consultations is to be welcomed. Moreover, we are particularly pleased that the Slovak authorities respected the time-table for the adoption of the law which they had announced to us during our visit at the beginning of June 1999. Nevertheless, we note that the new law, contrary to the expectations and proposals of the Hungarian Coalition Party, does not cover a number of other issues concerning the use of minority languages, notably in the field of education, and does not solve other problems with regard to freedom of expression raised by the law on state language. We thus urge the government to take the necessary steps to solve the above-mentioned issues, in accordance with recommendations by the three international organisations. ⁹ Furthermore, we strongly recommend to the Slovak government the ratification of the European Charter of Regional or Minority Languages which should now be possible. Finally, we recommend to the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe to address the above-mentioned issues when monitoring the implementation of the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities by the Slovak Republic.

b.       bilingual school certificates 130.       A positive development in the context of minority languages use has been the adoption of a law by the current parliament providing that primary and secondary schools with a minority language as the language of instruction issue bilingual school certificates. Under the previous government such certificates were replaced by Slovak ones. In connection with this issue, two head masters of Hungarian minority schools were dismissed on 15 March1998. The current government reinstated them to their position.

iii. Roma minority

131. The preliminary draft report, drawn up by the former rapporteurs, had registered the concerns of the European Roma Rights Centre (ERRC) about certain racist remarks by politicians in power, and about the close scrutiny of residence permits by Slovak municipalities for the purpose of restricting the freedom of movement of Roma.

132. The Centre, as well as the European Commission and NGOs, including the Slovak Helsinki Committee, Charter 77 and the Gremium of the third spectrum, considered Roma to be victims of frequent discrimination in their daily lives, of physical attacks by groups of skinheads, of insufficient protection from the police, and of refusal to enter some villages by the municipal authorities. For the Slovak Helsinki Committee, the situation of the Roma was alarming and constituted a real challenge for Slovak authorities and society. More funding was required to support NGOs and programmes for improving the situation of Roma.

133. The present government fixed as one of its priorities to tackle the Roma question. In its Programme Declaration, it stated that: "According to the Constitution of the Slovak Republic it will not tolerate any forms of racial or nationality intolerance. No citizen of the Slovak Republic can have disadvantages due to their belonging to a national minority or ethnic group. The government will support all forms of education leading to a mutual respect of nationality, and in this area it counts with the co-operation of NGOs". The government also stated that it will "support concrete programmes for the integration of the Roma minority into the life of the society and for solutions of this issue it will also form the necessary organisational structures".

134. The government has since taken important steps such as the creation of the post of a government commissioner for Roma issues (currently occupied by Mr Danihel, an ethnic Roma himself). Within the parliament, the new committee on human rights and minorities set up an advisory committee for Roma issues, in which representatives of NGOs also participate.

135. Co-operation with NGOs has started, in particular as regards the implementation of the Open Scholl Programme, which consists in the creation of classes for Roma children before the school age and which is implemented with the participation of mothers.

136. In the field of education, it seems that there is no discrimination of Roma as far as the organisation of the educational system is concerned. This system allows education for all pupils, including pupils belonging to the national minorities in the Slovak Republic. However, the question is whether there are any realistic opportunities for Roma children to attend school. They often face, amongst others, the problem of not understanding sufficiently well the Slovak language. One of the goals of the Ministry of Education of the Slovak Republic is to stabilise and renew the activity of kindergartens, especially in locations with a higher concentration of Roma children. Education of Roma pupils with specific educational needs is realised in specialised classes of primary schools and is focusing on developing their communication skills and improving the knowledge of the state language of the Slovak Republic. The first text books for the first primary school class in Roma language (including translation to Slovak) have been issued, although there is the problem of the existence of different Roma dialects which make codification difficult.

137. Pupils of Roma nationality who meet the conditions for further education in secondary schools have the possibility to study in all secondary schools of the Slovak Republic, especially in the Pedagogical School in Levoča, the Academy of Music in Košice and the Secondary Fine Arts School in Košice. The Ministry of Education of the Slovak Republic realised a scheme of three-years experimental subjects in construction where the school-leavers — mainly Roma pupils — after each completed year, may obtain a certain level of education.

138. The project "Educational Centre for Development of the Roma Minority in the Slovak Republic" is under preparation, aimed at improving the educational level of Roma and their full integration into society. The University of Constantine the Philosopher in Nitra — Department of Romany culture, opened its branch in Spišská Nová Ves, where besides teaching, there is also a possibility of studying the Romany culture and educational courses for young Roma women and unemployed Roma.

139. The police services have been strengthened and prevention programmes have been put into place in order to better monitor and prevent racially motivated attacks. Last year such a prevention programme was realised in the Prievidza district.

140. During the summer months, an exodus of more than one thousand Roma has taken place mainly towards Finland. Roma alleged that they were fleeing from persecution at home. But the Finish government shared the view of Slovak officials that the Roma immigration was mainly motivated by economic reasons. “Despite shortcomings in the living conditions of the Roma people, Slovakia is a democratic country”, stated in a press release the Finish government. In an attempt to stop the influx of Roma to Finland, the government temporarily suspended the visa-free entry agreement with Slovakia.

141. For our part, we believe that the Roma question is not unique to Slovakia, but is ultimately a problem for Europe as a whole, although each state must seek solutions applicable to its own realities. Despite any good will on behalf of the authorities, it requires a change of mentalities and long-term reforms. Recently the Deputy Prime Minister of Slovakia for human rights, minorities and regional development, Mr Chacky, agreed with the Czech Prime Minister, Mr Zeman, to work out a joint approach to minority questions in general and the Roma question in particular. We cannot but encourage similar initiatives. Moreover, European solutions, including financing of concrete projects, must be sought. As far as the Council of Europe is concerned, we note that the situation of the Roma minority is closely followed inter alia by the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) which assesses existing measures and makes further proposals on this matter in its country reports. The second stage report on Slovakia will be prepared by the end of 1999 following a visit to the country at the end of August 1999.

V. CONCLUSIONS

142. Following the parliamentary elections of September 1998, the international image of Slovakia has significantly improved. One of the main priorities of the new government is to meet the requirements allowing it to be amongst the first group of states from Eastern and Central Europe to join the European Union. While the European Commission’s Opinion of 1997 was negative, its first regular progress report of November 1998 states that the recent elections offered an opportunity for Slovakia to address the political weaknesses outlined in the opinion. We have cited the conclusion of the Joint Parliamentary Committee of the European Union and the Slovak Republic which invited the European Council “to take a flexible approach to re-assessment of the application of Slovakia for membership, and to decide on opening negotiations based on the results of the current political and economic reforms”.

143. The new parliament and government have indeed taken important steps to address the shortcomings in the functioning of democracy which had occurred under the previous regime. The constitutional reform which allowed the election of the President of the Republic by direct suffrage and the holding of such an election in conformity with domestic law and international standards was an important achievement of democracy.

144. The opposition is now sufficiently represented in the parliamentary control committees, namely the committee which controls the activities of the intelligence services and the committee which controls the activities of the military intelligence services. The first one is chaired by a deputy from the opposition.

145. Freedom of expression, including the press, is effectively guaranteed. There is a high degree of pluralism in both the press and electronic media. The objectivity of the Slovak public television is not contested. Following a decision by the Constitutional Court, amendments to the electoral law have been passed in first reading to repeal article 23 and allow electoral campaign also via the private electronic media. There remains the status and composition of the Radio and Television Broadcasting Council to be revised since currently they do not guarantee its independence.

146. National minorities enjoy a relatively high level of protection. The Slovak Republic has ratified the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities and has honoured its commitment under paragraph 9 of the Opinion No. 175 (1993) by “granting to every person belonging to a minority the right to use his/her surname and first names in his/her mother tongue and, in the regions in which substantial numbers of a national minority are settled, the right for the persons belonging to this minority to display in their language local names, signs, inscriptions and other similar information, in accordance with the principles contained in Recommendation 1201 (1993)”.

147. The new government has taken further steps for the protection of minorities:

a. the post of a Deputy Prime Minister for human rights, minorities and regional development has been created and is occupied by a member of the Hungarian Coalition Party;

b. a parliamentary committee for human rights and minorities has been set up;

c. the law provides for bilingual school certificates to be issued by schools with a minority language as the language of instruction;

d. a long-expected law was adopted on 10 July 1999 to regulate, in conjunction with other specific laws, the use of minority languages in official communications: according to the new law persons belonging to national minorities are entitled to use their language in communications with organs of public administration and of local self-government in those municipalities where the minority constitutes at least 20% of the population; the law which restores previous practice - interrupted by the adoption of the state language law - and satisfies a constitutional requirement, was adopted after consultations with the OSCE High Commissioner for National Minorities, the European Union and the Council of Europe and is welcomed.

148. We note, however, that problems arisen from the state language law with regard to freedom of expression, as well as the use of minority languages in other settings, notably education, need still to be regulated, in conformity with recommendations by the three international organisations. We strongly recommend to the Slovak government to ratify the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. Finally we recommend to the Committee of Ministers to address the minority issues which remain open when monitoring the implementation of the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities.

149. The new government has also taken steps to address the problems of the Roma population, including the creation of the post of a government commissioner for Roma issues and the setting up of an advisory committee within the parliament on Roma questions. Programmes have been launched to help education of Roma pupils and motivate school attendance and further integration, including through co-operation with NGOs. Measures have been taken to better monitor and prevent racially motivated attacks. The situation of the Roma minority in Slovakia is closely followed inter alia by the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance which will prepare its second stage report on Slovakia in which it will assess existing measures and make further proposals by the end of 1999.

150. Moreover, the new government has embarked upon important reforms in several areas:

a. The decentralisation of the state is one of the set priorities. Reform in this area aims, on the one hand, at increasing the powers of the local self-government authorities and, on the other, at introducing regional self-government. Regional councils should be elected by the end of 2000 or beginning of 2001.

b. Amendments have been prepared for submission to parliament in September 1999 in order to:

• strengthen the independence of judges, notably by: abolishing the four-year trial term for the election of judges and providing for the elections of judges for life; creating a Supreme Judicial Council as a self-governing body which will make the nominations for the elections of judges and take over part of other powers of the executive in matters concerning the judiciary; establishing financial autonomy for the judiciary;

• increase the powers of the Constitutional Court and clarify its relation with the general courts;

• reduce the excessive case-load of courts.

c.       The possibility of granting an amnesty during and even before investigation has begun will be abolished as it is incompatible with the requirements of the rule of law. The creation of the institution of Ombudsman is under consideration, although no time-table has been given for its creation.

151.       We welcome the progress that the Slovak Republic has thus made, in particular after the parliamentary elections of September 1998, to consolidate democracy and the rule of law, to promote respect for human rights and to bring both law and policy into line with the principles of the Council of Europe and we encourage the Slovak government to further pursue its policy towards European integration.

152.       In the light of the above considerations, we recommend that the current monitoring procedure, opened for the Slovak Republic under Order 508(1995), be closed. The Assembly should pursue its dialogue with the Slovak authorities for the issues referred to in our report and summarised in the preliminary draft resolution or those arising from the obligations of the Slovak Republic as a member state of the Council of Europe, with a view to reopening procedure in accordance with Resolution 1115 (1997), if further clarification or enhanced co-operation should seem desirable. We further recommend to the Committee of Ministers to address the same issues in its own monitoring procedure and in its Programme of Activities for the Development and Consolidation of Democratic Stability (ADACS) for the Slovak Republic to help the country complete the undertaken reforms.¹⁰

APPENDIX I

OPINION No. 175 (1993) on the application by the Slovak Republic for membership

of the Council of Europe

1.       On 1 January 1993, the Czech and Slovak Federal Republic (CSFR), a member state of the Council of Europe since 21 February 1991, ceased to exist. On that same day, the Government of the Slovak Republic, one of the two states to emerge from the former federation, indicated that it wished to join the Organisation.

2.       The Assembly has received from the Committee of Ministers a request for an opinion on the Slovak Republic's accession to the Council of Europe (Doc. 6738), in pursuance of Statutory Resolution (51) 30 A adopted by the Committee of Ministers on 3 May 1951.

3.       It notes that the constitutional act on dissolution of the CSFR was adopted by the former Federal Assembly, democratically elected by universal suffrage in a free and secret ballot organised on 5 and 6 June 1992. It further notes that the Czech National Council and the Slovak National Council, the legislative assemblies of the two republics constituting the then CSFR, were also elected in this ballot.

4.       The Assembly notes that the new Slovak Constitution, which makes the new republic a state ruled by law, came into force on 1 January 1993.

5.       The Assembly welcomes the commitment to Europe expressed by the Slovak Parliament in its declaration of 3 December 1992 on the Slovak Republic's intention of joining the Council of Europe.

6.       It appreciates the contribution made to its work by the Slovak Parliament since the latter was granted special guest status on 15 January 1993.

7.       It attaches great importance to the Slovak authorities' commitment to signing and ratifying the European Convention on Human Rights and its additional protocols, and to recognising the right of individual application to the European Commission of Human Rights (Article 25 of the Convention), as well as the compulsory jurisdiction of the European Court of Human Rights (Article 46). It also notes with satisfaction that the Slovak Republic has considered itself bound by the Convention since 1 January 1993.

8.       It asks the Slovak authorities to base their policy regarding the protection of minorities on the principles laid down in Recommendation 1201 (1993) on an additional protocol on the rights of national minorities to the European Convention on Human Rights.

9.       It takes note of the Slovak authorities' commitment to adopt a legislation granting to every person belonging to a minority the right to use his/her surname and first names in his/her mother tongue and, in the regions in which substantial numbers of a national minority are settled, the right for the persons belonging to this minority to display in their language local names, signs, inscriptions and other similar information, in accordance with the principles contained in Recommendation 1201 (1993).

10.       It encourages the authorities of the Slovak Republic to continue the efforts they have begun to eliminate from its legislation all the laws or decrees adopted by previous governments which are likely to contain elements discriminating against a group of persons or an ethnic, national community living on its territory, particularly those concerning "collective guilt".

11.       It also takes note, whatever administrative divisions may be introduced in the Slovak Republic, of the declaration made by the Slovak authorities that they will respect the rights of national minorities.

12.       The Assembly considers that the Slovak Republic is both able and willing:

i.       to respect the provisions of Article 3 of the Statute, which states that: "Every member of the Council of Europe must accept the principles of the rule of law and of the enjoyment by all persons within its jurisdiction of human rights and fundamental freedoms";

ii.       to play a sincere and effective part in achieving the aims of the Council of Europe, as set forth in Chapter I of its Statute, thereby fulfilling the conditions for membership, as specified in Article 4 of the Statute.

13.       The Assembly accordingly recommends that, at its next meeting, the Committee of Ministers:

i.       invite the Slovak Republic to become a member of the Council of Europe;

ii.       allocate the Slovak Republic five seats in the Parliamentary Assembly.

APPENDIX II

Programme of the visit of the co-rapporteurs,
Mr Goran Magnusson and Mr Juris Sinka,
to Slovakia
(31 May – 3 June 1999)

Tuesday, 1 June 1999

08.30       Working breakfast with ambassadors of member states in Hotel Forum (Diplomat Room):

Mr Jenos Boros, Ambassador of Hungary,

Mr Ikossipentarchos, Ambasador of Greece

Mr Ruben Kameny, Honorary Consulate General of Sweden

Mr Hans-Günter Löffler, Deputy Ambassador of Germany (EU Presidency)

Mr Christian Bourgin, Chargé d'Affaires a.i., Delegation of the European Commission to the Slovak Republic

10.00       Meeting with the chairmen of Parliamentary political groups

11.00       Meeting with Mr P. Hrosuvsky, Deputy Speaker of the National Council.

Also present two members of the Slovak delegation to the PACE, Mr Fico (coalition) and

Mrs Keltosova (opposition), and Mr Kameny, Honorary Consulate General of Sweden

12.00       Lunch given by the Deputy Speaker of the National Council of the Slovak in the "Governor's Palace" restaurant

13.30       Meeting with representatives of the media in the National Council of the Slovak Republic (Radio and Television Council, STV (State Television), Private TV Markíza, Slovak Journalist Union and Syndicate of Slovak journalists)

15.00       Departure to Komárno (on the border with Hungary)

16.30       Meeting with the Mayor of the town and representatives of the town council (of Hungarian origin).

18.30       Departure from Komárno

20.00       Working dinner in Bratislava with representatives of NGO's (Slovak Helsinki Committee, Slovak National Centre for Human Rights, the Charter 77 Foundation, Gremium of Third Sector)

Wednesday, 2 June 1999

08.30       Meeting with the Vice-Prime Minister, Mr Pál Csáky

09.45       Meeting with the State Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mr J. Chlebo

11.00       Meeting with the Minister of Education, Mr Milan Ftacnik

12.00       Meeting with the Director of the International Law Department of the Ministry of Justice,

M. Banus

13.00       Lunch in the Hotel "Bôrik" given by Mr Peter Weiss, Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the National Council of the Slovak Republic. Also present Mr Nagy, Chairman of the Committee on Human Rights and Minorities, and two members of the Slocak delegation to the PACE, Mr Fico (coalition) and Mr Tkac (opposition)

15.00       Meeting with Mr Ladislav Pittner, Minister of Interior Affairs

16.00       Meeting with Mr Lobomira Fogas, Vice-Prime Minister

17.00       Meeting with Mr Vincent Danihel, Government Commissioner for the Roma Community and President of the Administration Council of INFOROMA (Information Centre on Roma), ROI and RIS, and representatives of the Council of National and Ethnic Minorities

18.00       Meeting with Mr Michal Sýkora, Chairman of the Association of Towns and Communities of Slovakia

19.00       Working dinner in the Hotel Forum with:

      Mr Ladislav Orosz, Chairman of the Constitutional and Legal Affairs Committee of the National Council of the Slovak Republic

      Mr Robert Fico, Chairman of the Slovak Delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe

      Mr Pavel Rohárik, President of the Association of Judges of Slovakia

      Mr Milan Hanzel, General Prosecutor

      Mr Štefan Detvai, President of the Bar Association

Thursday, 3 June 1999

08.15       Working breakfast with Mr Anton Hoffman, Vice-Chairman of the parliamentary committee for the oversight of the activities of the intelligence services

10.20       Departure of the members of the delegation

APPENDIX III

Treaties of the Council of Europe ratified by the Slovak Republic

ETS No.        Treaty, Date of Ratification

001        STATUTE OF THE COUNCIL OF EUROPE, 30-Jun-1993

002        GENERAL AGREEMENT ON PRIVILEGES AND IMMUNITIES OF THE COUNCIL OF EUROPE, 5-Dec-1996

005        CONVENTION FOR THE PROTECTION OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND FUNDAMENTAL FREEDOMS, 18-Mar-1992

009        PROTOCOL TO THE CONVENTION FOR THE PROTECTION OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND FUNDAMENTAL FREEDOMS, 18-Mar-1992

010        PROTOCOL TO THE GENERAL AGREEMENT ON PRIVILEGES AND IMMUNITES OF THE COUNCIL OF EUROPE, 5-Dec-1996

015        EUROPEAN CONVENTION ON THE EQUIVALENCE OF DIPLOMAS LEADING TO ADMISSION TO UNIVERSITIES, 26-Mar-1991

018        EUROPEAN CULTURAL CONVENTION, 10-May-1990

021        EUROPEAN CONVENTION ON THE EQUIVALENCE OF PERIODS OF UNIVERSITY STUDY, 26-Mar-1991

022        SECOND PROTOCOL TO THE GENERAL AGREEMENT ON PRIVILEGES AND IMMUNITIES OF THE COUNCIL OF EUROPE, 15-Jul-1997

024        EUROPEAN CONVENTION ON EXTRADITION, 15-Apr-1992

026        EUROPEAN AGREEMENT ON THE EXCHANGE OF THERAPEUTIC SUBSTANCES OF HUMAN ORIGIN, 19-Jan-1996

030        EUROPEAN CONVENTION ON MUTUAL ASSISTANCE IN CRIMINAL MATTERS, 15-Apr-1992

032        EUROPEAN CONVENTION ON THE ACADEMIC RECOGNITION OF UNIVERSITY QUALIFICATIONS, 26-Mar-1991

035        EUROPEAN SOCIAL CHARTER, 22-June-1998

036        FOURTH PROTOCOL TO THE GENERAL AGREEMENT ON PRIVILEGES AND IMMUNITIES OF THE COUNCIL OF EUROPE, 15-Jul-1997

044        PROTOCOL No 2 TO THE CONVENTION FOR THE PROTECTION OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND FUNDAMENTAL FREEDOMS, CONFERRING UPON THE EUROPEAN COURT OF HUMAN RIGHTS COMPETENCE TO GIVE ADVISORY OPINIONS, 18-Mar-1992

045        PROTOCOL No 3 TO THE CONVENTION FOR THE PROTECTION OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND FUNDAMENTAL FREEDOMS, AMENDING ARTICLES 29, 30 AND 34 OF THE CONVENTION, 18-Mar-1992

046        PROTOCOL No 4 TO THE CONVENTION FOR THE PROTECTION OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND FUNDAMENTAL FREEDOMS, SECURING CERTAIN RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS OTHER THAN THOSE INCLUDED IN THE CONVENTION AND IN PROTOCOL No 1, 18-Mar-1992

049        PROTOCOL TO THE EUROPEAN CONVENTION ON THE EQUIVALENCE OF DIPLOMAS LEADING TO ADMISSION TO UNIVERSITIES, 26-Mar-1991

050        CONVENTION ON THE ELABORATION OF A EUROPEAN PHARMACOPOEIA, 3-Nov-1995

055        PROTOCOL No 5 TO THE CONVENTION FOR THE PROTECTION OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND FUNDAMENTAL FREEDOMS, AMENDING ARTICLES 22 AND 40 OF THE CONVENTION, 18-Mar-1992

062        EUROPEAN CONVENTION ON INFORMATION ON FOREIGN LAW, 5-Dec-1996

073        EUROPEAN CONVENTION ON THE TRANSFER OF PROCEEDINGS IN CRIMINAL MATTERS, 15-Apr-1992

080        AGREEMENT ON THE TRANSFER OF CORPSES, 19-Jan-1996

084        EUROPEAN AGREEMENT ON THE EXCHANGE OF TISSUE-TYPING REAGENTS, 21-Jan-1999

086        ADDITIONAL PROTOCOL TO THE EUROPEAN CONVENTION ON EXTRADITION, 23-Sep-1996

090        EUROPEAN CONVENTION ON THE SUPPRESSION OF TERRORISM, 15-Apr-1992

097        ADDITIONAL PROTOCOL TO THE EUROPEAN CONVENTION ON INFORMATION ON FOREIGN LAW, 5-Dec-1996

098        SECOND ADDITIONAL PROTOCOL TO THE EUROPEAN CONVENTION ON EXTRADITION, 23-Sep-1996

099        ADDITIONAL PROTOCOL TO THE EUROPEAN CONVENTION ON MUTUAL ASSISTANCE IN CRIMINAL MATTERS, 23-Sep-1996

104        CONVENTION ON THE CONSERVATION OF EUROPEAN WILDLIFE AND NATURAL HABITATS, 23-Sep-1996

109        ADDITIONAL PROTOCOL TO THE EUROPEAN AGREEMENT ON THE EXCHANGE OF THERAPEUTIC SUBSTANCES OF HUMAN ORIGIN, 19-Jan-1996

112        CONVENTION ON THE TRANSFER OF SENTENCED PERSONS, 15-Apr-1992

114        PROTOCOL No 6 TO THE CONVENTION FOR THE PROTECTION OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND FUNDAMENTAL FREEDOMS CONCERNING THE ABOLITION OF THE DEATH PENALTY, 18-Mar-1992

117        PROTOCOL No 7 TO THE CONVENTION FOR THE PROTECTION OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND FUNDAMENTAL FREEDOMS, 18-Mar-1992

118        PROTOCOL No 8 TO THE CONVENTION FOR THE PROTECTION OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND FUNDAMENTAL FREEDOMS, 18-Mar-1992

120        EUROPEAN CONVENTION ON SPECTATOR VIOLENCE AND MISBEHAVIOUR AT SPORTS EVENTS AND IN PARTICULAR AT FOOTBALL MATCHES, 6-May-1993

126        EUROPEAN CONVENTION FOR THE PREVENTION OF TORTURE AND INHUMAN OR DEGRADING TREATMENT OR PUNISHMENT, 11-May-1994

128        ADDITIONAL PROTOCOL TO THE EUROPEAN SOCIAL CHARTER, 22-June-1998

132        EUROPEAN CONVENTION ON TRANSFRONTIER TELEVISION, 20-Jan-1997

134        PROTOCOL TO THE CONVENTION ON THE ELABORATION OF A EUROPEAN PHARMACOPOEIA, 3-Nov-1995

135        ANTI-DOPING CONVENTION, 6-May-1993

137        FIFTH PROTOCOL TO THE GENERAL AGREEMENT ON PRIVILEGES AND IMMUNITIES OF THE COUNCIL OF EUROPE, 15-Jul-1997

140        PROTOCOL No 9 TO THE CONVENTION FOR THE PROTECTION OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND FUNDAMENTAL FREEDOMS, 7-May-1992

142        PROTOCOL AMENDING THE EUROPEAN SOCIAL CHARTER, 22-June-1998

146        PROTOCOL No 10 TO THE CONVENTION FOR THE PROTECTION OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND FUNDAMENTAL FREEDOMS, 26-Jun-1992

147        EUROPEAN CONVENTION ON CINEMATOGRAPHIC CO-PRODUCTION, 23-Jan-1995

151        PROTOCOL No. 1 TO THE EUROPEAN CONVENTION FOR THE PREVENTION OF TORTURE AND INHUMAN OR DEGRADING TREATMENT OR PUNISHMENT, 11-May-1994

152        PROTOCOL No. 2 TO THE EUROPEAN CONVENTION FOR THE PREVENTION OF TORTURE AND INHUMAN OR DEGRADING TREATMENT OR PUNISHMENT, 11-May-1994

155        PROTOCOL No 11 TO THE CONVENTION FOR THE PROTECTION OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND FUNDAMENTAL FREEDOMS, RESTRUCTURING THE CONTROL MACHINERY ESTABLISHED THEREBY, 28-Sep-1994

157        FRAMEWORK CONVENTION FOR THE PROTECTION OF NATIONAL MINORITIES, 14-Sep-1995

164        CONVENTION FOR THE PROTECTION OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND DIGNITY OF THE HUMAN BEING WITH REGARD TO THE APPLICATION OF BIOLOGY AND MEDICINE: CONVENTION ON HUMAN RIGHTS AND BIOMEDICINE, 15-Jan-1998

165        CONVENTION ON THE RECOGNITION OF QUALIFICATIONS CONCERNING HIGHER EDUCATION IN THE EUROPEAN REGION, 13-Jul-1999

166        EUROPEAN CONVENTION ON NATIONALITY, 27-May-1998

168 ADDITIONAL PROTOCOL TO THE CONVENTION FOR THE PROTECTION OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND DIGNITY OF THE HUMAN BEING WITH REGARD TO THE APPLICATION OF BIOLOGY AND MEDICINE, ON THE PROHIBITION OF CLONING HUMAN BEINGS, 22-Oct-1998

Treaties of the Council of Europe signed by the Slovak Republic

ETS No.        Treaty, Date of Signature

106        EUROPEAN OUTLINE CONVENTION ON TRANSFRONTIER CO-OPERATION BETWEEN TERRITORIAL COMMUNITIES OR AUTHORITIES, 7-Sep-1998

122        EUROPEAN CHARTER OF LOCAL SELF-GOVERNMENT, 23-Feb-1999

143        EUROPEAN CONVENTION ON THE PROTECTION OF THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL HERITAGE (REVISED), 30-Jun-1993

159        ADDITIONAL PROTOCOL TO THE EUROPEAN OUTLINE CONVENTION ON TRANSFRONTIER CO-OPERATION BETWEEN TERRITORIAL COMMUNITIES OR AUTHORITIES, 7-Sep-1998

160        EUROPEAN CONVENTION ON THE EXERCISE OF CHILDREN'S RIGHTS, 22-June-1998

162        SIXTH PROTOCOL TO THE GENERAL AGREEMENT ON PRIVILEGES AND IMMUNITIES OF THE COUNCIL OF EUROPE, 9-Jun-1999

173        CRIMINAL LAW CONVENTION ON CORRUPTION, 27-Jan-1999

APPENDIX IV

Activities for the development and consolidation of democratic stability (ADACS)

Programme 1999

SLOVAKIA

HUMAN RIGHTS

European Convention on Human Rights (and other control mechanisms)

Compatibility exercise for examining the compatibility of domestic law with the requirements of the European Convention on Human Rights, (both pre- and post- ratification)

Assistance in examining different methods and procedures for ensuring the compatibility of domestic law with the requirements of the European Convention on Human Rights, organised in co-operation with the Ministry of Justice.

Ad hoc expertise and advice on current or pending domestic legislation and its compatibility with the European Convention on Human Rights

[Ad-hoc expertise on the compatibility of current or draft legislation depending on the legislative programme to be undertaken in 1999.]

Training Programmes

Training seminar in Trencianske Teplice for judicial candidates on the application of Articles 5 and 6 or 8 and 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights in the work of judges, organised in co-operation with the Ministry of Justice. Proposed by the Ministry of Justice.

Support towards a series of seminars on European human rights standards for members of the judiciary, organised by the Netherlands Helsinki Committee and the Association of Slovak Judges. Proposed by the Netherlands Helsinki Committee.

Study visit of a group of Slovak law students from Bratislava, Kosice and Banska Bystrica Universities to European and Atlantic institutions in Brussels, Luxembourg and Strasbourg, in cooperation with the Slovak National Centre for Human Rights.

Human Rights Documentation

[Continued support towards the publication of the periodical  "Decisions of the European Commission of Human Rights and the European Court of Human Rights" (Volume 3, 6 issues) by the Bratislava Information and Documentation Centre on the Council of Europe in co-operation with the Slovak Government Agent. Proposed by the Bratislava Information and Documentation Centre on the Council of Europe.]

[Support towards a two-year project to translate selected case-law of the European Court of Human Rights, organised by the Bratislava Information and Documentation Centre on the Council of Europe in co-operation with the Slovak National Centre for Human Rights and the Slovak Academy of Sciences – Institute of State and Law. Proposed by the Bratislava Information and Documentation Centre on the Council of Europe.]

[The establishment of Human Rights Libraries in Slovakia, including at Matej Bel University in Banska Bystrica in connection with the local information point there on the Council of Europe. Proposed by the Bratislava Information and Documentation Centre on the Council of Europe.]

[Support towards the acquisition of software with a suitable sorting capability for use in the preparation of a human rights glossary of terminology. Proposed by the Bratislava Information and Documentation Centre on the Council of Europe.]

[Support towards the translation and publication of  "Key Extracts from a selection of judgments of the European Court of Human Rights and decisions and reports of the European Commission of Human Rights", organised in co-operation with the Bratislava Information and Documentation Centre on the Council of Europe. Proposed by the Ministry of Justice.]

Human rights education and awareness, including projects forming part of the « Police and Human Rights – 1997 – 2000 » programme

[Information exchange meeting in Rimanskà Soboba on the development of education and teaching of children and youth from socially disadvantaged backgrounds, including their integration into civil society, with experts from the Council of Europe and from the Slovak Republic, and representatives of the public administration, organised by the Ministry of Education.]

[Support towards and provision of human rights materials for a meeting of University teachers from faculties of law, philosophy, politology, journalism, education etc. and of the police academy on how to teach human rights at university level, organised by the Bratislava Information and Documentation Centre on the Council of Europe. Proposed by the Bratislava Information and Documentation Centre on the Council of Europe.]

Seminar to be held in the second half of 1999, to discuss implementation of the European Convention on Human Rights in the daily work practice of the police service. Proposed by the Ministry of the Interior.

Equality between women and men

Information seminars

Seminar on “women in the democratic society: are they aware of their rights?”, organised in co-operation with the Bratislava International Centre for Family Studies and the Co-ordinating Committee for Women’s Issues

Training, awareness-raising on equality issues and research

[Research project on the status and rights of older women in the society and family, co-ordinated by the Bratislava International Centre for Family Studies.]

Study visits

[Study visit for a member of the Co-ordinating Committee for Women’s Issues to become acquainted with the national equality machinery in a member state of the Council of Europe.]

Documentation/Translations

[Translation of Council of Europe documents on gender mainstreaming and violence against women.]

MEDIA

Study visits

[Study visit for one representative of the National Centre for Mass Media communication to the European Audiovisual Observatory.]

Study visit for one representative of the Slovak Council for Radio and Television.

[Study visit for one representative of the Ministry of Culture.]

Seminars

[Seminar on new information technologies for strengthening democratic values and human rights in the media field (participation of Council of Europe experts).]

Contribution to activities organised by third parties

Seminar on freedom of expression, organised in co-operation with Article 19.

[Seminar on media management with a follow-up seminar, organised in co-operation with the WAN.]

SOCIAL COHESION

Migrations and population

[Study visit to obtain new experience and knowledge concerning the creation and realisation of migration policy, social work in the field of care for asylum seekers in the refugee camps and integration into society and transfer of knowledge and information into the practice of migration policy in the Slovak republic (proposed by the Ministry of Interior)]

EDUCATION, CULTURE, HERITAGE AND SPORT

Education

Human rights education and education for democratic citizenship

Training Course "Education for Democracy and European Studies"

This project is placed within the Action for education for democratic citizenship decided by the Second Summit and is closely linked to the CDCC/Education Committee project in this area. With a view to fostering the knowledge about the principles and practices of democracy, as well as the skills and competencies of responsible and democratically minded citizens, in other words, to provide for a process of education for democratic citizenship.

LOCAL AUTHORITIES

Legislative expertise

Expertise on the draft legislation pending at the Parliament, in particular concerning local elections.

LEGAL CO-OPERATION

Access to justice and the efficiency of justice

The role of court registrars and Rechtspfleger in improving the efficiency of the justice system

▪ Legislative expertises

Expertise of the draft law on court registrars and Rechtspfleger (proposed by the Ministry of Justice)

Legal regulation of relations between individuals

Legal framework

Civil law and civil procedure

▪ Legislative expertises

Expertise of the draft law on business companies (proposed by the Ministry of Justice)

Crime problems and law enforcement

Fight against crime and corruption

Fight against corruption

▪ Multilateral meetings

[Meeting on effective functioning of Financial Intelligence Units (FIU) in the system of the fight against the money laundering in member States of the Council of Europe (proposed by the Ministry of Interior)]

      [Joint Programme EC/CoE, OCTOPUS II]

▪ Study visits

[Functioning of Financial Intelligence Units linked to the Police Corps in the member States of the Council of Europe (proposed by the Ministry of Interior)]

[Joint Programme EC/CoE, OCTOPUS II]

Law enforcement agencies

The police in a state governed by the rule of law

▪ Study visits

[Study visit to gain theoretical and practical experience in the criminal police issues as the fight against organised crimes, acts of violence (proposed by the Police Academy of the Slovak republic)]

The penitentiary system

▪ Bilateral meetings

Regional seminar on open and semi-open departments of prison institutions for serving a sentence – criteria of selection and treatment specification in this category of sentenced persons (proposed by the Ministry of Justice)

Administrative law and administrative justice

The legal framework of the activities of the State and its bodies

▪ Bilateral meetings

Seminar on judicial control of administrative acts (proposed by the Ministry of Justice)

Expertise on proposed reforms of the administrative offence law (proposed by the Ministry of Interior)

Civil Society (legal framework)

The legal framework and the functioning of non-governmental organisations

▪ Study visits

Study visit on the accession to the European Convention on the Recognition of the Legal Personality of International non-governmental Organisations (proposed by the Ministry of Interior)

CIVIL SOCIETY

Training course for non-governmental Organisations leaders

Training workshop "co-operation among NGOs: towards reinforcement of civil society".

Themes:

      -       fund-raising

      -       NGO platforms

      -       recruitment of members

      -       fiscal matters of NGOs

Partners:

      -       Information Centre on the Council of Europe in Bratislava

      -       European Help Centre for non-profit Associations (CEAVA)

MINORITIES

NB: Co-operation activities in the field of National Minorities will be primarily implemented in the context of the new Joint Programme EC/CoE on National Minorities.

Expert missions and policy development assistance

[Study visit to present the application of the Slovak minority policy on mixed territories in connection with the implementation of the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities. Proposed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.]

Reporting committee: Committee on the honouring of obligations and commitments by Member States.

Reference to committee: Resolution 1115 (1997) of 27 January 1997.

Draft resolution adopted by the committee on 1 September 1999 by 28 votes for, none against, 2 abstentions. Draft recommendation adopted unanimously.

Members of the committee: MM. Mota Amaral (Chair), Sole Tura (Vice-Chair), Mrs Gelderblom-Lankhout (Vice-Chair), Mr Sinka (Vice-Chair), Ms Akgönenç, MM. Akselsen, Atkinson, Averchev, Bársony, Baumel, Bindig, Brunetti, Columberg, Dagys, Davis, Diana, Domljan, Dumitrescu, Ms Durrieu, Count Eltz, MM. Enright, Eörsi, Eversdijk, Frunda, Gjellerod, Glotov, Gross, Gürkan, Grusenbauer, Hornhues, Irmer, Jansson, Jaskiernia, Jurgens, Ms Kautto, MM. Kelam, Korakas, Kostytsky, Koulouris, Kuzmickas, Magnusson, Marmazov, Moeller, Muehlemann, Myrvoll, Nedelciuc, Ms Nemcova, MM. Pahor, Ms Poptodorova, Mr Ramirez Pery, Ms Ringstad, MM. Ruffy, Saglam, Ms Sehnalova, Ms Severinsen, MM. Shishlov, Smorawinski, Steolea, Ms Stoyanova, MM. Surjan, Tahiri, Urbain, Valkeniers, Vella, Weyts, Ms Wohlwend, Mr Xhaferi, N…..

N.B. The names of those members who took part in the meeting are printed in italics.

Secretaries to the committee: Mr Ausems, Mr Dufour, and Mrs Chatzivassiliou.

¹        At 1 January 1995.

² Notably:

- the intervention of Mr Meciar’s government in the organisation of a referendum called by the former President of the Republic, Mr Kovac, in May 1997;

- since the end of Mr Kovac’s term of office (2 March 1998) and following the failure of the parliament to elect a new President, Prime Minister Meciar exercised most of the presidential powers (in accordance with article 105 of the Constitution);

- the insufficient respect for the rights of the opposition throughout the previous legislative period.

For the difficulties in the functioning of political institutions from independence (1 January 1993) to the parliamentary elections of September 1998, see the preliminary draft report [AS/Mon (1998) 50] and the Slovak position thereon [AS/Mon (1999)10].9+

³ According to the observations of the Slovak authorities, this provision was not added following the 1998 amendment of the electoral law but was in force also in the past. In this respect, the 1998 amendment only introduced some technical modifications.

⁴ See Document AS/Bur/AHSLOV(1998) 5, Report on the Parliamentary elections in Slovakia (25-26 September 1998, rapporteur: Mr Adamscyk (Poland, EPP/CD).

⁵ See below for the case of the former head of the SIS, Mr Lexa.

⁶ As regards the issue of the administrative organisation of the state and minorities, see the preliminary draft report [AS/Mon(1998)50] and the comments thereon of the Slovak authorities [AS/Mon(1999)10] including relevant statistical information.

⁷ As regards the role of the electronic media and of the Radio and Television Broadcasting Council during the parliamentary election campaigns see above the chapter on the parliamentary elections of September 1998.

⁸ The main question seems to be the language of entrance exams to secondary school and University. The Minister of Education told us that when a pupil from a primary Hungarian school wanted to join a Slovak secondary school, it would be normal that he or she pass the exams in Slovak. We proposed that the questions be put in both Slovak and Hungarian languages while pupils would have to answer in Slovak. For exams from a Hungarian primary to a secondary Hungarian school, the Hungarian language could be used also for the answers.

⁹ The new law has been welcomed by the international community, notably the European Commission and the OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities, Mr van der Stoel, who, in a press release of 19 July 1999, considered it to be “a step forward”, while expressing his hope that the government would “move without delay to settle other unresolved inter-ethnic issues.”

¹⁰ See Appendix IV for the Programme of 1999 concerning the Slovak Republic.