|
The construction of our website is sponsored by the
Hungarian Human Rights Foundation - HHRF
Media Partners:
Created by
Traduction by Ádám Gerencsér, Ágnes Fülöp, Angela Gyulveszy, Roland Hönsch, Katalin Lengyel, Márton Máté, Miklós Paulovits, László Botos and Tímea Kosztándi
Copyright © AMCM, 2004-2008
|
The Reasons for Turning to the "Council Against Discrimination"
In the matter of the Hungarian-language teaching jobs the "League of Csango-Magyar Associations" has turned with its complaint to the (Rumanian) National Anti-Discrimination Council in June, 2006. We have elaborated our complaint which is formulated in the deposition that was submitted to the proper organ of the Rumanian state in Bucharest. To support our allegations of being disadvantaged we have provided statistical attachments so as to shore up our case with hard data. In the light of the facts presented in our deposition we come to the conclusion that the number and the extent of Hungarian-language teaching jobs/instruction granted to us must be qualified as discriminative. Currently, in the Csango (Chango) villages of Moldavia, 121 Hungarian-language hours are held weekly. By our calculations this number should have been raised in response to the properly deposited requests that were formulated within the allotted time limit. Accordingly, in the coming school year 183 lections should be held. Disregarding all our facts and pleas, the School Commissariat of the County of Bako has made only 104 Hungarian language hours available. A complicating and additionally discriminative component of the situation is that the teaching positions posted for competitive applications are not for tenure-track positions. This is the case even in those instances in which the school has full-time teaching positions to offer in Hungarian. Compared with the conditions of Rumanian-language instruction in the district, a discrepancy becomes evident: for the teachers instructing in the Rumanian language, unlike in analogous situations that pertains to Hungarian, tenured positions were advertised when the conditions and the relevant rules regulating instruction were identical. At the same time we have also pointed out that there are vacant teaching positions in Rumanian language and literature that have also been posted as tenured assignments. According to the argumentation of the Educational Inspectorate the reason for not advertising the Hungarian-language positions in the form of four-year appointments (this being the pre-condition for tenured employment) are two fold. One is the declining trend of the demographic indicators, and the other is the tendency of parents to withdraw their children from the Hungarian programs. It is our view that these phenomena, if the allegation is true, should affect equally both the Rumanian and Hungarian sections of schools and appointments. However, according to the data published on the home-page of the Rumanian Ministry for Education and Research, this is not the case. We are therefore requesting that the
Council investigate whether, in the case of the schools indicated,
there has been any negative discrimination against Hungarian-language
instructors and schooling. Furthermore, we are asking it to obligate,
commensurate to its means, the School Supervision of the District
of Bako to (a) increase the allotment of Hungarian lessons and (b)
to employ Hungarian teachers under the same terms that are offered
under comparable conditions to Rumanian instructors. Recently
purchased community house in Csík village
We have recently managed to acquire
a house in the centre of Csík village (Ciucani), which from the next
academic year onwards will serve as the venue for extracurricular classroom
sessions for the local children. The purchase was made possible through
the generous sponsorship of their 'foster parents'. The house stands
on a 1,200 m2 block of land and is large enough to function as a residence
for our staff, as well as an easily accessible educational premise.
There are further two auxiliary buildings at the site, where we intend
to accommodate eventual visitors. The grounds are spacious enough to
allow us to organise summer camps, with tents hoisted on the green.
Yet to make all of this possible, we still need to finish renovating
the property: work to be done includes a make-over of the restrooms,
building sewerage, white coating the walls and restoring the fences
around the grounds. If you feel that you could assist us – and the children
of Csík - in any way, please write to us! Every little helps...
The children of Somoska village have
visited the playgrounds known as "the Isle" in Bákó (Bacau)
on the 21st May 2006. Teaching staff reunion in Kostelek
This May, Kostelek has been chosen as the location for the monthly regular reunion of our teaching staff. Making our way to the mountain village wasn't easy; the recent floodings have seriously damaged the roads and some of the bridges. After a difficult journey we really appreciated the hospitality of the Association educators of Kostelek, Imre Éva és Ferencz András. After the delicious lunch we had in the classroom, which usually serves as the venue for religious education and Hungarian language sessions, we went on to conduct a relaxed meeting in the church courtyard, with everyone involved enjoying the fresh air and the sunshine. Our agenda was mostly taken up by discussing the prospects of this year's summer camps. We are delighted that in 2006 we can offer a wide range of activities for the children. The meeting was also a chance to get to know our new colleagues, Csiszár Júlia, who will be stationed in Magyarfalu, and Tóth Ferenc, who is assigned to Lábnyik village. We then discussed the pilgrim fair ("búcsú") in Csíksomlyó, which unfortunately we won’t be able to attend in such high numbers as in 2005. Furthermore, we made arrangements for the coming inspections by the educational authorities, for the amount of Hungarian lessons taught next year and for supporting the further studies of final year students. After the meeting, we all attended the Catholic service, where the encouraging words of father Solomon Antal have been genuinely heart-warming. Those who decided to spend the night at Kostelek have made the right choice, and will for long cherish the pleasant memories of local food cooked over the open fire, and of singing and dancing around the fireplace.
Translated from the account of Farkas-Ferencz Endre, Hungarian teacher in Gajdár
|
 |
|
