MINELRES - - Minority related national legislation - Slovenia

Law on Self-governing Ethnic Communities

5 October 1994

I. BASIC PROVISIONS

Article 1

For the implementation of special rights, guaranteed by the Constitution of the Republic of Slovenia, for the promotion of their needs and interests, and for organized participation in public matters, members of Italian and Hungarian minorities establish, in regions of their autochthonous settlement, self-governing ethnic communities.

Article 2

Self-governing ethnic communities are public legal persons.

II. TASKS OF SELF-GOVERNING ETHNIC COMMUNITIES

Article 3

Self-governing ethnic communities perform the following tasks:

- in accordance with the Constitution and law, they decide autonomously on all matters within their competence;
- in accordance with law, they give consent to matters concerning the protection of special rights of ethnic communities. The decisions are made together with bodies of self-governing local communities;
- they discuss and study matters concerning the status of ethnic communities, they adopt standpoints and they submit proposals and initiatives to competent bodies;
- they stimulate and organize activities, contributing to the preservation of ethnic identity of members of Italian and Hungarian ethnic community.

Article 4

Self-governing ethnic communities implement the tasks from the above article by:

- inciting and organizing cultural, research, informative, publishing and economic activities essential for the development of ethnic communities;
- establishing organizations and public institutions;
- following and promoting the development of education and schooling of members of ethnic communities and, pursuant to law, participating in the planning and organizing of educational work and the preparing of educational programs;
- promoting contacts with their nation of origin, members of ethnic communities in other states and with international organizations;
- pursuant to law, performing tasks from the competence of the state;
- performing other tasks arising from the statute.

Article 5

Self-governing ethnic communities cooperate with members of ethnic communities, elected into bodies of self-governing local communities and National Council, with bodies of self-governing local communities and state bodies.

III. ORGANIZATION

Article 6

Members of Italian and Hungarian ethnic communities, autochthonously settled in ethnically mixed territories, found municipal self-governing ethnic communities.

Article 7

The highest body of municipal self-governing ethnic community is the Council of the self-governing ethnic community, elected by the members of ethnic community in direct elections.

Article 8

The right to vote and be elected a member of the council of municipal self-governing ethnic community is reserved for members of ethnic community that have the right to vote and are registered in a special municipal register of voters of citizens - members of ethnic community.

Elections into the council of municipal self-governing ethnic community are as a rule performed simultaneously with elections into bodies of self-governing local communities. Thereby provisions of the Law on local elections are applied.

Article 9

Municipal self-governing ethnic communities integrate into Italian or Hungarian self-governing ethnic communities in the Republic of Slovenia, respectively.

The highest body of self-governing ethnic community is the council of self-governing ethnic community.

Article 10

The council of self-governing ethnic community performs the following tasks within its competence:

- adopts the statute and other regulations of self-governing ethnic community;
- adopts the financial plan and the final account,
- pursuant to the statute it elects working bodies and nominates officials of the self-governing ethnic communities,
- performs other tasks arising from the statute.

Article 11

The statute of self-governing ethnic community defines in detail the tasks and competences of self-governing ethnic community, its organization, mode of decision making, modes and forms of representing the self-governing ethnic community in the Republic of Slovenia and the procedure of elections into bodies of self-governing ethnic community.

The statute determines the manner and forms of cooperation of the self-governing ethnic community with organizations, associations and other forms of activities, established by members of ethnic community for the implementation of their special rights.

IV. RELATION BETWEEN THE SELF-GOVERNING ETHNIC COMMUNITIES AND BODIES OF LOCAL SELF-GOVERNING COMMUNITIES

Article 12

Self-governing ethnic communities submit to self-governing local communities proposals, initiatives and opinions on matters regarding the status of ethnic communities and the preservation of characteristics of ethnically mixed territories.

Bodies of self-governing local communities are obliged to deal with the initiatives from the above paragraph and take a stand towards them.

Article 13

Representatives of the ethnic community, elected into councils of self-governing local communities, shall acquire consent of self-governing ethnic communities prior to decisions on matters relating to special rights of members of ethnic communities.

Article 14

Self-governing ethnic communities shall be ensured necessary premises and other means necessary for activities by the self-governing local communities.

V. RELATIONS TO STATE BODIES

Article 15

Self-governing ethnic communities submit proposals, initiatives and opinions on all matters within their competence to the National Council, the government and other state bodies.

As to matters related to status of the members of ethnic communities, state bodies are obliged to acquire prior opinion of self-governing ethnic communities.

VI. CONTACTS WITH NATION OF ORIGIN AND ETHNIC COMMUNITIES IN OTHER STATES

Article 16

Self-governing ethnic communities cooperate with respective nations of origin and their states, with members of ethnic communities in other states and with international organizations. Article 17

Members of self-governing ethnic communities participate in preparations of interstate agreements relating to the status of ethnic communities and protection of their rights.

VII. FINANCING

Article 18

Financial means for the activity of municipal self-governing ethnic communities are provided by municipal budget, financial means for the activity of the Italian and Hungarian self-governing ethnic communities in the Republic of Slovenia are provided by the state budget.

Means for the activities of organizations and public institutions, fulfilling the needs of ethnic communities, and for the financing of activities arising from article 16, are provided from the means of self-governing local communities, from the budget of the Republic of Slovenia and other sources, pursuant to the law.

VII. TRANSITIONAL AND FINAL PROVISIONS

Article 19

Resolution on the issuing of the writs for the first election into council of municipal self-governing ethnic community and the resolution on the number of council members are adopted by the hitherto municipal self-governing communities of the Italian and Hungarian ethnic communities for the territory of the up to now municipalities.

Article 20

Self-governing ethnic communities shall organize and adapt their activities to the provisions of this law within 6 months after the first elections into bodies of self-governing local communities.

Article 21

This law shall come into force on the fifteenth day after the publication in the Official Gazette of the Republic of Slovenia.

Source: Report submitted by the Republic of Slovenia pursuant to Art. 25 Para. 1 of the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities
http://www.humanrights.coe.int/minorities/Eng/FrameworkConvention/StateReports/2000/slovenia/slovenia.html#annex2