Resolution of the seminar on Russian education in the Baltics
Date: Tue, 20 May 97 11:28:35 -0500
From: MINELRES moderator <[email protected]>
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To: "[email protected]" <[email protected]>
Subject: Resolution of the seminar on Russian education in the Baltics
From: MINELRES moderator \ Internet: ([email protected])
Original sender: Anastasija Liguta \ Internet: ([email protected].
lv)
RESOLUTION
RESOLUTION OF THE SEMINAR "The Baltic Russians: Education as Cultural
Heritage and a Form of Integration. Dialogue With the State"
The ethnodemographic situation historically emerged on the territory of the
present Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania has led to formation of polyethnic
communities. Under such conditions, effective integration and formation of
civic society is the only possible by way of multiculturalism. This complies
to the spirit of international legal documents. Unfortunately, the
legislation and law implementation in Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia do not
completely correspond to the spirit and letter of the international
instruments regarding minority status and rights.
With this in mind and proceeding from:
- Universal Declaration of Human Rights;
- Declaration on the Rights of Persons Belonging to National or Ethnic,
Religious
and Linguistic minorities (1992);
- European Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities;
- European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages,
participants of the International Seminar "The Baltic Russians: Education as
Cultural Heritage and a Form of Integration. Dialogue With the State". have
come to the following conclusions:
1. Every person has the right to freely choose their ethnic, linguistic, and
cultural identity, but no one can be obliged to it.
2. Every person has the right to determine for their children the native
language and the language of education.
3. Every person has the right to be educated at all levels in his/her native
language, and to receive and spread information in it.
4. Equality of educational institutions before the State must be provided
regardless of the language of instruction.
The Seminar's participants suppose that all abovementioned fundamental
principles must be adequately introduced thorugh the national legislation
and law implementation in Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia. Minority schools
of the Baltic States, and Russian schools among them, make part of the
unified state system of public education. Upbringing personality belonging
to the Russian culture and capable of participating in building of open
civic multicultural society of their country and the United Europe becomes a
special task of the Russian school in the Baltics. The necessary conditions
for that are mastering the state language and sharing the spiritual and
cultural values of the titular nation, as well as profound learning of ones
native culture.
The nature of the Baltic Russian School is determined not so much by the
ethnic background of students and teachers as by free choice of orientation
to the Russian culture and language by parents (trustees) and, in senior
grades, by students themselves. In the Baltic Russian School (state,
municipal, and private) the education must on the whole meet the state
standard and be carried out in the first language of students.
Acquisition by students of language and culture of the title nations must be
carried out through special integrated courses of Estonian, Latvian, and
Lithuanian studies, and not by means of administrative switch to teaching in
the state language of a number of subjects.
For the Baltic Russian School existence and development, it is necessary:
a) to take into account the opinions of non-governmental organizations, and
teachers of linguistic and ethnic minorities when determining the state
politics in the field of public education, and to provide their
participation in taking decisions concerning the policies towards minorities
..
b) to provide the state support and financing for teachers' training
courses for the Russian school.
c) to provide the state guarantees for stable and long-lasting perspective
of minority schools functioning, including Russian schools.
d) administrative restrictions of terms of minority school functioning at
any level, adopted in Estonia and Latvia, are unacceptable.
e) to provide state financing of the basic (standardised) component of
education in all schools on equal terms, independent of the ownership form
and language of education as it has been done in Estonia.
The Seminar's participants consider the provisions stated in this Resolution
must become the subject of an effective dialogue between the public and
teachers of the national minorities, on the one hand, and competent state
structures of the Baltic States and institutions of the United Europe, on
the other hand.
Riga, April 27, 1997.
Decision of the Seminar "The Baltic Russians: Education as Cultural Heritage
and a Form of Integration. Dialogue With the State".
Having discussed propositions of necessity to establish a permanent
international institution the basic purpose of which is co-ordination of
efforts and mobilization of the potential of various organizations
solving the educational problems of the national, cultural, and linguistic
minorities in the Baltic States, the Seminars participants have decided:
1. To establish an international regional non-governmental organisation
Baltic Association of Education of National, Cultural, and Linguistic
Minorities uniting non-governmental organisations of the Baltic region
dealing with the problems of education of the national, cultural, and
linguistic minorities in their countries.
2. To charge the organisation board consisting of:
Hanon Barabaner (Estonia)
Ludmila Polakova (Estonia)
Sergey Isakov (Estonia)
Tatjana Liguta (Latvia)
Olga Isakova (Latvia)
Gershon Breslav (Latvia)
Tatjana Yasinskaya (Lithuania)
Pavel Lavrinets (Lithuania)
Andrey Fomin (Lithuania)
to work out the Associations founding documents, to prepare and hold the
founding conference of the Association.
Passed unanimously.
Riga, April 27, 1997.
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