Hungarian Minority Party Head Says Education Bill Is Not A Pretext To Leave Ruling Coalition

Marko, who is also the country's deputy prime minister, said the education reform remains the key to this situation and stressed his party wants guarantees for the adoption of the bill. He also said things will continue to run smoothly in the coalition if the education bill is passed into law, and if not, he added, the whole situation translates into failure to carry out the governing program.

Marko pointed out his party joined the ruling coalition for the purpose of a common governing program, namely, to find a way out of the economic crisis, to continue the country's reformation, which is of utmost importance for the entire society, and also to extend the rights of minorities. He underscored his party will remain in the ruling coalition only if these conditions are fulfilled.

The meeting of the Hungarian party's standing council, summoned by Marko on Saturday, will analyze the situation triggered by a recent Constitutional Court ruling regarding the education bill the Romanian Government had sought to adopt through a confidence vote in Parliament. Marko said the standing council will adopt a stand on the issue.

The Constitutional Court Wednesday acknowledged a legal conflict on constitutional grounds between the Government and Parliament over the education bill, which the Executive pulled from the Senate and sought to adopt through a confidence vote.

The court ruling was hailed by the opposition but upset the Hungarian minority party, which has threatened to leave the ruling coalition unless progress is made regarding minorities' rights. The education bill allows national minorities to take all school subjects, except Romanian language and literature, in their mother tongue.

The Government has said it will consult with the Parliament about procedures to pass the education law, but is waiting for the Constitutional Court to motivate its ruling first.

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