Ethnic groups – Hungarians demand more rights and support

Although clearly regulated in the federal constitution, the actual implementation of the rights of ethnic groups is not always so simple. With three ethnic groups – Croats, Hungarians and Roma – Burgenland occupies a very special position in Austria.

Historically grown injustice
Hungarians are now taking a confident step to improve rights, and their advisory council chairman Attila Somogyi is making clear demands of the federal government. Unlike the Croatian and Slovenian ethnic groups, whose rights were enshrined in the state treaty, those of the “Burgenland Hungarians” and the “Viennese Hungarians” were only recognized as part of the six autochthonous ethnic groups in Austria in 1976 and 1992. “It would be time to eradicate this historical injustice. Not mentioning this has harmful consequences today,” Somogyi emphasizes.

The continued praise for the diversity and peaceful coexistence of ethnic groups is important, but clearly not enough. He sees the need for action, especially when it comes to Hungarian as an official language. “We are already in the final phase of language change. Recruiting more bilingual staff at municipalities and authorities is long overdue,” Somogyi said.

Hungarians see an unfair distribution of funding
The distribution of funding among the six ethnic groups also causes dissatisfaction among Hungarians. Here the chairman of the advisory council refers to figures last collected in 2001, according to which Hungarians ranked first among ethnic groups in Austria with just under 26,000. But when it comes to financing, they are only in third place. “A circumstance that must be repaired as quickly as possible,” says Somogyi.