Southeast Europe

4. enlarging the Hungarian language higher educational system (autonomous statefunded
Hungarian-language University in Cluj, and establishing and supporting
higher educational institutions in Szeklerland and the western part of the country;
5. handling specific problems of ethnic communities who live scattered throughout the
territory of the country (satisfying local needs of the Chango – Hungarians)
(DAHR’s web page).
In the Educational Law 84/1995 the following articles referring to vocational and
medical training are ambiguous. Article 122(1): “In the vocational, technical, economic,
administrative, agricultural, forestall, mountain agricultural, public secondary forms of
education, as well as post-secondary education, specialists training is provided in
Romanian, assuring as far as possible, the learning of the technical terminology also in
the mother tongue.”
Paragraph (2) of the same article examines the language in which medical training is
given: “In the public university medical education specialists’ training may continue to
be provided in the mother tongue in the existing sections, with the mandatory learning
of the specific terminology in Romanian.”
The inclusion of the phrase, “as far as possible” means that mother-tongue vocational
training need never be given as long as it is not deemed “possible” to do so. In regard to
medical training, mother-tongue instruction in the “existing sections” referred to is
extremely limiting, but there is no government commitment to establish any more
institutions to provide education in mother tongues at present.
The new Education Law passed in 1999 (based on that decree) includes some
restrictions in the sphere of minority-language education. It does not allow the reestablishment
of an independent, state-funded, Hungarian-language university for the
Hungarian national community. This request is important for 66.9% of the Hungarians
from Romania (Ethnobarometer, 2000) and now, after the election, DAHR is discussing
this issue with the new government.
6.4 Activists’ initiatives
The Bolyai Society, the Hungarian Students’ Union and the Association of Hungarian
Teachers, launched campaigns demanding a separate Hungarian educational system.
The Association of Hungarian Teachers works to improve the quality of school
education.
6.5 Present situation at different levels
According to the 1992 Romanian census, 95.3% of the population over twelve has had
some schooling (primary, secondary, or higher-level education), and in the case of the
Hungarians, this ratio is more favourable – 98% – ranking them fourth behind the
Armenians, Germans and Croatians. Regarding higher education, the situation of ethnic
Hungarians is less favourable because while 5.1% of the country’s population earned a
college or university degree, this ratio is only 3.6% for Hungarians. In this respect,
Hungarians in Romania rank tenth among the country’s seventeen ethnic groups
(including Romanians) (1992 Census, Vol. I).
However, most of Romania’s ethnic Hungarians are characterised by mid-level
education (secondary school, vocational school, and trade school). The Hungarians’
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