OSCE Office supports discussion on implementing European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages in Armenia

YEREVAN, 26 September 2008 - Armenia's implementation of its commitments as a signatory to the Council of Europe's European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages was the focus of a conference supported by the OSCE Office today in Yerevan.

Organized with the Yerevan State Linguistic University in co-operation with the Council of Europe, the discussion focused on Armenia's second report to the Committee of Experts of the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages and on States' monitoring of implementation of the charter.

"Protection of the linguistic rights of national minorities is an integral part of minority rights protection, which is a high priority of the OSCE Office. We hope the discussion will contribute to further improvements in legislation and language policy-making in Armenia," said Ambassador Sergey Kapinos, Head of the OSCE Office in Yerevan.

Rector of Yerevan State Linguistic University Professor Suren Zolyan added that the conference will further emphasize linguistic diversity as one of the most important aspects of Europe's cultural heritage, and provide an opportunity to evaluate the Charter's application in the past and examine perspectives for the future.

Experts and representatives from the government and national minority organizations discussed the results of the monitoring, the achievements, the obstacles and the prospects in the course of implementation of the Charter in the context of Armenian language policies. The conference marked the tenth anniversary of the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages and the OSCE Oslo Recommendations regarding the Linguistic Rights of National Minorities as well as the European Day of Languages, celebrated on 26 September. The United Nations General Assembly also declared 2008 the International Year of Languages.

The European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages was ratified by Armenia in 2002. The purpose of the Charter is to protect and promote regional and minority languages as a threatened aspect of Europe's cultural heritage and to enable speakers of a regional or minority language to use it in private and public life.