Slovakia will stand against the enforcement of any country's laws that would infringe upon Slovakia's Constitution, sovereignty or its citizens' rights, reads a statement provided by Slovakia's Foreign Affairs Ministry to the TASR newswire on April 18.
The statement came in the wake of a decision by the Hungarian Parliament to approve a new constitution. Hungary's new constitution, as enacted by the ruling Fidesz party, has sparked fears about Hungary's possible interference in issues pertinent to ethnic Hungarians living outside the country, most notably in Romania and Slovakia.
Critics of the document deem it to have a nationalist undercurrent. According to the Foreign Affairs Ministry’s statement, Slovakia respects every country's sovereign right to adopt its own constitution. At the same time, however, Slovakia expects Hungary to respect the principles of international law and international commitments when it comes to the implementation of the new constitution and ensuing laws.
The ministry remarked that responsibility vis-a-vis respect and protection of the rights of ethnic minorities falls primarily on the country where ethnic-minority members reside. Hungary's new constitution is slated to become effective on January 1, 2012.
Source: TASR
Compiled by Zuzana Vilikovská from press reports
The Slovak Spectator cannot vouch for the accuracy of the information presented in its Flash News postings.
