VOJVODINA: KIDS OF ETHNIC CROATS TO BE TAUGHT IN MOTHER LANGUAGE

SUBOTICA, April 6 (Hina) - The enrolment of children for classes in the Croatian language in the first grade will begin this week in Vojvodina. #L# Last year, classes in Croatian as the mother tongue were organised for the first generation after a few decades ethnic Croats in this northern Serbian area had been denied the right to be taught in their mother language. Last year's generation consisted of 55 first-graders who attended school in the city of Subotica where ethnic Croats make up about 12 percent of the local population. Subotica is also know for introducing Croatian as an official language in 1991. The education in the Croatian language in the entire Vojvodina was made possible in early 2002 with the adoption of a federal law on freedoms and rights of national minorities. So far no classes in the Croatian language have been organised in other towns (except for Subotica) populated by ethnic Croats because of their fear for thus exposing their kids to threats. Thanks to some positive changes in the social atmosphere there are indications that Sombor could follow the example of Subotica. "Besides certain problems in the first year, we can expect that the new endeavour will be fruitful with the aim of the normal integration of young citizens of the Croat descent in a country where until recently the Croat community was not only unequally treated but it was denied the right to its own mother language...,"said Kalman Kutic, a deputy to the Vojvodina parliament. (hina) ms