The UN called the abolition of education in Russian in Estonia a violation of human rights

The UN expressed concern about Estonian legislation, which excludes education in the language of minorities, and called the innovations a violation of international human rights instruments. About it says in a communication from the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).

“By abolishing teaching in the minority language in preschools and schools, the new law seriously restricts education in the minority language in Estonia, in violation of international human rights instruments,” the department said.

UN experts are concerned about how the law may affect the Russian-speaking population of Estonia. “Despite the protests of Russian-speaking parents and children, a number of Russian-language schools have reportedly been closed in recent years,” the report said.

The law introduces potentially discriminatory measures and effectively eliminates the language of minorities as a means of education, experts emphasize. At the same time, OHCHR drew attention to the fact that the law allows children of minorities to learn the language only under certain conditions and for a short time.

UN experts have contacted the Estonian government on these issues. However, the message does not provide information about the reaction of the authorities to the organization’s appeal.

The Estonian Parliament adopted a law on the translation of the education system into Estonian in December 2022. According to the plan, which approved Minister of Education and Science of the Republic Tõnis Lukas, all schools and kindergartens in the country will switch to teaching in Estonian by 2030. It is assumed that from 2024, pupils of the first and fourth grades will be taught in Estonian, tenth graders will be provided with the transition to Estonian-language education later than 2030/2031, and 11th and 12th grade students will complete the transition by 2032 and 2033. respectively.