Education and Science, Estonia

International Internet Magazine. Baltic States news & analytics Wednesday, 24.04.2024, 15:35

Riigikogu rejects proposal to switch to teaching in Estonian only

BC, Tallinn, 04.12.2018.Print version
The Riigikogu on Tuesday rejected a draft resolution submitted by the opposition Reform Party group by which the parliament would have tasked the government with preparing plans for a transition to the provision of education in the Estonian language alone in Estonia, informed LETA/BNS.

 The draft resolution of the Riigikogu titled "A proposal to the Government of the Republic for making preschool education and basic school education uniform and Estonian-language" received 50 votes in favor, two against and two abstentions in the first reading, which means that it was dropped from the agenda. Fifteen MPs did not vote. 

 

"This apparently is the most important reform on the agenda from the viewpoint of change in society, which was just foiled," chairman of the Reform Party group Jurgen Ligi said after the vote where 51 votes in favor were required. He specifically accused the Social Democratic Party (SDE), whose leader Jevgeni Ossinovski allegedly has expressed support to the idea, of seeing to it that the one necessary vote was left missing. 

 

Of Center Party MPs Oudekki Loone and Mihhail Stalnuhhin voted against the resolution, while SDE's Hannes Hanso and Hardi Volmer abstained. The MPs who did not cast a vote were Center Party's Enn Eesmaa, Helmut Hallemaa, Valeri Korb, Heimar Lenk, Aadu Must, Anneli Ott, Toomas Paur, Kersti Sarapuu, Mart Sults, Tiit Terik, Marika Tuus-Laul, Viktor Vassiljev and Social Democrats Helmen Kutt, Jaanus Marrandi and Barbi Pilvre.


The motion was backed by 28 Reform Party MPs, seven MPs from Pro Patria, five from the Estonian Conservative People's Party (EKRE), five MPs without a party group, four Free Party MPs and one Social Democrat. No MP from the Center Party backed the draft resolution. 


The resolution would have tasked the executive branch with coming up with a comprehensive operational plan for a relevant political decision, including on cooperation with local governments.

 






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