Tvrdosin, September 18 (TASR) - The Slovak National Party (SNS) has so far collected almost 16,000 signatures for its petition in support of the State Language Act, said SNS leader Jan Slota in Tvrdosin (Zilina region) on Friday.

According to Slota, SNS wants to collect a total of 50,000-80,000 signatures before the next parliamentary session begins on October 20.

The petition has a clear meaning for SNS, because despite the legitimacy of the language legislation, reactions casting doubts on it and the Hungarian campaign against it have forced SNS to turn to the Slovak nation so that it can also in this way express its support for this very important act, said Slota.

SNS deputy chair Anna Belousovova said that the petition is also being signed by people who aren't of Slovak origin, and that there are even cases of it being signed by ethnic Hungarians, who said that they support the act because it will enable them to learn the Slovak language better. "If they didn't speak Slovak, they wouldn't be able to do business in their towns. Ordinary people have a better idea of this act than all Hungarian politicians put together," said Belousovova.

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