Rights of the Weaker – the Legal Position of Silesians in Poland

Abstract

Under the current legal status, the Silesian minority is not recognized as an ethnic minority. According to the National Census conducted in 2021 by the Central Statistical Office, Silesians number almost 600,000 citizens. This is how many people declared their national affiliation to Silesia. Despite such a large number, they are not recognized as an ethnic minority in Poland. As a result, there are no representatives of them in the J oint Commission of the Government and National and Ethnic Minorities, no funding from national and European funds for the development of Silesian culture and the inability to recognize the Silesian dialect as a language. Despite several approaches, both by politicians and citizens themselves, the parliamentary draft bill amending the Act on national and ethnic minorities and the regional language of 2021 (form no. 1318) has not received a positive opinion from the Commission or the government. On J anuary 25, 2024, the Marshal of the Parlament received a parliamentary draft “Act on amending the Act on national and ethnic minorities and on the regional language”, which contains regulations on the Silesian language as a regional language. Many linguists and linguists are disappointed with the reluctant attitude of some of the government, because the Silesian community and activist organizations do not stop fighting to preserve the culture and history of Silesia.