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Slovene-Austrian Friendship Society
Društvo slovensko-avstrijskega prijateljstva
Street address: Kokovšek 41, SI-1231 Ljubljana, Slovenia
Telephone: 386 (0) 1 563 1666
Fax: 386 (0) 1 563 1667
Website: http://www.dsap.si
Contact: Jožef Jeraj President
Telephone: 386 (0) 31 359056
E-mail: jozef.jeraj@email.si
Established in 1992, the Slovene-Austrian Friendship Society currently has around 65 members. Its aim is to unite Slovenes living in Austria, in the regions of Carinthia as well as in Steiermark and Vienna, and to present their activities to Slovene audiences in Slovenia.
Each April-May the Society organises the annual Days of Carinthian Culture festival in Ljubljana, giving Carinthian Slovenes an important opportunity to present their cultural activities to people in their homeland. The 2005 event opened with a film by Janko Zerzer about the Austrian province of Carinthia and the 'Villagers Sing' men's choir which performs Carinthian folk songs. As part of this event, the Slovene Parliament hosted a round table about Slovenes in Austria. Among the issues debated were the likely reasons for strong assimilation of Slovenes in Austria's Carinthia and Austria's (non-)implementation of the Austrian State Treaty. Janko Malle, the Secretary of a Slovene minority organisation, emphasised the importance of culture as the bond between all Slovenes, despite the fact that the media tends to focus only on 'political issues' associated with Slovenes abroad. Other programmes taking place during the 2005 Days of Carinthian Culture festival included an exhibition of works by painter Franc Wiegele, a concert by the chamber choir Danica from Austria's Carinthia, and on the last day of the festival, the play 'Martin Krpan', adapted by Miran Herzog and performed by a young group of Carinthian Slovene actors. The latter featured songs written by Slovene poet Svetlana Makarovič, set to music by acclaimed Carinthian composer Edi Oraže.
See also Carinthian Slovenes Club, Ljubljana.
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