Illa and Pradales send a letter to all EU states requesting “full official recognition” of Catalan, Basque, and Galician

Eduardo González The President of the Generalitat of Catalonia, Salvador Illa, and the Basque Lehendakari, Imanol Pradales, have sent a letter to all EU member states in which they warn that "the time has come" to accept the official use of Catalan, Basque, and Galician in the European institutions because, they assert, Spanish citizens, who "democratically identify themselves as members of a multilingual state," would not understand the imposition of the "One State, One Language" model in Europe. In the letter, dated this Friday, July 18 (when the debate on Spain's request to include Catalan, Basque, and Galician in the European language regime is scheduled to take place at the EU General Affairs Council in Brussels), Illa and Pradales affirm that “Europe symbolizes unity in diversity, and the Spanish state is an inseparable part of that reality” because “its history and national identity are deeply rooted in its multilingualism, and this represents significant contributions to our shared European culture.” “Neither Spain nor Europe can be understood without the contributions of thinkers such as Ramon Llull, one of the first European authors to write about philosophy in the vernacular, a precursor in the distinction between science and faith, and an inspiration to figures such as Leibniz and the field of computer science,” the letter continues. Nor can they be understood, it continues, “without medieval Galician-Portuguese lyric poetry, one of the great literary traditions that opened new paths of emotional and poetic expression.” “Equally essential is the legacy of Bernat Etxepare, who in 1545 published Linguae Vasconum Primitiae, the first book written in Basque, a unique legacy from pre-Indo-European Europe that has survived remarkably to this day,” he continues. Likewise, Illa and Pradales assert, “Europe and Spain cannot be understood without the contemporary contributions of the Catalan, Galician, and Basque languages, spoken daily by millions of people, with levels of cultural production and communication absolutely comparable to those of other languages already recognized as official languages in European institutions.” According to the two regional leaders, “the history of multilingualism in Spain has undoubtedly been complex.” “We have suffered dark periods of denial and even repression of linguistic, religious, cultural, and other diversity,” but, “fortunately, with the restoration of democracy, the recognition of citizens' rights has extended to all areas, including linguistic rights.” “This has been clearly established in the preamble to the 1978 Constitution, which proclaims the will to ‘protect all Spaniards and the peoples of Spain in the exercise of their human rights, their cultures and traditions, languages, and institutions,’” the letter recalls. “As a result, Catalan, Galician, and Basque have become fully official languages, used in all spheres of society and serving as key pillars of cohesion and social structure,” it adds. “In this process of restoring citizens' linguistic rights,” the two presidents assert, “the European dimension has always been present.” In this regard, they emphasize, “it is worth remembering that the request for official recognition of these languages in Spain by the European institutions was part of the negotiations that led to Spain's accession to the then European Economic Community in 1985.” “At that time, when democracy was still taking root, joining the European project was prioritized as a way to consolidate democracy over the language issue, which was postponed,” the letter continues. “However, the demand for equal linguistic rights never disappeared; on the contrary, it has only grown stronger over these forty years,” it states. This is evidenced, it continues, “by the numerous institutional and civil society initiatives over the years in Catalonia, Galicia, and the Basque Country” and has also been confirmed “by the various agreements that, since 2005, have allowed the use of Catalan, Basque, and Galician in various European institutions, including the European Commission, the Council of the European Union, the European Ombudsman, the European Committee of the Regions, the European Economic and Social Committee, and the Court of Justice of the European Union.” “The time has come to recognize languages” “Forty years after Spain's accession to the European common home, the time has come to complete the process of recognizing its official languages as fully official in the institutions of the European Union,” write Salvador Illa of the PSC (Spanish Socialist Workers' Party) and Imanol Pradales of the PNV (Basque Nationalist Party). “The uniqueness of our reality, the long-standing nature of this request, and the assurances offered by the authorities to the other Member States should suffice to resolve what is, fundamentally, an anomaly that must be addressed easily,” they warn. Ultimately, the two regional presidents state, “it is about applying the founding principles of the Union to a demand for linguistic justice that enjoys broad social support.” “It would be truly difficult to explain to the Spanish people why this issue cannot be resolved satisfactorily,” because, “how can we justify to citizens that a European Union based on the principle of ‘unity in diversity’ imposes the ‘One State, One Language’ model on a citizenry that democratically identifies itself as a member of a multilingual state?” the letter warns. “Europe is experiencing a moment in which it is vital to strengthen citizens’ commitment and identification with the common project. For the millions of people we represent, the clearest signal in this direction would be the full recognition of their languages as official languages in the institutions of the European Union. The time has come to complete a four-decade-long process. The time has come to strengthen Europe and its diversity,” it concludes.

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