"International Day of
Native Language"
Athens, 24 February 2001
I wish I was present
at your very important gathering and had the chance to address you personally,
on the International Day of Native Language. Your communities’ initiative is a
welcoming step of raising the importance of the native language as a vital
human right.
I am aware
of your activities and efforts aiming to improve living conditions of the
people that set off from their countries to become part of another country and
civilization. I would like to express my personal admiration of this valuable
and long lasting effort.
The
primary or ancestral language of a person is integral part of his/her ethnicity
and national origin. Therefore, discrimination against the native language has
the same devastating effect as
discrimination on the basis of national origin, but in this case what
differentiates you from the rest is not your colour or gender, but language.
The
development of each culture depends fundamentally on the sheltering wall of
language. Minorities have to be entitled to foster their own culture, to
profess and practice their own religion and to use their own language both in
private and in public, conforming to the principles embodied in the United
Nations International Convenant on Civil and Political Rights. Linguistic
diversity is a key component in Europe’s cultural heritage and in its future.
It is for this reason that attention must be given to sustain the existing pool
of diversity within the E.U.
This
objective must be pursued via the following types of activity and domains:
·
Constitutional protection for ethnic groups to maintain
and develop their own identity, with particular reference to their language
and culture.
·
Promotion of language learning, through primary schoolteachers
training, developing language resources and distribution of learning tools.
·
Respect of the right to disseminate and receive information
in their respective language through a variety of newspapers and magazines
and television programs.
European
Union is a propitious area for bringing forward our demand for respect of
native language. Over the years, the European Parliament has adopted a number
of resolutions defending the idea of a European Union, which respects its
linguistic and cultural diversity.
The new century provides the appropriate framework to launch a series of
active initiatives. In this context, we should always keep in mind that our
struggle for respect of minorities aims to a fair society and to a more human
world.
I wish you success
in this important event. Its realisation is a step forward in fostering and
bringing forward a new approach of dealing with the vital problems that
immigrants are facing, in order to integrate and evolve to a better 21st
century.
Best regards,
Anna Karamanou