Linguistic rights will take centre stage at EFA General Assembly

With the motto “To speak is to exist”, EFA demands action for true linguistic equality in Europe

During the past 6 years, Breton lost half of its speakers. This was the main conclusion from a study commissioned by the Brittany Region from the Institut TMO, whose results were made public at the beginning of this year. Between 2018 and 2024, the number of people who speak Bretton decreased from 214.000 to 107.000. Also in Brittany, Gallo is also losing ground. Speakers decreased by more than 25% in the last six years. This is devastating data for this historical region that has such an identity and cultural richness that is being lost due to the centralism of the French state.

But Breton is not the only European language in decline. The situation all around the EU is not positive. In Catalonia, only 12,1% of the young people use Catalan as their main language. In the Valencian Country, the everyday use of the language in private life decreased by 8 points between 2017 and 2022. In Galicia, 92% of preschool classes are monolingual in Spanish, almost eliminating the possibility for children to study in Galician. In Friesland, the generational transmission of the Frisian language is declining: only 12% of the population has a good level of written Frisian. In Friuli, daily press in Friulian does not exist. And the use of minoritized languages on social media everywhere is almost anecdotal.

To speak is to exist. Komz evit bezañ.

These are only some examples of how Europe is heading towards the loss of its linguistic heritage, and EFA cannot turn a blind eye to this situation. For this reason, the European Free Alliance wants to give linguistic rights centre stage in the General Assembly and place linguistic justice at the heart of the debate. With the motto “To speak is to exist” and in Bretton “Komz evit bezañ”, we demand action for true linguistic equality in Europe.

As the party of self-determination, we call for the European institutions to be closer to the millions of citizens who speak the hundreds of languages and dialects that are currently not recognized in the EU. We advocate for the right to use many more languages in the European Parliament and for the right of the EU citizens to write to the EU institutions in their mother tongue. All EU citizens are equal and we should avoid any form of linguistic discrimination. We stand for a Europe that truly embraces its diversity and protects all the richness it brings. We strive for a Europe of languages! Join us in our General Assembly!