argia.eus
INPRIMATU
Fleeing or not
Bea Salaberri @beatxo 2024ko urtarrilaren 31
PAULA ESTÉVEZ

In the spring, the Iparralde Public Language Policy will be renewed, from which decisions will be taken on the guidelines, intentions and budgetary resources available for the coming years, in which the county, the department, the state and the Basque Urban College will have to adopt a clear position. Euskalgintza is waiting for these deliberations, firmly, since in Iparralde they have been concerned about the situation of the Basque country, shouting for a more appropriate and more determined public policy.

The Basque Public Institution is twenty years old. The Public Language Policy is, of course, older, as it has known a history prior to the creation of the PSE. It can be summarised, however, that general policy, in an organised manner, has begun towards 2004 with the impetus of Basque cultural activity and through the institutions. As a result of this institution and the subsequent creation of the College, there have been a number of changes in terms of resources and lines of work: the Basque cultural activity has been professionalized, the issue has been institutionalized, and the task is not later and therefore merely militant.

In Bizkitarte, the latest socio-linguistic survey prolongs few optimistic reading lines. These are small and localized advances, especially in young generations, with a low incidence in the number of adult specimens and limited development in the areas of use. The decreasing trend in quantitative terms of Euskera is confirmed, decreasing the proportion of Euskaldunes, being bilingual 20%. However, half of that figure says that in Basque it feels as comfortable as in French, so the actual number of Euskaldunes whole and active will not be 10%. In addition, qualitative data are missing: What skills do we have to live in Basque? Where and what quality? It is the part not studied and perhaps studied.

Which Basque community will develop in the territory if only 10% is able to keep the newspaper in Basque?

On this road, it is approaching, sooner than expected, the forecast of the Basque Confederation a few years ago, which said that in 2035 the proportion of bilingual people was 15%. In view of this, there is something to start. Because, what Basque community is going to develop in the territory if only 10% is capable of carrying the everyday in Basque? How can we do this, when most speakers are 60-99 years old, to postpone and develop the language? How can these rude and isolated speakers be adapted to live in Euskera if it is not miserable between them? Here the situation is clearly serious, it is not a situation of simple division, but of early substitution, proportional to the disappearance, which will need (burn) means more than the temperate steps so far.

In recent months, the Basque industry has turned on alarms: it can no more. Residences are unsafe, few teachers and Basque staff are chronic, structural resources are excessively fragile. I mean, everyone is serious. In the years 2000, 25 years ago, in these same pillars of ARGIA, Basque cultural activity spoke of the same problems and numbers.

The structuring of public policy and the twenty years of progress, and the disastrous involvement of the militants, have not clearly influenced the recovery and normalization of Euskera. Politicians, in many cases Castilan-speaking and Castilan-speaking, have in their hands the future of the language and have the time to make a wink. Let us hope that the elected officials and positions will emerge from the misrepresentation and tibidity, and enable actions of the same nature and courage as the partisan speeches that spread to the left and right. Otherwise, comrade, coming ugly.