document presenting the project

European Language
Diversity Summit
Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or
social origin, property, birth or other status. That, at least, is what the 1948 Universal Declaration
of Human Rights says.
Language rights must certainly be included among these basic human rights. Languages are for
communication, but the situation of languages cannot be limited to the communicative dimension alone, since languages cannot be separated from cultures. When the connection between
languages and cultures is denied, the dignity of speakers and citizens is being left out of consideration. Thus, supporting linguistic diversity forms a part of defending the rights of everyone.
This will also open up a channel which can contribute to social well-being and peaceful coexistence, because working towards the democratic treatment of language communities is one way
of ensuring that all human rights are respected.
Throughout Europe, language communities have taken steps to enable people to live their lives
in their own languages. There are hundreds of community-based organisations acting in different fields with the goal of supporting minority languages. The present project proposes to
create a meeting place where civil society in Europe can take charge of the process of nurturing
our linguistic diversity.
A collective effort in support of a minority language has been going on for decades in Donostia
and throughout Euskal Herria, so it is appropriate that from the European Cultural Capital, and
the entities taking part in it, there should emerge an initiative to take this experience and make it
a starting point from which to come together and exchange points of view with other European
language communities, all the more so considering that culture, coexistence and languages are
among the key points in the Donostia 2016 European Cultural Capital project.
The “Summit on European Language Diversity” project is a thoroughly European project in its
dimensions because it will be based on cooperating European individuals, bodies and networks
and because its focus is one that involves European societies.
It will be evident in Donostia in 2016 that linguistic development is a many-faceted subject, and
citizens will be called upon to adopt this message. This project will represent a new milestone and
an opportunity to propose specific steps in support of language diversity to international bodies.
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The Summit on European
Language Diversity
The Summit on European Language Diversity is a project to be developed jointly by the Donostia/San Sebastián 2016 European Cultural Capital Foundation and Euskararen Gizarte
Eragileen Kontseilua (the Council of Social Entities for the Basque Language, also known
as “Kontseilua”).
This project will be the start of a process undertaken by social entities, organisations and
specialists to establish a protocol to ensure linguistic equality and present the conclusions
to an international summit meeting.
The protocol will be the fruit of a series of discussions over preceding years by numerous
work groups; an instrument bringing together scientific perspectives, academic opinions
and social viewpoints; and a novel foundation for building a new Europe based on equality
between language communities. Therefore the protocol which emerges from the Project
will be taken to international fora and institutions to allow entities of all kinds to use it to
regulate their commitment to language diversity.
The Summit on European Language Diversity will last two days and will take place in December,
2016 in Donostia. At the summit, the process will be brought to a conclusion and the protocol
that has been agreed upon will be presented. The participants in the summit will include individuals and entities that have taken part in the work throughout the process together with a
list of proposed signatories to the Protocol. The signatories will include entities and individuals
acknowledged for their leading role in the language field.
Main objectives of the project
The project has four main objectives:
1. To declare that guaranteeing language diversity and ensuring language development are keys to peaceful coexistence.
2. To create an effective instrument for language equality and the cultivation of languages in unfavourable situations
3. To ensure that the language community is the actor in this process and assert that
society’s involvement guarantees fair play.
4. To constitute a milestone in Donostia’s development as the European Cultural
Capital.
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Values and principles of the project
Peaceful coexistence: We hope that this initiative will generate an instrument contributing to social well-being and peaceful coexistence, which depend on the conditions in
which individuals and social groups live. Peace also depends on respect for the dignity of
language communities. Our goal is to create conditions to enable the concept of pax linguae.
Diversity: We support language diversity, understood as a cultural asset of the whole
of society. We believe it is everyone’s ethical duty to protect that diversity. There exist
powerful forces and inertias favouring cultural uniformity of individuals and societies. This
amounts to impoverishment, so we think it is important to promote language diversity as
a positive value.
Equality: We maintain that all languages in the world are equally valid. At the present
time there are great inequalities in their situations, however. Some languages encounter
obstacles to their development, and there is a lack of support for equality of all citizens as
a basic principle.
Rights: We defend all people’s and groups’ rights, in line with the statement in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights that all people have the right not to suffer discrimination
on account of their language. Thus our goal is consistent with the spirit and letter of the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights in recognising the language rights of individuals,
groups and whole communities.
Conditions: Given the biases and inequalities affecting the conditions of many of Europe’s language communities today, we believe that prioritising support for languages in
disadvantageous circumstances constitutes a step in the direction of greater equality. The
only way to promote language diversity is by bringing about social, political and economic
conditions conducive to languages’ development. In order to bequeath to future generations the richest possible cultural and linguistic heritage, conditions need to be created
now to ensure equal opportunities for all individuals and communities.
The role of society as motor and guarantor
We wish to acknowledge the important role played by organised civil society in the area
of language communities in Europe. The desire to work towards a more democratic society
has driven grassroots organisations to express demands and aspirations which have led to
greater public awareness of the issues.
Both factors, social demands and public awareness, were reflected in the presentation in
Barcelona in 1996 of the Universal Declaration of Language Rights, which represented a
historical product of the empowerment of civil society, for it was brought about by civil society’s determination to raise the question of the rights of languages which are, each and
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every one of them, the expression of an individual and community identity. The Declaration
focuses on language as a unifying factor.
The Declaration was also an instrument by means of which to reflect the society’s voice,
which was born in a non-institutional setting, and it therefore constitutes a document the
scope and value of which transcends any specific political circumstance.
With this project, we hope to reassert the same principles, creating an instrument emerging from the consensus of groups and organisations that speak for millions of European
citizens. Thus our goal is to produce a means of developing the premises and spirit of the
Universal Declaration of Language Rights in order to achieve true equality between all language communities, and for the process to culminate in a document in favour of peaceful
coexistence.
Other benefits
An instrument: The project’s chief legacy will be the Protocol for Ensuring Language
Rights, a regulatory commitment regarding languages to be undertaken by local, national
and international organisations. It will also be a useful tool for society in order for associations, organisations and movements to influence public institutions.
A milestone: The summit will characterize Donostia and its period as European Cultural Capital as a milestone with respect to support for language diversity, presenting the
Basque language and the region’s own diversity in this regard as a paradigm case. It will
be a historic event for local inhabitants, minority language communities all over and Europeans in general.
Impact: The project will make the issue of languages and their management more prominent and bring it to the attention of future European Cultural Capitals. It has the potential
to promote awareness about fair and balanced treatment by the community and public
bodies of the issue of language diversity.
Experience: The project will engage different entities for whom this will serve in the future as an instructive experience. For some, it will raise new challenges and open up novel
perspectives. The knowledge and experience gained will have a positive impact on the way
they approach and think about future projects.
Relations: As a cooperative project, it will generate relations which may ultimately lead to
new joint projects in the future.
After 2016, the structure created by the process for the duration of the project will give
way to a single Monitoring Committee, whose job will consist of making sure the document
is ratified internationally and reaches places where it can perform a regulatory function
regarding language-related practices. Identification of those places will be one of the tasks
of a Legal Workgroup that will be set up for this purpose during the project.
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Organisational plan
Promoters
The promoters of the project are Kontseilua and the DSS2016 foundation, by whose initiative it
was created, and these bodies take responsibility for its proper development.
THE COUNCIL OF BASQUE LANGUAGE ENTITIES
The Council of Basque Language entities, KONTSEILUA, is an umbrella body for 40 organisations active in all aspects of promotion of the Basque language. Kontseilua’s single
central goal is to support and speed up the process of Basque language normalization.
KONTSEILUA is the main representative of the Basque language social movement and its
mission is Basque language recovery on personal, social and official levels.
KONTSEILUA strives to have an impact in three main areas. Locally, KONTSEILUA works
hand in hand qith people who are active at the local level everywhere and reaches out to
the entire population through them. Kontseilua also works with different administrative
bodies to develop better language policies. Finally, KONTSEILUA works internationally to
promote cooperation with comparable language communities, and to carry the message
froms Basque speakers to the world’s decision centres, such as the European Council or
United Nations.
KONTSEILUA has been acknowledged as a provider public services, performing activities of
the first order of importance
DONOSTIA / SAN SEBASTIÁN 2016 FOUNDATION
The European Capital is an EU initiative conceived as a means to bring the different European peoples together and for them to discover each other’s cultures. It has three goals: To
showcase the wealth, diversity and common features of European cultures to foster greater
mutual knowledge among European citizens and to enhance awareness of belonging to a
single European community.
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The European Capital of Culture 2016 represents an enormous opportunity to turn the focus on culture
and dialogue as the roads towards improved coexistence. It will also promote stronger ties with the rest
of Europe and foster innovation in the cultural sector.
The project has a special impact in the areas that inspire knowledge and use of technology, promote
mediation in creative processes, prompt linguistic diversity, facilitate citizen empowerment and participation, and cultivate critical thought. The DSS2016 foundation is the responsible of the whole project.
sustatzea, Europako Erkidego bereko kide izateaz jabetzen laguntzea.
Organisers
International networks of social organisations and NGOs working in support of human rights, language
rights, language diversity and minority languages, which will be directly in charge of the project.
THE UNREPRESENTED NATIONS AND PEOPLES ORGANIZATION
UNPO is an international and democratic membership organisation. Its members are indigenous
peoples, minorities, and unrecognised or occupied territories who have joined together to protect and
promote their human and cultural rights, to preserve their environments, and to find nonviolent solutions to conflicts which affect them. Although the aspirations of UNPO Members differ greatly, they are
all united by one shared condition – they are not adequately represented at major international fora.
Therefore, UNPO has been established to provide an international forum through its members can
become effective participants and contributors to the international community. In an increasingly interdependent world it is ever more important that those who continue to be denied their rights be
given an opportunity to present their case.
As UNPO is based in Brussels, much of their work is with the EU. UNPO acts as a facilitator between
the European institutions and its members. In this regard, UNPO is an active intermediary in advocacy
meetings.
LINGUAPAX INTERNATIONAL
LINGUAPAX International is a non-governmental organization dedicated to the appreciation and protection of linguistic diversity worldwide. It was originally created as a UNESCO
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programme in 1987. It is now an independent NGO. LINGUAPAX claims that languages
express the rich cultural pluralism of the human species and its preservation is a major
contribution to peace and international understanding. LINGUAPAX operates as an international network with three objectives: Promotion, coordination and dissemination of research in the field of sociolinguistics. They also advice and support to ideological, political
and legislative processes encouraging the protection of linguistic diversity and programs
aimed at improving or revitalizating specific linguistic communities. LINGUAPAX delivers a
yearly award to linguists, researchers, professors or leaders of the civil society as a tribute
to their outstanding work in the field of linguistic diversity and multilingual education.
They make assessment in language policy and planning to state and substate governments,
such as, China, Brazil, Paraguay and Bolivia. LINGUAPAX has also participated in language revitalization projects in Nigeria, South Africa, Tchad, Senegal, Tanzania and Algeria.
PEN INTERNATIONAL - TRANSLATION AND LINGUISTIC RIGHTS COMMITTEE
The worldwide association of writers, exists to promote friendship and intellectual co-operation
among writers everywhere, regardless of their political or other views; to fight for freedom of
expression and to defend vigorously writers suffering from oppressive regimes
The Committee for Translation and Linguistic Rights encourages translation of contemporary literature not only from small languages into world languages, but also between small languages.
It also speaks out in defence of stateless languages and has been given a mandate to do all
it can to enforce the article on linguistic right (part of which is quoted below) which PEN has
recommended be added to the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights. That
Committee promoted the Universal Declaration of Linguistic Rights and the Manifesto of Girona
Manifesto on Linguistic Rights.
This global community of writers now comprises 150 Centres spanning more than 100 countries.
PEN International is a non-political organization and holds consultative status at the United
Nations.
EUROPEAN LANGUAGE EQUALITY NETWORK
ELEN is a European level NGO working for the promotion, protection and revitalisation of les-
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ser-used languages and linguistic rights. The social bodies and entities working in favour of the
normalization of minoritized languages in Europe join this umbrella organisation. It represents
42 language communities in 21 European States. ELEN replaces the European Bureau for Lesser
Used Languages. It was founded in 2010 and holds consultative status at the United Nations.
CIEMEN
CIEMEN is an organisation of Catalan civil society which works to inform world opinion about the
country’s situation, to spread knowledge about stateless countries and nations everywhere and
to defend their collective rights.
It has done much to support language rights and the use of the language in society. CIEMEN
works in three main areas: to promote knowledge, to promote recognition of rights for nations
and ethnic minorities, and to promote solidarity. CIEMEN was in charge of the technical secretariat of the Universal Declaration of Linguistic Rights.
EUROPEAN CENTRE FOR MINORITY ISSUES
The European Centre for Minority Issues (ECMI) conducts practice and policy-oriented research, provides information and documentation, and offers advisory services concerning minority-majority relations in Europe. It serves European governments and regional intergovernmental organizations as
well as non-dominant groups throughout. The Centre co-operates with the academic community, the
media and the general public through the timely provision of information and analysis. The ECMI was
founded in 1996. It is an independent and inter-disciplinary institution. The Centre also maintains active
relations with other academic institutions and NGOs involved in conflict resolution and inter-ethnic
relations and engages in collaborative projects in these fields.
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Scientific committee
To consist of fifteen to twenty experts, scholars and researchers, whose job it will be to determine the entire content of the document to be presented at the Summit.
Signatories
To include entities involved in language research, promotion and the defence of minority rights,
who will vouch for the document in the eyes of the international community and become spokespersons and ambassadors for its content.
Monitoring committee
This will be a work group in charge of monitoring publicity and expressions of support of the
protocol following its presentation.
Schedule for major stages
The project is based on cooperation between international actors and experts. A document called
the Protocol will be developed out of a consensual process. This document will be ratified by
international social bodies concerned with languages and will be the foundation of the Summit
on European Language Diversity.
To this end, the Organising Committee will set up and monitor a Scientific Committee, which is
expected to meet several times prior to the Summit.
Thus the following meetings are expected, although exact places and times are not yet set.
• 2015, March • 2015, July
• 2015, Autumn • 2016. May • 2016, September
• 2016, December
Organising Committee meeting.
Organising Committee meeting.
Scientific Committee meeting.
Organising Committee meeting.
Scientific Committee meeting.
Summit.
In the interim, the Organising Committee will work in its coordinating and advisory capacities through the Technical Secretariat in order to provide coordination to the organisation
of the Summit and the Scientific Committee.
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References
a) Universal Declaration of Linguistic Rights (1996)
b) United Nations
• Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948)
• International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (1966)
• International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (1966)
• Proclamation of Teheran (1968)
• UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989)
• Declaration on the Rights of Persons Belonging to National or Ethnic,
Religious and Linguistic Minorities (1992)
• Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action (1993)
• Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (2007)
c) Council of Europe
• Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (1950)
• European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages (1992)
• Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities (1994)
d) UNESCO
• Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity (2001)
• Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of
Cultural Expressions (2005)
• Language Vitality and Endangerment document (2003)
e) Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe
• Hague Recommendations Regarding the Education Rights of National Minorities (1996)
• Oslo Recommendations Regarding the Linguistic Rights of National Minorities (1998)
• Lund Recommendations on the Effective Participation of National Minorities
in Public Life (1999)
f) European Parliament
• “Report on endangered European languages and linguistic diversity in
the European Union” (2013)
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