EBLUL celebrates International Mother Language Day

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Date: Wed, 20 Feb 2002 18:48:31 +0200 (EET)
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Subject: EBLUL celebrates International Mother Language Day 

From: MINELRES moderator <[email protected]>

Original sender: Margret Oberhofer <[email protected]>

EBLUL celebrates International Mother Language Day


PRESS RELEASE

EBLUL celebrates International Mother Language Day and hands over
petition to Commissioner Reding

Brussels, 20.02.02 – For the third time UNESCO will celebrate on the
21st of February 2002 the International Mother Language Day. The
European Bureau for Lesser-Used Languages (EBLUL) highly welcomes this
special day. 'On this day we celebrate the language or even the
languages where we do feel at home. Thus, our mother tongue is more
than an assemblage of sounds, words and grammar. Its is also a
repository of the collective memory of a community and is a reflection
of the various aspects of social relations, moral values and political
traditions', says Markus Warasin, Secretary general of EBLUL.

'In many documents and resolutions the European institutions stressed
the equality and dignity of all languages. However, some differences
between languages can't be ignored. Just take as an example Cornish
with around 1000 speakers in total, and German, one of the most spoken
languages within the European Union. Both - under their specific
circumstances and their history  - can be considered as minority
languages.'

To stay abreast the different situation of languages and give all of
them their rights, EBLUL started during the European Year of Languages
2001 a petition for minority languages. The aim of the petition was to
support the common goal of safeguarding Europe's over 40 million
minority language speakers. Recently, the 23,573 signatures were
handed over to the European Commissioner for Education and Culture
Viviane Reding.

On this occasion Ms Reding complemented EBLUL's initiative and
stressed once more that the Commission will foster the integration of
lesser-used languages within other action programmes or project.
'There are no legal or formal obstacles for regional or minority
languages to participate in such programmes', Reding explains. It is
important that civil servants in the national agencies dealing with
such programmes are aware of the minority languages.

Please find attached a picture with the delivery of the signatures –
from left to the right: Alex Riemersma (EBLUL-MSC Netherlands), Markus
Warasin (Secretary general – EBLUL), Viviane Reding (Commissioner for
education and culture), Jean-Luc Fauconnier (EBLUL - MSC Belgium)

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(From the moderator: picture omitted, sorry...
Boris)
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________________________________
 
EUROPEAN BUREAU FOR
LESSER USED LANGUAGES (EBLUL)
www.eblul.org

Rue Saint-Josse 49/Sint-Jooststraat 49
B-1210 Bruxelles/Brussel

TEL: 0032/2/ 250 31 64
FAX: 0032/2/ 218 19 74

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