Language Diversity

Thursday 4 March 2010 9:30-13:00 & 15:00-17:00

Registration

09:30–11:00 

Welcome Speech: Jill Evans MEP

Part 1 - Languages without a State: multilingualism policy in the European Institutions

Chair: Oriol Junqueras MEP

• Spanish presidency representative

• Commission representative

• Kolja Bienert spokesperson of the association Horitzo.eu.
  "Monitoring the Agreement between the Spanish government and the EU institutions about the use of Catalan."

• Bernat Joan former EFA MEP, specialist in sociolinguistics.
  "Technical and political problems concerning the use of languages in the European Parliament"

30' Debate

11:00–11:30 

 Coffee Break / (Press Point, time for media interviews)

11:30 –13:00 

Part 2 - Minority Languages in their Member States

Chair: François Alfonsi MEP

• Davyth Hicks Chief Officer for the European Bureau for Lesser Used Languages "EBLUL, the Intergroup, the EU and linguistic rights "

• David Grosclaude Former Director of the Institute of Occitan studies.
  "Situation of minority languages in Europe and in France"

• Alain Di Meglio Professor of Corsican language and researcher in the field of linguistics. "Corsican: situation and current debates"

• Alex Riemersma
  "European language policies and the development of Frisian (1980-2010)"

• Cefin Cambell Managing Director of Sbectrwm language consultancy
  "Making Diversity Work - the Welsh Experience"

• Meirion Prys Jones Chair for Network to Promote Language Diversity

30' Debate

Lunch // Lunch hosted for media, speakers and MEPs

Part 3 - Protecting linguistic diversity against oppressions

Chair: Tatyana Zdanoka MEP

• Bill Bowring professor Birkbeck College University of London.
  "Missed opportunities? Linguistic diversity, EU enlargement conditionality, and minority languages in accession states".

• Vadim Poleshchuk Legal analyst of the Legal Information Centre for Human Rights in Estonia
  "Russian-speaking population in Estonia and Latvia"

• Dirk Rochtus Professor Lessius University College in Antwerp.
  "German minority in the Czech Republic and the Hungarian minority in Slovakia"

• Maria Pilar García Negro Representant of the platform "Queremos Galego "Galician language: proves and needs".

30' Debate

Closing Remarks: Oriol Junqueras MEP

followed by Cultural Event & Reception

LAN(D)GUAGE: Cultural performance featuring Maria Mercè Marçal (Catalonia), Alfonso Daniel Rodríguez Castelao (Galicia) and Joseba Sarrionandia Uribelarreaare (Basque Country).
Three languages, three views, three realities.

Reception