The Bai Euskarari initiative was organized twenty years ago with the objective of encouraging the entities to make commitments to disseminate the use of Euskera in their organizations. Altza was one of the pilot experiences that started in Euskal Herria and we had the support of the City Hall. Next year, the Intxaurrondo district, also with the support of the City Hall, will launch a similar initiative.

In these twenty years, the knowledge of the Basque Country has increased in Donostia-San Sebastián. In addition, there is also much more trained staff in Euskera in the institutions. In this way, the City Hall should be an example, contributing to the efforts we are making by the citizens, accompanying us and guaranteeing the freedom of choice of our language. Moreover, the situation in the Basque Country demands that institutions be more advanced, proactive and driving forces.

The City Hall of Donostia-San Sebastian has nineteen departments, of which, in thirteen of them, practically all jobs (more than 75%) are established the date of preceptivity. Moreover, 72% of municipal workers are trained in Basque for their jobs. In this context, Decree 86/97 allows the Departments to declare units in Basque so that they can function fully in Basque. Of course, in order to do this, in addition to the condition of linguistic competence, it is necessary for the political responsible to take that decision. Thus, at the end of the previous legislature, the City Council approved the 2018-2022 plan, to which the government of Eneko Goia added another to the four areas that already existed in Euskera. Moreover, among the first decisions of his new term of office he chose a political leader incapable of speaking in Basque for the section in which he was appointed in Basque. Fortunately, the situation has been reoriented thanks to the complaint lodged by the LAB trade union.

In addition, some of the decisions taken by the new municipal government at the beginning of the legislature are not a good sign. On the one hand, in summer 95 municipal police and mobility agents will be hired, but, by way of exception, agents who do not have the required linguistic competence will also be accepted, as the needs of staff are broader than those of the Basque labour market. For this reason, he has forgotten to establish his own rules, since in his two activities he has used the linguistic landscape entirely in Spanish (the name of the canopy and the casets for the summer shows). In addition, a private initiative has refilled the municipal lanterns with panels only labeled in Spanish, and the City Council has done nothing to prevent this.

The City Hall of Donostia-San Sebastian should demonstrate a new courage to set the standards and speed up the normalization of the Basque country. I would like to think that some adjustments can be made to this 2018-2022 plan, even if it is in progress, to make it the 21st century.