The Council of Europe urges Spain to ensure that trials can be held in Basque
- The Committee of Experts of the Council of Europe has asked the Spanish Government to take measures to ensure Euskera in justice, health and social services, to guarantee the provision of public services in Basque, to end the zoning of Navarre and to make ETB3 visible throughout Navarre.
The Spanish State is one of the signatories to the European Pact for Minority Languages and for its implementation the European Council has given it a number of recommendations in its sixth assessment. The Council of Euskalgintza and the Observatory on Linguistic Rights were pleased with the “firmness” of the European warnings and recommendations, but beyond the recommendations cited “there is still much to be done”, they recalled.
Among others, the following requests have been addressed to Spain by the Council of Europe: On the one hand, to establish rules to ensure that in Hego Euskal Herria judicial proceedings can be conducted in Basque if any of the parties so request. The possibility of collecting documentation in Basque should also be guaranteed. In particular, the Observatory has highlighted the complaint registered this month by a citizen who has filed a lawsuit in Basque and who has been answered by a judge of the Azpeitia Court who has five days to file the lawsuit in Spanish.
In short, the Observatory affirms that in order to guarantee Euskera in judicial proceedings it is necessary to ask judges, magistrates and prosecutors to know it in Euskera: “Right now, that’s not either.”
The Observatory recalls the complaint registered this month by a citizen: he files a lawsuit in Basque and the judge replies that he has five days to file the lawsuit in Spanish
To end zoning
The Council of Europe also considers it necessary to adopt measures to ensure that the administrations of the Spanish State can receive in Basque the services they offer in Hego Euskal Herria, and to take steps in the CAV and Navarra, especially to facilitate the use of Euskera in health and social services.
Other noteworthy recommendations: To eliminate the obstacles that the zoning of Navarre creates for the use of Euskera, to have the Official State Gazette also in Euskera and to be able to see ETB3 throughout Navarre. The experts also point out that the number of professionals with knowledge of Basque in public administrations is still low and that measures must be taken to reverse it, also in the case of companies that offer some public service.
With regard to Treviño, the report also makes a request for the Government of Castilla y León: That together with the Government of Spain take measures to promote the teaching of Basque in the County of Treviño.
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