Yesterday evening, at the National Assembly of Paris, some representatives, three Bretons, Mr Le Drian and Le Fur, Mrs Le Branchu, as well as Mr Bayrou vainly tried to make adopt some amendments to change the article 2 of the French Constitution which recognizes only French as language of the Republic so blocking any ratification by France of the European Charter of the "regional" languages.
In front of arguments of common sense developed by these 4 representatives, the reaction of the majority of the Assembly was extremely negative, condescending and contemptuous for the spoken languages through the hexagon, of which the Breton language.
This unique attitude in Europe is not a surprise for the Breton Party: the superiority of the French language is a real obsession for the French State in defiance of the democracy, of the respect for human rights and those of the cultural communities. The speech of Mr Chirac on the cultural variety is so clearly for outside use and does not apply to the languages and the cultures of the hexagon, the debate of yesterday evening is a supplementary proof.
The future of the Breton language does not depend of Paris but of the total coverage of this file by all the Breton communities by leaning on the European rules on the subject.
The Breton Party deeply hopes that this sad debate will terminate the illusions which some in the Breton political and cultural circles still maintained towards the spirit of opening of the central authorities on the subject! The fight for the language is a political fight; the failure of 3 Breton representatives proves it again, only an autonomous and determinedly Breton political force will allow to build the necessary balance of power to advance Brittany and the Breton language file in particular.
For the Breton Party, the general secretary,
Jakez Arnol-Stéphan