"It does not respect the coexistence between official languages ​​established by the Constitution, nor can it be the basis for any consensus on the regulation of languages ​​in Catalonia." In the opinion of Impulso Ciudadano, the National Pact for Language, promoted by the Government in September 2021, as well as the academic report that was presented as the starting point of the agreement, in which an emergency situation for Catalan was outlined both in the educational sphere as in other sectors of the regional administration, respond to "a nationalist approach that is situated outside the framework of coexistence between the different official languages".

In the opinion of the entity, which is chaired by José Domingo, the language policy of the Generalitat "is not only contrary to the Constitution, but also threatens linguistic pluralism and the dignity of people."

For this reason, the entity has presented a report in which it proposes "an alternative to the linguistic nationalism that serves as the basis for the document and the National Pact for Language." The text, consulted by ABC, considers Spanish as Catalan, as well as Aranese, official and native languages ​​of the Catalans, in such a way that they must be present at school, in the public media and in the administration.

Likewise, it highlights "the need for Spanish, the mother tongue of the majority of Catalans, to have a significant presence at school and questions the policies of exclusion of it at the university."

In its argument, Impulso Ciudadano alludes to the decades of exclusion of Spanish in the classroom, something that, as it points out, is based on the analysis of more than 2,000 school language projects carried out by the Assembly for a Bilingual School (AEB) and that It also notes the judgment of the Superior Court of Justice of Catalonia (TSJC) of December 2020, which imposes 25% Spanish in all classrooms and describes the presence of Spanish in teaching as "residual".

The entity also considers that the proposal to modify the Language Policy Law presented on March 24 by PSC, Comuns, ERC and Junts to respond to the decision of the Catalan high court "could raise constitutional problems." "Catalan It is a vehicular language due to its condition as the language of Catalonia, but Spanish will only be used in accordance with what is established by the linguistic projects of the center and within the limits established in section 3 of article 21 of the Law on Language Policy». points.

In the document, presented today, "the interference of Catalan institutions in the linguistic regulation of other autonomous communities and even other countries" is also questioned. "These interferences are an example of the connection between language and political nationalism, a link that must be broken if we want to reach a true consensus for the coexistence of languages ​​in Catalonia."

"Catalan is not the heritage of Catalan nationalists or Catalan institutions, but rather, like any other language, it is the heritage of all the people who speak it, in Catalonia and outside of Catalonia, both as an instrument of communication and as an object of studio or broadcast. It is clear that the public powers also perform functions in relation to languages, but we reject any attempt to use language as a tool for a nationalist project that seeks to modify the linguistic habits of citizens against, moreover, what is established by the constitutional framework of coexistence", specifies Impulso Ciudadano.

For all of this, he demands "freedom and respect" and the recognition that "Catalonia is a bilingual society." "Knowledge of all official languages ​​must be promoted, but without knowledge promotion policies being use promotion policies," the entity underlines in its report.

Impulso Ciudadano will contribute its study to the open debate within the framework of the National Pact for Language with "the hope that an authentic debate on languages ​​in Catalonia open to all approaches and with the aim of reaching a real consensus" can begin.