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"Linguistic rights closer to being recognized by UN"/Les droits linguistiques pourraient être reconnus par les Nations Unis, c'est le sens de cet article édité par les centres Mercator-Ciemen qui poussent dans cette voie. Ces trois centres sont spécialisés dans le multilinguisme et basés au Pays de Galles, en Catalogne et au Pays-Bas :

"On Friday 26 th of September, coinciding with the European Day of Languages, the President of CIEMEN, Aureli Argemí, outlined the course of action his organization has taken so far towards the adoption of a Universal Declaration of Linguistic Rights by the UN. According to Argemí, two major milestones have now been achieved: an official document has been registered with the UN and a statement has been read before the General Assembly. Both successes have put the right of every individual to speak his or her own language firmly on the international agenda.

Throughout 2008, declared the International Year of Languages by the UN, CIEMEN has been lobbying the UN Human Rights Council (HRC) in an effort to place linguistic rights on the agenda of the states that are currently members of the Council. Argemí said that, although there was "little resistance" during the initial phase of contacting HRC delegates, "few states consider the matter of linguistic rights to be a priority". Asked if some states had been reluctant to support the initiative, Argemí said that "there is generally a positive reaction to the proposal", but few states "dare to take the lead, because there is a perceived lack of consensus" on the issue.

Argemí also wanted to make it clear that the lobbying process "is not about linguistic policies", but about getting linguistic rights recognized as human rights, which he considers to be "the first step towards ensuring respect for linguistic diversity". A series of interviews with ambassadors has been running in parallel to the lobbying process, and the support of a wide range of states including Mexico, Bolivia, Chile, Armenia and Nigeria has been secured."

For more information:

http://www.nationalia.info/en/news/271