12.9.2013 - The European Parliament has voted overwhelmingly, 645 for, 26 against, for Francois Alfonsi’s Endangered Languages Report.
The own initiative Report calls on the EU to support measures aimed at revitalising endangered languages, such as ensuring inter-generational transmission, boosting support for endangered language medium education, direct funding for endangered language projects, and for all European Member States to ratify the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages.
Speaking after the vote, Mr Alfonsi said: "Today's vote is an acknowledgement that much more needs to be done to protect endangered languages."
With such a massive mandate from the Parliament it will be interesting to see how the Commission responds.
Speaking to the press, Davyth Hicks from the NGO Eurolang and Vice-President of the European Language Equality Network (ELEN), said that the NGOs and endangered language communities involved were very happy with the result.
“This overwhelming Parliamentary support is a vindication of our long campaign to highlight the problems facing endangered languages in an EU that is meant to ‘respect linguistic diversity’. We warmly congratulate Mr Alfonsi on his success. We will now be working to ensure that the Commission steps up to the plate and implements the Report’s proposals without delay.” (Eurolang 2013)
► Résolution sur les langues européennes menacées de disparition et la diversité linguistique au sein de l'Union européenne
► Risoluzione sulle lingue europee a rischio di estinzione e la diversità linguistica nell'Unione europea
►“Le Parlement Européenne soutien la diversité linguistique et les identités minoritaires”
► Le Parlement européen adopte massivement le rapport sur les langues en danger - (version .pdf)