Irish Language Crisis Deepens - Language Commissioner Condemns Dublin - "Strategy Afoot To Do Away With What's left of Irish"

The Irish Times are proving to be steadfast allies of the Irish language through their reporting on the deepening Irish Language Crisis.  The Times are reporting on the final testimony of the Irish Language Commissioner (An Coimisineir Teanga) before the National Parliament's Sub-Committee on the 20-Year Strategy for The Irish Language".  The Language Commissioner's resignation will take effect on February  23, 2014.

The Times describe the Language Commissioner's testimony as "..a comprehensive and wide-ranging condemnation of the State and Government's record on the Irish language."  The article goes on to quote Mr. O' Cuirreain as portraying the Irish language as "..being continuously driven out to the margins of Irish society in a process accelerated by the inaction of Government, the civil service and the public sector."

The emerging theme in recent reporting on the Language Crisis is the undeniable hostility of the political parties that form the ruling coalition, Fine Gael and Labour, to the survival of Gaelic.  The unfortunate political element in the struggle to preserve the ancient tongue of Ireland is described in the article as follows: "No TD or Senator from either of the Government parties, Fine Gael or Labour, attended the meeting attended only by Parliamentarians from Fianna Fail and Sinn Fein, as well as independent Senator Ronan Mullen.  Sinn Fein Senator Trevor O' Clochhartaigh said the absence of even a single member of a Coalition party was telling of Government indifference to the plight of the language.

Below is an excerpt from the Language Commissioner's testimony the full text of which can be found following the link below:

Based on census figures from 2002, it was argued in 2007 that the Irish language would survive no more than 15-20 years as the predominant community language in the strongest Gaeltacht areas that remained. Of course, it will survive as a language, and the last native Irish speaker has not yet been born. But that in no way equates to its survival as the predominant community language, handed down in an unbroken chain, from generation to generation. As someone who cares about the future of the language and the Gaeltacht and as a person who has spent the most of his life living in the Gaeltacht, it doesn’t appear to me that significant actions or worthwhile, practical steps have been taken on the ground to address the scale of the language emergency in the Gaeltacht since that very clear warning was given seven years ago. 

For those who believe in language rights for Gaeltacht (Irsh Speaking Language Area) communities and for Irish speakers in general this is a time of great uncertainty. I have always held the opinion that the support required for the Irish language within this country’s public service should not and could not be viewed as an optional extra. Language rights are permanent rights; they are not concessions or privileges granted at times of prosperity. If the State cannot provide assurances, when the language legislation is being amended, that it will ensure that it can communicate in Irish with Gaeltacht communities without terms and conditions and that it will have adequate staff in public administration with proficiency in Irish, then I believe that its policy will be viewed as a sham. 

The choice I had was to stand aside from my appointment as Coimisinéir Teanga on principle to draw attention to these matters or to continue in my role and, consequently, to participate in a pretence. I am absolutely certain that I made the correct decision. The process of appointing a new commissioner has now begun and I would like to extend my best wishes to whoever is appointed as my successor.

Language Commissioner Sean O' Cuirreain on January 23rd in testimony before the Irish Parliament Sub-Committee on the 20-Year Strategy For The Irish Language

http://www.coimisineir.ie/index.php?page=news&news_id=123&lang=english

http://www.irishtimes.com/news/ireland/irish-news/irish-language-being-d...