The Catalan Government responds to justice that the legislative changes already guarantee Castilian

The president of the Generalitat, Pere Aragonès, in the Parlament. Quique García (EFE)

The Catalan government has been preparing a strategy for weeks to convince the High Court of Justice of Catalonia (TSJC) that it is not necessary to set a minimum percentage of Spanish to guarantee the presence of this language in the educational system.

This Friday expires the two-month period for the Generalitat to voluntarily comply with the sentence that set a mandatory minimum of 25% of Spanish in the classrooms.

Faced with the certain prospect that the entities for bilingualism will request the execution of the sentence, the Government of Pere Aragonès has legally armed itself and has prepared a battery of arguments to give an answer that satisfies the court.

The Government has used this Friday before the magistrates, as various sources confirm to this newspaper, that the legislative changes addressed -the reform of the Language Policy Law known this Thursday and a decree of the Department of Education- will guarantee the normality of the presence of the Spanish in schools.

The executive has also strengthened the academic front in recent weeks: it has commissioned the University of Barcelona (UB) to carry out a study on language use in Catalan classrooms and will provide a recent report by the Catalan

, Rafael Ribó, which underlines that the use of Spanish in schools is now well over 25%.

In December 2020, the TSJC issued the ruling on Spanish, which caused a political storm that is still going on and has shaken the language immersion system in force in Catalonia.

The resolution had its origin in a demand of the Government of the PP on the use of official languages ​​in education.

The Generalitat was then unable to prepare an exhaustive report on the state of the matter and provided a sample of the average number of hours of Spanish: 18% in primary, 19% in secondary and 26% in high school.

The court considered the percentages unacceptable in a ruling that is very clear in its terms: the Generalitat must ensure that at least 25% of teaching hours are taught in Spanish.

With an addition: in addition to the Spanish language class, there must be at least one other "core" subject taught in that language.

This is a "minimum" percentage, below which it is only possible to speak of a "symbolic" or "residual" use.

Less than 25%, indicates the ruling, is an attempt against the legal system and the Constitution.

Based on this figure, the court gives room for maneuver to the Administration "or to the educational centers" to distribute the hours according to the linguistic "state of normalization" according to the place of residence and, also, of the "incorporation of third languages ”.

“Adequate” presence of Spanish

Last January, the Supreme Court confirmed the sentence and the emergencies began.

Since then, the Catalan government has tried to fight for linguistic immersion, but without risking possible disobedience.

The reform of the Language Policy Law of 1998 -a pact between Junts, Esquerra, PSC and the commons- announced this Thursday is a further step in that direction.

The published text avoids setting percentages, but it will be used before the court as an argument to try to justify that it is complying with its demands.

Unlike the one written in 1998, the new text indicates that, despite the fact that Catalan is the vehicular language, "Castilian is also used".

The use of the Spanish language will be determined by the linguistic projects of each center, although with one premise: both languages ​​must have "an adequate presence guaranteed in the curricula and in the educational projects of each center".

The text is in line with the sentence when it says that these projects must also be adapted according to the "sociolinguistic situation" of each educational center.

The big question is whether this legal rearmament -which does not address the question of the percentage- will be enough to convince the TSJC.

The 2020 ruling indicated that the Generalitat was essentially obliged to "adopt the necessary measures to guarantee normal vehicular use of the two official languages ​​in the Catalan educational system."

But he insisted on marking, in line with the jurisprudence, a threshold below which the action of the Generalitat would be outside the law: 25%.

A decree and a survey

The legal rearmament is completed with the announcement, by the Minister of Education, Josep Gonzàlez-Cambray, that the Government is preparing a new decree to modify the Education Law of Catalonia (LEC).

A few days ago, moreover, the

, Rafael Ribó, published a report according to which none of the languages ​​is “residual”: Catalan is used during 66% of the school day and Spanish, during 33%. .

The report is based on a survey of more than 52,000 primary and ESO students and also includes the use of languages ​​outside the classroom (for example, in the playground).

Once the term for the voluntary execution of the sentence has expired, the parties present in the judicial proceeding may request its forced execution.

The State Attorney's Office, which acts on behalf of the Ministry of Education in the judicial process, could do so.

But the Government of Pedro Sánchez has avoided that point and has recalled that compliance corresponds "exclusively" to the Generalitat.

The law, however, provides that any "affected person" (whether natural or legal) can take the step as long as the court considers that he has the legitimacy to do so.

Associations that defend the use of Spanish in schools, such as the Assembly for a Bilingual School (AEB) have already announced that they will request the execution of the sentence.

If the Fifth Section of the TSJC -which issued the resolution- considers that this or other entities are legitimate, it will initiate the enforcement process.

And one of the first things you will have to do is ask the Department of Education if it has complied with the content of the sentence.

It will be then when the Catalan Government will have to start up its legal machinery.

Although you also have the option to anticipate and file a brief with the court explaining what you are doing to enforce the sentence.

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