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U.S. English Foundation Research IRELAND
Language Research1. Legislation: Legislation dealing with the use of languagesThe Constitution, adopted on July 1, 1937 specifies that Irish, as the national language, is the first official language, and that English is also an official language. A separate government department is responsible for the Irish language. Two state boards function under its aegis, one for developing Irish-speaking districts and one for promoting Irish language throughout the country. Mr. Eacute;amon Ó Cuív T.D., as Minister of State with responsibility for matters relating to the Irish language and the Gaeltacht, is currently preparing an Official Languages Equality Bill which will set out the rights of citizens in relation to the use of the official languages in their dealings with the State. The legislation will also put in place a planning process whereby State bodies will be required to prepare plans, to be approved by him, setting out the steps that they intend to take to provide services in the official languages. A new office of the Official Languages Commissioner will also be established. While considerable preparatory work has been carried out, this Bill has not yet been published. Here are some general indications on the Bill from the address by Éamon Ó Cuív, T.D., Minister of State at the Department of Arts, Heritage, Gaeltachta and the Islands, to the European Commission at the Centre Borschette, Brussels (Friday, October 1, 1999): The Bill will endeavor to rectify the deficiencies that exist in terms of the provision of State services to Irish speakers. The key principle that will underpin the Bill is that of equality. Citizens must have equal access to State services irrespective of which official language they wish to use. It follows that the citizen will choose which of the official languages he or she wishes to use for the purposes of dealings with the State rather than having that choice made on his or her behalf as is by and large the case at present. The State and its agencies will have to respect that right and put in place arrangements to ensure that all "customers" are aware that they have the right and that, if they exercise it, it must be complied with. The question of signage, forms, notices being bilingual, etc., will also be addressed in the Bill. One of the key elements of the Bill will be a requirement that official bodies and agencies must plan strategically for the provision of services through the Irish language and bilingually. The plans will have to be submitted to the Minister with responsibility for the Irish language to be examined and approved by him/her. Provisions will be made to deal with cases where Departments, etc., fail to draw up plans or where their plans are considered by the Minister to be unsatisfactory. This is not unlike those procedures that have been introduced in Wales and which are working with a degree of success. Another key issue that will need to be addressed is the scope of the Bill. Ideally it should extend to all elements of Irish society including the public and private sector, business, banking, etc. Ireland will not have a truly bilingual society unless all sectors adequately cater to the needs of Irish speakers. Implementation and monitoring of the legislation, when enacted, will also be a key issue. At present Bord na Gaeilge monitors the implementation of the non-statutory guidelines regarding Irish and bilingualism but it has no powers of enforcement. An Ombudsman deals with individual complaints, although it must be said that he operates in somewhat of a vacuum given the absence of legislation in this area. Mr. Éamon Ó Cuív envisages a role for the Government Minister with responsibility for the Irish language in the strategic planning process. Ongoing monitoring is a separate issue. In this regard he is looking at international models, particularly Canada which has an Official Languages Commissioner together with an Office devoted to overseeing the implementation of its official languages legislation. He also envisions that a Commissioner would focus on the adequacy of the services being provided in the official languages by governmental bodies. A further issue that needs to be considered is that of enforcement and penalties. Strong powers will be needed to compel bodies to meet the requirements to be set down in the legislation. An appropriate system of penalties or admonishments will need to be formulated. Updated (August 2001) According to a press release issued by the Department of Arts, Heritage, Gaeltachta and the Islands, the Irish government approved on June 12, 2001 the general scheme for the elaboration of the Official Languages Equality Bill, whose drafting has been commissioned to the Office of the Parliamentary Draftsman as a matter of priority. The bill may be published throughout next autumn. Updated (February 2002) The Irish speakers are still waiting for the Irish Language Equality Act, an act that would ensure that Irish speakers could use their own language when dealing with State bodies and semi-state companies. The opposition claims that the Act "is as dead as a dodo". Five years ago, the Irish Government promised the Irish-speaking population a Language Equality Act. Although a draft bill for the Act is currently being worked on, it is highly unlikely that it will pass through the "Dáil" (the Irish Parliament) before it takes its leave before the general elections, which are expected to be held in May. Any draft bills that are not acted before that time will be the responsibility of the new Government, which may choose not to go ahead with the Language Equality Act at all. The government legislation program for spring 2002 set up the new deadline for the language bill "the middle of 2002". Meanwhile, Irish-speaking Ireland still has to cope without the protective language legislation, which was promised by the Government five years ago, and without the employment this Act would provide in terms of translation industry. The Government itself estimated in 2000 that the Language Equality Act would provide over 1,000 new jobs. However, it is not the lack of employment that bothers Irish speakers most, it is the daily struggle to use their own language with State and semi-state bodies.
Updated (February 2003) MINORITY ORGANIZATIONS CALL FOR AMENDMENTS TO IRISH LANGUAGE EQUALITY BILL The Irish language-coordinating group, Comhdháil Náisiúnta na Gaeilge, organizes nationwide public meetings to push for amendments to the Language Equality Bill. The Bill, shortly to be discussed in the Irish Senate, will guarantee that certain state and public services will be provided in Irish on an equal footing with those in English. The Comhdháil's first meeting in Cork, on February 17, will be followed by further meetings in Galway, Mayo, Donegal, and Dublin. The meetings will give the public a chance to hear why the Comhdháil has proposed 42 amendments to the Language Equality Bill. "Article 8 of the Irish Constitution gives Irish a special status. The reality; however, is that Irish speakers have had to go to court constantly for years to get the state to provide services that already should be provided," said Pádraig Ó Ceithearnaigh from Comhdháil. The Bill defines specific state services, which will have to be provided in Irish. It's important for the public to have as proactive role as possible in formulating the legislation. The Comhdháil wants to be sure that the new legislation will in no way diminish the legal rights already won in the courts by Irish speakers. Further, they also want the Bill to set up a specific new Irish language circuit and a district court that will deal with cases in the Gaeltacht. The bulk of their amendments aim to ensure that the range and the quality of services from state bodies will be as good and diverse as those provided in English. One of the worries of both Comhdháil Náisiúnta and the other major Irish language organization, Conradh na Gaeilge, is that the Bill does not contain effective sanctions against state bodies or public companies who fail to provide a proper service in Irish. The current proposal foresees that offenders can be named in the Dáil, the Irish Parliament. Ministers say this is a very stiff sanction, which public bodies will be very anxious to avoid. However, both Comhdháil and Conradh representatives want more severe sanctions. Eamann Ó Cuív, the Minister for Rural, Gaeltacht and Community Affairs is enthusiastic about the Bill. While he is reluctant to be tied down to a specific timetable for its enactment, he is open to the amendments proposed by the Comhdháil and the Conradh. The Minister said that he would like the Bill to be enacted before the end of 2003. Source: Eurolang News, Belfast, February 6, 2003, by Eoghan Ó Néill, http://217.136.252.147/webpub/eurolang/pajenn.asp?ID=4079 Updated (May 2003) STRENGTHENED IRISH LANGUAGE BILL PASSED REPORT STAGE On May 3, 2003, after Minister Ó Cuív accepted several amendments, the Official Languages (Equality) Bill was passed in the Irish Seanad. The Bill will now proceed to the Dáil Éireann.1 The delay in the Seanad was caused by an intense campaign of some Irish language groups, who were unhappy with certain parts of the Bill. The wording originally used to describe the status of the Irish and English languages in the Bill differed from the definition of the status of these languages in the Irish Constitution. This caused fears that strong support guaranteed for the Irish language by the Constitution would, in time, be gradually replaced by less strong wording used in the Languages Bill. Responding to this the Minister announced that the Bill would use the same wording as the Constitution to define the status of the two languages. As for criticism that state and semi-state bodies have not met sufficiently an obligation to respond to the correspondence in Irish, under this Bill such bodies will have to change their attitude. According to the Bill, headed paper used by public companies should be either in Irish or bilingual. Minister Ó Cuív promised that the guidelines and rules accompanying legislation would contain the provision that clerks of court and judges in Gaeltacht areas must be fluent in Irish. He also said that the Bill had one main purpose - to make a difference and predicted a five-fold increase in a number of services provided in Irish as a result of the Bill's enactment. However, the Labor Party Senator, Derek Mc Dowell expressed doubts whether there will be enough financial resources available from the Ministry of Finance to allow proper implementation of the legislation. He mentioned that training of staff to provide bilingual services would require extra resources and finance. According to Pádraig Ó Ceithearnaigh of Comhdháil Náisiúnta, the amendments, which Minister Ó Cuív had accepted in the Seanad, softened in some way their concerns about weaknesses of the Bill. However, the Bill still disallows a person to go to court to get redress if his/her rights are violated. As it stands a person can only seek redress via the language commissioner rather than through courts. Source: Eurolang News, Belfast, May 3, 2003, Eoghan Ó Néill, http://217.136.252.147/webpub/eurolang/pajenn.asp?ID=4235
1 The Irish Parliament (Oireachtas) consists of two Houses, Dáil Éireann (House of Representatives) and Seanad Éireann (the Senate). Updated (July 2003) IRELAND ADOPTS THE OFFICIAL LANGUAGES ACT On July 4, 2003 Ireland's Dáil Éireann (House of Representatives) and Seanad Éireann (Senate) passed the text of the Official Languages Bill 2002.1 Once the President of Ireland Mary McAleese signs it, it will be known as "the Official Languages Act 2003." The Bill is the first piece of legislation to provide a statutory framework for the delivery of services in the Irish language. Its final passage through the Dáil and the Seanad was actually more positive than had been expected. Minister Ó Cuív introduced several amendments, which encapsulated many proposals from opposition benches and from the Irish language organizations. The Minister's decision to remove Article 32 was widely welcomed. Article 32 prevented citizens from going to court to seek redress if the rights guaranteed under the Bill were not provided. However inclusion of Article 41 was not expected. This amendment obliges all public bodies to communicate with the public in writing or by electronic post in Irish exclusively or bilingually. Minister Ó Cuív also decided to give legal recognition to Irish language place-names. No Irish government has given such status to the Irish language place-names since setting up of the state. THE OBJECTIVE OF THE BILL
The Bill ensures better availability and a higher standard of public services in Irish, by placing a statutory obligation on Departments of State and public bodies to deliver such services in a coherent and agreed fashion through a statutory planning framework known as a "scheme." The schemes remain in force for three years and then they are renewed by an agreement between the head of the body concerned and the Minister. The intention of this renewal mechanism is to secure a significant improvement in the level of public services available through Irish over time, as demand requires. The principal provisions of the Bill are the following:
The Language Commissioner will be responsible for overseeing the implementation of the rights guaranteed by the Act and for tackling any bodies which do not implement those rights. However, only passage of time will tell whether people in the Gaeltacht or outside of it will actually avail of the rights guaranteed by the new Act. Source: Mercator News, 2003 July, http://www.ciemen.org/mercator/index-gb.htm, the Website of the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, http://www.pobail.ie/en/IrishLanguage/OfficialLanguagesBill2002/ and Eurolang News, Dublin, July 8, 2003, by Eoghan Ó Néill, http://217.136.252.147/webpub/eurolang/pajenn.asp?ID=4315
1 The Official Languages Bill 2002, published in April 2002, was passed by Seanad Éireann on May 13, 2003. The Second Stage of the Official Languages Bill 2002 was approved in Dil &EAacute;ireann on May 23, 2003. Updated (December 2003) THE NEW LANGUAGE ACT GETS UNDERWAY AN EQUAL STATUS OF IRISH AND ENGLISH PLACE NAMES According to the 2003 Official Languages Act, the Irish place names have an equal status with the English ones in many counties in the Republic of Ireland for the first time. This is an initial element of the Act to be implemented and it raises hopes that the other sections will be effected soon. Although Irish language place names were given the official status under legislation enacted in 1973, an English version of place names remained the only legal version until recently, even in Gaeltacht areas. When Minister Ó Cuív became aware of this, he incorporated the 1973 legislation with strong amendments into the 2003 Official Languages Act, which was enacted in the Dáil in autumn this year. The Act provides that the English version may not be used in future in Acts of the Oireachtas (Parliament) on Road and Street Signs or on Ordnance Survey Maps. The new law establishes that when the Minister makes an Order in respect of a place name outside the Gaeltacht, an Irish and English version of the place name will have an equal legal force and effect. Under the Order which the Minister has recently effected, the Irish language versions of place names for seven counties outside the Gaeltacht (County Kilkenny, Louth, Limerick, Monaghan, Waterford (except the Gaeltacht) and Offaly) are now designated to be equal with the English language versions. Another development is that voters in the Gaeltacht will have addresses on their polling cards printed in Irish for the first time. A Language Commissioner who will monitor and report on the implementation of the Act will be appointed early in 2004. Source: Eurolang News, Béal Feirste/Belfast, November 26, 2003, by Eoghan Ó Néill, http://217.136.252.147/webpub/eurolang/pajenn.asp?ID=4518 Updated (January 2004) SEVERAL MEASURES TO IMPROVE THE STATUS OF IRISH LAUNCHED An Action Plan for the implementation of the Official Languages Act, a Broadcasting (Funding) Bill and two campaigns calling for an official status of Irish in Europe have been launched. All of them aim to improve the status of Irish Gaelic. The Action Plan was presented by the Minister for the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, Éamon Ó Cuív on December 17, 2003. It is the first piece of legislation that lays down a legislative planning process to ensure that services are provided in Irish, on the basis of certain rights and duties. It sets an agenda for the gradual implementation of the different sections of the act throughout the first and second quarter of 2004 and the first quarter of 2005. As for the 2003 Broadcasting (Funding) Bill, its aim is to provide that the Broadcasting Commission of Ireland administers the grants supporting certain television and radio programs, including programs in the Irish language and programs on Irish culture and heritage. As regards the two campaigns, one has been initiated by a newly formed organization "Stádas", persuading the Irish Government of the need to make Irish an official EU language. They plan to address all members of the Oireachtas (the Irish lower chamber) and local representatives to support their idea. An online petition launched in December demanding to declare Irish to be an official working language of the European Union has been signed by more than 50,000 people till the end of December. Source: Mercator News, December 2003, http://www.ciemen.org/mercator/index-gb.htm Updated (July 2004) IRISH GOVERNMENT TO WORK FOR A FULL EU OFFICIAL STATUS FOR IRISH (read also "Spain, What else can be found about language and minorities? Updated July 2004, Midsummer Fires were Burning for Catalan") After a Cabinet meeting on July 14, 2004 the Irish Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, Éamon Ó Cuív, announced that the Government are to initiate a process of discussions with the other EU member states and the EU Commission with a view to seeking an official and working status for the Irish language in the EU under EEC Regulation 1/19581. Language activists have expressed their delight at the move. According to Dr Pádraig Ó Laighin, who led the Stádas campaign for a full working status, it is a matter of national self-esteem that one of Europe's most ancient languages should be recognized in this establishment. Although the main languages used in the EU institutions are still English, French and German, a new status requires EU laws and official documents to be issued in Irish as well. Moreover, MEPs will have a direct translation in all committee and plenary meetings in the European Parliament. The Irish Government also expressed its rancor over the fact that the Catalan, Basque and Galician languages were given only a treaty status. On the other hand, Catalan and Basque representatives congratulated Ireland to get such a measure that brings Irish-speaking citizens closer to the European institutions and makes them feel accepted and represented. According to an expert from the Basque Government's Language Policy Department, it is great that Irish reached this position; however, the other European languages spoken by EU citizens also deserve the same status. Source: Eurolang News, Brussels, July 15, 2004, by Davyth Hicks, http://www.eurolang.net/news.asp?id=4693
1 The Regulation is the legal instrument that governs the EU Institutions' official and working language regime. Updated (August 2004) BROADCASTING LEGISLATION According to the results of the 2002 Census, only 42.8 percent of the country's total population (3,9 million people) consider themselves able to speak Irish. Section 28(2)(a) of the 2001 Broadcasting Act obliges the public broadcasters "to provide a comprehensive range of programs in the Irish and English language that reflect the cultural diversity of the whole island of Ireland and include, both on television and radio, programs that entertain, inform and educate, provide coverage of sporting, religious and cultural activities and cater for the expectations of the community generally as well as members of the community with special or minority interests and which, in every case, respect human dignity".
Section 28(2)(b) then requires the public broadcasters to "provide programs of news and current affairs in the Irish and English languages The 1988 Radio and Television Act stipulates that with respect to areas comprising the Gaeltacht Region, particular attention should be paid to the preservation of the Irish language as a spoken language (s. 6(3)). The 2003 Broadcasting (Funding) Act sets aside 5 percent of net receipts for television license fees, for the funding of grants to support certain types of television and radio programs (including programs on Irish heritage, culture and language). News and current affairs programs are not eligible for funding under the terms of the Act but they have to be broadcast at peak times. It is estimated that Euro 8 million per annum will be available for the scheme(s) envisaged by the Act and most broadcasters licensed in the state will be able to apply. Source: Regulation of Minority-Language Broadcasting, by Tarlach McGonagle, Institute for Information Law (IViR) of the University of Amsterdam and Andrei Richter, Moscow Media Law and Policy Center (MMLPC), http://www.obs.coe.int/oea_publ/iris/iris_plus/iplus2_2004.pdf.en Updated (April 2005) IRISH PLACE NAMES ORDER COMES INTO EFFECT IN THE GAELTACHT
The law ensuring the use of Irish-language place names in the Gaelic-speaking area has become effective recently. This Order was enacted in accordance with the 2003 Official Languages Act, which sets forth that the Minister may by an order declare the Irish language version of place names, both in or outside the Gaeltacht.
The Place Names Order (Ceantair Ghaeltachta), which was signed by the Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs in December 2004, relates to 2,319 names of towns, villages and crossroads in the three regions of the Gaeltacht. Thus from now on the English version of these names cannot appear in Acts of the Oireachtas (the National Parliament of the Republic of Ireland), on road and street signs or ordinance survey maps.
The Minister's plan is to extend the use of Irish language place names to the rest of the country within seven to ten years. Therefore, there is an intention to require legally that the Irish language version of place names would appear alongside the English version on all official documents, maps and signs outside of Gaeltacht areas. At the moment the law does not apply to independent producers of maps, although they are expected to follow the policy.
The approval of this Order raised some criticism among the people related to tourism, when they argued that this new order would result in confusion for tourists from across the border.
Source: Mercator News, March 2005, http://www.ciemen.org/mercator/index-gb.htm Updated (January 2007) The Joint Parliamentary Committee for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs started the discussion about the regulations on advertising in Irish by public bodies last December. Section 9.1 of the Official Languages Act establishes that the Minister "may by regulations provide that oral announcements (whether live or recorded) made by a public body, the headings of stationery used by a public body and the contents and the lay-out of any signage or advertisements placed by it shall, to such extent as may be specified, be in the Irish language or in the English and Irish languages."
During the meeting of the Joint Committee, Minister Éamon Ó Cuív said that he was still willing to bring forward proposals to draft the regulations. The statement comes after having issued some guidelines in September 2004 stating "regulations under Section 9 of the Act regarding bilingual advertising will be made by the Minister shortly". Certainly, section 12 of the aforementioned act says that the Minister "shall issue to public bodies guidelines in relation to the preparation by public bodies of draft schemes", but also that "as soon as practicable after the commencement of this section the Minister shall prepare a draft of any guidelines that he or she proposes to issue".
Comhdháil Náisiúnta na Gaeilge, the representative body for 23 Irish Language Voluntary organizations, has criticized the Minister for not fulfilling his promise as over two years have already passed and he is now saying that the work is not yet done. In their point of view, "it is important that the Minister is continually pressed to fulfill the promise he made when the Language Bill was being discussed in the Houses of the Parliament three years ago".
Source: Mercator News, December 2006 |
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