ELL: Re: language rights are human rights - reaction from Scotland

[David Wilson]

Hi Igne and other List members,

Igne wrote;
> I am sorry if I sounded indignant

    Don't mention it, language issues are a passionate subject ;-). You were
right to ask for clarification. The Council has changed its tactics about 4
times now, which is why I have had to post a few updates. I should have
mentioned there's to be a review in mid-August. There are three outcomes
possible at the review.

1. An extra Gaelic speaking replacement could be hired (in addition to the
monolingual English one). This would be the best outcome, as it would fully
integrate Gaelic within the council and provide someone who could liase with
parents and staff in their own langauge, as well as fully appreciating the
ethos, qualities and culture associated with GME.

2. As a sort of compromise, the Council may decide to employ a Gaelic
speaker from an outside agency. This would be okay, for the same reasons as
above, but Gaelic still wouldn't be fully integrated within the Council.

3. The Council could decide not to hire a Gaelic speaker or employ one from
an outside agency. This is the worst possible scenario because it leaves
Gaelic adrift on the periphery.

> I am new to this list and
> was just disappointed in what appeared to be a waste of time (English is
not my
> native language so it took me quite a while to compose the email).

    I'm fairly new to the list myself. But I'm hoping that ELL will be a
vehicle through which we can all help eachother preserve and promote the
rich diversity of languages we have. To do this, I believe that people must
work together, pooling their resourses, to help create environments where
languages can survive and flourish. That's why I'm grateful to you and all
the others who have helped. I also realise that many languages face far
greater challenges and difficulties than Gaelic does, which is why I would
be happy to help in any way I can with any campaigns you or anyone else has
in the future.

sonas is adh ort (success / prosperity to you)

David.
PS. Your time was well-spent on that email Igne. It was excellent. Thanks.

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