MEPs belonging to the CSV, LSAP, DP and the Greens were left unimpressed by the ADR's Fernand Kartheiser's attempt to make a speech in Luxembourgish in the European Parliament on Monday night.
Kartheiser drew attention on Monday for his attempt to address MEPs in Luxembourgish, which is not one of the 24 officially recognised languages, as he expressed his desire for his native language to be recognised in the European parliament. He further made the point that Robert Schuman, Konrad Adenauer, and Joseph Bech – three of the EU's founding fathers – once discussed Europe's future in Luxembourgish.
On Tuesday, a number of Luxembourg's MEPs expressing their dissatisfaction with the stunt, with the CSV's Isabelle Wiseler-Lima describing the incident as a "circus act":
"Mr Kartheiser knew very well that his microphone would be switched off," she said. "Those are the rules, he deliberately sought to contravene them and I don't think that's a good thing. We have very serious topics to discuss, topics which are specific to Luxembourg, and I think one should familiarise oneself with those topics instead. We need to work on our reputation in that way instead of performing these circus acts."
At any rate, Kartheiser addressed his plea to the wrong place. Luxembourg's recognition as an official language in Brussels is an issue which must be dealt with by the government. Kartheiser is said to be well aware of this.
DP MEP Charel Goerens also questioned Kartheiser's statement on the founding fathers of the EU. "I'm not sure where this idea comes from that Joseph Bech, for example, had any preference for speaking Luxembourgish. He never spoke it on any occasion in the Chamber of Deputies. I doubt he would have suggested adding Luxembourg to the EU's official languages."
The LSAP's Marc Angel pointed out there are numerous occasions upon which one can speak Luxembourgish at a European level. Every citizen has the possibility to write to EU institutions in Luxembourgish, and they are entitled to receive replies in the same language. Angel added that his own office could be contacted in Luxembourgish, in contrast to Kartheiser's office:
"He has two assistants and neither one is Luxembourgish. For me this is purely a stunt. It is populism. The Luxembourgish language is very close to my heart. For me, as was the case with the previous government, and now with the current government, we conduct politics for our language, not with it. That is what the far-right and the populists might do, but it's not for me."
The other three Luxembourgish MEPs in contact with RTL emphasised their affection for the Luxembourgish language, but pointed out there are just six representatives from the Grand Duchy. The Greens' Tilly Metz considered what it could cost if Kartheiser's plea was seen through.
"If Luxembourgish were to be recognised like other European languages, that would cost around 40 million euros a year to fully grant this request. In times of crisis, like now, I believe that money could be better invested elsewhere. Particularly as we have three languages that we use in Luxembourg."
Goerens added that it was a privilege to have multilingual capabilities, as is the case for many Luxembourgers. However, one suggestion to ensure better recognition of the Luxembourgish language could consist of translating the EU treaties into Luxembourgish, he concluded.
