The Albanian language risks losing official use! What's happening in North Macedonia
2024-12-11 18:01:37
TiranaPost
The Constitutional Court in North Macedonia is considering removing
the special status of the Albanian language, and this has been opposed by Albanians living in the neighboring country and beyond.
If this law is approved, the Albanian language, which is used by 20% of the population in North Macedonia, will no longer be in official use.
What does the law say about the use of languages?
With the Law on the Use of Languages, state institutions in North Macedonia are obliged to allow the official use of languages spoken by at least 20% of the country's citizens. This includes the Albanian language, which is mentioned as the language of a significant part of the population and is defined in the first article of this law. According to this law: Albanians have the right to use the Albanian language in all state institutions, and official documents can be in both languages.
The repeal of the law concerns the right to use languages in public space, a major constitutional right that Albanians achieved with great effort. It was sanctioned in the Ohrid Agreement with a special law. The repeal of the law would violate the official status of the Albanian language at the national level. Albanians would lose some currently guaranteed rights, such as the use of Albanian in public administration, state documentation and other official institutions
Today, the Constitutional Court in Skopje postponed today's session, after the two Albanian judges boycotted it.
However, the Constitutional Court has decided to hold a preparatory session for the Language Law, where the opinions of experts "for" and "against" the contested provisions will be heard, while there will be no decision today.
Prime Minister Edi Rama has joined the concern of Albanians in North Macedonia over the danger of the Albanian language: It is in an inexplicable context for me in the Constitutional Court of North Macedonia. I am not saying that those who believe in the Constitutional Court of other countries are wrong, but I think that what Albanian has gained as a right of citizenship in North Macedonia is not a matter of the Constitutional Court, it is not a matter of laws or temporary wills of political parties. I say temporary because political parties are elected once every 4 years and sometimes they are on one side, sometimes on the other, but the Albanian language in North Macedonia is a matter of substance that has helped in an extraordinary way not only to keep North Macedonia together, but also to nurture a spirit and a way of seeing coexistence between the two state-forming peoples of North Macedonia, Macedonians and Albanians.
