País Valencià: la planificació lingüística pendent

Resum

The demands of democratization and the process of an increased collective self-awareness that has sprung in today's Valencian society have turned language planning into a peremptory need in the Valencian Country. In order to sustain this thesis, the article analyzes the outcome of the preceding period, under the socialist government (1983-1995). Starting with the promulgation of the "Law of use and teaching of Valencian", the socialist administration introduced considerable changes --some of them spectacular-- in the sociolinguistic situation in the Valencian Country. Among them, it is worth noting the creation of a Valencian broadcasting organism and the growing presence of Catalan in the educational system. The linguistic policies of the Valencian PSOE party, however, have been dominated by a lack of determination and, in the end, by a certain degree of improvisation. In fact, it never dared prepare a plan of language normalization, and it did not even rigorously enforce the "Law of use". Official policies encountered in everyday reality a very strong demand of linguistic support, much more than what was being provided through institutional channels. Thanks to this public contribution numerous government initiatives were achieved. In that sense, a good deal of the achievements in normalization in the sphere of education need to be attributed to the involvement of the people, primarily of teachers and parents. Drawing upon some basic indicating factors, the article presents an outline of the demands of the civic movement in relation to the Catalan language, and concludes with an explanation of the reticence expressed by this same movement in face of the fact that the Partido Popular has taken over the government of the Generalitat. Such reticence is based on some elements of the history of the autochthonous right, and on a brief account of the first measures introduced against the Catalan language by the new Valencian government.