50,000 people claiming for regional languages rights in France

31st March 2012, 10 h 11 pm. Report from our correspondent Fanny Chauffin

Kemper/Quimper - 10,000 in Quimper, 20,000 in Toulouse, thousands in the Pays Basque, in Alsace, in Catalonia, is an unprecedented success for a protest march, aimed at requiring due rights for regional languages.

It was a beautiful day, Odet river banks full of flowers, Breton bagadoù bands marching, a truck decorated with unilingual French road signs draining lots of young people on board, along with a candidate for the presidency, the little bee « Dédé », who supports minorities languages as well as bees, and yellow, blue, red, political parties flags flapping in the wind. The Ai'ta orange shirts rivaled the purple and black Diwan schools students' sweatshirts.

All these people joined at the Republic plaza, to toast the Ramoneur de Menhirs, Nolwenn Korbell and a great number of musicians, who all came here today for free, in support of the Breton language.

Breton speaking people were many, while the hand held flares on Mount Frugy were accompanying the Kan Bale an ARB Bale sounded by the Ramoneurs de Menhirs.

In all cases, people who have removed the panels have made an act of civil disobedience, demanding more space for the Breton language in public life, and not always begging the right to speak the language of their mother's country…

Will it be heard by elected officials ? Future will tell.

Fanny Chauffin is a multimedia reporter for ABP

English translation by Gilbert Engelhardt, our correspondent in Nantes

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