Tribune. Will the European Union (EU) continue to speak mostly English after the UK has left it? As we know, more than 90% of European Council and Commission documents, as well as most of the oral communications from European institutions, favor the English language. Can this primacy continue while with Brexit English now comes in 17e position of the mother tongues most spoken by EU citizens? Can this primacy continue even though English is no longer one of the official languages declared by the member states – the United Kingdom being the only one of the Twenty-Eight to have asked, when it joined, to use it part ?
I am not for the war of languages. I know too well the benefits and the wealth, I who speak the four languages of my country (Rwanda), of their happy cohabitation. I don’t think it’s possible, or even desirable, for English to disappear from European circles. This would cause immense disorder and enormous costs, would deprive Europe of part of its identity and seriously reduce the openness of its citizens to the world. This would send a signal of withdrawal and antagonism, which we do not need today.
However, I believe it is necessary, on the other hand, to rebalance between languages. A rebalancing which, without excluding English, would give full place to French, the language spoken by 130 million Europeans and in which 19 of the 27 EU states recognize themselves, those which have joined the International Organization for Francophonie.
Common sense measures
I believe in it because the essence of Europe, as Milan Kundera writes, is to represent "Maximum diversity in minimum space". Because pluralism of languages and cultures is at the heart of the European social contract. Because citizens ’membership and confidence in the EU depend on it. I believe in it because multilingualism is an asset for individuals and for societies. It is a precious commodity that we must take care of all over the world. I believe in it because the Francophonie is a global fact, which Europe cannot neglect. Francophones are today more than 300 million worldwide. They should be more than 700 million by the middle of the century. The EU, which wants to be one of the big players on the world stage, must be able to speak to them.
