"The hearing was suspended because the prosecutor did not understand Catalan"

PalmaJosep de Luis and Josep Alonso have been practicing as lawyers in the Balearic Islands for years and, from day one, they have been clear that Catalan would be the central axis of their professional practice. De Luis, with 22 years of experience, explains that he has always addressed bodies or institutions based in the territorial area from Salses to Guardamar and from Fraga to Maó in Catalan.

Alonso, who joined the bar almost 10 years ago, agrees: “I come from a family where we have always had national consciousness. I try to live life in my language. I have it very internalized, that's why it comes naturally to me, even at work.” Both consider that doing so in Catalan is coherent with their identity: “It would be going against who we are as a person,” says Alonso, while De Luis describes it as a natural situation.

However, the use of Catalan in the courts has not always been easy. De Luis recalls that sometimes Justice has represented an inconvenience for the exercise of a right: “There are cases of people who have little internalized the legal situation of the own language of the Balearic Islands. “I remember a day when a prosecutor addressed me unpleasantly, accusing me that, because of me, the proceedings would have to be suspended because she did not understand Catalan. Finally, it had to be suspended,” recalls De Luis.

Despite everything, they consider that the situation has improved thanks to initiatives like ‘Justice, also in Catalan’, even though there are still obstacles. Alonso adds that he has experienced indirect pressures. “You often find uncomfortable situations or subtle pressures to change language. For example, being told that it's better to submit a document in Spanish because it will be easier to process, or for some legal operator to let you know that they don't understand Catalan. “This creates a situation that should not exist, because Catalan is an official language,” points out Alonso.

Regarding clients, both agree that language is almost never a determining factor: “Clients want you to solve their problems and they don't care what language you do it in,” says Alonso. For his part, De Luis explains cases where clients have chosen to maintain a relationship with the firm precisely because of the use of Catalan, just as he acknowledges that there may be the possibility that others may have discarded it for the same reason.

To guarantee real access to Justice in Catalan, they consider it necessary to improve the linguistic training of legal operators and to normalize the use of Catalan in all judicial documentation. "The right to use Catalan before Justice must be effective and not just formally recognized," states Alonso. De Luis adds that the General Council of the Judiciary should ensure that there is no prejudice for speaking Catalan, as one third of the surveyed citizens believe there is.

Both encourage other lawyers to do the same. Alonso highlights the professional benefits: "The more professionals use it naturally, the more normal it will be within the Administration of Justice." For her part, de Luis emphasizes the cultural and social dimension: "Language is the soul of a people. When it stops being used in key areas, it enters into regression and can disappear. Young people must make more social use of Catalan to preserve the soul of our people."

Alonso completes the message with a warning and a call: "Speaking it is the best way to keep it alive. We must shed the self-complex that has been instilled in us and recover linguistic self-esteem, especially in the face of the Hispanizing offensive that seeks to roll back our rights. It is a collective responsibility, which also involves public institutions."