I do not know if the community of opponents of the different Autonomous Communities is aware of the language conflicts that since "immemorial" have been occurring between Catalan and Valencian lands. This splashes into the tests and opposition requirements, and when there are no agreements, it reaches the hands of unions and courts.
As I read today in the digital newspaper ABC, the Supreme Court dismisses the appeal of the Generalitat against the recognition of Catalan in the oppositionsThis issue is of great relevance because it directly affects many candidates who are in the selection process for different positions in the Valencian Community. Linguistic conflicts have been a constant over the years due to the debate on the validity of certifications in Catalan with respect to Valencian.
The historic struggle between Catalan and Valencian
A person, who has studied the career of Catalan Philology and he is presented to some oppositions in the Valencian Community According to the Supreme Court ruling, the requirement requested by the calls for knowledge of the Valencian language will be fulfilled. Although this is not welcomed by everyone.
For many people, Valencian and Catalan are two different languages, with cultural, social and linguistic differences that justify their different treatment. However, Other sectors argue that Valencian is a variant of Catalan and, therefore, Catalan certificates should be valid in the Valencian Community..
This ruling has caused deep unrest in certain sectors of the Generalitat Valenciana, who consider that it is not correct to grant equivalent value to qualifications from other territories when knowledge of the Valencian language is specifically required.
Impact on public employment and competitions
This conflict is not limited to political or academic debates. It has had a direct impact on the competitive examinations for many positions in the public administration. When it comes to working in areas where Valencian speakers predominate, It is mandatory to prove knowledge of Valencian through official qualifications.
The situation worsens when an applicant, who has obtained a certification in Catalan, tries to validate his degree to hold a position in the Valencian Community. This has led on multiple occasions to confrontations in court, as occurred in the case of the Valencian Generalitat's competitive examinations, where the equivalence of Catalan titles was accepted.
The vision of the Platform for Language in the selective processes
An important aspect to highlight is the work of organizations such as the Platform for the Language, which has also influenced the development of this conflict. This organization, which fights for the recognition of the rights of Catalan speakers, has seen situations such as those in Aspe (Alicante) as a comparative grievance. In some municipalities where Castilian predominates, the public administration does not contemplate the possibility of carrying out exams in Valencian, which has led to complaints by linguistic discrimination.
In one of the most notorious cases, an opposition candidate sued the Aspe City Council when she was prevented from carrying out the test in Valencian, despite the fact that the law allows this possibility. These types of conflicts are not isolated, and are repeated in several localities, not only in the Valencian Community, but also in neighbouring regions where Catalan/Valencian is co-official.
Valencian levels in competitive examinations: requirements and exceptions
Regulations in the Valencian Community have been increasing the requirements to prove knowledge of the language. From 2025, it will be mandatory to prove a C1 level of Valencian to access senior civil service positions in the public administration, such as places in groups A1 and A2. Currently, a lower level, B2, is required, but this will no longer be valid from that date.
However, there have been some exceptions to the rule. The health sector, for example, is not subject to the same requirements as other sectors. To date, it has been decided that doctors and other health professionals consider Valencian as a merit and not as a mandatory requirement in the competitive examinations. This has been the subject of debate between the different political forces, as some consider that the same level of knowledge of Valencian should be required in all sectors of the public administration.
The controversy in the fire brigade competitions
Another case that illustrates this conflict well is that of the competitive examinations for the fire brigade in the Valencian Community. During a recent internal promotion, the Generalitat only offered the exam in Spanish, which caused great discomfort among the candidates who wanted to take the exam in Valencian. Platform for the Language He intervened again, reporting the situation to the Office for Language Rights, which fights to ensure that citizens' language rights are respected in all areas of society.
This case, along with other similar ones in the Alicante Provincial Consortium, has led to new discussions on the Equal opportunities for candidates who wish to take their exams in ValencianErrors in the automatic translation of tests and the lack of availability of Valencian versions in some official exams have generated a feeling of discrimination among Valencian speakers.
Political and social reactions
In the political sphere, this conflict has not gone unnoticed. Entities such as the Union of Teachers and Training Workers of the Valencian Country (STEPV) have expressed their concern about what they consider a «attack on the use of Valencian in education»In his opinion, the bill promoted by some political forces attempts to corner the use of Valencian in education, which could have serious consequences for its normalisation in public life and in the workplace.
Other organizations, such as the Gonzalo Anaya Association, have denounced that this type of measures limit the freedom of choice of language for parents of students, drastically reducing the offer of education in Valencian, which could indirectly weaken its presence in future generations.
However, not all sides are of the same opinion. Some politicians have expressed their support for a certain flexibility in these requirements, allowing opponents and citizens to choose the language they feel most comfortable with.
This debate does not seem likely to die down any time soon. The courts will continue to play a decisive role in resolving some of these conflicts, as has already happened on several occasions. In the meantime, language conflict remains a reality both in the competitive examinations and in other areas of society.
The issue of Valencian and Catalan in the competitions is just one part of a broader debate over the status of co-official languages in Spain. This conflict illustrates the tensions that can arise when different territories try to balance their linguistic and cultural identities with the demands of a broader state. Ultimately, the implications of these conflicts are significant, not only for the candidates, but also for the general public, who see how the right to choose a language to communicate in the public sphere remains in dispute.
The conflict is solely political. It arose when Catalanism enlightened by Prat de la Riba and the Catalan Mancomunitat at the beginning of the XNUMXth century decided to standardize the dialects that were spoken in the Catalan regions and to make those standards the only ones for the languages spoken in the Kingdom of Valencia and the Balearic Islands. Here you have some "famous" phrases from Prat de la Riba collected in Wiquipedia:
"If the nationalism of Catalonia manages to awaken with its example the sleeping forces of all the Spanish peoples, Catalan nationalism will have achieved its first imperialist action."
The Catalan nationality.
«The Catalan land is the Catalan homeland; all generations have made it up. So each nation must have a State, but Catalonia also has an imperialist mission whose framework is the Iberian peoples from Lisbon to the Rhone ».
The Catalan nationality.
«The Catalans are not an« anthropological race », but a« historical race ».»
«The« Castilianization »of Catalonia is only« a superimposed crust, a crust that cracks and jumps, leaving the indestructible stone of the race intact, immaculate »».
"Question. Who is this enemy element of Catalonia and that distorts its character? Answer. Spain."
Compendi de doctrina catalanista, p. 509.
“The barbarian peoples must be subjected willingly or by force. The learned powers have a duty to expand on the backward populations. "
The Catalan nationality
"The differences that separate Castilla y Catalunya, Catalunya y Galicia, Andalucía and Vasconia are great, total, irreducible."
The Catalan nationality.
The Catalanists, when they wanted to create their Catalan, knew that they did not have classical writers in their language and they used the classics of the Valencian language and its golden age, there the problem began and will not end until the waters return to their course, that is the Valencian is Valencian and the Catalan with their bread they eat it.