Opposition furious as government plans to “down grade” Catalan

18/03/2013 00:00

Palma.The opposition and pro-Catalan bodies were calling for mass protests last night after the centre right Balearic government made its intentions clear to reform the Public Administration Law which will mean that Catalan will no longer be a requisite for becoming a civil servant.

Hunger strike
The news came as Jaume Bonet completed his 16th day on hunger strike at the (OCB) Obra Cultural Balear headquarters in protest against the governments anti-Catalan stance and the OCB is calling on the public to join a mass protest march in Palma on March 25 at 6pm in the Plaza de España.

Opposition parties slammed the government's move as a direct attack on the Catalan language. A spokesperson for the Balearic Socialist Party said yesterday that the government is merely using the Catalan debate as a smokescreen in order to divert the general public's attention away from the harsh cuts it is introducing.