this post was submitted on 25 Jan 2024
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A parking company is taking on the entire Welsh language - by dragging a guy to court over it (www.thecanary.co)
submitted 9 months ago* (last edited 9 months ago) by tree@lemmy.zip to c/globalnews@lemmy.zip
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Toni Schiavone will face a third trial for refusing to pay an English-only parking charge notice

Language campaigner Toni Schiavone will face a third trial on Friday 26 January for refusing to pay an English-only parking charge notice.

Dismissing the Welsh language

According to campaign group Cymdeithas yr Iaith, translating the notice, and avoiding the three court cases over a period of three and a half years, would have cost between £60 and £70.

Schiavone received the original notice in September 2020 for not paying for parking in a car park in Llangrannog, Wales. Although the court case has already been thrown out twice, parking company One Parking Solution is once again appealing over the notice. The company failed to be present for the first case and the second case was thrown out of court as it was introduced late and under the wrong conditions.

Speaking ahead of his trial, Schiavone said:

If One Parking Solution provided me with a Welsh copy of the notice as many other parking companies already do, I would be fully prepared to pay it. Instead, they insist on taking me to court again and again to try to force me to pay the notice in English.

According to the company, since I understand English, they don’t need to respect my right to use my own language in my own country. It is utterly offensive.

read more: https://www.thecanary.co/uk/2024/01/24/welsh-court-case-parking-fine/

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[–] ech@lemm.ee 60 points 9 months ago (4 children)

Parking company: "How much paper do you think we have?! We can't be printing it all in bloody Welsh! We'd go bankrupt!"

But seriously, on it's face this kinda comes off as some dude trying to get out of a ticket, but props to him for fighting for his heritage. There's no arena too small for this kind of exercise. Also, these clowns can't even bother to sue him properly. Didn't even show up? This latest attempt should be thrown out just on their lack of respect for him and the court system they're trying to abuse.

[–] MirthfulAlembic@lemmy.world 35 points 9 months ago

He's a language campaigner, so I'm sure he got the fine intentionally—knowing it would only be in English—specifically to make this point. Though he probably didn't expect it to take this long due to the other side being incredibly incompetent.

[–] proudblond@lemmy.world 21 points 9 months ago (1 children)

If it were another language, maybe it’d just be some guy trying to get out of a ticket; but my understanding (limited, as I’m an American) is that the Welsh have been fighting hard for a long time to preserve their language. So, good on him!

[–] honeyontoast@lemmy.world 16 points 9 months ago (3 children)

What it basically comes down to is there are several native languages in the United Kingdom - English, Welsh, Gaelic, Scots, Cornish and more - but only English is respected on the whole.

He's not even asking for every ticket to come in both languages, just to be sent one in Welsh when asked for. I think it should be a legal requirement to provide any document in any home language requested, personally.

[–] Kecessa@sh.itjust.works 8 points 9 months ago* (last edited 9 months ago)

There's no official language by law and English is de facto the official language for the whole country. There's a caveat though and it's that Wales made Welsh an official language in their part of the country, hence the ability for this man to ask for a ticket in Welsh and the possibility that the company will lose their case.

[–] FfaerieOxide@kbin.social 4 points 9 months ago

there are several native languages in the United Kingdom - English

I don't think foederati from Germanic Barbaricum—the Baddies of Badonicus—are native.

[–] Rentlar@lemmy.ca 1 points 9 months ago

If there's still disagreement...

Depuis ce moment, on va enforcer la loi du Pays de Galles seulement en français.

[–] itsnotits@lemmy.world 1 points 9 months ago

on its* face

[–] Mandarbmax@lemmy.world 39 points 9 months ago

This dude is dope. Solidarity forever!

[–] FfaerieOxide@kbin.social 13 points 9 months ago (1 children)

How can the company expect to be paid—for people to even know they are expected to pay—if they send out notices that aren't in the language of the country they're in?

[–] Kecessa@sh.itjust.works 6 points 9 months ago (1 children)

It's in the UK, English is the de facto official language across the country (there doesn't seem to be a law or act making it official) but Welsh has been an official language in Wales (where that story happened) since 2011. So technically it's not like if the company gave tickets written in English in Turkey, but it's still interesting to see someone try to get the region's official language act respected.

[–] FfaerieOxide@kbin.social 4 points 9 months ago (1 children)

It’s in the UK, English is the de facto official language across the country (there doesn’t seem to be a law or act making it official)

England can de fac itself, even if its suppression of Brittonic tongues was de jure.

So technically it’s not like if the company gave tickets written in English in Turkey

That's exactly what it's like. English is not the iaith of the pobl or the gwald. It is a foreign tongue. Was it not enough drowning Hafod Fadog, these people now need be drowned in gibberish as well?

[–] Kecessa@sh.itjust.works 2 points 9 months ago (1 children)

If you asked the Parliament to select an official language for the country as a whole what do you think it would be?

I'm not saying it's a bad thing that Welsh is the official language in Wales, but even their act recognizing it as such makes it clear that it's the official language along with English and that both need to be treated as equals, not that Welsh is the only official language.

[–] FfaerieOxide@kbin.social 1 points 9 months ago

If you asked the Parliament to select an official language for the country as a whole what do you think it would be?

Why would I ask Westminster a damn thing?

[–] ShimmeringKoi@hexbear.net 4 points 9 months ago (1 children)

Knowing what little I know about the Welsh language, this will be a very long court case

[–] FiskFisk33@startrek.website 2 points 9 months ago

You must understand, young Hobbit, it takes a long time to say anything in Old Entish. And we never say anything unless it is worth taking a long time to say.