Sir, - Firstly, I would like to congratulate Paddy Woodworth on his Letters from Spain series. These have served to outline the splendid and diverse culture of this beautiful country, which is all too often overshadowed by the stereotype that we have all come to know.
I just returned from a three month stay in Barcelona, where I was working on a project related to European cultural co operation, and was overwhelmed by the scale and quality of cultural activity in Barcelona and how it is contributing to urban regeneration. In relation to strengthening links to create a meaningful Europe where we can all belong, I would like to take Mr Woodworth up on the point of "parallel" cultures.
If we look at Barcelona and beyond to Catalonia, we can see a culture which, despite a myriad of problems, has been characterised by its ability to survive in situations of adversity and has enjoyed some of its most creative periods in the most unfavourable conditions. During the long dictatorship of Franco, Catalonia lost not only its democratic rights and political autonomy, but also its language. Explicit radical obstacles, including prohibition of its use in public communication and official activities and its exclusion from school curricula, hindered its free development for a long period of time (one would be forgiven for drawing parallels with the Irish situation).
Local government has provided key leadership in the renewal and "invention" of cultural services and policies, and today over 70 per cent of the population in Catalonia speak Catalan. Similar to Ireland, the expressions of identity in the case of Catalonia are basically the culture and the language, all of which has led to a special public and collective sensitivity to culture in Catalonia.
At this moment in time, cultural links are already being strengthened between Ireland, Barcelona and three other European regions in a project facilitated by European funding. This is just the first step towards a Europe where we can all prosper and the road is very long. Is mise, le meas,
Glenbrook Park,
Rathfarnham,
Dublin 14.