Successful completion of "Bidegorriak Euskararentzat"

The "Bidegorriak Euskararentzat" project was brought to a close after a successful day full of activities on 23 September. The ULMA organising team expressed its pleasure and delight with the teamwork displayed, and the response from the people of Oñati.

Around 150 people took part in the 5 km cycle ride along the Bidegrorri (cycle lane), to support an ethical and ecological attitude towards minority languages such as Basque. The peloton made 9 stops at the different ULMA facilities along the route, and at each stop a balloon was burst, containing a question to be answered by the chairperson of each co-operative group. Thereby, together they explained the conditions necessary for a minority language to live in harmony with the rest.

The festive environment in Oñati square was palpable from midday onwards. The mural posters in Basque showing almost 300 written commitments of ULMA workers and governing bodies during the previous months decorated Oñati square. In the evening the people of Oñati came to read the mural posters and write their own commitments to Basque, whilst Amaia Txintxurreta provided musical entertainment.

In addition to the mural posters, final year Oñati primary school students exhibited their pictures under the slogan “WE ARE ULMA, WE ARE THE BASQUE LANGUAGE”. Prior to this ULMA representatives had visited each school to explain to the children how ULMA came about, the products manufactured by each ULMA business, and what ULMA does to foster the use of Basque at work under its Basque language plans. And the youngsters formed groups and created 40 pictures about ULMA and the Basque language.

To bring the day to a close and celebrate ULMA’s 55th Anniversary, KALAKAN held a concert in the evening in the parish of Oñati, in collaboration with the Oñati Ganbara choir and the Oñatz dance group. Almost 600 people attended and enjoyed the spectacular concert that brought the day to a perfect close.