A/HRC/22/49 B. Recognition of minority languages and linguistic rights 41. The lack of domestic legal protection for minority languages in many regions remains a major concern. Legal recognition and legislative protection of minority languages create legal safeguards and a requirement for policy and programme measures to address the issues of linguistic minorities, and often result in institutional attention. Lack of such recognition and legal protections results in an environment where there is little or no formal legal commitment to promoting and protecting minority languages or the rights of linguistic minorities other than those required by international law. In such situations, minority languages may remain largely in the private domain in terms of language use, transmission and education. Frequently, even where minority languages are officially recognized and legal provisions exist this does not result in implementation of rights in practice.20 42. Some States assign official status to minority languages that may be historically present or are used by a significant proportion of the population, while others establish broader constitutional and legal protection of all languages present in the State. Some States with diverse linguistic communities have adopted specific laws on the use of minority languages. There is a strong legal and symbolic significance to such constitutional and legal recognition, which sends a positive message to minority communities that their language rights will be protected. Where there is no explicit legal recognition there may nevertheless be broader administrative recognition and policy relating to the use of minority languages that provide assurance and practical measures relating to language use, for example, where a linguistic minority is geographically concentrated. 43. Failure to recognize minority languages may stem from a broader lack of State recognition and acknowledgement of an ethnic or linguist minority group. This may be due to a number of factors, including historical, geographical and political factors and tensions over land and territory. Hence some minorities claim that a process of cultural assimilation may take place that constitutes a grave violation of their rights. In countries with federal structures, the imposition of local or regional languages as the official language of regional states has reportedly resulted in members of some linguistic communities being rendered functionally illiterate and excluded from participation in the public life of the regions in which they live, including on the basis of their lack of language proficiency. 44. The South African Constitution (art. 6) recognizes as official languages Sepedi, Sesotho, Setswana, siSwati, Tshivenda, Xitsonga, Afrikaans, isiNdebele, isiXhosa and isiZulu, as well as English, and requires the State to take practical and positive measures to elevate the use of those languages, recognizing the ―historically diminished use and status‖ of some languages. Municipalities must take account of language usage and preferences of their residents, including in education. The 2010 revised Constitution of Kenya has provisions for minorities, including article 7, which requires the State to protect the diversity of language of the people of Kenya and promote the development and use of indigenous languages. Article 44 establishes the right to use the language of a person’s choice and to form cultural and linguistic associations. Article 56 requires the State to establish affirmative action programmes to ensure that minorities and marginalized groups can develop their cultural values, languages and practices, including in the field of education. 20 12 Only 29 of more than 2,000 African languages (0.15 per cent) are protected by their recognition as official languages. More than 20 African countries do not assign official status to any African languages.