How could the ILC choose an entirely neutral language, equally easy or difficult for all nationalities?
An entirely neutral language would be very difficult if not impossible to realise in practice. For instance, unless the script were bi-directional, or vertical perhaps, it would favour either the left-to-right majority or the right-to-left minority. Similarly, there would have to be a choice between logographic and alphabetic script – the former benefiting East Asian countries such as China and Japan, and the latter the rest of the world. Much the same might be said about phonology and grammar. Moreover, even if a “horizontal” neutrality were achievable between the very diverse languages and scripts of the world, there might still be the problem of finding a “vertical” neutrality, or median position, between linguists and non-linguists in every country. Briefly, it would be most impractical to start from an equal position in all linguistic categories. However, it should be possible to balance things out, and in such a way as to achieve an overall justice and equity. For instance, for p
