Development of state language Bangla shouldn’t be hindred for upgradation of mother tongue

In the world, daily newspapers are published in nearly two hundred languages. These languages are evolving. Among them, Bengali still holds a prominent position in terms of knowledge, science, art, and literature. Apart from these, there are several thousand small ethnic groups in various continents. They also have separate languages. Their languages are also dissolving.

In Bangladesh, there are 45 minority ethnic groups, each with its own mother tongue. The total population of these 45 groups is slightly more than one percent of Bangladesh's total population. They learn Bengali, the national language, alongside their own language from birth. They are considered bilingual. They consider Bengali as the basis for their development. Efforts to preserve minority mother tongues, both in Bangladesh and in various other countries, are not always realistic. In this regard, UNESCO's advocacy and actions are anti-reality.

People from minority ethnic groups prioritize learning the national language over their own languages for the necessities of their livelihoods and development. This includes their potential for improvement. The development of marginalized communities spread across various nations must be prioritized, and efforts should be made to reintegrate them into the mainstream of humanity's fundamental trajectory. Additionally, policies should be enacted to abandon the practice of perpetuating their indigenous status indefinitely.

The essence and objectives of International Mother Language Day by UNESCO are entirely different from the core consciousness and purpose of our language movement. By this, the establishment of Bengali as a national language is being disrupted and the possibility of developing Bangladesh as a state is also being destroyed. It would not be appropriate to halt the progress of the development of the national language Bangla for the advancement of dissolving, multilingual mother tongues. Instead, we should move forward by adhering to the principles of the language movement to create a new future.

The path advocated by imperialist powers, civil society organizations, NGOs, and UNESCO for the development of marginalized communities often hinders their progress. Many times, their initiatives and programs become barriers to the advancement of these marginalized communities. Small communities need to collaborate with larger communities for their own development and to learn the national language. If they refuse to accept anything from the outside and only focus on their own bilingual mother tongue and internal way of life, they will never be able to progress. Small communities need to embrace good things from outside for their own development and progress. In order to fulfill their own development needs, they must prioritize the national language even more than their mother tongue.

It is important to remember that the state language conveys much more than just the language used in official capacities. It embodies the language of knowledge, science, arts, and literature in the national life, as well as the language of economic, social, political, and cultural activities of the nation. The advancement of the state language leads to the advancement of the civilization inherent within the nation.

If a language is economically viable, it remains progressive. No minority community can sustain its livelihood solely on its dissolving mother tongue. Imperialists are trying to weaken the economic, social, cultural, and national foundations of Bengali by promoting dissolving mother tongues in Bangladesh for imperialistic purposes.

We must realize that for the existence and development of Bangladesh as a nation, the presence and progress of the Bengali language as the state language are indispensable. There are ongoing events that suggest if Bengali does not remain as the state language, Bangladesh will not remain as a nation. The country will remain, with its land, people, flora and fauna, rivers and streams, and the sky and winds; however, it will not have a state. Those who advocate for English instead of Bengali as the state language in Bangladesh, will they protect Bangladesh as a state?

Country and state are not the same. The country is the creation of nature, the state is of people. If we don't have a state, if we only have a country, will we be better? If we do not have our own state, will we be free? Why did we fight for freedom in 1971? Why did we join the six-point movement? Why did we do the national language movement? Why did we want to be free from British rule? If the goal of developing Bangladesh as an independent state is left out, these demands become meaningless.

Some thoughtful individuals, considering the geographical reality and Bengali character, have expressed doubts about the viability of Bangladesh as a nation-state since 1973. They emphasize the perceived weaknesses in the Bengali character. However, their arguments and opinions have never seemed convincing to me. Many of them have obtained citizenship in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia, and almost everyone has made their children citizens of those countries. I have always believed in the potential for development in the Bengali character. I have always believed, and still believe, that Bangladesh can and must be built as a progressive nation-state of its own people. The sense of inferiority complex is gradually eroding all segments of Bangladeshi society, regardless of wealth, education, power, or influence. We must liberate the nation from it. It is essential to awaken the sleeping populace. We must all do our part to improve the situation for the betterment of the nation.

The civil society organizations have turned Bangladesh's politics towards a more diplomatic orientation by establishing strong ties with foreign embassies. The two big political parties are running on embassy-oriented politics without thinking about nation and state formation. All media in Bangladesh acted as blind followers of BBC Radio in 1980s and 90s. So did the opposition parties. While out of power, representatives of the two major political parties regularly visited the local embassies of the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia, as well as India, appealing for help in holding fair, free and impartial elections. They went to specific desks at the State Department of the US Foreign Ministry. Some leaders went to the United Nations head office in New York and lobbied for holding the National Assembly elections under the supervision of the United Nations.

The imperialist financial institutions adopt names like 'donor agencies' and 'development partners' to influence Bangladesh's national policies. The elite and upper-middle-class individuals, belonging to both pro-government and opposition factions, are sending their children to become citizens of countries such as the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and others. It is evident in the cabinet, the national parliament, administrative system, judiciary, and educational system. These are the individuals who are in positions of authority and responsibility in Bangladesh's state apparatus and business-commerce. On one hand, there are the O-Level, A-Level, and other programs administered through the British Council and Cambridge University on behalf of the British government in Bangladesh, while on the other hand, there is the newly introduced English version by the Bangladesh government. All of these pose significant challenges to the formation of the nation and state in Bangladesh.

The more we contemplate language and human life, and the relationship between human life and language, and engage in information retrieval and analysis, the deeper our understanding becomes of the inseparability and development of these two aspects. For these reasons, it can be said that it is our responsibility to understand language in new ways and to give it much more importance than we currently do.

Author: Linguist and former professor, Department of Political Science, University of Dhaka.