Foreign language use must follow national language policy

A state remains dynamic through internal and interstate conflicts and synthesis. Within a state, separate groups arise based on factors such as tribes, religious communities, regional characteristics, linguistic differences, etc. Diversity prevails in the state’s populace. By acknowledging this diversity and adhering to the principle of unity and coordination within diversity, the government must address the issues arising from this diversity in the internal demographic of the state. While advocating for pluralism in culture, if divisions are created within the nation, unity will break down, and the state will not endure. This undermines the very conditions necessary for the state's existence.

In British-ruled India, due to the lack of natural development of nationalist ideals and the backwardness of thought and spirit, during the final stages of the independence movement, Hindu and Muslim communalism emerged—leading to the invention of the Two-Nation Theory. Ultimately, communalism replaced nationalism, and based on this communalism, two states, Pakistan and India, were established. This did not resolve the nation problem in the Indian subcontinent. Pakistan’s government would often refer to India as Pakistan's primary enemy. There was a linear distance of eleven hundred miles between the two parts of Pakistan, and the history, heritage, and culture of the people in these two parts were distinct. Taking a position against India, Pakistan became dependent on the assistance of the United States. Similarly, Bangladesh has also become dependent on the United States.

In the then Pakistan, there were issues related to the state language, national culture, provincial autonomy, and constitution-making. In East Pakistan, Bengali nationalism emerged in place of Pakistani nationalism, and through the bloody war of 1971, Bangladesh was established. Attempts to create a lingua franca, foster Pakistani nationalism, and draft and implement a constitution were unresolved. Any efforts or initiatives opposing the awakened Bengali nationalism in East Pakistan were met with strong reactions from the people of the region. The desire for autonomy centered around Bengali nationalism soon transformed into a political demand for self-governance, and around this demand, a mass movement was formed. The movement for autonomy began with the central issue of the state language. It is important to remember that the issue was not about the mother tongue but the state language. The movement aimed to establish Bengali as one of the state languages of Pakistan. The entire matter was a political one.

Between the two parts of Pakistan stood India. The central leaders of Pakistan, who wanted to establish Pakistan as a permanent state, viewed India as a threat to Pakistan. They did not trust the people of East Pakistan, including progressive writers and political leaders. They believed that, given the chance, the people of East Pakistan would separate from Pakistan. With this mistrust, they adopted a strict repressive policy toward East Pakistan with the aim of creating a unified, centralized Pakistan. The demand to make Bengali one of the state languages of Pakistan and introduce Bengali at all levels in East Pakistan gave rise to and constantly fueled the movement for autonomy in East Pakistan—whose true form was the Bengali nationalist movement in East Bengal at the time.

Urdu was the language of a small number of elite families in both parts of Pakistan. Punjabi, Sindhi, Balochi, and Pashto were the languages of the people of Punjab, Sindh, Balochistan, and the North-West Frontier Province, respectively. Bengali was the language of the people of East Pakistan. The political circles were also aware of the distinct cultures associated with each province's language. In this context, the proponents of Pakistan attempted to make Urdu the sole state language of Pakistan for the sake of political and cultural unity. The question of the state language became a serious issue when the constitution of Pakistan was being drafted.

During the movement for Bengali as the state language, on February 21, 1952, the police fired tear gas and blank shots at protesting students. As a result, Dhaka University student Abul Barkat was martyred. As soon as this news spread, the political situation across East Bengal became heated. The movement gained momentum, and the government imprisoned the leaders of the movement. To suppress the movement, the government used one tactic after another and was able to quell the movement within a few days. However, the surge of nationalist democratic spirit in East Bengal that emerged through this movement did not die down. It continued to flow as a growing emotion. February 21 was declared Martyrs' Day, and every year, this day is observed with intense emotion as Martyrs' Day.

The essence of the Language Movement was the desire to establish Bengali as one of the state languages of Pakistan, alongside the distinct national spirit of the people of East Pakistan, their unique national culture, their commitment to democracy, and their sense of justice in socio-economic and state matters. This spirit was shared by the people of all levels of East Bengal. Ultimately, those who opposed this movement were few in number. The flaws, limitations, and distortions of the nationalist movement in British-ruled India served as the backdrop for the development of our language movement and nationalist spirit during the Pakistan era. At that time, the demand for a state language was linked to the broader issue of nation and state-building. Initially, everything was not clear, but it gradually became clearer over time.

Through the events of February 1952, a spirit was formed, which over the subsequent years, especially with the observance of Martyrs' Day on February 21, became deep, widespread, and far-reaching. During that period in our national life, the observances of February 21 were highly creative. Through these events every year, the public spirit was continually elevated. Progressive thinking developed among the people, and writers and artists showcased extraordinary creativity. Significant progress was made in knowledge, literature, and the arts. The 21-point program of Jukto Front in 1954, the Awami League's six points, the NAP's fourteen points, the Eleven-Point Movement of the Chhatra Sangram Committee, the 1962 education movement, the 1969 mass uprising, the 1971 national uprising, and the liberation war all occurred as part of the ongoing development of the February 21 spirit. The deeper and broader the perspective on history, the clearer and more evident this connection will become.

After the establishment of Bangladesh, in a very short period, the spirit of the Pakistan era transformed and fell into chaos. The United Front’s 21-point program, the Awami League’s six points, the NAP’s fourteen points, and the Chhatra Sangram Committee’s eleven points failed to drive socio-economic and cultural progress in Bangladesh. Meanwhile, the unprecedented development of knowledge, science, and technology, coupled with ideological changes, reshaped global realities. In this context, there is a need today for a new wave of creative thought and action. The desire for state-building that existed in our lives during the Pakistan era has become even more essential in today’s global reality, not less. The resolve of the people of Bangladesh to establish a strong democratic state on this land must be our resolve today. To build the state, democracy, socialism, nationalism, internationalism, and other ideologies must be integrated and developed, ensuring that democracy and nationalism are both practical and effective. All ideologies must be incorporated into democracy.

Colonialism, imperialism, and fascism are perversions of nationalism. These perversions manifest in powerful states, which damages the reality of nation-states worldwide. In addition, conflicts and wars between states occur, creating the need for dispute resolution and cooperation among them. This gives rise to internationalism. Internationalism seeks to protect and develop nation-states, ensuring no interference in the internal matters of one state by another. It aims for peaceful conflict resolution, the promotion of global brotherhood, and the solidarity of humanity. The establishment of the United Nations was a key step in realizing internationalism. Internationalism complements nationalism. After the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, the theory of globalization emerged, with its central trend pointing toward the establishment of a unipolar world state. The diplomacy, intelligence, cultural policy, trade policy, and war strategy of the great powers guide the development of globalization. In practice, US foreign policy has shaped globalization. Weaker states continue to face devastation from the impact of globalization. For weak states to become strong and prosperous, they must become people's states in true sense, anchored in nationalism and its complementary internationalism. Bangladesh must follow this path. Only by doing so can we advance toward the logical development of our language movement in today’s global system.

In some distant future, national cultures and nation-states will inevitably be abolished, and a world culture and world state will emerge; however, this will not happen in the near future. Keeping this in mind, we must focus on strengthening our self-power, self-reliance, and the progressive development of our nation and state. We must follow the principles of internationalism. We must accept knowledge, science, technology, and material resources from the outside world, and we must also give back in return; but we must abandon dependence. Our country is rich in natural resources. Our people are hardworking and innovative. If we can build a strong and prosperous state, our creativity will serve as a model for humanity. For this, we need political leadership, political parties, and governments of high moral character.

In 1999, UNESCO declared February 21 as International Mother Language Day. On this occasion, many in our country discuss the world’s “at least eight thousand mother languages” on February 21. They search for ways to protect the dying languages of tribes or small ethnic communities. Many individuals and organizations assist these small, marginalized nations or tribes in preserving their mother languages, often providing financial assistance. They make efforts to establish alphabets for these languages and urge the government to provide at least basic education in these languages. They propose various ways to protect the disappearing languages. However, they give little thought to the condition of the two hundred languages in which daily newspapers are published worldwide. Among these two hundred languages, the languages of weaker nations are disappearing. English is gradually replacing these languages. If these nations cannot build strong states, how can they preserve their languages? Without a state, there is no state language. Without a state language, what good is it to preserve the mother language alone, leaving the national language to fade away?

The activities surrounding International Mother Language Day should be assessed in terms of what they attempt to achieve and what they actually accomplish. Solutions to the language problems of tribes or nations must be sought in the context of their overall development.

We must realize that the state language and the mother language are not the same. The mother language is acquired naturally, spontaneously by a person, whereas the state language must be learned through education, effort, erudition and knowledge. It must be activated within the system of governance. The state language needs to be made effective in the judicial system, administrative system, and throughout the education system. It also needs to be developed through constant practice. The use of the mother language is limited to immediate family members, relatives, and small social circles. The mother language allows one to enjoy life more fully. And it is on the basis of the mother language that the state language is built. However, there are many differences between the mother language and the state language. We must be especially aware not to confuse the activities surrounding International Mother Language Day with state language efforts. While we will always desire to use our mother tongue in life, we also seek the practice of the state language. Our sincere wish is that we do not consider the state language as secondary to the mother language. It would be a grave mistake to abandon the state language for the sake of the mother language, or vice versa.

The nature of the problem is different for tribal or smaller ethnic groups. If we attempt to improve their language or culture through external efforts or convert them, it will not lead to positive outcomes. We must allow them to develop independently, adapting to their surrounding conditions.

With the development of technology, the advent of globalization, and the spread of the English language, many have become indifferent to the Bengali language. Even among the general population, there is a more relaxed attitude regarding this issue. Many seem to believe that Bengali will not be widely used outside the realm of the mother language for much longer. This viewpoint is wrong. A state language cannot remain alive just by being in the constitution; it must have a vibrant presence at all levels of national life. For the development of the state language, or the national language, we need a national language policy. Everyone with a conscience in the country must courageously express their thoughts on the issue of national language policy. Through thoughtful and constructive discussions, we must move toward necessary decisions. Rash, ill-considered decisions will lead to our downfall. We will accept English, but we will enrich the Bengali language with the knowledge of English. We will keep the use of Bengali open and flourishing in all internal matters of Bangladesh. Not only will we embrace English, but we will also reject narrow-mindedness when it comes to adopting words and concepts from all languages into Bengali. Our attitude should be one of openness and a welfare-driven, liberal policy. If we abandon the national language for English, we will make a mistake and be harmed. Bengali should be our primary linguistic foundation.

A national language policy needs to be adopted regarding the use of Bengali, as well as other languages like English, French, German, Russian, Chinese, Japanese, Arabic, Persian, and others in Bangladesh. The policy should clearly define where and to what extent these languages should be used, and how their language learning system in the country. If the government does not take the initiative in this matter, the country's intellectual and thoughtful educated individuals can step forward. If they do not, then in practical terms, Bengali will only exist as a mother tongue, rather than as a state or national language.

Abul Quasem Fazlul Huq: Philosopher and former professor, University of Dhaka