PM Hasina critical of speaking Bangla in English accent
Putting focus on practicing Bangla words properly, prime minister Sheikh Hasina on Friday castigated those, who speak Bangla in English accent.
“There is nothing to do except showing compassion for all those, who staying on the soil of Bangladesh, cannot speak in Bangla and who try to speak our mother language in English accent,” she said.
The prime minister said there are a few boys and girls in the united states, who make an effort to speak Bangla in English accent, forgetting Bangla and languages of their individual areas.
“It seems that they feel incredibly uneasy to speak in Bangla,” she added.
The prime minister said this while inaugurating a four-day programme of the International Mom Language Institute (IMLI) at Segunbagicha in the capital in afternoon on the occasion of the Amar Ekushey and the International Mom Language Day 2020.
Sheikh Hasina said the community is now a global village where everybody needs to learn other languages however the mother tongue has to never be neglected.
“To live here, to communicate with others, conducting business, knowing about other cultures and literature, one must learn different languages but not by excluding the mom tongue,” she insisted.
Presided over by education minister Dipu Moni, the function was likewise addressed simply by deputy minister intended for education Mohibul Hasan Chowdhury Nowfel and Head of any office and UNESCO Representative to Bangladesh Beatrice Kaldun while the special guests.
Ex - vice chancellor of Rabindra Bharati University, Kolkata, India professor Pabitra Sarkar presented the keynote.
Secretary of the Secondary and ADVANCED SCHOOLING Division beneath the education ministry Md Mahboob Hossain delivered the welcome address, while Director Standard of the International Mom Terminology Institute professor Jinnat Imtiaz Ali gave the vote of thanks.
Bangabandhu’s younger child Sheikh Rehana and granddaughter and chairperson of Bangladesh National Advisory Committee for Autism and Neurodevelopmental Disorders Saima Wazed Hossain were present in the function.
Besides, cabinet ministers, PM’s advisors, parliament people, foreign diplomats, Ekushey Award laureates, litterateurs, poets, academics, writers, researchers, linguists, poets, journalists, performers, heads of international organisations found in Dhaka and secretaries concerned to the primary minister were present.
Discussing a comment of professor Pabitra Sarkar, who provided the keynote speech in the function, the prime minister said: “The noted Indian educationist made a true remark that narrowness of head works in our midst while practicing our own language.”
Sheikh Hasina said there are several people who feel that their children would not get job or cannot move around in the society if indeed they do not study in English medium schools. “There is no doubt that they (those individuals) suffer from poor mentality.”
In this connection, the prime minister said she and her younger sister had to lead a refugee life abroad following the assassination of Father of the country Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in 1975.
“We were not fortune to supply education to our kids in Bangla medium from the very beginning, rather we had to have them admitted to foreign colleges on international soil,” she said.
Sheikh Hasina went on saying: “On the foreign soil we usually tried to teach our kids in Bangla language and we also often talked inside our mother language inside our homes.”
The prime minister said their children started likely to school or mixing with additional children there from their childhood and it had been pure for them they might learn foreign language.
“Simultaneously we both sisters tried in order that our kids can speak inside our mother language plus they now likewise speak in Bangla. There can be nothing at fault them if any issue on accent happens while speaking in Bangla,” she said.
The prime minister said she loves to talk in mom language or her village language. “However, we make an effort to speak Bangla effectively in the meetings, but when we talk inside your home we speak in the dialects of Gopalganj and Dhaka,” she noted.
“We speak on both the dialects mainly because we were born in Tungipara (on Gopalganj) and after moved to Dhaka on childhood. So are there influences of both dialects inside our speeches and we don’t look ashamed of it,” she said.
Discussing the historic 7 March speech of Bangabandhu, Sheikh Hasina explained the Father of the country unhesitatingly uttered the dialect of Gopalganj which created an charm among the people.
“Bangabandhu had been in a position to reach the hearts of the people extremely fast and tell the words of the persons. That’s why whatever directives he had given, the persons accepted those,” she stated.
Referring to her government’s steps meant for upholding the dignity of mom language, Sheikh Hasina explained the government is doing work relentlessly to ensure the utilization of Bangla at all levels and sectors in the united states.
“We’re also working for proper preservations of the mom languages of varied ethnic minorities,” she added.
The prime minister said because of timely initiatives of her government, the UNESCO on 17 November in 1999 declared 21 February as the International Mom Language Day in memory of the martyrs of the great language movement.
“Whenever we got this acknowledgement, we took a decision that we will set up a global mother words institute and accordingly, I along with then UN secretary standard Kofi Annan laid its basis rock on 15 March in 2001,” she said.
However the BNP-Jamaat alliance after arriving at power in 2001 stopped its do the job, Sheikh Hasina said. “Not merely they stopped the work of the International Mom Language Institute, but also cancelled all development projects that people had adopted.”
The prime minister said with a huge mandate of the people the Awami League formed the federal government in '09 2009 again and resumed the work of the institute.
“We passed the International Mom Language Institute Law in 2010 2010 and on 21 February the same calendar year, I inaugurated the Institute setting up … you want to strengthen the institute even more,” she said.
The prime minister said a language museum has already been set up at the International Mom Language Institute in fact it is gradually getting rich.
“Our language movement, the historic 7 March speech of Bangabandhu and the speech delivered by the US in Bangla and the identities of languages of Asia, Australia and the Pacific countries have been displayed in the museum,” she said.
Sheikh Hasina hoped that the mom tongues of the globe will soon discover a decoration put on the walls of the museum.
The prime minister said the IMLI has already been accredited as Category II Institute of UNESCO. “Through this recognition, our take pleasure in for language has got widened on the globe.”
Sheikh Hasina said she really wants to set up a trust fund for the institute alongside conducting its standard pursuits like curriculum and supplying fellowships or scholarships.
“We want to constitute the trust fund as we had seen that after the changing of the federal government in 2001, the BNP-Jamaat alliance federal government had halted the works of many projects that we launched … we want to carry out it in order that none can end it anymore,” she explained.
The prime minister said her government wants to make an arrangement to ensure that the people going to learn numerous languages can learn those languages through the institute right after paying a fee. “But we’ll present fellowship or scholarship to them,” she said.
“Our government provides seed money for the trust and can provide fellowship or scholarship from the interest of the amount of money for learning languages,” she added.
Remembering the glorious history of the Language Activity, the prime minister explained: “Actually, immortal Ekushey possesses instilled the sense of self-dignity in our midst and taught us not to bow down to anyone.”
Putting focus on teaching that history to upcoming generations, Sheikh Hasina said the day is important for the nation because independence of the united states was written by the letters of its (Ekushey) blood.
Sheikh Hasina said the immortal Ekushey is a bright and superb chapter of the thousand years’ history of Bangalee’s glorious struggles.
“Such sacrifice of the patriot Bangalees for establishing the dignity and honour of the mother tongue is very rare on the planet history,” she said, adding the glorious history ought to be taught the new generations.
Referring to Bangabandhu’s fantastic contributions to the language activity, the prime minister said he got mixed up in movement at the sooner stage.
She mentioned that Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib then said no nation can tolerate the humiliation of mom tongue. Regarding to his proposal in 1948, the Rashtrabhasha Sangram Parishad (Condition Words Movement Committee) was formed in colaboration with Chhatra League, Tamddun Majlis and other student organisations.
The prime minister said Bangabandhu was the primary driving force in every subsequent movements and he had to endure a whole lot of harassment while fighting for the mom tongue.
“You all understand that history. THE DADDY of the Nation has created that sequential record in his ‘Unfinished Memoirs’ and ‘Karagarer Rojnamcha (Prison Diary),” she said.
Sheikh Hasina said her authorities is taking Bangladesh forwards in a variety of fields including education, culture, economical and information technology.
“Bangladesh is moving fast and it will continue to progress and graduate to a good developing country from a good least developed one … our goal is to create a hunger-and-poverty-free Sonar Bangla while dreamt by Bangabandhu and Insha Allah we'd achieve the goal,” she said.
The prime minister said: “The year 2020 is a particularly important year in our countrywide life as the birth centenary of the daddy of the country Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman is going to be celebrated.”
“The celebrations of the Golden Jubilee of Independence and the birth centenary of the daddy of the country will continue simultaneously in 2021,” she added.
Sheikh Hasina reiterated her perseverance to light every property of the country within Mujib Borsho (12 months). “There will never be a single person to stay homeless, hungry, illiterate and with no treatment.”
Five children of 4 countries -- India, Congo, Russian Federation and Bangladesh -- thanked the prime minister in their own languages at the function.
Soon after, the prime minister unveiled the publication of the international phonetic alphabet of Bangabandhu’s historic 7 March 1971 speech and the publication of his historic 10 January 1972 homecoming day speech in indication dialect and Brail letters.
After, the prime minister visited the office of the National Execution Committee for the Special event of the Birth Centenary of the Father of the country Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman at the International Mother Vocabulary Institute.
Chairman of the committee national professor Mohammad Rafiqul Islam and chief coordinator Kamal Abdul Naser Chowdhury greeted the prime minister by presenting her with a good bouquet.
Previously, Sheikh Hasina inaugurated a mural of Bangabandhu about the institute premises. Primary minister’s assignment officer Arifuzzaman Nurnabi built the mural.
The prime minister down the road visited a image and painting exhibition on Bangabandhu at Shilpakala Academy in Segunbaghicha.
Accompanied simply by Sheikh Rehana and Saima Wazed Hossain, Sheikh Hasina found with keen interest unique historic photos and paintings on the Father of the Nation.
The exhibition titled “Lightning the Fire of Liberty Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman” has been presented by the Centre for Research and Details and produced by Samdani Art Foundation.
The exhibition is an integral part of Dhaka Art Summit that was held at the Shilpakala Academy from 7-15 February.
The exhibition will continue till 31 March marking the Mujib Borsho, the organisers said.
