ZCZC
BSS-37
PM-MESSAGE-EKUSHEY
PM greets all marking Martyrs and International Mother Language Day
DHAKA, Feb 20, 2020 (BSS) – Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina greeted the
Bangla-speaking people and people of all languages and cultures across the
world on the occasion of the glorious Martyrs and International Mother
Language Day.
In a message on the eve of Martyrs and International Mother Language Day,
the Prime Minister said the great Ekushey is the symbol of grief, strength and glory
in the life of every Bangalee as on this day in 1952, many valiant sons of
the soil, including Salam, Barkat, Rafiq, Jabbar, Shafique and sacrificed
their lives for protecting the dignity of the mother tongue.
The Prime Minister paid deep homage to the memories of the martyrs. She
also paid deep respect to the greatest Bangalee of all time, Father of the
Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman who had led the language movement
and all other language veterans.
In 1948, State Language Movement Council was constituted comprising
Tamuddin Majilish, Student League and other student bodies as per a proposal
of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, she said, adding that the council
called a general strike on March 11 to realise the demand for reconising
Bangla as the state language.
Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman along with a number of student leaders
was arrested on the day from in front of the Secretariat. They were released
on March 15.
Bangabandhu chaired a public meeting at Amtola on the Dhaka University
campus on March 16, she added.
The movement for the demand of mother tongue spread all over the country,
she said, adding that on September 11, 1948, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur was
arrested from Faridpur and he was released on January 21, 1949. He was again
detained on April 19 and released at the end of July and on October 14,
Bangabandhu was again arrested from Dhaka and confined to jail, she said.
“His (Bangabandhu) undaunted inspiration from inside the jail provided new
impetus to the people’s movement and in continuation of the movement, the
language martyrs sacrificed their precious lives on February 21, 1952 while
breaking Section 144 imposed by the rules,” she added.
The Prime Minister said the resonance of the pride of Amar Ekushey is now
resounded in the hearts of the people of the world surpassing the boundary of
Bangladesh.
Some expatriate Bangladeshis living in Canada including Salam and Rafiq
took initiative for recognition to the February 21 as the International
Mother Language Day, she said.
She said the then Awami League government placed the demand to the United
Nations and therefore, the UNESCO gave the recongnition to the February 21 as
the International Mother Language Day on November 17, 1999.
“The International Mother Language Day is now a source of inspiration to
all people of the world in establishing the truth and justice,” she added
“We have already placed the demand before United Nations to make Bangla,
spoken by over 26 crore people of the world, as one of the official languages
of the UN. We established ‘International Mother Language Institute’ in Dhaka
to preserve the languages of the world and carry out research on those,” said
the Prime Minister.
She said holding the spirit of Ekushey and War of Liberation, the present
government achieved a huge progress in every sector including macro economy,
agriculture, education, health, communication, information technology,
infrastructure, power, rural economic development, diplomatic success and
cooperation during the last 11 years.
She said Bangladesh is in now a ‘Role Model’ for development in the world.
Through the implementation of Vision 2021 and 2041, and Delta Plan-2100,
the present government has been working to build a hunger-poverty-free and
happy-prosperous Golden Bangladesh as dreamt by the Father of the Nation.
“Let us be firmly committed in the spirit of the great Ekushey, we will
unitedly build the Golden Bangladesh of the Father of the Nation,” the Prime
Minister added.
BSS/PR/TAN/RY/1830hrs