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Eternal Ekushey
The Youth Perspective
Tanzina Rahman
Photo: Ranak Martin
Remembering the remarkable journey of our gallant fighters who gave up their lives to reinstate Bangla in its rightful place, every year we gather at Shahid Minars across the country to observe Ekushey February.
In this issue of Star Campus, we the young generation have depicted the importance of our mother language and how we see this significant day.
Red and Green
Yamin Tauseef Jahangir
I stared at the red and green. A gentle breeze made the flags flutter as a man went from one car to the next at a traffic signal point, trying to sell them. On a busy weekend nobody seemed to be much interested in the old man, but his efforts went on. He stopped near my car and with a weary face looked at me. I smiled back and took one from him. His eyes glowed in ecstasy and it was all for the money, I knew. The vibrant colours made me realise they had so many untold stories, so much agony and tears hidden and the cavern of sorrow never to be revealed.
Being a part of the post liberation generation I admit I can never fathom those horrendous moments faced by the people of my country back in the times of the liberation war, the emotions when a person prayed to live a day longer, to breathe at ease or a mother having the courage to face the death news of her beloved son. But that never stopped me from being patriotic. I often heard from my parents and my grandparents about how strong we were, that we never gave up; the bullets kept coming and there was a bloody genocide, ravaging the lives of the innocent, but our heads were high against the blazing machine guns.
The aura of February is about understanding the true meaning of sacrifice. This month gives us the opportunity to pay tribute to those martyrs who believed in themselves, who gave up all their comforts of life and decided to take a stand against the Pakistani government. They were brave and fearless, they knew the consequences and yet in unison they raised their voice, "Rashtro Bhasha Bangla Chai". Now when I walk bare-feet and stand in front of Central Shaheed Minar, the symbolic structure creates emptiness within myself. Showering the place with flowers is not enough to show respect these heroes deserve. Everyone of us got to be like them, which frankly we all lack in one way or the other. With the advancement of technologies, our lives have become much easier now, so it should be easier to raise awareness amongst people as well. While the blame comes down on the educational institutions that children hardly have thorough knowledge on the language movement history and how far we have stretched ourselves just to reach the other side, I believe it is the duty of every individual to come forward and share information.
I have already seen changes in the children of our society that they do talk about the history of this country and are keen to know more. But these are baby-steps to be precise and it would take sometime to bring sufficient changes. We can change, if we believe like our heroes, if we can work hard with honesty and sheer dedication, we do can change. But saying these things in articles do not help; people do return to their usual chores of life anyway. But the scribbling goes on, and we should write, as many times as we can, hoping.
The signal turned green, but not greener than my beloved colour. I resumed my snail pace through the busy traffic, with the red and green and a heart that salutes all those who sacrificed for us to see a better day.
 Irrelevantly relevant!
Mahdin Mahboob
21st February is round the corner, like every other year. Another opportunity for us to don our very white, very stylish and very expensive punjabis and sarees and head towards the Shaheed Minar to place floral wreaths; another opportunity for us to observe the great sacrifice of the language martyrs with candlelight vigils, to speak in seminars and public gatherings about how 'proud' we are to be the only nation in the world to have fought for our mother language.
To me, all this seems like putting on a show of festivity only to those who laid down their lives, not only in the language movement, but also in the liberation war, when we see hatred to be the only norm in the country. Be it the universities, or the highest seats of government, hatred and rage against our fellow countrymen seems to be burning with a never ending supply of fuel. In universities, education and research seems to have taken a backseat to make space for hatred and violence. The highest levels of decision makers seem to be too busy fighting on trivial issues and have little if any, time to think about the country's development.
While most of the other countries in the world seem keen to be moving forward in terms of technology and innovation, the only thing we seem to be excelling in is in our rising levels of hatred; that too against no one else but our own people.
For once, let us promise to forget our differences and act as one country and one nation, not as mere selfish individuals. That is the only way to move forward and the sooner we realize that, the better.
(The writer is a MSc Student at the University of Southampton, Email: mahdin.mahboob@gmail.com)
21st February in the 21st Century
Subir Das and Sourov Das
From the time of childhood and heading towards adolescence we come across different learning curves of life. We touch, we smile, with bright eyes we observe and we hear and so we learn to speak. Now it is needless to say that it is spurred with one of the smallest, prettiest and sweetest words of Bengali context that is the fourth node of eastern octave and is considered the most mellifluous tone in voice, and it is none but the very word ‘maa’, which in English is mother.
The wicked scheme of ousting the language of the people in Bangladesh (the-then East Pakistan) was plotted about one year after Pakistan was born in 1947. The conspiracy was conspicuous as Bangla was omitted from stamps of the country. In 1948, Mohammad Ali Jinnah audaciously declared in a convocation program of Dhaka University that Urdu would be the only state language of Pakistan. The statement ignited the sentiment of students and became untenable, as Bangla was the mother-language of about 52% people of the whole region. The legerdemain of the Pakistani government went on throughout the later years and Bangla was gradually exterminated from almost all the official uses of the country. In 1952, Urdu was announced as the only language to be followed.
The feral desire of the repressive regime for exterminating Bangla triggered the blaze of protest. To keep the situation under control, section 144 was imposed which banned the gathering of 4 people in a place. On 21st February, 1952, a group of students of Dhaka University among who Salam, Rafique, Borkot are worthy to be mentioned, marched in front of Dhaka Medical College, defying section 144 in order to register their protest against the regime. The aftermath was a massive holocaust as the police force started to fire recklessly that led to deaths of students and common men. The sacrifice did not go in vain as Bangla was reinstated in official uses following the constitutional reformation in 1954.
The day 21st February today is viewed as the national day of martyrdom in Bangladesh. The day was conferred upon the international recognition in 1999. The first 21st February of this century was observed as the International Mother Language Day and in the later years. The motto of this observation is to protect and promote all the languages, especially the endangered ones. Today, the world pays homage to the gallant martyrs who committed the supreme consignment for the sake of mother language and motherland.
21st February, the day on which the martyrs of Bangladesh set examples of highest sacrifice is now recognized by the world, in the form of International Mother Language Day.
(The writers are students of Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering and Computer Science and Engineering, BUET, Dhaka.)
Ekushey February-
Teach Our Children Well
Asrar Chowdhury
The Indian Statesman and President of the Indian National Congress, Gopal Krishna Gokhale, once remarked, “What Bengal thinks today, India thinks tomorrow”. The history of Ekushey February is well documented and well engraved in the hearts of the people of Bangladesh. It is one of the many hurdles Bangladesh had to cross in 214 years from 1757 to 1971 that lead to the birth of Bangladesh as the first and still the only country in human history that was created on the basis of a language. Those who once termed Bangladesh as a “bottomless basket” may have been ignorant about the rich history and culture this country has. Ekushey February was formally recognised as the “International Mother Language Day” in 1999 by the United Nations. With Bangladesh, the whole world now celebrates Ekushey February as a formal recognition to one's mother language.
Much has been said and much will be said about Ekushey February. And still much needs to be said for the young of today who will guide Bangladesh to meet the challenges of the 21st Century when their time comes. Bangladesh has two curricula in its schools. On one side of the spectrum there is the SSC and the HSC and on the other side of the spectrum there is the English Medium based O and A Levels. In a market economy, based on their surroundings and ability, parents are free to choose from where their children will receive education. Once that choice is made the ball falls in the court of the schools. The schools and their curricula ultimately determine how the mind of the child will be shaped. And this is why Ekushey February and other national events and dimensions of the culture of Bangladesh needs to be focussed equally in both curricula.
History and experience is what makes a nation. If children are unaware or ignorant of their past their future automatically becomes meaningless. Educational institutes then become only a manufacturing centre for producing labour for the markets. They fail to create minds who will guide the ever increasing entrants into labour markets. The children of today grow up as outsiders in their own land.
They fail to integrate with the culture of the land and thus fail to achieve a sense of belonging that is essential if they are to make a positive qualitative contribution to the nation.
It is here that the educational institutes- schools, colleges and universities- have to play a parental role.
To paraphrase Napoleon's, “give me an educated mother and I will give you an educated nation”, the time has come for all of us who are related to educational institutes to appreciate, “let's give an educated environment, and today's young will give us an educated and bright future”. Bangladesh is full of culture. Bangladesh is full of history. The future of our children is in our hands. On Ekushey February, my earnest appeal to all teachers in Bangladesh- let's expose our children to our history and culture. Today's young are far brighter than what we and others before us ever were. They'll know what to do once we have given them our hearts. On Ekushey February, let us pledge to “teach our children well”.
Asrar Chowdhury teaches economics at Jahangirnagar and North South Universities.
Remembering The Past
Honouring The Heroes
Sohana Hassan
 Ekushey February plays a significant part in all our lives. This day reminds us how much we have sacrificed and endured just to free our mother language- Bangla - from the clutches of foreign rulers. The death toll was heavy but we still managed to reach our goal. It is only for our martyrs today that we speak in Bangla; it is for them that we now stand as an independent nation, striving for success. These patriots defied all that was wrong and stood strong on their grounds with freedom in their minds.
When Jinnah had declared that Urdu should be the only state language of Pakistan, i It sparked off a wide wave of resentment in East Bengal where the people spoke in Bangla. Politicians and students joined their forces for a broader movement under the leadership of many prominent leaders. As intensity of demonstrations and unrests began to get out of control, the government cracked down by imposing a curfew in Dhaka and a number of demonstrators got killed in front of the Dhaka Medical College. The First Martyrs to die were Rafiq, Salam, Jabbar, Barkat, and Salauddin. More died in police shootings on the following days. A makeshift memorial was erected at the spot of killings and the Shaheed Minar is now an icon emphasizing our culture and history and of the resistance against imposition of the Pakistani government. The Shaheed Minar is also a place where many subsequent movements for the basic rights of the Bengalis were born.
21st February, the International Mother Language Day is celebrated with highest honour and dignity nationwide. Millions of people gather at the Shaheed Minar to honour the language martyr heroes. The language movement was the beginning of Bengali nationalism from which we inherited the spirit to win in all democratic and rights movements including the independence of our country.
On November 17, 1999, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) declared February 21 as the International Mother Language Day, which is being celebrated worldwide. From the President to the common people of Bangladesh everyone celebrates this day when we offer flowers at Shaheed Minar walking on bare foot, praying for national prosperity. The government and different socio-political and cultural organizations take up separate programmes to observe the day. It is an inspirational event to save the language and culture of even minor tribes of the world.
(The writer is a student of Scholastica School)
Mother Language
Ashim Kumar Paul
The mother language of the people is the real identity of a nation. It is mother language that mirrors the cultural and traditional heritage of a nation. Thus, to overlook the real value of our mother language means to repudiate your own identity in front of the world.
Needless to say, in the changing world, the progress of a nation entirely depends upon its development of science and technology. And it is the mother language through which one can easily access the world of science and technology. Most of the developed countries have attained their supremacy in the arena of technology through the use of their own mother language. Therefore, to make a revolution in the education of science, there is a necessity of more research to publish science books in Bangla and make them available to the common people.
If we consider the mass media a route to communicate from root level to higher ones, it can be best done through the use of mother language. The effective use of mother language is important to convey the messages, raise awareness and above all give the right-direction to the mass people.
It is our foremost duty to uplift our mother language to the highest level, which our gallant fighters dreamt of. In addition, values, cultural heritage, progress of the country and above all having patriotic views are related to showing respect to mother language.
(The writer is a student of Department of English)
 Our language our pride
Shanjida Shahab Uddin
CAN I forget the twenty-first of February / incarnadined by the love of my brother? /The twenty-first of February, built by the tears /of a hundred mothers robbed of their sons, Can I ever forget it? This is the English version of “amar bhaier rokte rangano ekushe February/ aami ki bhulite pari?” which is the most heard song of 21st February that reminds us of the unforgettable sacrifice of our language martyrs for the sake of giving our mother language its appropriate place. Now it is a matter of immense happiness that our Language Day is no longer limited within its national boundaries. It is now being celebrated as the International Mother Language Day around the world. “Shaheed Minar” is the solemn symbol of the language movement that is still taking us back to those horrendous moments. Those historic happenings occurred during making protest against the Pakistani ruler's haughty decision that “Urdu and Urdu alone would be Pakistan's state language”. The language movement day is now a somber day when homage is paid to the martyrs who brought to the world's attention the necessity of keeping one's mother language alive. Salam, Barkat, Rafiq, Jabbar and other language martyrs did their utmost for our mother language but do we, the today's generation, truly do anything special to glorify of our own language? We don't do anything special for our language. All we have to do is to develop and enhance our mother language in all branches of understanding so that it can maintain its reputation amongst the world languages.
The writer is a studen of DU
My sense of Bengaliness
Shushmita Ahmed
 “Language is the blood of the soul into which thoughts run and out of which they grow.” -Oliver Wendell Holmes.
Istruggled very badly to write something inspirational and prudent about what mother language means, instead I am exploiting Holmes and feebly grasping at a rather vague idea of what my mother tongue means to me personally. But I agree with Mr. Holmes and I feel that his words effectively exemplify how most Bengalis feel about their beloved mother tongue. Since my childhood, I have heard of our language movement so may times that it had became sort of a cliche' to me. But as I grew up, I came to learn about both the tragic and joyous part of our language, almost changing my perception about it and awakening my unconscious self.
The culture of Bangalis is highly influenced by the Language Movement of 1952. Mother tongue is so important that the people of a country express their ideas, thoughts, feelings, emotions etc., surrounding the event But it was an irony of fate that once our mother tongue was on the way of annihilation as the Pakistani rulers declared, “Urdu will be the only official state language”. Some heroic sons came forward, raised their voice and sacrificed their lives. The language movement has its great impact on our liberation war, because from this, Benglalis had learned to protest against oppression for the very first time.
I feel humbled when I think that students and common people died in a bid to protect the language of ours, and that ultimately sent a clear message to the world that we are unique from others. I felt proud to be a Bengali, when 21st February was celebrated as the 'International Mother Language Day' on 17th November, 1999. The whole world remembers this day with solemnity and pay the language martyrs profound tribute, it is a fact of great glory and prestige for us.
(The writer is a student of 3rd year, Dept.of Law, University of Chittagong.)
 Mother Language
Ashim Kumar Paul
THE mother language of the people is the real identity of a nation. It is mother language that mirrors the cultural and traditional heritage of a nation. Thus, to overlook the real value of our mother language means to repudiate your own identity in front of the world.
Needless to say, in the changing world, the progress of a nation entirely depends upon its development of science and technology. And it is the mother language through which one can easily access the world of science and technology. Most of the developed countries have attained their supremacy in the arena of technology through the use of their own mother language. Therefore, to make a revolution in the education of science, there is a necessity of more research to publish science books in Bangla and make them available to the common people.
If we consider the mass media a route to communicate from root level to higher ones, it can be best done through the use of mother language. The effective use of mother language is important to convey the messages, raise awareness and above all give the right-direction to the mass people.
It is our foremost duty to uplift our mother language to the highest level, which our gallant fighters dreamt of. In addition, values, cultural heritage, progress of the country and above all having patriotic views are related to showing respect to mother language.
(The writer is a student of Department of English)
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