International Mother Language Day

 In 1999,UNESCO has declared 21st February as the international  mother language day. It is a red-letter day for our country. On this day of 1952,  people have sacrificed their lives for the sake of their mother language. Bangladesh is the only nation that has sacrificed their lives for their mother language. In 1952, Pakistani rulers declared that Urdu will be the solo national language of Pakistan even though Bangla was spoken by a majority of population of East Pakistan. The people of  East Pakistan couldn't agree with the declaration and protests were carried on. To demolish the protest, the government banned all kind of protest and rallies. Section -144 was declared to ban any kind of rallies and protests in Dhaka. However, students of Dhaka Medical, Dhaka University and some general people disobeyed the declaration and they carried on the protest. The police opened fire on rallies and Salam, Rafiq, Barkat, Jabbar and Shafiur were killed. Then protests and turmoil spreaded throughout the country.Shaheed Minar was built to pay tribute to those who have lost their lives.As a result of huge protest, the Pakistani Government was forced to change their decision and declared Bangla as the state language of Pakistan along with Urdu.Since then people of Bangladesh celebrate this day to pay respects to the martyred by offering flowers to the Shaheed Minar.They remember them with great love and respect. To promote the love of mother language and to make the world known about the sacrifices made by our language martyrs,on 17th November of 1999, UNESCO gave 21st February international recognition. It is a matter of pride for us as now the whole world know about the supreme sacrifice people of Bangla has made for their mother language.At present, 188 countries of the world celebrate 21st February as their mother language day.We also celebrate this tragic day with pride and respect. It is a duty of us to uphold this pride make the proper use of our mother language.