Shaheed Dibash & Int’l Mother Language Day observed in Bangladesh embassy in Washington, D.C.

Shamim Ahmad, Washington, DC, 21 February : Displaying linguistic diversity and multilingualism in a brilliant fashion, artists from Bangladesh and 12 foreign countries sang and danced during a cultural soiree at Bangladesh embassy in Washington, D.C. in observance of the International Mother Language Day.

Performers from Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Colombia, China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Nepal, Paraguay, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Ukraine and USA sang songs and danced, enthralling the audience in the packed Bangabandu Auditorium Thursday evening.

Speaking on the occasion, Bangladesh Ambassador to the USA Mohammad Ziauddin said the dissemination of mother languages encourages linguistic diversity and multilingual education throughout the world. He said the respect for each other’s language, inspires international solidarity based on understanding, tolerance and dialogue.

On UNESCO’s proclamation of the International Mother Language Day, the Ambassador said Bangladesh as the pioneer of the resolution  has a scared obligation not only to protect Bangla but also all other languages.

Diplomats from different embassies, political leaders, journalists, representatives of social and cultural bodies and expatriate Bangladeshis largely attended the event.

Earlier, in observance of the “Shaheed Dibash”, officials and employees of the embassy under the leadership of Ambassador Mohammad Ziauddin paid glowing tributes to the language heroes who made supreme sacrifice to establish Bangla as the state language of erstwhile Pakistan in 1952.

The Day vowed to preserve and enrich Bangla, the language of more than 25 million people of the world.

Ambassador Ziauddin placed wreaths at altar of the Shaheed Minar on the embassy premises at one minute past zero hour. The Ambassador was followed by the embassy officers, staff and family members. They stood in solemn silence for a while as a mark of deep respect to the memories of the language heroes.

The Ambassador also hoisted national flag at half-staff. Later, the messages of the Hon’ble President, Hon’ble Prime Minister, Hon’ble Foreign Minister and Hon’ble State Minister for Foreign Affairs were readout. Special prayer was offered seeking divine blessings for the martyrs of the Language Movement and the Liberation War. The prayer was also offered for the salvation of the departed souls of those who were killed in the deadly fire in old Dhaka.