Day of the Movement for the Language

The day of the movement for the language is one bank holiday with the Bangladesh commemorating the demonstrations, severely repressed, for the recognition of the Bengali.

History

The Movement for the Language (Bengali: Bhasha Andolon ) was a cultural movement and policy in 1952 in old the Pakistan Oriental, become since the Bangladesh).

After the formation of the Pakistan in 1947, the leaders of the Western Pakistan majority with the government, decided to make Ourdou (language of Pakistan Occidental) the national language of entire Pakistan. The population of Bengali, numerically majority in the whole of Pakistan, protested against this decision and asked for a statute of equality for its language, the Bengali.

The business took bad turning in February 1952, when the Gouverneur of Pakistan Oriental, Khawaja Nazimuddin, pointed out the position of the government in connection with the national language.

The police force proclaimed the “ Section 144 ” which prohibited any meeting. In spite of that, the students of the University of Dhâkâ with other political militants formed a procession the February 21st 1952. Close to the current university hospital of Dhaka, the police force opened fire on the demonstrators and there were many victims.

The movement extended in all Pakistan Oriental. Finally the central government yielded, and the linguistic equality was proclaimed.

This movement is the precursor of the movement which leads to the independence of the Bangladesh in 1971.

In memory of the movement, a sculpture was set up on the place of the massacre, the Shaheed Minar. The day of the movement for the language is one bank holiday in Bangladesh.

Then, in November 1999, on February 21st was declared “ international Day of the native tongue ” by the the United Nations.

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