Amar Ekushey Book Fair 2019 Inaugural Session Speech by Sheikh Hasina Prime Minister Government of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh Bangla Academy, Dhaka, Friday, 19 Magh 1425, 1 February 2019 Bismillahir Rahmanir Rahim Hon’ble Chair, Members of the Cabinet, Diplomats, Respectable Fellows, Life Members, Members and Employees of Bangla Academy, Respected guests from overseas, authors and journalists , Ladies and Gentlemen. Assalamu Alaikum and a very good afternoon to you all. I convey my greetings of February, the month of Language Movement. I do remember with respect all the Language Martyrs, including Salam, Barkat, Rafique, Jabbar and Shafiur, who laid their lives for the cause of our mother tongue Bangla. I recall all the deceased and living veterans of the Language Movement. I pay my deep homage to the one of the pioneer of Language Movement, the Greatest Bangalee of All times, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. We have gotten an independent Bangladesh in lieu of his 24-year of political struggle, imprisonment and oppression. I pay my respect to the 4-national leaders, 3 million martyrs and 200 thousand persecuted women of the war of liberation. I congratulate the distinguished writers who have been awarded Bangla Academy Literary Award 2018 for your outstanding contributions in different fields of literature. Ladies and Gentlemen, Many spread distorted information on the history of Language Movement let alone the Great War of Liberation. We observe a trend of highlighting themselves and undermining others in their write-ups/books of many politicians and writers. I think the misgivings have largely been addressed through the two books - The Unfinished Memoirs of Bangabandhu and the Secret Documents of the Intelligence Branch on the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. The Secret Documents of the Intelligence Branch on the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman is being published in 14 volumes where many unknown facts on Bangabandhu’s struggle for independence will be unveiled. After the partition of British India in 1947, the language movement was launched at the beginning of 1948. Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was closely associated with the movement from the very beginning. The book, Secret Documents of Intelligence Branch on Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman shows that when Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was a first year student of Law at the University of Dhaka, he on the 4th March 1948 signed the leaflet demanding Bangla as State Language on behalf of the Ad-hoc Organizing Committee of East Pakistan Muslim Students’ League and he, with some other students, was arrested while he was leading the students’ agitation in front of the Secretariat demanding Bangla as State Language. A weekly secret report issued from Faridpur SP office, as mentioned in the book, says, an all-out Hartal was called in Gopalganj on the 16th March 1948 protesting the arrest of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. In the afternoon, students of S.N. Academy and M.N. Institute brought out a protest rally in the town chanting ‘We demand Bangla as State Language’, Down with Nizamuddin, ‘Set Muhib Free’. On the 4th January 1949, a Protest Day against Oppression was observed in Dhaka. On this occasion, a meeting was held on the campus of Dhaka University with the presence of students from different other institutions. Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, Dabirul Islam and Nadera Begum spoke at the meeting. Sheikh Mujib said if the legitimate demand is not met up in a month, the students will launch direct protest. We could know from Bangabandhu’s `Unfinished Memoirs’ that the decision of observing the 21st February in 1952 as State Language Day was taken in a secret meeting held at a cabin of Dhaka Medical College Hospital. Ailing Bangabandhu was admitted in the cabin. About the decision to observe the State Language Language Day Bangabandhu wrote: “... In the next night, many came one after another. It was decided there that the State Language Day will be observed on 21st February and Action Committee shall be formed through meeting. The Convener should be made from Chhatra League.” (Unfinished Memoirs, Page-197) You know that Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman who won the election of 1970 was the chief guest in the events of the week-long program of Amar Ekushe arranged by Bangla Academy on 15 February 1971. In his speech Bangabandhu said: - Say honestly what you have done for the sake of our language! What sacrifice have you made for our country? ...Right from the day we shall go in power, Bangla shall be our state language. The Bangalees have not only gotten Bangla as state language, under the leadership of Bangabandhu, we achieved an independent-sovereign Bangladesh- the only language-based nation state in the world. Dear audience, The 21st February has now been recognised as the International Mother Language Day. This has also been materlised by Awami League government. UNESCO gave the recognition on 17 November 1999 following a joint effort by Bangladeshi expatriates in Canada late Rafiqul Islam, Abdus Salam and others, and the then government of Awami League. The International Mother Language Day is observed throughout the world on 21 February every year. We have established an International Mother Language Institute in Dhaka for developing, fostering, preserving and restoring mother languages of different language groups and communities. The 20th anniversary of the international recognition of 21st February will be on 17 November this year. I congratulate all in advance on this occasion. This year we are going to celebrate the anniversaries of two of our significant national events. The Mass Upsurge of 1969 and the conferring of the Bangabandhu title on Sheikh Mujibur Rahman will complete 50 years this year. There is a close link between these events and the independence of Bangladesh. The aspiration of independence of Bangalee got materilised through events like the Language Movement of 52, Mass Upsurge of 1969, absolute victory in the 1970 elections. Our new generation should be known of the history of these events. The history of the independence of Bangalee is a bright example of how a nation could reach its destination through huge sacrifice, subjugation and bloodshed. I am pleased to know that Bangla Academy has arranged seminars commemorating these two historic events. Dear Audience, It is the Language Movement that led to the establishment of Bangla Academy on 3 December 1955. Over the last three decades of its inception Immortal Eksushey Bookfair has been recognized as the longest book fair in the world. Now it is signified not only as a centre for selling and purchasing books, but also deeply associated with the national spirit of Bangalees. On the occasion of the fair, the Bangalees living across the globe not only turn back home but the foreign people also come here to see how deeply do the Bengalis cherish love for books. 2 Like the Jamdani and the Shital Pati, I think, the longest book fair held over the last four decades deserves to be enlisted in the World Heritage List. I would like to urge the concerned authorities to take initiatives in this regard. Ladies and Gentlemen, You know Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman promoted the dignity and glory of the Bengali language when he delivered his speech in Bangla in the National Assembly of the United Nations. I myself have been delivering my speeches regularly in Bangla in the sessions of the General Assembly of the United Nations. I believe firmly that with our united efforts we shall be able to have our beloved Bangla recognized as one of the official languages of the United Nations. Bangladesh has now been recognized as a land of book festivals. After our government has come to power we have set a world record by handing young students of the country on the very first day of every yew year millions of textbooks. As a result our young generation starts their new year with new books which is a unique incident in the history of education. As we have inspired the studies of literature and culture, we have also laid special emphasis on literature in translation. It is a matter of great pleasure for Bangalees that the book The Unfinished Memoirs by Bangabandhu has been translated into many languages of the world. I am delighted that Bangla Academy has taken initiatives for translating our literary classics. I hope this program will be more extended in future which will make us introduce glorious works of our language and literature to the people of the world. To cope with the digital publications, we are effectively running our programs for launching e-books. Our timely steps have made people able to use Bangla in place of Roman words in mobile massages. We have introduced various apps to apply Bangla on line. We have also advanced much towards using Bangla Unicode. Dear Countrymen, You have made me more responsible by your unprecedented support for the country’s ongoing development and progress as you have elected me for the third time to govern the country. The count-down of the Birth Centenary of Bangabandhu, will begin from 17 March this year. We will celebrate Mujib Year in 2020-2021. The Golden Jubilee of the Independence will also be celebrated in 2021, and 2022 will be the 70th anniversary of Amar Ekushey. We want to take this country to a new height marking these three great incidents. We want to establish a golden Bangladesh free from hunger, poverty, illiteracy, militancy and terrorism eradicating corruption and irregularities. I hope the countrymen will be with us in achieving these goals. With these few words, I hereby declared the month long book fair 2019.