Answer:
National language is a driving force behind national unity, writes Asim Nawaz Abbassi, 27, of Islamabad in Pakistan, yet in spite of having constitutional status there is no plan to promote the use of Urdu in Pakistan. English is becoming the symbol of the elite.
National language is a driving force behind unity of the nation’s people, and makes them distinct from other nations – provided you give your language respect. Giving respect to your national language means that it should be one’s primary language, as well as the preferred source of communication at every level. One should know as many languages as one can absorb, but use one’s own language at every level. History proves that every great leader tried his best to strengthen the national language. China’s revolutionary leader Zedong Mao had a great respect for his own language. Notwithstanding knowing many other languages, he never used them and preferred to use Chinese as his medium of communication. One can gauge the importance of a national language by the fact that Language Movement is considered to have laid the foundation for the separation of one part of Pakistan into Bangladesh.
Explanation:
But unfortunately the case is the opposite with Pakistan compared to most of the other Asian countries like India and Bangladesh. The 1973 constitution of Pakistan promulgated Urdu to be the national language of Pakistan and set out the required arrangements to be made so that Urdu would be used for official and other purposes within 15 years of its commencement. Nevertheless, after the gap of more than 60 years, no specific arrangements have been made and no clear plan or policy has been devised to attain this constitutional goal. Parliament has not passed any law or formulated any policy to date to ensure the replacement of English by Urdu for official purposes.
SANA MAKATULONG ☺
