[lg policy] Lingua Pakistan?

Thu Oct 27 15:08:30 UTC 2011

Lingua Pakistan?
By Tariq Hassan

A NATIONAL language not only represents the national identity of a
nation but also serves as a mode of communication that binds people
living in a country to a common cultural bond. It fosters mutual
understanding that is essential for attaining economic and social
development and preserving peace and harmony in society.

The 1973 constitution of Pakistan, like the preceding two — 1956 and
1962 — constitutions, proclaimed Urdu to be the national language of
Pakistan and required arrangements to be made for its being used for
official and other purposes within 15 years from its commencement.
However, after the lapse of more than 30 (60, if one takes into
account similar obligations under the previous two constitutions)
years, no specific arrangements have been made nor a clear plan or
policy has been formulated to attain this constitutional goal (Article
251).

English language is allowed to be used for official purposes until
arrangements are made for its replacement by Urdu.
Parliament has not passed any law or formulated any policy to date to
ensure the replacement of English by Urdu for official purposes.

The prescription of Urdu as a national language in Pakistan is based
on the perception that it is the most commonly used and understood
language in the country. The importance given to the understanding of
a language is evident in the administration of oaths under the
Pakistan constitution, which prefers an oath of office under the
constitution to be made to a person in Urdu or a language understood
by that person (Article 255[1]). Thus understanding of a language is
considered necessary for a person to fulfil his promise or discharge
his responsibility.

A National Language Authority has been set up, under the
administrative control of the cabinet division, to promote Urdu as the
national language. However, the national language and other languages
used for official purposes, including medium of instruction, are under
the domain of the education division, which has oddly enough not been
given the specific task to facilitate the implementation of the
constitutional obligation through its educational policies.

Consequently, the 2009 education policy indicates the education
division’s universal approach towards language: “English is an
international language, and important for competition in a globalised
world order. Urdu is our national language that connects people all
across Pakistan and is a symbol of national cohesion and integration.
In addition, there are mother tongues/local vernaculars in the country
that are markers of ethnic and cultural richness and diversity.The
challenge is that a child is able to carry forward the cultural assets
and be at the same time, able to compete nationally and
internationally.”
(para. 21) The education policy thus merely seeks to overcome the
linguistic divide in the country between English and non-English
medium schools.

Despite the prescription of Urdu as a national language, the Pakistan
constitution caters for a multilingual society in Pakistan.
It empowers a provincial assembly to by law prescribe measures for the
teaching, promotion and use of a provincial language.
Consequently, the provinces of Sindh and Punjab have enacted laws for
teaching, promotion and use of the Sindhi language and establishment
of the Punjab Institute of Language Art and Culture for the promotion
of Punjabi respectively.

The Pakistan constitution provides for the preservation and promotion
of distinct languages spoken by any section of citizens.
This provision is important to enhance the level of understanding of
linguistic minorities in the country. It is also in accordance with
Pakistan’s international obligation under the International Covenant
on Civil and Political Rights, which requires states to allow
linguistic minorities to use their own language.

The Pakistan constitution also requires the state to encourage and
facilitate the learning of the Arabic language to enable the Muslims
of Pakistan to understand the meaning of life according to the Holy
Quran and Sunnah so that they can live their lives in accordance with
the Islamic way of life. The requirement to facilitate the learning of
the Arabic language is based on the basic premise that understanding
of the language is important for enhancing compliance with the tenets
of Islam.

Realising the importance of global communication, a National
University of Modern Languages has been established in Islamabad to
promote the learning of other languages as well. Going beyond the call
of duty, the Sindh government has recently announced that students in
Sindh (who are already burdened with learning three languages: Urdu,
English and Sindhi) would now be required to learn Chinese as well!
Thus there seems to be languages galore in Pakistan.

Given the multifarious linguistic interests in the country, the
constitutional obligation appears to have been out of focus. No
tangible efforts have been made to date to replace English with Urdu
or use Urdu for official and other purposes. This apparent
constitutional disregard led to a constitutional petition being filed
in the Karachi high court against the Federation of Pakistan (2004 CLC
1831).

The petition was, however, dismissed without any proper legal analysis
or necessary judicial reasoning. The division bench judgment merely
relied on the statements made on behalf of the National Language
Authority and the cabinet without either examining the practical
significance of the actions purported to have been taken by them or
requiring the submission of a credible policy or plan.

The judiciary appears to be complacent about the language and the 2009
National Judicial Policy is, therefore, silent on the issue. Neither
the legislature nor the judiciary appear to have done anything to
facilitate the implementation of the constitutional obligation and the
various efforts by the federal and provincial governments have had
little impact on the development and use of national and provincial
languages in the absence of a proper plan or policy in this regard.

What is required now is an integrated and concerted effort by all the
organs of state to formulate and implement a uniform language policy
based on constitutional requirements and their underlying principles.

The writer is an advocate of the Supreme Court of Pakistan and former
chairman, Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan.

law.hassan at gmail.com

http://www.dawn.com/2011/10/26/lingua-pakistan.html

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