Bid to make Arabic 3rd official language seems rational

The government is moving towards the inclusion of a third language as the official language in Bangladesh. Before evaluating the credibility of Arabic as the third language, it is necessary to underscore how multilingualism is better than monolingualism, though it is quite rare to find a monolingual nation in this open and borderless communication system acrossthe globe. Imagine a nation having a language. What challenges do you guess this nation has to face? First of all, it will fail in transnational exchange, required for business, education, and technological transmission. It is never possible that the nation is self-sufficient in health, science, and informatics. Can you interpret how this nation will receive knowledge from the global parties?

Again, Mauri and English should not be justified from a single point of view. Though a monolingual nation has only English and another nation has Mauri, the first nation gains quantified preferences due to the status of English as a lingua franca. Here, the state will practically endorse English over Mauri, and the Mauri community will accommodate English as their second language due to the weight of English as a linguistic capital. With this endorsement, both of the languages will gain. As per the theory of naturalization, the phrases, words, and expressions from one culture, borne through their language, are merged, and languages become diverse and culturally vibrant, strong, and the rate of their sustainability will multiply. 

Next, being multilingual raises the potential of the human brain. The learner develops their other language skills with conscious effort, enabling their brain to negotiate between their native language and the second language. Through this process, a human becomes a multi-tasker and a rational speaker, who needs to justify the appropriateness of expression permeated by the situation that would not have been necessary for a monolingual. Though a multilingual speaker claims much time for initiating language acts than a monolingual speaker, it sharpens the speech and ensures its gravity and contextually appropriate and correct. Secondly, a natural tendency of humans in the use of language is that they love simplification and love to use simple words while communicating, as it seems easier for their organs of speech to deliver easily and to remember easily. You can conduct a study with two words: 'Kingkortobbobimurh' (Bangla) and 'Confused' (English). I guess you can find that your participants will be comfortable in using the second word as it is easy to memorize due to its easier pronunciation than the first one. Thus, a multilingual experience does not complicate communication. Rather, communication is made easy through CMS (Code Meshing and Switching).

Now that the official move to include Arabic as the third official language of Bangladesh has some positive dimensions. Bangladesh earns over 45-50% of its foreign remittance from the Middle Eastern labor markets, amounting to $13.5 billion annually. Among the major ME countries, Saudi Arabia affords 67% of the Bangladeshi migrants, and other major labor markets arethe United Arab Emirates (UAE), Qatar, Kuwait, Oman, and Bahrain. Drawing on this economic outlook, it is significant that Bangladeshi labor must be accommodated with Arabic as the mainstream language of these countries. From Bangladesh's perspective, our migrant laborers lack proficiency in diversity in language and skills. As a result, they are bound to be engaged in low-paying jobs and unofficial earning activities. Hence, our migrants fall victim to domestic violence and torture because the monitoring strategy fails to trace these workers on a regular basis due to their frequent, swift, and shifting jobs. These drawbacks can be redressed and minimized when our migrant workers are enabled to make arbitration with their parties and owners.

The root of all possibilities lies in the proficiency of language skills that transform our labor migrants into competent service providers who do not have to depend on their hired Bangladeshi parties to inform their weal and woe. Again, Bangladesh has religiousties with Middle Eastern countries, as well as trade and international allegiances. Knowledge of Arabic may help foster untapped diplomatic potential with the Arab world. Bangladesh has immense possibilities in influencing the OIC and other Muslim organizations' decision-making process if and when it is competent enough to comply with linguistic uniformity.  

However, the process of leveraging a language as official requires much readjustment at the policy level, academic level, and professional level. Though the present government's recent move towards transforming Arabic into Bangladesh's official language is the extension of the late president Ziaur Rahman, who helped to create a supportive alliance with the Muslim world, the global economic and diplomatic perspective permeates the government in this transition. It is pertinent to reveal that Article (3) of the Constitution of the People's Republic of Bangladesh states Bangla as the state language, and no other language has been constitutionally prioritized, though English has been a language for translation, and if any confusion arises, the interpretation in Bangla remains supreme. Bangladesh lacks a policy paper about the status of English and how it will be used at the academic and professional levels. English has been a de facto second language, when the reinstatement of a third language comes to the forefront. The government should focus on this policy complexity regarding the use, management, and expansion of official and non-official languages of Bangladesh.

Then come the institutional hurdles while adopting the curriculum. The practice of Arabic is theoretically driven, and its study is embedded in the Madrassa. This limited exposure to Arabic impedes the proficiency of the learners at the level of serving communicative purposes. 

The introduction of Arabic as an official language is profitable in all dimensions. The global economic, trade, technological transmission, and cultural exchange inspire that a nation must be competent with globally operated languages. Before being a shift towards multilinguality, the state has to revise and readjust its policy, academic, and professional landscapes. Otherwise, the imposition of a language brings about a cognitive burden to the nation.