The World Federation of Teachers’ Unions (FISE) pays tribute to the martyrs of the language and reaffirms its commitment to linguistic diversity on February 21, 2026
Friday, February 20, 2026
On International Mother Language Day, celebrated every February 21, the World Federation of Teachers’ Unions (FISE), proudly affiliated with the World Federation of Trade Unions (WFTU FSM), pays solemn tribute to the students and activists who fell on February 21, 1952, in Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh since 1971. This date commemorates the sacrifice of the martyrs of the Bengali language movement who, in In 1952, when the country was still East Pakistan, students gave their lives for the recognition of their mother tongue, Bengali.
Faced with oppression and a colonial decision imposing Urdu as the sole official language, it was the students and the people who rose up, paying with their blood for the fundamental right to education and expression in their own language.
Proclaimed by UNESCO in 1999 and then by the United Nations in 2002, this Day is much more than a historical commemoration. It is a constant reminder that language is a vehicle for emancipation, a tool for transmitting knowledge, and a pillar of cultural sovereignty.
For FISE and FSM, defending one’s mother tongue is inseparable from the class struggle.
In a world dominated by capital, the homogenizing logic of the market and the vestiges of imperialist policies often crush minority and mother tongue languages.
Access to education in one’s mother tongue is not a privilege, but a fundamental human and social right.
It is the primary condition for combating academic failure, exclusion, and the cultural alienation of working-class children and the general population.
Our federation therefore reaffirms its unwavering support for all the struggles of teachers, education staff, and students for:
- The protection and promotion of all mother tongues, especially those of oppressed peoples and stateless nations.
- Free, quality public education provided in the language understood by children and communities.
- Resistance against all forms of linguistic discrimination, which is too often a mask for class domination and national oppression.
On this day of remembrance and struggle, the FISE (World Federation of Teachers’ Unions) honors the memory of the martyrs of 1952 and expresses its full solidarity with teachers’ unions and peoples around the world who are fighting to preserve their linguistic identity against the onslaught of neoliberalism, neocolonialism, and imperialism.
Long live the struggle of peoples for their emancipation!
Long live proletarian internationalism!
Long live linguistic diversity in the service of the unity of workers and peoples!
World Federation of Teachers’ Unions (FISE)
Affiliated with the World Federation of Trade Unions (WFTU FSM).
For the FISE General Secretariat
The Secretary General: Drissi Abderrazzak
