ON Saturday morning a delegation of twenty two young people from the Malaysia- Palestine Youth Movement (MPYM) paid a courtesy visit to the headquarters of the World Assembly of Youth (WAY). This delegation was touring Malaysia from 28th February to 9th March 2013 with the aim to enhance the power and potential of youth development and peace building for Palestine. This tour focused on three-point agendas for dynamic transformation including Education, Economy and Social Development.

The year is 1952, the streets of Dhaka are filled with picket sign wielding students. They ask for one thing and one thing only; for the recognition of their language Bangla as one of the two national languages of then ruled by Pakistan, currently known as Bangladesh. Those students were shot and killed by the police. 21st February 2013 marks the fourteenth year commemorating these students from the University of Dhaka and Dhaka Medical College who peacefully demonstrated that day. Since February 2000, the International Mother Language Day has been observed worldwide for the purpose of promoting, preserving and protecting all languages used by the peoples of the world.

In an ever changing world, barriers are broken down and cultures merged, we look to language as an instrument for preserving and developing heritage. Mother tongues are equivalent to other tangible heritages as they contain immeasurable historical values which clearly indicate linguistic diversity and variety of cultural traditions throughout the world.

THIS morning the World Assembly of Youth (WAY) and the Melaka State Youth Council (MGBM) conducted a half day event; Talk on “The Untold Story of Gaza” held at the Melaka Foundation Auditorium in Melaka, Malaysia. In this event more than 650 young people participated from various youth organizations and educational institutions.