THE benefits of ‘linguistic diversity’ and ‘pluralism’ are eulogised to high heaven in Khadim Hussain’s column ‘Language imperilled’ ( Aug. 5). It is fashionable to glorify these ‘idealisms’ but they stand meaningless where 90pc of the people cannot read or write.

Our claim to nationhood in the ‘two-nation’ theory hung by the fragile thread of ‘religion’ alone. It was not enough. The stance was tactical. ‘Geographically’, we had a thousand miles of hostile India, separating the two wings. Culturally, ‘racially’ and ‘linguistically,’ we did not quite make the grade.

One single language would have moulded us together. The Quad-i-Azam’s conviction of this was made amply clear in his public address in East Pakistan. Alas, he did not live long enough. After him, the divisive demand for a separate ‘national language’ masked the intrigue for complete separation --- we lost East Pakistan.

We now have four unwieldy provinces separated by regional languages. They are rife with ethnicity and tribalism. Some nationalist parties openly preach outright separation: a clear ‘déjà vu’ there.

Marvi Memon’s bill in parliament demanded dozens of ‘national languages’. We, in fact, need dozens of ‘provinces’ and one single ‘national language’; anyone, which is taught in schools, spoken in homes, heard on television and everywhere else.

We could then hope to gel as one nation and forge ahead.

The advocates of many ‘national languages’ never tire of citing Switzerland which has three. This is an insignificant European country which thrives mainly on providing safe haven for tainted money. It makes a poor role-model.

Why don’t we cite economic giants like Japan, China or Germany that have one single ‘national language’?

Thousands of immigrants arrive in the US every year speaking Spanish, Italian, Swahili and what not. Yet they all start speaking Englishwithin a few months.

US citizenship is not granted unless proficiency is demonstrated in English, their one and only ‘national language’.

Capt. S. Afaq Rizvi
Karachi

Published in Dawn, August 27th, 2014