By Josiah Egbilika
It is a well and known fact in Nigeria that May 27 of every year is used to celebrate the importance and existence of children.
The day was set aside as a universal children’s day every November 20 in 1954 but was first established for May 27 in Nigeria after the degree of 1964.
The essence of the day is to create and enhance awareness of the rights of children in the society so everyone will adore and respect these rights and ensure children have a better growing life.
Unfortunately, recent accounts have revealed a massive downplay to the protection of the rights of children in the country.
A United Nations report shows that six out of every ten children experience some form of violence, one in four girls and ten per cent of boys have been victims of sexual violence with 23 million girls forced to child marriage.
Beyond these abuses, one of such rights of the child that have received low attention over the years is the right to indigenous language.
The right to indigenous language entails that it is the right of every child to acquire his or her indigenous language and denying the child such opportunity means denying the child the right of communication and association.
Every child has an identity, a place, an indigenous heritage and the mark of such identification is the language, denying the child of acquisition is denying the child’s heritage and identity.
The indigenous language gives the child boldness, pride, identity and sense of belonging to his or her wealthy heritage.
The right to indigenous language is beyond communication and association, it is a bond, a relationship, a life, denying the child such right is denying the child life itself.
Furthermore, children are the roots of the future generations. They pass down to other generations the culture we have instilled in them.
When they do not acquire the indigenous language from us, we have denied future generations of the richness in our culture, our identity, our being, our personality and life.
As we listen to the future and stand up to protect children’s rights, let us underscore that Every child deserves to acquire and speak his or her indigenous language. It is therefore our responsibility to ensure that children speak their indigenous languages.
From the family to the society, government, to the media and civil society organizations, it is our sole responsibility to keep our languages alive and to do so, we must protect the right of the child to indigenous language by providing all opportunities for the child to acquire his or her native language.
Josiah Egbilika, Indigenous Language Advocate writes from Port Harcourt.
