The Honourable MEC for the Free State Department of Education Mr M C Mokitlane's address at the International Mother Tongue Day, held in Trompsburg, Xhariep

Programme director,
Superintendent General for Education,
Deputy Directors-General,
Chief Directors,
Directors,
Members of Broad Management,
School Principals,
Representatives of the Pan South African Language Board,
Chairperson of the Free State Provincial Language Committee,
Officials from the Provincial Department of Sport, Arts, Culture, Science and Technology,
Representatives from our local Universities,
The Executive Mayor of the Xhariep District Municipality,
School Governing Body (SGBs),
Learner Representative Councils (LRCs),
Members of the media,
Distinguished guests,
Ladies and gentlemen

Programme Director, languages are an instrument of heritage, identity and nation building. That is why language is an emotive issue as it is central to our existence and to our definition of who we are, who do we want to be, and how do we wish to be identified. It is an important instrument whereby our multicultural bonds can be strengthened, the one by which our economic competitiveness can be entrenched in a diverse universe.

Motsamaisi wa mosebetsi, boMme le boNtate, letsatsi lena ke la bohlokwa haholo nalaneng ya puo ya letswele lefatsheng ka bophara. Kahoo, ke rata ho nka monyetla ona ke ananele matsapa a Komiti ya Dipuo ya Freistata (FSPLC) a ho hlophisa mosebetsi wa kajeno oo ho ona re ketekang esitana le ho seka-seka bohlokwa le bokamoso ba puo ya letswele makaleng ohle a moruo naheng ya rona, haholo-holo thutong ya bana ba rona.

Programme Director, spoken language is the most intimate expression of the personality and identity of a people. It is the clearest expression of freedom, culture and knowledge of the people and of their creative spirit. However, throughout history this reality has been undermined by the hierarchical patterns of linguistic behaviour, in which multilingual communities co-existed with political hierarchies that selected certain languages for high status functions. The dominant political order, accompanied by one or two languages of high status would eventually give way to another political order often accompanied by another language or two, of high status.

This pattern adopted a separatist position where the language of high status was used as a gatekeeper to power, and as a way of supporting segregation. These selected languages would then serve as official languages in government as well as the corporate sector. They were even declared as the only languages through which teaching and learning would take place in public schools as well as institutions of higher learning.

Now, the latter strategy Programme Director had far reaching effect on the linguistic self-esteem among the groups whose languages were relegated to a lower functional status, especially in education. It sparked wide spread slavish imitative 20th century literature with obscure allusion totally cut off from the vital nourishment of the African traditions. African novelists and dramatists recreated in the pastoral form, the glory of the shattered African state. These books would be recommended for school syllabus ensuring that the author gained financially, while investing in the system. Most of these writings were just recordings of real happenings or history, as constructed by foreigners and thus, not about the African ideology.

The stigma of the African literature Programme Director is that of trying to copy the western treasures to the neglect of the African's tastes and aspirations. By imitating the west and producing content, not our own, and thus failing to produce literature that has the stamp of the African experience, we as African writers confirmed the label that Africa is 'barbarous' and the west is 'civilised'.

Programme Director, ladies and gentlemen, indigenous African languages are particularly faced with a very serious challenge. Our communities, especially the affluent ones are no longer willing to embrace our languages as an ingredient of our cultural heritage and ethnicity. We no longer regard our own mother tongues as the languages that will enable us to widen our networks of interpersonal relations.

We no longer regard these languages as the ones that will enable our children to establish and maintain good relationships with family members and relatives. We no longer regard these languages as effective vehicles through which our children can develop their intellectual capacity. There is now in place a new wave of wrestling to speak a foreign language, especially English better than its mother tongue speakers. Some of our own children cannot even express themselves in their own mother tongue and we parents seem to be proud, instead of being ashamed about it.

Programme Director, ladies and gentlemen, today a decade into our democratic dispensation, indigenous African languages are still ignored and stigmatised in many circles including education. That is why we still see an exodus to expensive English nursery, primary and secondary schools where our children are programmed to become fluent English speakers without a basic knowledge of their own mother tongue.

However Programme Director, we believe that through campaigns such as today's function and many initiatives put in place by the Department of Education, the importance of mother tongue learning will finally be appreciated by our society. We also believe that the prevailing scepticism with regards mother tongue medium of instruction at our schools will eventually fade away.

The new National Curriculum Statement emphasises the strengthening and development of a learner's mother tongue needs. Our Constitution requires that all languages must be developed to a level where they will enjoy equal status as official languages. However, in education the mission seems far from being accomplished. We still grapple with monolingual as well as semi-bilingualism in the classroom, characteristic of lack of parallelism, as only two languages are still enjoying the status of Official Languages of Teaching and Learning.

This situation encroaches the linguistic rights of a learner whose mother tongue is neither English nor Afrikaans. The new National Curriculum Statement further emphasises the importance of learning other languages referred to as additional languages. This factor emphasises our quest to promote multilingualism at our schools and the society, thus accomplishing our mission for a multilingual South Africa.

Programme Director, ladies and gentlemen, let me conclude by pointing out that the purpose of learning mother tongue should be to promote, foster and propagate the cultural heritage within the framework of multiculturalism with a view to achieve the goal of 'unity in diversity', in a more cohesive, equitable and harmonious South Africa.

I thank you!

Issued by: Department of Education, Free State Provincial Government
22 February 2008