“Another challenge that faces us, as Arabs, is the defence of the status of the mother tongue in our lives, ideas, and educational curricula. The Arabic language is at the core of our identity: a repository for our history, values, culture, and the wisdom of our ancestors. Taking pride in our own language does not prevent us from learning other languages and deepening our understanding. But we must insist that the language we learn should not take us away from our mother tongue. Proficiency in another language should not come at the cost of our own,” HH Sheikha Moza said.
“I am disappointed to note Arab youth using the English language in daily communication, unashamed to claim that they express themselves better in English than they can in Arabic. Perhaps what threatens the Arabic language most is that Arab children will abandon it even while living their own cultural environment,” Her Highness added.
“The Arabic language is us. Without it, we become hybrids with half-formed identities. And so, we have arrived at the third challenge, because language is the vessel in which our culture is formed. Our identity is forged by both language and culture. If we care about our cultural identity, we are left with no choice other than to protect and take pride in our Arabic language, thereby shielding our culture from foreign attack. The Arabic language is what unites us as Arab nations, determined to defend our shared identity after the decline of other unifying factors,” Her Highness stressed.
“What is happening in Gaza today only serves to demonstrate the fundamental necessity of encouraging Arab unity and pride. We have seen in Gaza what a strong and proud nation can withstand. The women, children and men of Gaza epitomize heroic determination as they confront the ongoing onslaught of genocide, ethnic cleansing and forced displacement that attempts to eradicate their cultural and religious identity. In the face of overwhelming tragedy, we have watched as the children of Gaza have been forced to grow up. They have experienced neither childhood nor adolescence, stepping instead straight into the robes of adulthood,” Her Highness said.
HH Sheikha Moza bint Nasser expressed her hope that the conference would be culminated in success and outcomes contributing to protecting the family and developing society.
Organised by the Doha International Family Institute in collaboration with a number of partners, the two-day conference discusses major challenges facing the family, including technological change, demographic trends, migration and urbanization, and climate change, with the participation of a wide range of regional and international institutions, civil society organizations, academics, experts and policy makers from around the world.
