site.btaAlliance for Rights and Freedoms Calls for More Support for Mother Tongue Education

Alliance for Rights and Freedoms (APS) Deputy Floor Leader Dzheyhan Ibryamov said on Friday that education in mother tongue has its natural and well-deserved place in modern schooling, not as a privilege, but as an opportunity that supports personal development and academic success. He presented a declaration on behalf of the party marking International Mother Language Day on February 21.

Ibryamov noted that languages are not merely a means of communication, they are memory, belonging and perspective, the way a person names the world and themselves. The mother tongue is the first home of thought, where literacy, confidence in society, a sense of dignity and the link between generations are formed, he added.

Ibryamov stated that mother tongue studies do not contradict mastering the official Bulgarian language, on the contrary, it supports language culture and strengthens skills in learning, reading and expression, adding that a person who develops a solid linguistic foundation acquires Bulgarian more easily and effectively.

For APS, protecting the mother tongue and the opportunity to study it at school are part of the party’s identity and its understanding of a modern democratic state. The State should encourage, rather than restrict, the use and study of mother tongues, Ibryamov said.

According to him, it is not a good sign for democracy when public policies treat linguistic diversity as a problem rather than a resource, including when regulations introduce restrictions or sanctions regarding the use of a mother tongue in public life.

He called for reasonable and responsible policies, greater support for mother tongue education, and more training and resources for teachers.