Global Conclave - The Konkani Language Plan.

Global Conclave - The Konkani Language Plan.

Mangalore Today News Network

Mangaluru, August 5, 2015:  In a media blitz Secretary General of  JKS - Jagotik Konknni Songhotton Bab. Eric Ozario who is well known in the cause of Konkani has released to the Konkani Community a 35 page draft of the "Konkani Language Plan"  reproduced below for the information of  ’Mangalore Today’  web site visitors, is his note and the Preamble to the 35 page Plan.  Interested people may contact Kalaangann Mangalore for needed information (See Notice attached):

 

NOTE :
Please find attached the English draft of the Konkani Language Plan. For the love of Konkani, our beloved mother tongue, you are humbly requested as follows –
1. To take time-out to study the draft in detail and send us your observations and corrections, to reach us by Aug. 15, 2015. Kindly involve your friends also in this process.
2. Make it a point to attend the 2nd Global Conclave on Aug. 23, 2015,at Kalaangann, Mangalore and participate in a historic event that will witness the adoption of Konkani Language Plan.
3. Also participate enthusiastically in the implementation of the Plan, so adopted, so that Konkani may be guaranteed a secure future.

Long live Konkani!

Eric Ozario, Secretary General,
JKS - Jagotik Konknni Songhotton


PREFACE:
KONKANI  LANGUAGE  PLAN  (‘KONKNNI FUDDARA YEVZO’NN’)  ...taking Konkani to the future.

(An editied version of the PREFACE of the plan to project the outer thinking is given here in brief)

Realising and respecting simple truths, man undertakes planning at the personal, family, professional,  community, national, international – in short, at every level. The difference between the planned and the  unplanned is like farming and allowing things to grow wild. While regulated farming will fetch one profitable results, wild growth, though may seem lush and green, will be erratic and will contribute very little to economic development.

Same is the case with Konkani. It exists in so many regions around the world, survives in different difficult terrains, at times under very hostile conditions, might on the surface even look flourishing and thriving in so many varieties, shades and hues; but due to sheer lack of planning – at the local, regional, national and at the international levels – lacks the movement forward. No wonder therefore, its future looks bleak and hopeless.

The world is progressing at a very fast pace. Because everything around us is meticulously planned, well thought-out, scientifically organised, professionally managed and consciously developed. Because Konkani has never bothered to follow these norms, Konkani is unable to keep pace with the world around, and as a result, there is not only the fear of it being left-out, but also being wiped-out.

It is with this grave concern in mind, that Konkani Language Planning is being proposed. ‘Konkani Language Planning’, envisages not just the revival, development, standardisation of the language, but much beyond. It engulfs the preservation, promotion, enrichment and transmission of a vibrant language and an ancient culture, in all its variety and colours. ‘Konkani Language Planning’ therefore, is all about taking Konkani (language & culture) forward, to the future.

As this is a private initiative, it suffers from the lack of authority to enforce or to make people accept the proposals. All that a private initiative can do is – educate, cajole, coax and motivate. Therefore, it is imperative that the whole process (of planning and execution), be democratic, transparent, all-inclusive and should take into confidence and involve every Konkani.

KONKANI’S MISFORTUNE
Konkani’s greatest misfortune has been that there never existed an enlightened, all-inclusive, forward-looking, progressive-thinking, proactive leadership, even at the national level. At the global level, leadership was simply nonexistent. The leadership that prevailed at the national level, was hopelessly mired in its ill-advised, ‘exclusive’ and highly damaging ‘script-politics’ – instead of uniting, it divided Konkanis on ‘script’ lines. And also because the leadership was too engrossed in attempting to impose one script over the Konkani world, they simply could not visualise Konkani beyond the script issue.

Konkani Language Plan
Fortunately, Jagotik Konknni Songhotton (JKS), is now established on the solid all-inclusive principles of – ‘Respect for all Variety – Unity in Diversity’ – to provide leadership for Konkani issues and people at the local, regional, national and global level. Though just 3 years old, it is now providing the leadership that Konkani badly lacked but urgently required.

Naturally, therefore, Konkani Language Planning – its initiation and implementation, has become the responsibility and duty of JKS. JKS proposes to undertake and execute this historic task successfully, with the co-operation, participation and support of every Konkani individual, organisation and institution around

THE FIRST GLOBAL CONCLAVE (‘JAGO’TIK ZUNT-ZO’MAT’)
To initiate the historic process of Konkani Language Planning, JKS invited over 400 Konkani organisations from around the world (irrespective of their caste, creed, region, dialect or script) to the First Global Conclave (‘Zunt-Zomat’) on Aug. 24, 2014. The Conclave decided to go about the business of Konkani Language Planning in all earnestness. It decided that Konkani Language Planning would involve –

1. A fair and impartial assessment of the strengths and weaknesses of Konkani language and culture, vis-a-vis other languages.

2. Drawing-up a road-map and setting short-term and long-term goals and priorities (at the local,  regional, national and global level) to enrich and develop Konkani and take it forward to the future.

3. Identifying the hurdles, impediments and challenges in achieving these goals and finding-out ways and means to overcome them.

4. Recruiting the involvement of every Konkani (individual, organisation and institution) to direct all available energies and resources – in the achievement of these goals.

5. Establishing a mechanism to monitor the implementation and also to check and counter-check  periodically the progress.

6. But above all, to begin with, initiate a process by which – ideas, opinions, suggestions (on the above points) can be collected from every Konkani organisation around the world.  

The Global Conclave gave JKS one year’s time to prepare the Language Plan and constituted a  SteeringCommittee  to draft the same.The Steering Committee, which comprised of intellectuals and prominent leaders of Konkani organisations from around the world, was directed to circulate the draft to all Konkani organisations and present the same, after incorporating suggestions and changes, to the second Global Conclave, to be convened on Aug. 23, 2015.