Linguists Collective Conference & International Mother Language Day IMLD Celebration
LC Conference & Celebration of International Mother Language Day (IMLD) 2025
Friday, 21 February 2025
Preserving Identity Through Language: Rohingya Refugee Children and Mother Tongue Education
Muhammad Yeasin
Ro Yassin Abdumonab began his career as a school teacher in Myanmar, teaching English, physics, and chemistry. In August 2017, due to escalating violence, he was forced to abandon his university studies and seek refuge in Bangladesh. Since then, he has transitioned into a freelance photographer, videographer, translator, fixer, and writer, contributing to renowned media outlets such as The Guardian, Al Jazeera, Reuters, BBC, and The Washington Post. He is a core member of Rohingyatographer, mentoring young Rohingya photographers and empowering them to share their community’s stories through visual media.
At the LC Conference & IMLD Celebration 2025, Ro Yassin will discuss the critical importance of mother tongue education for Rohingya refugee children growing up in displacement. He will provide firsthand insights into the challenges of preserving linguistic and cultural identity in environments where their language and culture are not formally recognised. His talk will cover the significance of linguistic identity, barriers to native language education, community-led preservation initiatives, and strategies to support multilingual education in refugee settings. He will also share the experiences of people who are political victims, persecuted minorities, and refugees, highlighting the urgent challenges in preventing the erasure of their nation, culture, and language. This discussion will emphasise the power of language in shaping identity, resilience, and belonging for displaced communities.