Victorian Bangladeshi Community Foundation
Mathew HILAKARI (Point Cook) (13:17): I recently had the pleasure of attending Wyndham’s International Mother Language Day, organised by the Victorian Bangladeshi Community Foundation. I would like to thank the VBCF, Mamun Al Badruddoza Polash, Kazi Iqbal Hossain, Morshed Kamal, Nusrat Islam Barsha, Yousuf Ali and all the community members, including my friend Mita Chaudhary. With a parade, art exhibitions, cultural performances and a smoking ceremony, I was extremely proud to celebrate the Bangladeshi people’s efforts to maintain their language as well as celebrate multiculturalism and linguistic diversity. This event comes from a really difficult history, but it has been a real gift to the world. We were joined by the High Commissioner for Bangladesh, Mr Siddiki, as well as federal and state representatives.