Sindh is a land that has its roots in the Indus Valley Civilisation and its rich heritage resonates with the verses of Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai, Lal Shahbaz Qalander and Sachal Sarmast. The Sindhi Culture Day, also called Ekta (Unity) Day, has been celebrated for the last five years on December 8. It had its origins in the Sindhi people’s response to criticism of former president Asif Ali Zardari for wearing a Sindhi topi (cap) even on official occasions. Since then, it is a day marked to show solidarity between the Sindhi-speaking people the world over. People wear the colourful ajrak (shawl) and topi, the two symbols of Sindhi civilisation and culture. Countless rallies, song and dance programmes and various cultural events were organised on the day. Almost all political parties held programmes of commemoration. Even the MQM joined in the celebrations. The Sindhi language is spoken by 41 million people in Pakistan. Language is not only the strongest identity marker of a people, it also serves to strengthen their ethnic and cultural bonds. Those who abandon it, suffer from a gravely negative impact on their identity. Since independence, our people have been suffering attempts to besmirch our rich, colourful and varied identities by forcefully making us abandon our varied heritage and languages. Those who advocated the people’s linguistic and cultural rights were dubbed traitors in the past. The dominant national narrative has remained the establishment of an Islamic centralised state with one national language. In this context in particular, the initiative of the PPP to highlight Sindhi culture is commendable. Denying people their right to identity and culture is repression, stupidity, and a downright denial of their democratic rights. We are a multi-ethnic, multi-cultural country, which should be treated as our strength, since unity in diversity is unbreakable. The federating units need to be respected for their historically evolved language, culture and identity. Sindhi boasts of 2,400 years of evolution. Balochistan’s Chief Minister Dr Abdul Malik has regretted that the provinces have not taken steps to promote local cultural identity. Other provinces must follow the example of Sindh because a lot needs to be done to rectify the loss of language, culture, identity and heritage of our people. Punjab, of all the provinces, suffers from a peculiar abandonment of its language during British colonial times, a loss that is reflected in Punjabis’ confusion regarding their identity. There is nothing stopping the provinces from taking a leaf out of Sindh’s book and taking steps to recover and develop their languishing languages and cultures. This can only enhance the bouquet of our national composition and our people, confident in their received identities, can better interact and bond with their fellow citizens throughout the length and breadth of the country. *