Foreign Minister DR AK Abdul Momen said on Monday that Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s policy and “his struggle, perseverance and sacrifice had inspired us, and will continue to encourage and motivate us particularly the young generation to follow his path of peace and harmony.”
He said following Bangabandhu’s philosophy, Bangladesh has been promoting a culture of peace through its leadership role in the UN peacekeeping and peace-building for sustainable peace and stability.
Bangladesh is contributing towards world peace through its active participation in UN peacekeeping missions and continued to be the top troop-contributing country for more than the last three decades.
He was speaking at the Bangabandhu lecture series organised by the foreign ministry.
Former UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon delivered the lecture and said Bangabandhu was a ‘rare’ leader and ‘far ahead’ of his time.
The foreign minister said Bangabandhu is the name of “an ideal, name of philosophy, the name of a realisation”.
“He was the most courageous soul the world has ever produced who was firmly committed and dedicated to his mission to free the country from oppression and subjugation. He placed humanity above all the issues and always fought for people's rights as well as for their well-being.
“Bangabandhu dedicated his whole life to ensure people’s economic emancipation to end economic disparity and injustice and to build a “Sonar Bangla”- a ‘Golden Bengal’- an equitable and just society.
“Bangabandhu not only dream of an independent nation-state named Bangladesh but also materialised their centuries-old dream of Bengali nation- that is establishing an independent nation-state,” he said.
“Many political stalwarts, who came before and after Bangabandhu, tried to inspire the Bengali nation. But no one could awaken the Bengalis or unite the whole nation the way our Father of the Nation did,” he said.
“For example, when Mahatma Gandhi called for non-cooperation, only 2% Indians joined his non-cooperation movement. In contrast, when Bangabandhu called for non-cooperation, nearly 99.9% of all Bangalees joined his non-cooperation movement. His charismatic and iconic leadership inspired them with the spirit of independence.”
“The Father of the Nation was not only a visionary of the Bengali nation, but he was the epitome of democracy, secularism, peace, harmony, and tolerance. To establish the rights of the common people, like Mahatma Gandhi, he never resorted to violence.
“Throughout his life, he chose the path of peaceful legal process in all his political campaigns, all his political movements. For these ideals, he was in and out of jail and spent over 13 years of his prime life in confinement sacrificing his personal comfort during 23 years of Pakistani rule. His family was deprived of his company.
“His children grew up without seeing their father much. He was imprisoned day after day, year after year, but he did not ever express any regrets or complained against it.
“After independence of Bangladesh, Bangabandhu set up the bedrock of the foreign policy framework that was based on his ideals of peace and tolerance and thus ingrained a culture of peace into our foreign policy fundamentals. If you look at Bangladesh, you will notice that Bangladesh is pursuing a balanced and friendly foreign policy towards all the countries of the world. It has no adversaries, no foes in the international arena,” he said.
“He emphasised on peaceful resolution of all disputes as the mainstay of his foreign policy. Once again, the message of harmony and non-violence took precedence. This maxim is still an inseparable part of present Bangladesh for its engagement with nations for the protection of national interest as well as for guiding the global community to foster peace and harmony. And Bangladesh following his principles and ideology, working hard to establish world peace.”
“Bangabandhu became an envoy of world peace, through his vision, his policies, through his works. He, therefore, extended unwavering support to the anti-colonial struggle in the world. He firmly believed in democratic rights and social justice as the cornerstone for building a peaceful world.”
Embracing the ideals of her father, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina concluded the peace accord in the Chittagong Hill Tracts during her first term as Prime Minister more than two decades ago.
She also became the ‘mother of humanity’ by providing shelter and humanitarian assistance to the 1.1 million hapless and persecuted Rohingya population from Myanmar-which is a unique example of humanity and compassion, the foreign minister said.