Visiting veteran French journalist Bernerd-Henri Lévy yesterday said it was a great feeling for him to visit Bangladesh after 43 years of its independence, a visit he believed would never be possible in his lifetime.
Bernerd was one of those foreign journalists who witnessed and reported on the birth of Bangladesh from the battleground during the 1971 Liberation War.
“I could not believe that I could ever come back to Bangladesh in my lifetime. For me, it is a great feeling,” he said while sharing his experience at a seminar, titled “Philosophy and Commitment: For a philosophy of action,” organised by Alliance Française de Dhaka and hosted by University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh (ULAB). The programme was hosted on the main campus of ULAB in Dhanmondi area yesterday.
He said: “On my second day in Dhaka, I am deeply moved. The Father of the Nation Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was in Dhaka when I was here for the first time. I understood the tragedies of a war. I understand how intellectuals could be targeted.”
“Bangladesh succeeded in such a short time. The young people sitting here know how rare it was. I do not know of other such an example in history.”
From ground zero after the creation of the nation, Bangladesh had reached a satisfactory level, the French journalist noted.
Bernerd said: “Still the exact figure of the victims of the war is not known. It is very hard for a county to go forward with such a big hole in its memory.”
He called upon the international community to come forward for a deep investigation to figure out the exact number of victim in the Liberation War.
His first book, Les Indes Rouges, where he recalled his experience in Bangladesh during its birth, has been translated in Bangla for the first time.
Alliance Française de Dhaka Director M Olivier Litvine said he brought a book called ‘Bangladesh Nationalism in the liberation war’. The only copy was available at the time in French written by Bernerd-Henri Lévy. Among others, ULAB Vice Chancellor Professor Imran Rahman, ULAB Trustee Board Vice President Dr Kazi Anis Ahmed, ULAB Registrar Lt Col (retd) Md Foyzul Islam, were also present at the seminar.
Earlier in the day, Bernard paid a courtesy call on Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina at her Gonobhaban residence.
“Bangladesh was a colonial province and Bangabandhu rebuilt the country as a complete independent country in only three and a half years, which was unprecedented in the world,” he said during the call.
He further added that the name of Bangabandhu will be always be remembered as a revolutionary leader.
Praising the socio-economic development of Bangladesh, he also said Bangladesh had emerged as a model of a modern democratic nation in the global arena.