Saying her government wants future generations to reap the benefits of their hard-earned independence and language of Bangladesh, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina called for protecting and practicing the country’s rich culture, language, and heritage with due honour.
“It’s the responsibility of all to save our independence, the right to (mother) language and culture, and to give them due honour, imbued with the spirit of Ekushey,” she said on Wednesday afternoon.
She made the remarks at a ceremony organized by the Ministry of Cultural Affairs at Bangabandhu International Conference Centre in Dhaka, where she handed this year’s Ekushey Padak, the second highest civilian award, to 21 eminent individuals.
Hasina said: “We earned independence, our mother language, and our rich culture and heritage through a huge struggle. So it’s our responsibility to practice and advance those and create a beautiful environment for future generations.”
State Minister for Cultural Affairs, KM Khalid, chaired the function, where Acting Secretary of the ministry, Dr Abu Hena Mostafa Kamal, delivered the welcome address, and Cabinet Secretary Md Shafiul Alam moderated the Ekushey Padak award ceremony.
Cabinet members, the prime minister’s advisers, judges, MPs, foreign diplomats, litterateurs, poets, academics, writers, poets, journalists, Ekushey Padak laureates of previous years, and top civil and military officials also attended the event, among others.
The awardees
This year, Prof Halima Khatun (posthumous), Advocate Golam Arif Tipu, and Prof Monowara Islam have been awarded for their engagement in the 1952 Language Movement.
Subir Nandi, Azam Khan (posthumous), and Khairul Anam Shakil, were recognized for their contributions to music, while Lucky Enam, Suborna Mustafa, and Liaquat Ali Lucky were awarded for their contribution to the performing arts.
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Sayeda Khanam and Jamal Uddin Ahmed were chosen for the award for their contributions to arts and fine arts, respectively, while Khitindra Chandra Baishya was recognized for his role in the 1971 Liberation War.
Dr Biswajit Ghosh and Dr Mahbubul Haque were picked for the award for their research, while Dr Pranab Kumar Barua was awarded for his contribution to education.
Rizia Rahman, Imdadul Haq Milon, Ashim Saha, Anwara Syed Haque, Mainul Ahsan Saber and Harishankar Jaladas were awarded for contributing to language and literature.
Introduced in memory of the 1952 Language Movement martyrs, the “Ekushey Padak” recognizes individual contributions in a number of fields, including culture, education, and economics.
Each recipient gets a gold medal, a certificate, and a cheque for Tk2 lakh.
Example for future generations
Expressing hope that the people of Bangladesh will always move with their heads held high, the prime minister on Wednesday said that February 21 has taught them not to bow their heads. “Ekushey has taught us how existence and mother tongue can be protected.”
Congratulating this year’s Ekushey Padak recipients, she called upon future generations to follow them and advance themselves as worthy citizens.
“Those who received the Ekushey Padak today are eminent persons and demonstrated their talents in their respective fields. We will always remember their contributions,” she said.
“We want to build the country in such a way that it can hold a dignified position in the world,” she added.
Sheikh Hasina said Ekushey was a glorious milestone in the thousand year old history of the struggles of the Bangali nation. “The sacrifice made by Bangalees to establish the honour and right of a mother tongue, is unique in world history.
“It was Ekushey which paved the way to our ultimate independence in 1971.”
Highlighting the contributions of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman to the Language Movement, she said the sacrifices made by Bangabandhu and other activists and martyrs of February 21 did not go in vain as the Pakistan government was forced to recognize Bangla as one of the state languages.
She said her government has already set up the International Mother Language Institute in Dhaka to research the genesis and development of all languages in the world and work towards their preservation and continued usage.
The prime minister said her father, Bangabandhu, established the pride and status of Bangla on the world stage by delivering his addresses to the UN in Bangla.
“Following his footsteps, I regularly deliver my speeches in Bangla at the UN General Assembly too,” she added.
