The new Japanese Ambassador to Bangladesh Iwama Kiminori has said the inauguration of the metro rail in Dhaka is a symbol of strong cooperation and marks a historic moment as the final event of the 50th anniversary year of diplomatic relations between the two Asian countries.
The new envoy of Japan made the remark at the inauguration program of Bangladesh's first metro rail at Uttara sector-15 playground on Wednesday Morning.
The ambassador and Ichiguchi Tomohide, representative of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) in Bangladesh, expressed their greetings in Bangla at the event.
The two Japanese officials received huge applause after they gave a part of their speech in Bangla.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina earlier inaugurated the first metro rail service at the ceremony organized at the C Block playground in Uttara Sector 15.
The new envoy of Japan started his speech in Bangla and thousands of people who participated in the rally applauded his gesture.
“Today's opening ceremony is an unforgettable highlight of the 50th anniversary of Bangladesh and Japan's bilateral relations. The country's first-ever electric railway will provide safe, rapid, comfortable and punctual mass transit service in Dhaka, which drastically will change the face of the nation's capital,” told Iwama Kiminori.
Regarding the impact of MRT, the envoy said: “The MRT will not only contribute to alleviating chronic traffic congestion in the city, but also to reducing environmental impacts such as air pollution. By 2030, the MRT will be networked by Lines 6, 1, and 5.”
Iwama Kiminori also highlighted the safety of this metro rail as it is developed by Japanese technology and said: “MRT's safe and punctual operation will be underpinned by Japan's state-of-the-art railway technologies. Vehicles are made of stainless steel, which is lightweight and features high durability. For the safety of passengers, they are equipped with interior CCTV cameras and exterior CCTV cameras.
The new envoy also talked about the state-of-the-art ticketing system.
He hailed women empowerment in Bangladesh and said the metro rail will further improve the situation.
Memorial for seven Japanese victims
In his speech, Ambassador Iwama Kiminori mentioned seven Japanese victims in the Dhaka terrorist attack in July 2016 who were involved in the preliminary investigation of MRT Line 1.
“We must never forget this tragedy and their dedication. We will move forward and fulfil our responsibility to overcome this sadness and complete this project for the future,” he added.
Mentioning some remarkable development projects of Bangladesh which are being implemented with the assistance of Japan, Iwama Kiminori said at the closing of his speech: “I would like to reiterate that Japan will continue to stand by Bangladesh on its development journey. In sum, Japan always stands by Bangladesh and looks forward to working closely with the government and the people of Bangladesh to build a win-win partnership for our prosperous future,”
In the incident of the Holey Artisan Bakery attack on July 1, 2016, a total of 20 hostages were killed, including 17 foreign nationals, seven of whom were Japanese. Two Bangladeshi civilians and two policemen were also killed as a result of the attack.
Among the Japanese victims were Makoto Okamura, 32, Yuko Sakai, 42, and Rui Shimodaira, 27, all of whom worked for Tokyo-based construction consultancy Almec Corp; Hideki Hashimoto, 65, Nobuhiro Kurosaki, 48, and Hiroshi Tanaka, 80, who worked for Tokyo-based consultancy Oriental Consultants Global Co; and Koyo Ogasawara, 56, an employee of Katahira & Engineers International.
One Japanese national – Tamaoki Watanabe – was rescued along with 18 others when a commando force stormed the restaurant and rescued the hostages the morning of July 2, killing the five terrorists.
In a message on Tuesday, Sheikh Hasina said seven Japanese consultants working on MRT Line-1 and MRT Line-5 sacrificed their lives in an unexpected tragedy at Gulshan Holy Artisan Restaurant on July 1, 2016.
"In their memory, we have installed a memorial at the Metrorail Exhibition and Information Center at Uttara Diabari here under a joint initiative of the Governments of Bangladesh and Japan, which will later be shifted to the new Bazar interline connecting station of MRT Line-1 and MRT Line-5: Northern Route," she continued.
"My sincere condolences to their family members and deep respect to those who sacrificed their lives," the premier said.
At the inauguration event, Ichiguchi Tomohide, chief representative of JICA in Bangladesh, said: "We do not forget that incident, particularly the seven Japanese, who were killed. All of them were working on a feasibility study for MRT lines. They were dedicated to the realization of these MRT projects."
"We should not forget them. So, every year on July 1, we always organize some memorial ceremonies," he added.
MAN Siddique, the managing director of the Dhaka Mass Transit Company Limited (DMTCL), said: "If you visit the metro rail's exhibition and information centre [located in Depot], you will see that there is a memorial plaque set up in memory of slain Japanese citizens working for the metro rail. We paid tributes to them at a program this year."
As they are working on the MRT-1 and MRT-5, when the Notun Bazar railway station is built, the metro rail authority will shift the memorial plaque there permanently.
