{"id":112828,"date":"2021-03-19T15:59:30","date_gmt":"2021-03-19T22:59:30","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/?p=112828"},"modified":"2021-03-19T15:59:30","modified_gmt":"2021-03-19T22:59:30","slug":"speech-by-h-e-prime-minister-mahinda-rajapaksa-at-the-event-celebrating-the-birth-centenary-of-bangabandhu-sheikh-mujibur-rahman-and-the-golden-jubilee-of-the-independence-of-bangladesh","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2021\/03\/19\/speech-by-h-e-prime-minister-mahinda-rajapaksa-at-the-event-celebrating-the-birth-centenary-of-bangabandhu-sheikh-mujibur-rahman-and-the-golden-jubilee-of-the-independence-of-bangladesh\/","title":{"rendered":"Speech by H.E. Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa at the Event Celebrating the Birth Centenary of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and the Golden Jubilee of the Independence of Bangladesh"},"content":{"rendered":"

Prime Minister\u2019s Media Unit<\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n

March 19, 2021<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Her Excellency Sheikh Hasina
Prime Minister of Bangladesh
Honorable Ministers of the Bangladesh Government
Excellencies, Distinguished Invitees<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ladies and Gentlemen,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ayubowan!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I am delighted to be present here\ntoday in Dhaka to participate in an occasion of historic significance for the\npeople of Bangladesh. Therefore, let me thank Her Excellency Prime Minister\nSheikh Hasina for her cordial invitation to me and my delegation and the warm\nwelcome given on my arrival.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Despite many challenges posed by\nthe COVID-19 pandemic, I join you in person today with the message of\nsolidarity from the people of Sri Lanka. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The friendly relations between our\ntwo countries have a long history. Many scholars believe that the first\nmigrations from Bengal arrived in Sri Lanka through maritime routes as far back\nas 2500 years ago. It is also believed that Sri Lanka and Bangladesh had\nvibrant trade exchanges since 6th<\/sup> Century BC. Quite naturally, Sri\nLanka was one of the first countries to establish diplomatic relations with the\nnew nation of the People\u2019s Republic of Bangladesh in 1971.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The people of Bangladesh are\ncelebrating two historic events. One is the birth of the Father of their\nnation, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, a century ago. And the second, is\nthe birth of Bangladesh a half a century ago. Both events are worthy of\ncelebration. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Excellencies,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ladies and Gentlemen,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman <\/a>was\na person of principles who dedicated his entire life for the Bengali people,\ntheir language and their well-being. He was determined to continue his freedom\nstruggle until the creation of a new nation of Bangladesh\u201d\nin 1971. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately, he could not live to\nrealize the dreams he nurtured for his beloved country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Your Excellency, I understand the\nagony of the immense loss that occurred on the 15th<\/sup> of August 1975.\nOn that day, the nation lost a hero and the Father of Independence. At the same\ntime, a beloved daughter lost her parents and siblings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Madam Prime Minister, despite setbacks, Bangladesh continues to\nflourish under your able leadership. That is the best honor in the name of your\nesteemed father.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a tribute to his legacy and in\ndedication to Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, let me quote a part of a poem\nwritten by the Bengali Guru Rabindranath Tagore:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(I Quote)  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Where\nthe mind is without fear and the head is held high<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Where\nknowledge is free<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Into\nthat heaven of freedom, my Father, let my country awake.      <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

                                                                                    \n(Unquote) <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Excellencies,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ladies and Gentlemen,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In this 21st<\/sup> Century,\nwith the great aspirations for Asian prosperity, our new generations need to be\naware of the countless sacrifices made by their fore-fathers to achieve\nfreedom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a\nneighbor and a close friend, Sri Lanka stands side by side with Bangladesh to\nachieve greater freedom and prosperity. Our objectives of economic\ntransformation, eradication of poverty and achieving the Sustainable\nDevelopment Goals remain key priorities in the middle of great challenges. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman\nsaid Bangladesh is fertile and endowed with plenty. Few countries in the world\nhave the kind of fertile land that we have.\u201d The geographical locations of our\ntwo countries provide ample opportunities for us to enhance closer maritime,\nshipping, trade and people-to-people contacts. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Madam Prime Minister\u2026..Your\nproposal to promote a Blue Economy\u201d in the Bay of Bengal continues to inspire\nour approach on maritime affairs. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bangladesh is\nconsidered one of the key emerging economic power houses in South Asia. It\nremains an important trading and investment partner for my country. Our\nexchanges have continued to grow rapidly during the last few decades. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The great strides Bangladesh has\nmade in the field of agriculture attracts great attention in Sri Lanka. In\naddition to playing an active role through the SAARC Agriculture Centre in\nDhaka, Bangladesh continues to provide training and capacity building for our\ninstitutions. I seek your indulgence to share closer cooperation in this field.\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Excellencies, <\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ladies\nand Gentlemen,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The\ninspiring journey that the people of Bangladesh had undertaken from poverty and\nnatural disasters in the past half century is a testament to a prosperous\nnation in the making. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is\nin this backdrop, I take this opportunity to extend my heartfelt compliments\nand sincere and warm wishes to you, Madam Prime Minister, your Government, and\nthe people of Bangladesh.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dhonnobhaad.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thank You. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Prime Minister\u2019s Media Unit March 19, 2021 Her Excellency Sheikh HasinaPrime Minister of BangladeshHonorable Ministers of the Bangladesh GovernmentExcellencies, Distinguished Invitees Ladies and Gentlemen, Ayubowan! I am delighted to be present here today in Dhaka to participate in an occasion of historic significance for the people of Bangladesh. Therefore, let me thank Her Excellency Prime […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":true,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-112828","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-politics"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/112828","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=112828"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/112828\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=112828"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=112828"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=112828"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}