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Created: 1 year ago | Updated: 1 year ago
Updated: 1 year ago

Bangabandhu at the UN

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Bangabandhu's speech at the United Nation's General Assembly is a matter of great pride for us. He delivered the speech on 25th September 1974, just after a week Bangladesh became a member of the UN. To be a member of the UN was not an easy go as some influential countries were opposing the membership for Bangladesh. So it was another war that Bangabandhu had to wage.

But finally, Bangabandhu won. He won not only the UN membership, but also everyone who listened to his ever first speech at the UN. It was a veni vidi vici experience for him - he came, he saw and he conquered everyone. Bangabandhu was the first person in the history of the UN to deliver a speech in Bangla, the language of the seventy-five million Bangalees, the language of the language martyrs. The poet of oration, the icon of charismatic leadership touched another milestone and so did the Bangalees through him. It was a speech that revealed Bangladesh's stand on national and international issues before the global community.

Identifying the UN as the parliament for the humankind, Bangabandhu recognized the moment of delivering his speech historical. He mentioned that the very moment justified the century-long struggle and sacrifice of the Bangalees for self-rule, independence, dignity and co-existence along with other nations. He assured that Bangladesh would follow the ideology of mutual respect, national sovereignty, regional integrity, and non-interference into internal issues of other countries. Bangabandhu explained Bangladesh's absolute pledge to the UN charters and reminded how the people of his country made the highest sacrifice to achieve the same. The Father of the Nation added that Bangladesh would look forward to such a world where peace and justice would take their rightful place. It was essential to justify the sacrifice of the countless martyrs.

In his speech, Bangabandhu expressed his utmost gratitude to the UN and the international community for standing beside Bangladesh with their aids and support in the reconstruction of the war-ravaged country, relocation of 10 million war-refugees who took shelter in India during the Liberation War. The leader of the country reminded the world how Bangladesh stood on the ruins and debris of a war where people were just struggling for survival. However, the repeated natural calamities were making their life harder and people even didn't have a minimum intake of food for a day.

Going beyond Bangladesh, he expressed solidarity for all the oppressed people around the world and denounced racism, discrimination, imperialism, and the use of force to stop people's justified movements for their rights. Referring to the struggle of the people in Africa, Asia, Latin America, Namibia, Palestine and Zimbabwe, he expressed his worry about people's plight to achieve their own rights. The leader of the oppressed noted when millions of people were destitute with unending miseries, only a handful of people were enjoying the highest luxuries. He emphasized quick measures for global financial management based on justice. Bangabandhu warned that an absence of such a system would lead the world to experience an unprecedented misery of the history.

The leader of the third world countries expressed his deep concerns over a global recession and inflation, unemployment, unequal distribution of wealth and opportunities, and the gap between the rich and the poor countries. He described how those had hit the development plans in many poor countries of the planet. To Bangabandhu, it was a global responsibility to fight these problems and take concerted efforts to put an end to these.

Before he concluded his speech, Bangabandhu declared that Bangladesh would follow the paths of togetherness, brotherhood, and mutual respect and cooperation. He expected the UN would take substantial roles in solving the prevailing human crises in the subcontinent as well as in other countries. Bangladesh has been following the paths of Bangabandhu, the dreamer and thepeople's leader, even after his death nearly five decades ago.

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