Bangabandhu believed in peace, dialogue, social harmony: Saima

Saima Wazed, chairperson of the National Advisory Committee on Autism and Neuro Developmental Disorders, on Sunday said Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman believed that peace can only be achieved through fairness, justice and equality.

Saima, also World Health Organization's (WHO) Goodwill Ambassador for Southeast Asia,  said Bangabandhu throughout his life worked towards peace to achieve social equality and harmony while social justice and fairness was at the core of all his works.

She made the remarks at a panel discussion titled "Peace through Inter-faith Dialogue, Culture and Heritage" held at Foreign Service Academy as part of the two-day World Peace Conference.

Saima is the member secretary of the organizing committee of the World Peace Conference.  

Philip Ruddock, former Minister (Liberal) for Reconciliation, Multicultural Affairs and President of NSW Liberal Party; Ahmed Mohamed Rashid Aljarwan Alshamsi, President of Global Council for Tolerance and Peace (GCTP), Abu Dhabi, UAE; Karen Jungblut, Director of Collections, USC Shoah Foundation, Institute for Visual History and Education, University of Southern California, USA; Dr Dimitrios Vassiliadis, Professor of Indian Languages, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens and Dr. Michał Panasiuk, Lecturer–Faculty of Oriental Studies at the University of Warsaw also spoke at the session moderated by David Fernandez Puyana, Permanent Observer of the United Nations University for Peace to the UN Office and other International Organizations in Geneva.

Saima, also the daughter of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, said peace is all about social equality and many people forget how Bangabandhu started and what he stood for. "He started with something so small."

"He believed in dialogue and standing up for the rights and fighting for those who could not speak for themselves," she said.

President Abdul Hamid inaugurated the two-day "World Peace Conference-2021" on Saturday that brought together global thinkers, political personalities and peace promoters.

The conference is looking back on Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman's vision and political struggle for peace.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is scheduled to attend the closing ceremony of the two-day conference on Sunday afternoon.

The conference, being held in a hybrid format through both physical and virtual participation, is also shedding light on the legacy being carried forward by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in her "untiring quest" of building a peaceful, just, rights-based, inclusive and prosperous nation.