Hosting the World Peace Conference here is the testimony of Bangladesh's "unflinching commitment" to the promotion of global peace, security, and development, said Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen.
"The country, under the pragmatic statesmanship of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, will continue to remain on the side of any initiative to promote peace as a fundamental premise for our pursuit of sustainable development," he said.
Dr Momen reiterated that Bangladesh continues to be inspired by Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, who firmly believed in democratic rights, people's welfare and social justice as the cornerstone for building a peaceful world.
He made the remarks welcoming the participants of the World Peace Conference at a dinner that he hosted at a city hotel on Friday.
Liberation War Affairs Minister AKM Mozammel Haque, State Minister for Foreign Affairs Md Shahriar Alam, State Minister for ICT Zunaid Ahmed Palak and Foreign Secretary Masud Bin Momen were, among others, present.
On behalf of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, Chief Patron of the World Peace Conference and on his personal behalf, Dr Momen welcomed the participants in this historic city.
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The Foreign Minister paid deepest respect to Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, whose unprecedented charismatic leadership and long struggle helped achieve long-cherished independence.
"Our enduring commitment to global peace has been best exemplified through the ‘People’s Empowerment and Development,’ a peace-centric model that Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina proposed to the UN in 2011, leading to its adoption by a consensus by the comity of nations," Dr Momen said.
He said peace is more than a suspension of war and peace covers everything that contributes to lowering international tensions: cooperation that eases competition for scarce resources, institutions that channel power rivalries and allow better management of global public goods, regulation that responds to new abuses power or inequalities born of globalization, bridges between generations as well as equality between women and men for peaceful societies.
"Peace can only be sustainable through appropriate and effective global governance to respond to global challenges," Dr Momen said.
He said the Prime Minister’s remarkable efforts to establish a culture of peace not only in her own country or in the region, but in the world, made her one of the Champions of Peace of the present days.
Her commitment towards fulfilment of the dream of Bangabandhu to make Bangladesh a Sonar Bangla- the Golden Bengal, has resulted into current day’s Bangladesh – a prosperous and peaceful country, said the Foreign Minister.
Read: World Peace Conference: Dhaka to adopt ‘Peace Declaration’
President Abdul Hamid will inaugurate the "World Peace Conference-2021" on Saturday that will bring together global thinkers, political personalities and peace promoters.
The conference will look back on Bangabandhu’s vision and political struggle for peace.
Hasina will attend the closing ceremony of the two-day conference on Sunday as the chief guest. Both the President and the Prime Minister will join the event virtually.
The conference, to be held in a hybrid format through both physical and virtual participation, will also shed 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.
“Bangladesh will get a special document through adoption of – “Dhaka Peace Declaration” – which will work as a reference for Bangladesh’s all peace and security-related global initiatives to be taken in the future,” said the Foreign Minister.