Urging all not to pay heed to any instigation, Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus on Thursday sought cooperation from the religious leaders so that the government can proceed together freely to build a new Bangladesh fully free from any fear.
“Let’s first get rid of anger and instigation. We seek cooperation from you all,” he said, alerting the faith leaders of Bangladesh that the members of the “ousted” political group may do something provocative, staying from home and abroad if they get any scope.
'We are all Bangladeshis': Dr Yunus tells religious leaders
Prof Yunus laid emphasis on joint efforts to identify who are instigating and advised them not to pay heed to any provocations.
“We have no problems among us,” he said during his meeting with faith leaders of Bangladesh at Foreign Service Academy, highlighting his government’s desire to have a new Bangladesh where all the citizens will live with communal harmony.
The Chief Adviser said they want to create such an environment where there will be no fear among people.
“We are talking about communal harmony. We all agree that we have harmony. I want to add one thing to the harmony – that is fear. Along with harmony, we have fear in our minds too,” he said while delivering his closing remarks.
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In his opening remarks, Chief Adviser Prof Yunus said the responsibility of the state is to ensure the people’s rights guaranteed by the Constitution and sought cooperation from religious leaders in getting accurate information if any attack on minorities happens in the country.
“We want to know the accurate information and want to establish the process of getting the information accurately,” he said at the meeting held at Foreign Service Academy.
The Chief Adviser invited them to join the talks to know how information can smoothly be received in a safer way so that information providers do not fall in any trouble.
He said incidents of attacks on minorities may take place in the country but information must be gathered immediately if such incidents happen, and perpetrators must be brought to justice.
Prof Yunus said all the people of the country have equal rights.
He stressed taking measures to create an environment to prevent such incidents and ensuring immediate remedy for victims. “I think most of the people of Bangladesh agree with what I have said,” he added.
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Recalling his speech, he delivered on his arrival at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport just before the formation of the interim government, he said they all are a family despite having differences of opinions.
"We are the members of the same family. We are not enemies to each other. We all are Bangladeshis," he recalled what he said before.
Referring to his visit to Dhakeshwari Temple in Dhaka on the occasion of Durga Puja, the Chief Adviser said Durga Puja was celebrated with festivity in the country while people from all walks of life joined it.
He said there is a gap of information between the ground reality and the reports published by the foreign media.
Prof Yunus suggested that all citizens should be free from anger and fear first and move forward building a tolerant Bangladesh, without changing its structure, where there will be no accidents or if any accident happens, it could be addressed.
“Once we can build such a country, it will be a successful one. We are waiting for this. Allah has given us the opportunity to imagine such a state and advance to it. I am seeking your cooperation to this end…and it is possible,” he said.
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Prof Yunus said the people of Bangladesh are living in peace but any incident may make people angry.
“It should be mitigated…we must mitigate our anger so that it does not become the reason for another incident,” he added.
Asking all not to respond to any provocation, the Chief Adviser said the ousted political group is creating provocation in such a way that it does not seem an instigation.
Mentioning that instigation is also being created due to external reasons, he said the country’s people should learn how to address their provocation so that they do not become victims.
Bangladesh is being targeted time and again due to instigation, Prof Yunus said, stressing the need for addressing it at state level, not individually.
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The leaders of different religions, Muslims, Hindu, Christian and Buddhist, joined the talks.
Prof Yunus on Wednesday declared that no force could undermine the solidarity forged since August 5 or deprive the nation of its hard-earned freedom.
"The nation stands on a solid foundation, and it will remain steadfast. No one can break our unity or strip us of our freedom," he said in his concluding remarks during his meeting with political leaders.
He acknowledged the presence of differing opinions among the people but emphasized that there was no division regarding the collective unity of the nation.
CA's Press Secretary Shafiqul Alam said Prof Yunus held a meeting with student leaders on Tuesday evening. “Prof Yunus called the students to help rebuild the nation,” Alam told UNB after the meeting.
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The Press Secretary hoped that the citizen groups, Bangladeshi diaspora, political parties, and civil society would raise their voices against the massive misinformation campaign against Bangladesh.