Foreign minister salutes ex-pats on the 38th commemorative anniversary

To write about one's country is an extremely demanding task. To write about a people stretches the mind's capacity. To write a Message about Bangladesh on the anniversary of her birth overwhelms the mind and soul.

Her people - past, present and future - invoke the finest, the best and the eternal. When Bangladesh entered the international community of States on March 26, 1971, she proclaimed herself as a rightful member of that community. She announced that she was born of pain and suffering and of a human struggle for liberation. She announced that such liberation had come after her being in existence for thousands of years as a nation, and now as an independent Sovereign Republic. She poured forth her identity, her people, her language, her literature, her music, her culture and her values. She gave the world a distinct Statehood hitherto unrecorded in the streams of history.

Her Founding Father had declared her to be "Sonar Bangla" (Bengal of Gold). Her people claimed their rightful place among the independent and Sovereign States. She spelt out that she would be national, socialistic, democratic and secular and would create a society free from exploitation in which the rule of law, under the terms of the Constitution and the fundamental human rights of freedom, equality and justice, would prevail and be secured for all her citizens.

She declared the Supremacy of the Will of her people so that she may prosper and make her full contribution towards international peace and cooperation in keeping with the progressive aspirations of mankind.

In the 38 years since that date when she so proclaimed herself, she has grown and evolved, stood the test of time, of encroachments and aberrations, of the forces that challenged her, her people's identity, her future and her leaders. She has demonstrated repeatedly that her Sovereign Will and her Republican character may not be stayed, suspended or abrogated by any whim or extra-Constitutional "doctrine of necessity".

She has demonstrated her innermost and innate characteristics, of a State to be served by her people and in the service of her people. Bangabandhu's "Sonar BangIa" has restated her fundamental principles of being a tolerant and a peaceful society within and among a human fortress against detractors and bigots.

She spoke in her elections on December 29, 2008, that she is the mistress of her own destiny and cab choose the kind of life she wishes to have, namely a democratic and secular society however harsh this path and process might be.

On this auspicious day, as Minister for Foreign Affairs, it is my privilege and opportunity to call upon the Foreign Ministry itself in Dhaka and our missions abroad to dedicate themselves to nation building, consolidating Statehood and projecting the real Bangladesh to the world.

I recall with pride, the role of our expatriates and their immense contribution in different spheres of our national life. I particularly recognize and salute Bangalees living abroad who, through their sweat and toil, have generated earnings and remitted their income which, in turn, has met our valuable foreign exchange requirements. Our expatriate brothers and sisters are our real goodwill ambassadors who will speak and deliver our nation's pride and achievements.

I take this opportunity to reaffirm our purpose and intent to achieve victory against hunger and poverty and usher in a quality of life consistent with human dignity. The dream of Bangabandhu, the Father of the Nation, to achieve a "Sonar BangIa" is the task of every citizen.

Under the leadership of our Prime Minister, Jono Netri Sheikh Hasina, the nation has been re-born to Statehood and embodying and exercises its Sovereign Will towards the achievement of that dream.

I congratulate and applaud Bangladesh and its entire people living at home and abroad.

(China Daily 03/26/2009 page10)