Dhaka, Feb 26 (.) Bangladeshi Prime Minister Tarique Rahman calling for the liberalisation and depoliticisation of education, said on Thursday that education, research, arts, and literature should remain free from political influence in a civilised society.
Declaring the newly-formed BNP govt’s goals concerning education, he said that the administration is currently working to establish a liberal democratic state with strong moral standards, in order to enable the country to progress in all fields of knowledge, including education, literature, arts, science, and technology.
“I believe that politicising education, research, and the practice of arts and literature is never a mark of a civilised society,” he said during the country’s Ekushey Padak award ceremony, Bangladesh’s second highest civilian award introduced to honour the sacrifices of those who participated in the 1952 Bengali Language Movement in the erstwhile East Pakistan.
Affirming the govt’s role, he said that while it is the duty of ministers to oversee the functioning of the state, it was the duty of the learned citizens to guide the nation towards the path leading progress and development.
“The greater the number of accomplished individuals in a state and society, the more enlightened that society becomes in terms of prosperity and moral standards. So, when the state honours distinguished citizens out of its own need, and in doing so, it honours itself,” the PM Rahman added.
Referring to the history of the award, he said that the country’s former military ruler, his father ‘Shaheed’ President Ziaur Rahman, the proclaimer of Bangladesh’s independence, had introduced the Ekushey Padak in independent Bangladesh from this very realisation.
“In this journey, we certainly expect guidance and direction from the country’s wise and learned citizens,” he said.
Emphasising the award’s importance to the nation, he noted it be more than an award for Bangladesh, stating “Through it, the nation remembers historic events from the 1952 Language Movement to the present day.”
At the same time, he said, the award introduces the public to those distinguished individuals who have enriched themselves, the state, and society through their contributions to education, literature, arts, science, technology, research, etc. . . KK