Bangladesh promotes ‘culture of peace’

Bangladesh believes “inclusive and participatory” democracy can ensure sustainable peace and security, the foreign minister has said.

“Without peace and security development cannot be sustained,” Abul Hassan Mahmood Ali said at a high-level forum on the ‘Culture of Peace’ at the UN in New York, the foreign ministry said on Wednesday.

“Equally true - without development, there cannot be sustainable peace”.

Bangladesh tabled the UN General Assembly resolution on a ‘Culture of Peace’ in 1997, and since then it continues to steer this resolution.

The High-level Forum was convened by the President of the 68th UN General Assembly Ambassador John Ashe who appreciated Bangladesh’s lead role in spearheading the resolution.

The UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and the 2011 Nobel Peace Laureate Leymah Gwobee of Liberia spoke at the inaugural session on Tuesday.

The foreign minister in his statement said “development and progress pacify the challenges posed to democracy, human rights and good governance, among others”.

“So, the best bet to neutralise threats to peace is adoption of development policies based on social justice and consciously nurturing a culture of peace”.

He also spoke on the values and ethos that guides Bangladesh to remind the world every year “to believe in peace, say ‘no’ to war and give peace a chance”.

He referred to the ongoing work at the UN on the post-2015 development agenda and expressed his satisfaction at the inclusion of the “Culture of Peace” in the final report of the UN Open Working Group on sustainable development goals.