New York, 6 December 2022:
The historical quote of the greatest Bengali of all time, The Father of the Nation
Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, "Friendship to all, malice towards none," which is
also the foreign policy dictum of Bangladesh, was incorporated in the 14th paragraph of the
UNGA resolution entitled "International Year of Dialogue as a Guarantee of Peace, 2023". In
the global context of the post-Covid world order and the Russia-Ukraine war, this resolution
was introduced by Turkmenistan at the UNGA plenary. It was adopted unanimously, today.
The historical quote of Bangabandhu, one of the advocates of world humanity and
peace, was included in the UN resolution for the first time. Bangabandhu's quote is inserted
in the 14th paragraph of the resolution as follows:
“Recognizing the importance of combating poverty, hunger, disease, illiteracy, and
unemployment, and emphasizing that friendship to all and malice towards none, in the spirit
of constructive cooperation, dialogue, and mutual understanding, will help to achieve these
objectives.”
This text was developed based on his maiden speech at the UNGA on 25 th September
1974, where Bangabandhu emphasized the need for establishing the World Peace.
Under the guidance of the Permanent Representative of Bangladesh to the UN,
Ambassador Muhammad Abdul Muhith, Bangladesh Mission worked intensively in the
preparation of the resolution. Deputy Permanent Representative Dr. Monwar Hossain
actively participated in the negotiation and was able to insert the historic quote of the Father
of the Nation in this resolution, aimed at advancing the world peace.
The resolution was cosponsored by 70 countries, including Bangladesh and other
South Asian Nations.