DHAKA, Nov 26, 2022 (BSS) - Speakers at a seminar today said the Awami League government has accelerated country's higher education in a number of ways and improved the state of human rights of the country throughout the years. 
 
"There were only five universities in the country with only 20 thousands students after the Liberation War. But, in the last few years, AL government has created opportunities for 35 lakh students to peruse education from different public and private universities through establishing a number of universities in the country", said the speakers.

"The condition of human rights of the country's people has been improved significantly in the last few years as the AL government paved the way of human rights by executing the war criminals and the killers of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman," they added.

The speakers were addressing the seminar on "Human Rights: National and International Context", organised by Education, Research and development Forum of Bangladesh (ERDFB) at International Mother Language Institute this morning.

Former UGC chairman Prof. Dr. AK Azad Chowdhury addressed the program as chief guest while DU Law Faculty Professor Dr Sheikh Hafizur Rahman presented the key note speech with UGC member Dr Md Sajjad Hossen in the chair.

Prof. Dr. AK Azad, also former Vice-Chancellor of Dhaka University, said, "Human rights cannot be dividable, it shall be come in uniform. Killing is the highest crime and giving impunity to killers cannot be justified." 

"Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and his son Sheikh Russel had the right to live but they could not enjoy it as their rights were violated on the dark night of august 15, 1971," he added.

He said there were only five universities in the country with only 20 thousands students after the Liberation War. But now AL government has created opportunities for 35 lakh students to peruse education from different public and private universities by establishing a number of universities though the qualities of some universities are not up to the mark, he added.

"It is not the duty of government to ensure quality, while government creates opportunity for the public. Now, its people's responsibility to ensure the quality of the universities or institutions using the opportunities", he further said.
 
DU Pro-VC (Academic) Dr ASM Maksud Kamal said, "America imposing sanctions on us and our RAB with the accusation of human rights violation. But the fact is that USA trained RAB and provided RAB with arms during formation of RAB".

"Again, the violation of human rights is mostly seen at the United States of America where mass shooting, school shooting, racism and white supremacy which are the clear violation of human rights, are happening frequently, he said, adding, "But, still they are introducing themselves as the protector of democracy," he added.

Former VC of Sher-e-Bangla Agriculture University Prof Kamal Uddin Ahmed said those who tried to establish human rights in the history of Bangladesh in different times, were killed and the killing of Bangabandhu is one of those incidents.

He also said that Prime minister Sheikh Hasina is trying to establish Human rights by executing the killers of Bangabandhu establishing rule of law aimed at protecting the human rights in the Country.

Islamic University Pro-VC Dr Mahbubur Rahman, FBCCI President Md Jashim Uddin, Senior Vice President of ERDFB Dr Abdur Zabbar Khan, DU Professor Dr. Zeenat Huda, Barishal University Treasurer Dr Md Badruzzaman Bhuiyan and ERDFB Joint Secretary Dr Jebunnesa, among others, were also present on the occasion.