Nation observes 'Genocide Day' today

One-minute blackout to recall horror

FE Team | Published: March 24, 2018 22:53:59

The nation will observe the 'Genocide Day' today (Sunday) in remembrance of the brutality carried out by Pakistani Army on the unarmed Bengalis on the black night of March 25 in 1971, reports BSS.
The Jatiya Sangsad unanimously adopted a resolution to observe March 25 as the "Gonohotya Dibos" (Day of Genocide) on
March 11, 2017. Subsequently the Cabinet Division in a meeting with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in the chair, unanimously endorsed the decision on March 20 last year.
President Abdul Hamid and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina issued separate messages on the eve of the "Genocide Day".
The government has drawn up various programmes to mark the day with due respect.
The Ministry of Liberation War Affairs will hold a discussion along with photographs on the "Gonohotya Dibos" at 10:00 am at Suhrawardy Udyan.
On the day, Awami League will hold a discussion at 4.00pm at the Bangabandhu International Conference (BICC). Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is expected to chair the programme.
Dhaka University and Dhaka University Teachers Association have decided to observe the Genocide Day. Different programmes have been chalked out to mark the day.
As part of the programmes, a photography exhibition will be held near the Independence Monument at the historic Suhrawardy Udyan reminding the atrocities committed on March 25, 1971.
Meanwhile, the country will stage a one-minute blackout from 9:00pm to 9:01pm today (Sunday) recalling the horror of the March 25, 1971 black night when the Pakistanis launched genocide on Bangladesh soil.
"We expect people in every household to join the programme by switching off their electricity during the one minute demonstration," State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Nasrul Hamid told the news agency.
He said the power supply across the country would be normal while the people were expected to keep the switches off to stage a complete blackout in memory of the victims of March 25 night, 1971.
An inter-ministerial meeting with Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal on March 11 decided to observe the nationwide blackout.