US to honour Dr Yunus with Medal of Freedom
Sunday, 2 August 2009
US President Barack Obama has named Bangladesh's Nobel laureate Dr Muhammad Yunus, British physicist Stephen Hawking and South African anti-apartheid veteran Desmond Tutu among the 16 recipients of the 2009 Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honour of the United States, reports bdnews24.com.
Other figures tapped to receive the honour, for their "especially meritorious contribution to the security or national interests of the United States, world peace, cultural or other significant public or private endeavours", include six women from sport, entertainment, science and government; a Native American war chief, a civil rights leader, an African-American actor, two US politicians and a doctor.
"These outstanding men and women represent an incredible diversity of backgrounds... Yet they share one overarching trait: Each has been an agent of change. Each saw an imperfect world and set about improving it, often overcoming great obstacles along the way," President Obama said in a statement issued by the White House Saturday.
Other figures tapped to receive the honour, for their "especially meritorious contribution to the security or national interests of the United States, world peace, cultural or other significant public or private endeavours", include six women from sport, entertainment, science and government; a Native American war chief, a civil rights leader, an African-American actor, two US politicians and a doctor.
"These outstanding men and women represent an incredible diversity of backgrounds... Yet they share one overarching trait: Each has been an agent of change. Each saw an imperfect world and set about improving it, often overcoming great obstacles along the way," President Obama said in a statement issued by the White House Saturday.