The Bangladesh embassy in Qatar yesterday observed the ‘Shaheed Dibosh and International Mother Language Day’ with due solemnity. 
The programme started with hoisting of the national flag at half-mast by Bangladesh ambassador Ashud Ahmed on the embassy premises at 9am in presence of the mission’s officials and a good number of Bangladeshi expatriates living in Qatar. 
Following this, a minute’s silence was observed as a mark of profound respect to the memories of the 1952 Language Movement martyrs of Bangladesh. Special prayer was offered for the salvation of the departed souls of all martyrs, Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and his family members who were martyred in 1975.
More than 200 dignitaries attended the flag-hoisting ceremony and discussion session that followed. 
Messages from the president, prime minister, foreign minister and state minister for foreign affairs of Bangladesh were read out as a means to highlight the significance of the day as well as to disseminate the important messages from the national leaders on theoccasion of the ‘Shaheed Dibosh and International Mother Language Day’, the embassy said in a statement. 
A documentary was also screened on the occasion. 
Ambassador Ahmed, in his speech, recalled the sacrifices of the language martyrs of Bangladesh and mentioned that the 1952 Language Movement was the most decisive episode and a turning point in the history of Bangladesh as its spirit led to the independence of Bangladesh. He also recalled the contributions of the Father of the Nation during the 1952 Language Movement.
Meanwhile, the envoy also addressed key issues such as the imprisonment of Bangladeshi expatriates in Qatar on drug-related charges and urged all to create awareness about the rules and regulations of Qatar among the Bangladeshi expatriate community.
The embassy also organised an event called ‘Hatekhori’ (first lesson in the Bangla alphabet) for the children of Bangladeshi expatriates in order to inspire the children to keep learning the Bangla language while in abroad. 
A total of 15 children took their first lessons in the alphabet from Ahmed at the event. All children were presented with certificates and gifts.
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