Hasina to attend One Asia Assembly in Kuala Lumpur

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has been invited to attend the One Asia Assembly to be organised by the Press Foundation of Asia (PFA) in January 2001 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, reports UNB.

The PFA, based in Manila, has been organising the One Asia Assembly once in a decade since 1970 to bring together leading journalists, entrepreneurs, economists, scientists and political leaders of Asia-Pacific countries to promote better understanding of Asia's urgent problems and issues.

Khairul Bashar, the newly-appointed Secretary General of the PFA, extended the invitation to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina when he, along with a delegation of PFA, called on Prime Minister at her Sangsad Bhaban office yesterday.

The Prime Minister has accepted the invitation to attend the fourth One Asia Assembly in Kuala Lumpur early next year, which will be inaugurated by UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, said a PFA press release. She thanked the PFA Secretary General for inviting her.

Hasina appreciated the activities of the PFA and assured it of all cooperation in implementing PFA's programmes in Bangladesh for the improvement of journalism.

Other members of the PFA delegation were, Editor of Desh Magazine, Calcutta Amitabh Chowdhury, Independent Editor and President PFA Bangladesh Chapter Mahbubul Alam, Observer Editor and General Secretary PFA Bangladesh Chapter Iqbal Sobhan Chowdhury and Treasurer PFA Bangladesh Chapter Chapal Bashar.

BSS adds: Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was happy to know that Khairul Basher was the second media personality from Bangladesh to have become chief executive of the PFA after late SM Ali, who served the organisation as its chief executive from 1978 to 1982.

The Bangladesh Chapter of PFA was launched on Sunday evening at a function at a city hotel.

A reception was also accorded to Khairul Basher and Amitabh Chowdhury.

State Minister for Information Prof Abu Sayeed, Foreign Secretary CM Shafi Sami, Chairman of Press Council Justice Habibur Rahman Khan, Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Deb Mukharjee, Vice Chairman of Bar Council Barrister Amir-ul-Islam, Press Secretary to the Prime Minister Jawadul Karim and Director General of Bangladesh Betar MI Chowdhury were present.

Among the editors and senior journalists, Barrister Moinul Hossain, AZM Enayetullah Khan, A Toab Khan, Mahfuz Anam, Rahat Khan, Atiqullah Khan Masud, Bazlur Rahman, Zakaria Khan, Haroon Habib, Sayed Kamaluddin, Golam Tahaboor, Moazzem Hossain, Zahiduzzaman Faruque, Farid Hossain and Benzir Ahmed attended the reception.