‘Dr Yunus wasn’t awarded by Unesco’

Education Minister Mohibul Hassan Chowdhoury yesterday said Unesco did not give Nobel Laureate Professor Muhammad Yunus any award called "Tree of Peace".

He made the remark while speaking to reporters at the Secretariat.

Mohibul Hassan, also the chairperson of Bangladesh National Commission for Unesco (BNCU), said, "Dr Yunus was conferred the 'Tree of Peace' award by an Israeli sculptor, upon invitation from the Ganjavi Foundation in Azerbaijan."

The minister said Yunus has been claiming he received the award from Unesco, which is "untrue."

Meanwhile, BNCU in a separate statement yesterday echoed the minister.

"According to several newspaper reports citing a press release from the Yunus Centre, Dr Yunus received the prize at the 11th Global Baku Forum in Azerbaijan on March 16," the statement reads.

However, Unesco's Dhaka office said the Unesco headquarters in Paris was not aware of this. There was no official Unesco representation at the 11th Baku Forum, where the award announcement was made, it said.

Moreover, the award claimed by the Yunus Centre was not any "prize or honour" affiliated with Unesco, it also said.

BNCU denounced the press release from the Yunus Centre as "motivated" and "fraudulent".

The statement said an explanation would be sought regarding why legal action should not be taken against Yunus Centre.