Staff Reporter :
In a firm stance against deceptive practices, the UNESCO National Commission of Bangladesh has announced its intention to seek explanations for the misleading use of the UNESCO name by Dr. Muhammad Yunus and the Yunus Centre.
The Commission expressed concern over recent reports claiming that Dr. Yunus was awarded the “Tree of Peace” award by UNESCO, citing the absence of any communication with the UNESCO office in Paris regarding this purported honor.
Signed by Deputy Secretary General Jubaeda Mnanna, the statement underscores the Commission’s commitment to addressing deceptive tactics and ensuring accountability for such actions.
It is also stated, “At the 11th Baku Forum where this honour was reported to have been conferred, there was no official representation of UNESCO.
Moreover, the honour claimed by the Yunus Centre is not any award or recognition from UNESCO.”
“Dr. Yunus was awarded a symbolic commemoration/honour called ‘Tree of Peace’ by Israeli artist Miss Hedva Ser. Miss Hedva herself has confirmed that there was no connection of UNESCO in awarding Dr. Yunus the ‘Tree of Peace’.”
“Israeli artist Miss Hedva Ser presented this at the invitation of the Nizami Ganjavi International Center. Miss Hedva Ser is the cultural goodwill ambassador of UNESCO.
However, UNESCO does not have any official representative, and it does not retain the authority to confer any awards/recognition, the statement said.
