The inauguration ceremony of the 63rd Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference (CPC) on Sunday is the first public event that Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has attended nearly a month after returning from the US.
The prime minister returned from the US on October 7 after attending the 72nd session of the United Nations General Assembly in the New York City, followed by a personal trip to Virginia where she also had a surgery in her gallbladder.
Since then, the prime minister has been trying to rest as much as possible and keeping her movement restricted between Ganabhaban, her official residence, and the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) in the capital's Tejgaon area.
Hasina was on bed rest for the first few days after her return; after that, she went to work on a regular basis.
However, all the Cabinet meetings that were scheduled were held at the PMO, and meetings with foreign delegates who visited Bangladesh during this time were held at Ganabhaban.
In addition, because of her health conditions, she was unable to brief President Abdul Hamid of her US visit at his official residence, Bangabhaban, even though it is the norm. She also could not physically attend the inauguration of the Mouchak-Moghbazar flyover on October 26 and had to do it via videoconference.
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Even on the ocassion of Jail Killing Day on November 3, the prime minister did not go to pay respects at the mural of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, neither did she attend the discussion event organised by her party the Awami League in Khamarbari, Dhaka.
When she returned to Bangladesh from the US on October 7, during a conversation with reporters at Dhaka airport, Hasina said she had been advised by the doctors to move carefully in the next six months.
“I had a gallbladder surgery after I suddenly fell ill in Virginia,” she said. “The doctors advised me to take rest for six weeks and be careful with my movement for the next six months.”
She said she was taking longer to heal because of her age. “I am 71 now. It will take some time for me to fully recover from the surgery. Perhaps I would heal faster had this surgery taken place 20 years ago.”
Hasina inaugurated the CPC at the South Plaza of Jatiya Sangsad in Manik Mia Avenue on Sunday, where she urged the Commonwealth to put pressure on Myanmar to stop the violent persecution of the Rohingyas and begin the repatriation of the Rohingya refugees living in Bangladesh at the earliest possible time.
This article was first published on Bangla Tribune
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