Recent Activities home page
Launch of Collected Works of
Professor Rehman Sobhan
24
March 2007
Rehman Sobhan’s writings have
paved the way towards
establishing democracy and
governance who dreamed his
entire life to establish a
society that is democratic,
corruption free of corruption
and of equality --- the Chief
Advisor (CA) of the Caretaker
Government Dr Fakhruddin Ahmed,
a student of the first batch of
Rehman Sobhan, made the remarks
as the Chief Guest at the
unveiling ceremony of 'Collected
Works of Rehman Sobhan'
Organised and published by the
Centre for Policy Dialogue on
the 24 March 2007 at the Hotel
Sonargaonm Ballroom. The
selected collection of his
popular writings stretching from
1958 to 2006 has the notion of
justice at the core and
expresses his ideas on political
economy of the society.
Terming Rehman Sobhan as one of
the brightest stars of the
Bangladeshi academic firmament
the CA said that he has made
immense contributions to the
process of Bangladesh’s
emergence through his writings,
which captured contemporary
concerns as well as historical
moments at various junctures in
our national history. He has
made invaluable contributions to
providing an analytical basis of
the two-economy theory and an
economic justification of our
aspiration for independence, the
CA continued. The Chief Advisor
added that Professor Sobhan
displays a remarkable empathy
and strong feelings for the
cause of the poor and the
powerless. But among all his
many achievements, the CA
considered his role as a teacher
as having had the most lasting
impact on our country. The Chief
Advisor concluded that Rehman
Sobhan’s scholarly writings,
based on his insightful
investigations and courageous
inquisitiveness, will serve as a
treasure-trove of knowledge for
the people of Bangladesh.
Debapriya Bhattacharya In his
introductory speech gave a brief
description of life sketch and
writings of Rehman Sobhan. The
CPD ED described him as a
teacher who is still in pursues
his engaging augmentative style
with great erudition while
establishing his heterodox
viewpoints and also influenced a
number of generations of
students imbibing them with
academic excellence,
nationalistic feelings and often
with a sense of purpose in life.
Terming Rehman Sobhan as a
“liberation economist” Dbapriya
said that he has devoted his
talent in search of a
socio-economic paradigm which
could liberate the people of
this country from the threats of
ignorance, poverty and
insecurity.
Speaking at the occasion Kamal
Hossain, eminent politician,
lawyer and a friend of Prof
Sobhan, said the younger
generation should learn from
Sobhan's inspiring works and
join the unfinished journey to
establish the promises of the
liberation war of 1971.
Eminent economist Muzzaffer
Ahmed, a former colleague of
Sobhan, said that the speciality
of Rehman Sobhan is that he has
always attempted not only to
present his views and beliefs on
society but also implement them.
Anisuzzaman, former Professor of
Dhaka University recalled
Sobhan's efforts as a young
teacher at DU in arranging
'thoughtful' seminars that
seriously tackled contemporary
issues in political economy.
Reminding the audience that
Sobhan's works on the
'developmental state' are now
incorporated in the policies of
the World Bank and International
Monetary Fund Prof Wahiduddin
Mahmud lauded Sobhan's work on
development and as a dissenting
voice against foreign-imposed
economic theories.
Hameeda Hossain, founder member
of Ain O Shalish Kendra and a
co-editor of Sobhan for Forum in
the late 1960s, said Sobhan's
writings demonstrate his
'versatility as a writer and the
force of his language'.
Finance Adviser Mirza Azizul
Islam, another member of the
first batch to study under
Sobhan at DU, said Sobhan's
works not only outlined a vision
but articulated a specific
strategy for achieving that
goal.
Prothom Alo Editor Matiur Rahman
applauded Sobhan's choice to
return to Bangladesh in 1957 in
spite of more lucrative
opportunities.
M Syeduzzaman, Member of CPD's
Board of Trustees, chaired the
launching ceremony. Terming
Sobhan as a visionary and a
super-manager, he said that his
writings on the political,
economic and social issues,
bring out again and again, only
one thing-that of justice and
equity, for which he has been
fighting since 1961 and his
concerns was extended beyond the
national borders - to the rest
of the developing world. He
added that Sobhan has been a
broad two way bridge between our
country and the rest of the
world and for the coming
generation he will remain as
ever shining example of
compassion and cosmopolitanism.
Syeduzzaman concluded saying
Rehman Sobhan has been, and will
remain ever, a civilized
architect of public policy.
The book launch attendees' list
was a who's who of Bangladeshi
politics, business, academia,
development sector, culture,
media and the bureaucracy. The
four volumes of the collected
works are Vol 1 -- Challenging
Injustice, Vol 2 -- Milestones
to Bangladesh, Vol 3 - The
Political Economy of
Malgovernance in Bangladesh, and
the fourth volume in Bangla
titled
আমার সমালোচক আমার বন্ধু
'My
critic, my friend'.
