Muhammad Yunus, the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize winner, has taken oath as the head of Bangladesh's interim government, following weeks of student-led protests that forced Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to resign and flee to India.
The 84-year-old economist-turned-politician was sworn in at a ceremony at the presidential palace in Dhaka on Thursday night. President Mohammed Shahabuddin administered the oath, with foreign diplomats, civil society members, top businessmen, and former opposition party members in attendance. No representatives of Hasina's party were present.
During the ceremony, Yunus pledged to "uphold, support, and protect the constitution" and vowed to perform his duties "sincerely".
Sixteen other people have been included in the interim council with members drawn mainly from civil society and including two of the student protest leaders. The decision to appoint Prof Yunus was made after a meeting between President Shahabuddin, military leaders, and student leaders.
The council of advisers to assist Yunus in running the state affairs includes Syeda Rizwana Hasan, Farida Akhtar, Adilur Rahman Khan, AFM Khaled Hossain, Nurjahan Begum, Sharmeen Murshid, Faruk-e-Azam, Nahid Islam, Asif Mahmud, Salehuddin Ahmed, Prof Asif Nazrul, Hasan Arif, Brigadier General (retired) M Sakhawat Hossain, Supradip Chakma, Prof Bidhan Ranjan Roy, and Touhid Hossain.
Sheikh Hasina, Bangladesh's prime minister of 15 years, quit on Monday after weeks of chaotic protests and spiralling violence that left over 300 people dead, including students.
The demonstrations began in July, initially focusing on a controversial quota system for government jobs that critics argued favoured those with connections to Hasina's party. However, the protests soon grew into a broader challenge to Hasina's rule, calling for her resignation.
'Today Is A Day Of Pride'
Muhammad Yunus arrived in Dhaka today from Paris, where he was attending the Olympic Games. Army chief General Waker-Uz-Zaman, senior officials, student leaders and civil society members welcomed him at the airport.
At a press conference at the airport, Yunus expressed gratitude to the youth who made the protest movement against Hasina successful.
“Today is a day of our pride,” he said. Yunus called the change of regime the country’s “second independence”.
"We have got independence for the second time. We have to protect this independence," he said.
He asked the citizens to save the country from chaos created during the protests. “If you have faith in me, you ensure that there will be no attack on anybody, anywhere in the country. This is our first responsibility,” Yunus said.
Who Is Dr Muhammad Yunus?
Dr Muhammad Yunus is a social entrepreneur, banker, economist and civil society leader. In 2006, Yunus rose to international prominence after he and Grameen Bank received the Nobel Peace Prize for their work in microcredit and microfinance.
Under Grameen Bank, small loans to underserved entrepreneurs were given and they were empowered to achieve economic and social development despite limited access to traditional banking services.
Apart from the Nobel, Yunus has been a recipient of various international awards such as the United States Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2009 and the Congressional Gold Medal in 2010.
