Watch | ‘Not anger or revenge, need love, peace to rebuild Bangladesh’: Ex-PM Khaleda Zia in first statement after release

"We need to reform this country as a prosperous one, the students, the youth, are our future. We will bring to life the dreams for which they gave their lifeblood," she said in her first public speech since 2018, delivered via video link at the Bangladesh National Party (BNP) rally in Nayapaltan.

Zia giving her first public speech since 2018, delivered via video link at the Bangladesh National Party (BNP) rally in Nayapaltan. (X/@PTI_News)

Former Bangladesh Prime Minister Khaleda Zia Wednesday made her first public statement after her release from jail, urging citizens to strive for a “democratic Bangladesh where all religions are respected”, and said it is not “anger” or “revenge” but “love and peace” which will rebuild the nation.

“I have been released now. I want to thank the brave people who were in a do-or-die struggle to make possible the impossible. This victory brings us a new possibility to come back from the debris of plunder, corruption and ill-politics. We need to reform this country as a prosperous one, the students, the youth, are our future. We will bring to life the dreams for which they gave their lifeblood,” she said in her first public speech since 2018, delivered via video link at the Bangladesh National Party (BNP) rally in Nayapaltan.

“No destruction, no anger and no revenge, we need love and peace to rebuild our country,” she added. “You have been praying for my health all this while. I am able to speak to you due to the blessings of Allah. We have been able to get independence from this fascist government. I pay my obeisance to the brave ones who gave their lives,” Zia said in Bangla. “We have to form a new Bangladesh from this victory where the youth and students will be our hope.”

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Zia was sentenced to 17 years in prison for graft in 2018 under the rule of Sheikh Hasina, 76, who resigned as prime minister on Monday and fled to India in the face of massive protests against her government.

STORY | Not ‘anger’ or ‘revenge’ but ‘love and peace’ will rebuild Bangladesh, says Khaleda Zia

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The 79-year-old also received a renewed passport on Tuesday, and her personal secretary collected it later that night, her party said on Wednesday.

The BNP chairperson, currently undergoing treatment for various ailments, was released on an executive order from President Mohammed Shahabuddin on Tuesday. She previously served as prime minister from 1991 to 1996 and from 2001 to 2006. The political situation in Bangladesh remains volatile as protests continue after Hasina’s government has collapsed.

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