“Books need to be highlight to elevate a country to the global level”: Abdullah Abu Sayeed

"To elevate a country to the international level, its books must first be highlighted; the lives and achievements of its most notable personalities must be highlighted internationally. Only then will an accurate image of the country be represented in the international arena," said Professor Abdullah Abu Sayeed, president of Bishwo Shahitto Kendro, in a discussion titled "CMG's New Initiative: Publishing Books on China". The discussion took place at the Bishwo Shahitto Kendro auditorium, and was organised by China Media Group (CMG).

He added that, in order to translate from one language to another, translators must be very well-versed in the language they are translating from. They must also have adequate creative control over the language in which the translation will be made, without which the outcome will not be worth reading. This is how the gradual exchange of literature and culture takes place. Prof. Sayeed invited the organisers to take on the task of facilitating cultural exchange between the two countries at a state level.

Yue Liwen, the cultural counsellor of the Embassy of China in Dhaka, Mohammad Nurul Huda, director general of Bangla Academy, and Professor Abdullah Abu Sayeed, president of Bishwo Shahitto Kendro, were all present as guests during the meeting, which took place at 6 PM on Thursday. The director of CMG's Bangla division, Yu Guang Yue Anandi, and journalist Alimul Hoque joined the meeting online from Beijing, China.

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Author Shakoor Majid, translator Mashiul Alam, Salim Solaiman, poet Alamgir Reza Chowdhury, Mansur Aziz, Imrul Kayes, Diltaz Rahman, Imran Mahfuz, Zahirul Islam, publisher Syed Zakir Hossain, Mezba Uddin Ahmed, and Hasan Tareque, among others, participated in a discussion on the challenges and possibilities of publishing books related to China in Bangladesh.

In his speech, the director general of Bangla Academy, Mohammad Nurul Huda, called for the establishment of a Chinese cultural centre in Dhaka to further strengthen cultural relations between the two countries. Taking into account the number of Chinese books translated in Bangladesh and Bangladeshi books translated in China, he urged that more books be translated in the two languages. He also requested that a literary paper or magazine be published on a monthly basis.

Yue Liwen, the cultural counsellor at the Embassy of China in Dhaka, mentioned that they would soon begin working on greater cultural exchange between the two countries, as suggested by the speakers. 

The program was moderated by Shanta Maria, a journalist and poet working in CMG's Bangla division.