DHAKA, Sept 27, 2024 (BSS) - US Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin has continuously expressed his support for Professor Dr Muhammad Yunus, who now faces a historic moment as Bangladesh's interim leader.
 
The US senator came up with the assurance when he called on Chief Adviser Prof Yunus at a hotel in New York on Thursday (September 26), according to a message received here on Friday.
 
During the meeting, Prof Yunus presented a copy of 'The Art of Triumph', a book on wall paintings drawn by the students during the revolution, to Dick Durbin, the chief adviser's press wing said. 
 
Durbin first met Dr Yunus more than 20 years ago during a trip to Bangladesh.
 
"Dr Yunus's ideas changed the world and helped earn him a Nobel Peace Prize. Tragically, his ideas also earned him the wrath of then-Bangladeshi Prime Minister, Sheikh Hasina, whose government harassed Dr Yunus for years with questionable legal charges and threatened jail time," said Durbin. 
 
"Thanks to the Bangladeshi people who believed in a better future, they demanded Dr. Yunus lead their interim government. Today, I once again offered my unweaving support for Dr Yunus and urge President Biden to support him as well. I know Dr Yunus has the best interests of the Bangladeshi people at heart and will do his utmost in this challenging time," he said.
 
In July, Durbin led three colleagues in releasing a statement denouncing the harassment against Dr Yunus, calling on the Bangladeshi government to end the mistreatment of Dr Yunus, and pull down the dubious charges he is facing.
 
 The statement followed a letter sent by Durbin and his colleagues calling on then-Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to end the harassment against Dr Yunus. Earlier this summer, Durbin further expressed his support for Dr Yunus in a speech on the Senate floor.
The harassment campaign against Dr Yunus was denounced by more than 100 Nobel Prize winners, including former President Obama. 
 
 Durbin led the effort in the United States Congress to award Dr Yunus the Congressional Gold Medal in 2010, recognising his pioneering contributions in the fight against global poverty. 
 
 The Medal was later presented to Dr Yunus in 2013. Durbin also visited Bangladesh in 2017, during which he visited with Rohingya refugees who had fled violence in neighbouring Burma.