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Sharmeen Murshid

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Sharmeen Murshid
শারমিন মুরশিদ
Murshid at the G20 Women Empowerment Ministerial Meeting in Brasilia (2024)
Adviser for Social Welfare
Assumed office
9 August 2024
Chief AdviserMuhammad Yunus
Preceded byDipu Moni
Advisor for Women and Children Affairs
Assumed office
22 August 2024
Chief AdviserMuhammad Yunus
Preceded bySimeen Hussain Rimi
Personal details
NationalityBangladeshi
Parents
Relatives

Sharmeen Murshid is a member of the advisory council of the Bangladesh interim government.[1] She was chief executive officer of human rights organization Brotee which has been working for the rights of marginalized groups, especially the indigenous people since 2001.[2] She is currently serving as Adviser to the Ministry of Women and Children Affairs as well as Ministry of Social Welfare.[3] Murshid is a former Commissioner of the National River Conservation Commission.

Early life

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Murshid's parents were Khan Sarwar Murshid and Nurjahan Murshid.[4][5][6] Her father was a member of the planning commission of Mujibnagar government and confidante of Tajuddin Ahmed and her mother was a member of parliament.[7]

Her brother is Khan Ahmed Sayeed Murshid, former director general of the Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies.[7][8]

Her elder sister is Tazeen Mahnaz Murshid, senior lecturer of King's College London.[7][9]

Her another brother Kumar Murshid is a leftist politician in the United Kingdom who was formerly Labour Party.[7][10]

Career

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In 1971 during the Bangladesh Liberation War, Murshid was a member of the Bangladesh Mukti Sangrami Shilpi Sangstha which created propoganda songs for the Mukti Bahini.[11] She was a student of grade 10 in 1971.[12] Tareque Masud and his wife Catherine Masud made a documentary of the group called Muktir Gaan.[11] She identifies herself as a freedom fighter and has spoken for greater recognition of female freedom fighters.[13][14] She had question why Pakistan Army surrendered to the Indian Army after the war and not to the Bangladeshi people.[12]

In 2008, Murshid was the general secretary of National Alliance for Election Monitoring for the 9th parliamentary election of Bangladesh.[15]

In August 2012, Murshid signed a statement along with 57 other women leaders asking the government to leave Grameen Bank alone after its founder Muhammad Yunus was forced to resign by Bangladesh Bank.[16] Other signatories included Farida Akther, Hameeda Hossain, Khushi Kabir, Maleka Begum, Rasheda K. Chowdhury, Rokia Afzal Rahman, Sara Hossain, Sultana Kamal, and Syeda Rizwana Hasan.[16] In 2014, she said the Election Commission had failed to hold a fair and free 10th parliamentary election.[17]

Murshid was the general secretary of Uttarsury: Nurjahan-Sarwar Murshid Cultural Centre,[18] which oversaw the secretariate of the National Celebration Committee for the Birth Centenary of Khan Sarwar Murshid.[19] It also provides Uttarsury-Nurjahan Murshid Smrity Padak awards.[18]

Murshid is the Chief Executive Officer of Brotee, an election observation group.[20] She told Shakhawat Liton of The Daily Star in 2018 that the space for election monitoring was decreasing due to lack of funding and Bangladesh Election Commission ignoring respected observers.[20]

In 2020, Murshid was a member of the National River Conservation Commission, a quasi-judicial commission responsible for protecting rivers.[21] In October 2021, she signed a statement panning a culture of impunity when it comes to attacks on religious minorities in Bangladesh.[22] In 2023, she signed a letter criticizing the government treatment of Khaleda Zia, warning it could lead to a political crises, and asking the government to send her abroad for treatment.[23] Other signatories included Ali Imam Majumder, Asif Nazrul, CR Abrar, Farida Akhtar, Hafizuddin Khan, Naila Z Khan, Nur Khan, Rahnuma Ahmed, Shahdeen Malik, Shahidul Alam, Shireen Huq, Syeda Rizwana Hasan, and Tofail Ahmed.[23]

Murshid was critical of the 2024 Bangladeshi election describing it as one sided election by one party which party members stand against each other.[24] She was critical of the government using violence against quota reform protestors.[13]

After the fall of the Sheikh Hasina led Awami League government, Murshid was appointed an advisor in the Muhammad Yunus led interim government.[25] She was placed in charge of the Ministry of Social Welfare.[26]

References

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  1. ^ "Yunus-led interim govt sworn in". The Daily Star. 2024-08-08. Retrieved 2024-08-08.
  2. ^ "Inside the interim govt: Key members leading Bangladesh's transition". Dhaka Tribune. 2024-08-08. Retrieved 2024-08-08.
  3. ^ UNB (2024-08-27). "Interim govt: Portfolios redistributed once again". Prothomalo. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  4. ^ প্রতিবেদক, নিজস্ব (2024-08-09). "শারমিন মুরশিদ". Prothomalo (in Bengali). Retrieved 2024-08-31.
  5. ^ "Prof Khan Sarwar no more". The Daily Star. 2012-12-09. Retrieved 2024-10-10.
  6. ^ "Nurjahan Murshid a pioneer of women's rights". The Daily Star. 2024-05-24. Retrieved 2024-10-13.
  7. ^ a b c d Haque, Junaidul (2012-12-22). "The passing of an icon". The Daily Star. Retrieved 2024-08-31.
  8. ^ "Economic growth needs to be more closely linked to the rural economy: KAS Murshid". The Business Standard. 2019-09-30. Retrieved 2024-08-31.
  9. ^ "Wissenschaftskolleg zu Berlin". Tazeen M. Murshid, Ph.D. Retrieved 2024-08-31.
  10. ^ admin (2007-11-13). "Kumar Murshid: 'I left Labour to get away from corrupting practices'". Socialist Worker. Retrieved 2024-08-31.
  11. ^ a b "শারমিন মুরশিদ". Prothomalo (in Bengali). 2024-08-09. Archived from the original on 9 August 2024. Retrieved 2024-10-10.
  12. ^ a b "Witness to victory". The Daily Star. 2019-12-10. Retrieved 2024-10-10.
  13. ^ a b Murshid, Sharmeen S. (2024-07-25). "The government should take responsibility for its mistakes". The Daily Star. Retrieved 2024-10-10.
  14. ^ "Forum". archive.thedailystar.net. Retrieved 2024-10-10.
  15. ^ "Call to make selection of polls observers transparent". The Daily Star. 2008-11-23. Retrieved 2024-10-10.
  16. ^ a b "Leave Grameen Bank as it is". The Daily Star. 2012-08-09. Retrieved 2024-10-10.
  17. ^ Report, Star Online (2014-01-10). "EC failed to conduct fair polls: Brotee". The Daily Star. Retrieved 2024-10-10.
  18. ^ a b "Three women honoured for remarkable contributions". The Daily Star. 2023-09-18. Retrieved 2024-10-10.
  19. ^ Sreshtha, Maisha Tasnim (2024-07-01). "An aesthete: Celebrating the birth centenary of Khan Sarwar Murshid". The Daily Star. Retrieved 2024-10-10.
  20. ^ a b "'Space for election monitoring is shrinking'". The Daily Star. 2018-12-24. Retrieved 2024-10-10.
  21. ^ "Protecting Rights of Rivers: Turning intention into action". The Daily Star. 2020-11-20. Retrieved 2024-10-10.
  22. ^ "Communal Attacks: Law enforcers cannot avoid responsibilities". The Daily Star. 2021-10-23. Retrieved 2024-10-10.
  23. ^ a b "Khaleda's treatment: Govt's stance could lead to 'new political crisis'". The Daily Star. 2023-10-12. Retrieved 2024-10-10.
  24. ^ "It's tough to make sense of election like this". The Daily Star. 2024-01-08. Retrieved 2024-10-10.
  25. ^ "Advisers to the interim government". The Daily Star. 2024-08-09. Retrieved 2024-10-10.
  26. ^ Report, Star Digital (2024-08-09). "Cabinet Division announces portfolios of interim govt". The Daily Star. Retrieved 2024-10-10.