Talk:Abul Fateh

correct history of bangladesh

 * I make no bones that as a Bangladeshi and democrat I am proud that Wikipedia can allow an alternative history of the country to emerge. Abul Fateh is regarded as a giant for his quiet and thoughtful leadership. It is sad that outside of Wikipedia because of ideological divides in the country that a neutral man and nation-builder is so unrecognised. I am HANEF Hanef 21:56, 17 September 2005 (UTC)

Women anone?

 * Interesting article. Does anyone know of any WOMEN who have been distinguished officials from Bangladesh?
 * Annawright 08:43, 18 September 2005 (UTC)

edits to historical assessment

 * I made some revisions to the text to make it more readable and less partisan. Annawright 23:03, 5 October 2005 (UTC)

Broken infobox
Removed until fixed. mikka (t) 04:42, 11 October 2005 (UTC)

I might have fixed this; I created a box which looks fine I think. freedom Annawright 16:52, 26 October 2005 (UTC)

Call for Editors!
Just stumbled on List of Bangladeshis and was taken aback at the poor standards of writing and pandemics of POV. Rush over there all of you. They need help. freedom P.S. I suggest people rely on Who's Who International, an annual U.K. publication, to help keep facts or even notability in view. Fateh for instance has figured in it every year since 1975 (could be earlier - my library doesn't go back so far). Annawright 01:09, 26 October 2005 (UTC) freedom

Abul Fateh's sons
There is currently a dispute at Talk:Aladin (magician) about whether or not Abul Fateh had a son named Aladin, and whether or not Aladin is a magician, and whether or not Aladin is notable. Does anyone here have access to a source to confirm any of this information? Elonka 08:33, 19 January 2006 (UTC)
 * Correction, the debate is about whether or not Abul Fateh has a son named "Eenasul Fateh", who is also a magician. Can anyone help confirm or deny the names of his sons?  Thank you. Elonka 19:52, 23 January 2006 (UTC)

Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal
According to the WP article on this medal, it was issued in 1977, not 1975 (and this makes sense, as 1977 would be 25 years after the Queen ascended the throne). Colonies Chris 13:37, 10 February 2007 (UTC)

so-called liberation
Yuu repeat here the same falsehood that it was 'liberation' and not a civil war. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Special:Contributions/ (talk)

who cares about who his son is? who is anat-ul? what Proof are you offering? Who is Inas-ul? This is padding this article. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Special:Contributions/ (talk)

in point 4 refering to sons of ABUL FATEH you say national geographic proves his sons are called these names you have mentioned. The documentary ONLY mentions one 'ALADDIN' and no other name of any son. stop this padding. who is this article about? you don't need to mention names of sons, daughters or so on. Are you his son/daughter? If you want your own page you are not allowed —Preceding unsigned comment added by Idontwantaccount (talk • contribs) 00:38, August 29, 2007 (UTC) sorry i did not mean any insult. however for some reason i am not able to use my account. very strange. i just mean that your political definitions do not find agreement with those of us from the other side of pakistan history. but sorry. I am sure Mr Fateh is a decent man. Sorry to his family —Preceding unsigned comment added by Idontwantaccount2 (talk • contribs) 12:57, 1 September 2007 (UTC)

Please make a note that i had my account idontwantaccount of before disempowered soon after i came to this article. then i had to make a new account like this idontwantaccount2Idontwantaccount2 17:01, 10 September 2007 (UTC)

Feature BDNEWS24
Revered Amassador and Statesman Syed Abul Fateh is the prominent feature in bdnews24 the 'media of record' and Reuters affiliate of Bangladesh. http://www.bdnews24.com/details.php?id=84616&cid=2

''Abul Fateh, first foreign secretary, turns 85 Mon, May 18th, 2009 10:03 pm BdST ''

''Dhaka, May 17 (bdnews24.com)—A F M Abul Fateh, Bangladesh's first foreign secretary, turned 85 on Saturday, his family said. ''

''After his defection from Pakistan in July 1971, he was the most senior member of the Mujibnagar government-in-exile after the cabinet, as adviser to the acting president until after independence hero 'Bangabandhu' Sheikh Mujibur Rahman's return and as ambassador-at-large until just after liberation. ''

''He was the first Pakistani ambassador to defect during independence war in 1971 under what a fellow diplomat said "very dangerous circumstances". ''

''He was also the highest Bangladeshi official in Dhaka until the acting president and cabinet arrived after the victory. ''

''On his arrival in Dhaka, recalls one freedom fighter, he was driven under escort from the airport in order to become the first civilian official to lay a wreath at the ruins of the Shaheed Minar, an act planned to mark the first presence of the government in Dhaka. ''

''Fateh later witnessed many interesting and sometimes unfortunate things in the first couple of months of independence, living in Bangabhaban until Abu Sayeed Chowdhury became president. ''

He politely declined Bangabandhu's offers of a continuation as adviser to the president and of becoming foreign minister, and got himself posted as first ambassador to Paris.

''Syed Badrul Ahsan in his column on New Age said Fateh was an unusual diplomat of his time: he was Bengali-born, but had managed to work his way up the ranks of the Pakistani power structure. ''

bdnews24.com/khk/1643h.

I have removed some repeats of material Born71 (talk) 01:21, 20 May 2009 (UTC)

I have seen this note Wikipedia is not an indiscriminate collection of information and that the eminent examiner Ragib has removed the content. I have consulted the guidelines and will now place some information which is of historical interest and importance. Born71 (talk) 10:59, 20 May 2009 (UTC)

ABDUL HAI
my late father knew this gentleman, which he was. Fateh is younger brother to him. this is a news item so please write about it. http://bdnews24.com/details.php?id=150116&cid=2 Sun, Jan 3rd, 2010 7:18 pm BdST Dhaka, Jan 3 (bdnews24.com)--A K M Abdul Hai, a former long-serving officer in the Bangladesh High Commission in London, died after a long illness in London on Saturday, according to his family.

During the Independence war, he secretly served the interim Mujibnagar government while continuing officially to be attached to the Pakistan High Commission in London.

Hai was born in Kishoreganj on Dec 16, 1917, the second son of Abdul Gafur, a local landowner and police officer. He joined the Pakistan High Commission in London in 1953 as a local recruit with the rank of third secretary, dealing with labour and welfare issues.

During 1971 war, the Mujibnagar government instructed him to continue to serve in the Pakistan High Commission, while, in reality, provide information to the wartime administration.

He also quietly provided practical assistance and advice to those serving Bangladesh in the United Kingdom. One of those he assisted was his own younger brother, AFM Abul Fateh, who escaped from Iraq to London to become the first Pakistani ambassador to join Bangladesh.

In early 1972, following the liberation of Bangladesh, Hai joined the Bangladesh mission in London in the same role he had in the Pakistan High Commission. Later that year, president Sheikh Mujibur Rahman promoted him to second secretary.

Hai was responsible for the selection, acquisition and initial refurbishment of the Bangladesh High Commission's permanent premises at 28 Queen's Gate (in the Kensington area of London).

He later came to serve under Abul Fateh, who was High Commissioner in London during 1976-1977. Hai retired from the service in 1982.

bdnews24.com/bd/1942h.

Bricklanegunda (talk) 14:57, 5 March 2010 (UTC)

Late Fateh Sahib
There is many many news items today since yesterday about the passing of Fateh.. Liberalincline (talk) 13:42, 5 December 2010 (UTC)
 * Thank you, could you please provide links? Or if you see anything in the article which should be changed based on the news, please feel free to make changes, and include your sources. --Elonka 19:28, 5 December 2010 (UTC)


 * Yes. I can provide links and allso make suggestions for changes:

firstly, each and all and every one of our newspapers has put Mr. Fateh's passing away as a major news. Maybe Daily Star, New Age, Independent, Daily Nation, BDnews24 and so on links can be put together stating the fact that his death was widely reported including television bulletins in ATN and so forth

and then one can add particular passages: http://www.banglanews24.com.bd/English/detailsnews.php?nssl=f8548d450d3c2e5f6c847a3de0748b8d&nttl=201012059904 new age newspaper is a senior paper of our country and it calls Fateh "Foreign Minister Dr Dipu Moni condoled the death of Abul Fateh, expressed her deep shock at the death of the senior diplomat of the then Mujibnagar government.Dipu Moni recalled his outstanding career and said he would be always remembered for his contribution to the country’s liberation war."

Fateh Sahib is also the feature of BDNEWS24 a very important news organisation: http://www.bdnews24.com/details.php?id=180635&cid=2 Here he is singled out for the fact that Nazrul Islam and he were known to each other and that Fateh was approached by Islam to defect.

He returned to Dhaka after its liberation and was the highest Bangladeshi official till the cabinet took charge according to Zee news another important news organisation but of india http://www.zeenews.com/news672538.html

FM Dipu Moni talks about "contribution to self-right movements of people, country's independence struggle and managing assistance to war ravaged country after independence." http://www.thefinancialexpress-bd.com/more.php?news_id=119348&date=2010-12-06

Fateh was a strong voice for the Bangladeshi cause and was responsible for advocating supports of various countries for the Liberation War.

"After the independence, Fateh worked for earning recognition of foreign countries for the newly formed country and aid for the war-torn nation" http://www.theindependentbd.com/national/22167-first-foreign-secretary-abul-fateh-passes-away.html Liberalincline (talk) 01:19, 6 December 2010 (UTC)
 * I think that's an excellent idea, and I encourage you to proceed. I'll help with formatting, but go ahead and start putting in anything that you think is appropriate, and then I'll help with cleanup. --Elonka 01:56, 6 December 2010 (UTC)


 * I will gladly assist you madame! Liberalincline (talk) 19:53, 6 December 2010 (UTC)


 * http://www.theindependentbd.com/paper-edition/oped/22840-passing-away-of-a-brave-freedom-fighter.html death notice written with full authority by a later foreign secretary  Syed Muazzem Ali

"a great freedom fighter, He was the first Ambassador to sever his links with the Pakistan Government and declare allegiance to Bangladesh during the War of Independence. At that time, Fateh was Pakistan’s Ambassador to Iraq.  He was asked by Islamabad to attend a regional envoys’ conference in Tehran.  He left Baghdad by the flag car but, instead of heading towards Tehran, he went to Kuwait and, along with his wife and two sons took a plane to London.  cool and calculated James Bond-type adventure, This dramatic defection created sensation in the diplomatic circles and it greatly boosted the morale of our freedom fighters. The Yahya regime was furious at this defection and requested the British Government to extradite Fateh, but was rebuffed. Soon after arriving in London, he left to join the government in Mujibnagar. He was appointed as ambassador-at-large by the provisional Bangladesh Government and was given a special assignment to drum up international support for our quest for independence and in that context he visited several countries. He was also included as a member of the Bangladesh delegation to the United Nations General Assembly in September 1971 As the senior-most diplomat in the UN delegation, he played a vital role in the delegation’s lobbying efforts. During the UNGA session they met a large number of delegations, apprised them about the genocide being perpetrated on our people by the Pakistani forces, and urged them to support our bid for nationhood. The delegation also came to Washington from New York to meet Senators, Congressmen, and high officials in the US Administration, World Bank, and IMF. The Bangladesh Mission in Washington DC arranged these appointments. As a member of the Bangladesh Mission, I had the opportunity of meeting him for the first time and also of closely watching him work. Fateh, a suave, soft-spoken and scholarly diplomat, articulated our cause very well during those meetings with the lawmakers and high officials. Fateh had served in the Pakistan Embassy in Washington DC in the 1960s and was familiar with some of the decision-makers and also the decision-making process; thus his contributions were invaluable. During his stay in Washington, he narrated to us his “dramatic defection” from Baghdad and what he had to do to escape any suspicion of both the host government and Islamabad. During our liberation war, unfortunately, President Nixon and his Administration were “tilted” in favor of Pakistan, but the American people, Congress and the news media were sympathetic towards our people and our quest for independence. Our strategy was to utilize the delegation’s visit to Washington to further cultivate those favorable circles so that they could put pressure on their administration to cut off military and economic aid to Pakistan. Abul Fateh had obtained his Master’s degree in English Literature from Dhaka University in 1947 and had taught in a college in Hobiganj, Sylhet, before appearing in the competitive CSS examination next year. On the basis of his CSS results, he joined the first batch of Pakistan Foreign Service in 1949 and was trained for two years including a special program at the London School of Economics in 1951. Then he served in various Pakistani Embassies before getting his first ambassadorial assignment in Baghdad in 1970. Immediately after the liberation of Bangladesh on 16 December 1971, Fateh came to Dhaka, one of the first high officials to reach Dhaka. As the country’s first Foreign Secretary, he played an important role in the formulation of our foreign policy. In early 1972 he was sent to Paris as Bangladesh's first ambassador to France and he served in that capacity till 1976. Soon after he took over, the French Government extended generous material and technical assistance to war-ravaged Bangladesh in its relief and rehabilitation efforts. Fateh toured a large number of francophone African countries to persuade them to recognize Bangladesh. In March 1972 Bangladesh was admitted to the UNESCO as a full member and Fateh was appointed our Permanent Representative to the UNESCO Headquarters in Paris. In early 1976, he took over as High Commissioner in London and served there till the end of 1977. Unfortunately, he was a victim of conspiracy hatched against him by anti-liberation forces and as a result he was prematurely transferred to a relatively unimportant station like Algiers. He retired from that post in 1982. After his retirement from diplomatic service, he and his wife Mahfuza Fateh moved to Dhaka and lived in this city for ten years. At that time, we had more opportunities to meet him in various social and official functions. At the end of 1992 they moved to London to be near their sons. Ambassador Fateh was remarkably reticent about his contributions. He is no longer with us but his contributions during the critical days of our liberation war are a lesson for all diplomats. His outstanding professional skill and deep sense of patriotism should be a shining example for our young diplomats. May Allah grant eternal peace to the soul of this brave freedom fighter and give courage and fortitude to the members of the bereaved family to bear the loss. Amen.""

also another authority writing is editor of bdnews24 who is also his son Aladin http://www.bdnews24.com/Bangladesh/the-US-embassy-cables/:

"During the 1971 War of Liberation and subsequently as Bangladesh’s first Foreign Secretary he had a key role managing relations with the United States and India whilst heading the nascent country’s diplomatic service. His American connections were already extensive: in 1949-50 he had been a Carnegie Foundation Fellow in International Peace; he was posted as a Pakistani diplomat to Washington 1956-60 (and shortly after became the founding Director of Pakistan’s Foreign Service Academy in Lahore); he was a Rockefeller Foundation Scholar and Research Fellow at Geneva’s Institut de Hautes Etudes Internationales (International Relations Institute), subsequently becoming one of Pakistan’s few Bengali ambassadors. Shortly before the war he was also stationed in India (Delhi and Kolkata) as Pakistan’s highest ranking Bengali origin diplomat and so became an absolute repository of in-depth knowledge of the USA’s ‘secret diplomacy’ in the region; for the USA then as now was a key ally of Pakistan’s. Hence when he switched sides to Bangladesh in 1971, my father found himself re-engaging with his American colleagues but now ‘from the other side’ and with the advantage of his insider’s insight into their modus operandi. My father worked without partisanship as a public servant throughout his long career from 1949-1983 – except during that passage in 1971 when he chose to be counted. He also had to serve under an extraordinary variety of leaders in as many different circumstances and whatever his personal views he always took great pains when describing these individuals to me, which he also did with not inconsiderable humanity. In the contemporary Bangladeshi context my father may seem anomalous but there are his equivalent across public service and public life here and abroad. Here are a few axioms my father (who was a Sufi too) mentioned to me and I know he stayed true to: “Do not speak anything that you do not yourself know to be true.” “Speak in the spirit of offering, without the need to draw attention to yourself.” “You should stand up when it matters.” " Liberalincline (talk) 00:51, 20 December 2010 (UTC)

Dear Elonka - please do the needfull and make the edits more pleasing to the eye. So many more valuable informations are within now. Thank you Liberalincline (talk) 02:37, 20 December 2010 (UTC)

He is important in the history of the whole of South Asian diplomacy as he was Pakistan's first Director of Foreign Service Academy and Director at Ministry of Foreign Affairs and subsequently first Foreign Secretary of Bangladesh and its senior-most diplomat. So he has influenced the diplomatic history of TWO of the three main South Asian countries the other being India. Liberalincline (talk) 02:50, 20 December 2010 (UTC)


 * Gentlemen - here is one that got away http://www.thedailystar.net/newDesign/news-details.php?nid=164851 . The country's first foreign secretary and the senior most diplomat in the Mujibnagar administration AFM Abul Fateh passed away yesterday at 7:45 in London of natural causes. I have now created my own account boys Mizanurbangladesh (talk) 16:13, 21 December 2010 (UTC)


 * Is it appropriate to ask if Chalees of Mr. Fateh is public? If it should be place here? Mizanurbangladesh (talk) 16:42, 21 December 2010 (UTC)

Furthermore public information: http://www.flickr.com/photos/anatulfateh/ http://www.flickr.com/photos/aladinaladin http://twitter.com/aladinaladin Mr. Fateh received overseas Bangladesh state funeral with statement from Prime Minister Hasina and National Flag of Country draped on cask at request of Bd Govt. VIP dignitaries eulogised him. Mr. Fateh was the friend of the Sufi Saint Hazrat Inayat Khan. Furthermore his widow Begum Fateh is a woman pioneer in education and journalism in Assam (India) and in Washington (USA) and there is historic portrait of her as NewsWoman in USA 1958. Mizanurbangladesh (talk) 20:50, 22 December 2010 (UTC)

"Passing away of a brave freedom fighter" http://www.theindependentbd.com/paper-edition/oped/22840-passing-away-of-a-brave-freedom-fighter.html can provide a new Title Mizanurbangladesh (talk) 20:52, 22 December 2010 (UTC)

"Material on this flickr account may be used with full attribution." http://www.flickr.com/people/aladinaladin/ I am treating this to be permission. But the texts are not able to be loaded as they are not in document only as images Mizanurbangladesh (talk) 12:40, 23 December 2010 (UTC)

This shall now complete the work. Now I hope some body to complete the article about Mahfuza Fateh who is a pioneer woman broadcaster Mizanurbangladesh (talk) 14:10, 23 December 2010 (UTC)

Mahfuza Fateh
I am suggesting an article on Mahfuza Fateh who was born Indian see Abul Fateh then married a Pakistani diplomat and then had Bangladeshi citizenship and now is living in London UK as the widow of late Abul Fateh and Mother of Aladin. Mahfuza Fateh was one of earliest Woman Graduate in Economics in Assam in India and then in 1958 was first Asian person certainly Asian Woman was Journalist, Newsreader, Broadcaster, News Anchor for Voice of America.

Information which has come to light:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/aladinaladin/5281926782/ MahfuzaFateh Mahfuza Fateh (nee Banu) b. 1932 was possibly the first regular broadcaster, journalist or newscaster working in the United States / USA who was of South Asian origin. Mahfuza was certainly the first female Asian female broadcaster from American soil, reading / presenting the news for the Voice of America / VOA in Washington D.C. from 1958 to 1960. She would translate from English to Bangla / Bengali shortly before transmission and then read from her script. Mahfuza was of Indian origin, born in Dhubri in Assam, India to lawyer Shahabuddin Ahmed and Mashudaa Banu a social campaigner. Mahfuza was one of the first women graduates in Assam, she has a B.A. Honours degree in Economics. In 1956 she married Abul Fateh, then a Pakistani diplomat who later went on to become the first Foreign Secretary of Bangladesh. Mahfuza at one time or another held Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi passports. In 2008 Mahfuza was featured in the special commemorative calendar which the VOA produced to celebrate the 50th anniversary of broadcasting the news in Bangla / Bengali.

Born in 1932 she grew up in a rural, riverine context next to the Brahmaputra River in Dhubri, Assam; she was the first of her 10 siblings to graduate with a degree; she lived in over a dozen cities around the world; in the 1950s she inaugurated the VOA's broadcasts to the Bengali / Bangla speaking parts of South Asia; she found her match in her husband Abul Fateh

There is historical picture of Mahfuza reading the news.

http://www.bdnews24.com/Bangladesh/the-US-embassy-cables/ Mahfuza Fateh (nee Banu) inaugurated Bengali language news broadcasts from Washington D.C. to South Asia for the Voice of America in the 1950s. She and her friends and family apparently had to be vetted by the CIA prior to her being appointed. At the time it would be fair to say that the VOA was an adjunct to American diplomacy worldwide. Mizanurbangladesh (talk) 14:21, 23 December 2010 (UTC)


 * Most of the info can easily be accomodated in Abul Fateh's page. Reading the above, I don't see anything that makes her independently notable. Of course, you also need third party sources. Right now, *ALL* the above info comes from her son ... the BDNews article was penned by her son Aladin. So, that can't be considered as a reliable source. --Ragib (talk) 14:27, 23 December 2010 (UTC)


 * That is great Ragib. Please do the needfull. The picture is a very good one from Voice of America and I am sure they will be interested. So please insert the picture in a gracefull way with a good caption. Also I was thinking somebody should do articles on all our news corps such as Independent, BDnews, Dstar and so on. Mizanurbangladesh (talk) 18:33, 23 December 2010 (UTC)

External links modified
Hello fellow Wikipedians,

I have just modified 2 one external links on Abul Fateh. Please take a moment to review my edit. If you have any questions, or need the bot to ignore the links, or the page altogether, please visit this simple FaQ for additional information. I made the following changes:
 * Added archive http://web.archive.org/web/20110708102755/http://rivercourt.users.btopenworld.com/projects.html to http://rivercourt.users.btopenworld.com/projects.html
 * Added archive http://web.archive.org/web/20051030192011/http://www.mofa.gov.bd:80/foreign_secretary.htm to http://www.mofa.gov.bd/foreign_secretary.htm

When you have finished reviewing my changes, please set the checked parameter below to true or failed to let others know (documentation at ).

Cheers.—cyberbot II  Talk to my owner :Online 06:36, 27 May 2016 (UTC)

External links modified
Hello fellow Wikipedians,

I have just modified 3 external links on Abul Fateh. Please take a moment to review my edit. If you have any questions, or need the bot to ignore the links, or the page altogether, please visit this simple FaQ for additional information. I made the following changes:
 * Added archive https://web.archive.org/web/20101223135459/http://www.bdnews24.com/Bangladesh/the-US-embassy-cables to http://www.bdnews24.com/Bangladesh/the-US-embassy-cables
 * Added archive https://web.archive.org/web/20070930184816/http://www.newagebd.com/2005/dec/13/edit.html to http://www.newagebd.com/2005/dec/13/edit.html
 * Added tag to http://www.banglanews24.com.bd/English/detailsnews.php?nssl=f8548d450d3c2e5f6c847a3de0748b8d&nttl=201012059904
 * Added archive https://web.archive.org/web/20070929062316/http://www.profile-bengal.com/page160.html to http://www.profile-bengal.com/page160.html

When you have finished reviewing my changes, you may follow the instructions on the template below to fix any issues with the URLs.

Cheers.— InternetArchiveBot  (Report bug) 07:29, 26 November 2017 (UTC)