Yunus is misleading public with UNESCO award claim: Education Minister

Education Minister Mohibul Hassan Chowdhury has alleged that Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus is misleading the public by claiming to have received an award from the UNESCO.

Mohibul, the ex-officio chairman of the Bangladesh National Commission for UNESCO (BNCU), said that UNESCO denied presenting any award to Yunus when asked about the matter.

The minister said: "Dr Yunus is creating confusion among public over receiving the award which is immoral. The confusion arises from Yunus passing off the award given by Israeli sculptor Hedva Ser, a UNESCO goodwill ambassador, as if it were directly awarded by UNESCO itself. This is humiliating for our country."

"Hedva Ser herself has stated that the award is not from UNESCO. It was presented to Yunus at the Ghaznavi Center's invitation, not by UNESCO. The misinformation being spread by the Yunus Centre and Dr Yunus is not only false but intentionally deceptive," he added.

"Dr Yunus, who is already convicted for labour law violations, is spreading misleading information using UNESCO's name. If this baseless propaganda doesn't stop, we will take legal steps," he added.

On March 17, a post on Yunus's verified Facebook page announced that he had been honoured with the 'Tree of Life' award from UNESCO and several news outlets published the news.