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One of Scotland's best-loved restaurants has teamed up with
international charity Concern Worldwide to launch a campaign to help
street dwellers in Bangladesh. The campaign is named Amrao Manush
meaning 'we are people too', a name that was proposed by two women in
different locations in Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh.
Local restaurateur and business-man, Dr Wali Tasar Uddin MBE, is
urging fellow restaurateurs to back the appeal to raise money for the
pavement dwellers of Bangladesh. His restaurant, Britannia Spice in
Leith, is spearheading the scheme and 50 restaurants across the UK
are expected to take part. Britannia Spice and the other restaurants
will ask diners to donate £1 to the appeal, launched by
international development charity Concern Worldwide.
Dr Wali Tasar Uddin hosted an event at Britannia Spice to launch the
event on Thursday 15th April, 3pm at Britannia Spice. Over 25 local
business people attended, as well as Labour MP Mark Lazarowicz, who
made an impromptu speech pledging his ongoing support to the cause.
The official speaker was award-winning Herald Chief Reporter, Lucy
Adams, who spent time in Bangladesh reporting on the street dwellers
in Dhaka. Lucy is heavily involved in the Concern Worldwide campaign
and exposed the plight of the pavement dwellers of Dhaka in a recent
story in the Saturday Herald. Lucy told the attendees the story of
50,000 men, women and children living on the pavements of the
Bangladesh capital. Most have fled floods and cyclones elsewhere in
the country.
The event raised awareness of the campaign and even inspired one
local business man to donate a cheque for £1000 on the spot.
Unicef, the United Nations Children's Fund, believes 400 women and
children become victims of human trafficking in Bangladesh each
month. Some of these people are sold in the UK. Concern is striving
to build shelters to provide families with a secure place to sleep
and keep safe at night.
Wali Uddin, who has raised millions of pounds for charities in both
his homeland and the UK, said he was proud to be instrumental in
helping organise the event. "As the population of Dhaka
continues to swell, the problem of street dwellers in the capital
continues to get worse every year," said the eminent
business-man who was awarded a
Member of the British Empire (MBE) for his services to race
relations. "This appeal will allow Concern Worldwide to carry on
with the fantastic work they already do in Bangladesh. Just one pound
can go some way to building safe and secure shelter for people who
currently live in horrendous circumstances. We have a responsibility
to do all we can to help people who cannot help themselves." |
