Mortal remains of Bangladesh’s friend and freedom fighter Father Marino Rigon will be brought back from Italy one year after his demise to fulfil his final wish to be buried in the country he helped liberate.
The government has taken the initiative to bring him back on Sunday (Oct 21).
He will then be buried with State honours beside the Saint Pauls Church at Shelabunia, Mongla.
Rigon actively took part in the Liberation War of Bangladesh besides sheltering and taking care of injured freedom fighters during the war in 1971.
The government honoured him with honorary citizenship in 2009. He was also given the Friends of Liberation War Honour.
Assistant Secretary Foreign Ministry’s South Asia wing Sudana Ikram Chowdhury said that a Turkish Airlines flight carrying the body of Father Rigon is scheduled to land at the Dhaka Airport at 5am Sunday.
A helicopter will then take the body to Mongla where people will pay tribute to the freedom fighter in front of the Saint Paul Church and Saint Paul Hospital which he established, added Chowdhury.
Born on January 5, 1925 at Villaverla in Italy, Rigon came to Bangladesh in 1953 and stayed at Haldibunia village of Mongla for a long time.
Following the liberation, he settled on Mongla and travelled the whole country.
In 2014, his brother came to Bangladesh and took him back to Italy when he lost his mobility after he was diagnosed with cardiovascular disease.
Father Rigon only agreed to go back to the country of his birth after assurance from his brother that he will be buried beside the Mongla Church when he dies.
On Oct 20, last year Father Rigon passed away in Italy, aged 92.
During his time in Bangladesh, he has translated Bengali literary works of Rabindranath Tagore, Lalon Sai, Jashim Uddin and others into Italian.
He established 17 educational institutions including the well-known Saint Pauls High School of Bagerhat.