The non-military nature of the National Day celebrations in Norway is quite unique, and the celebrations take place in Norwegian communities all over the world. Norwegians in Bangladesh celebrated their National Day with an extensive programme as usual, with lots of activities for the children in particular.
25/05/2008 :: The Norwegian National Day marks the adoption of the Norwegian Constitution, duly signed on 17 May 1814 by King Christian Frederik at Eidsvoll, a small town north of Oslo - Norway's capital.
Our national poet – Henrik Wergeland is credited with making 17 May a celebration especially for children rather than a day of patriotic pride and show of military power. Actually, the day demonstrates that the children represent the pride, hope and future of Norway. This year Norway also celebrates the 200 years anniversary of Henrik Wergeland’s birth.
On the 17 May this year, a special Norwegian National Day supplement was published in two major newspapers in Bangladesh, with a message from Ambassador Ingebjørg Støfring, and an article on the history of the Norwegian oil and gas industry. You can download the message from the Ambassador here and the article on oil and gas here.
This year, the three Scandinavian Embassies in Dhaka hosted a large joint reception to mark the National Days of Norway, Denmark and Sweden (17 May, 5 June and 6 June respectively). Representatives from the Government of Bangladesh, the diplomatic corps, universities, civil society and cultural organisations participated in the event.
The three Scandinavian countries share a 1000 years of history of both war and peace. At present the cooperation between the countries has firm traditions in politics, trade and culture. It plays an important role in European and international collaboration, and aims at creating a strong Scandinavian community in Europe and the world.