Dhaka, Apr 8 (UNB) - Foreign Minister Dipu Moni on Sunday said the independence honour would be conferred upon more foreign friends of Bangladesh through more than one occasions this year.

“This is a continuous process and more personalities will be honoured this year,’ she told a press briefing at the Foreign Ministry.

On March 27, the President and the Prime Minister conferred the independence honour on 75 friends of the Bangladesh for their outstanding contribution to the country’s war of independence in 1971.

Dipu Moni said the national committee had prepared a short list of 132 persons for handing over the honour. Of them, 110 were invited on availability of their addresses to receive the awards.

Of the invitees, 75 received the awards at the ceremony on March 27. Of them, 20 were present in person while 53 received the awards through their representatives.

The Foreign Minister said that among the awardees 29 were from India, 15 from USA, seven from UK, two from former Soviet Union,, four from Japan, two from Germany, two from Ireland, and one each from Sweden, Bhutan, former Yugoslavia, France, Italy, Denmark and six international organizations.

On July 25 last year, the government had initiated the distribution of the award by conferring “Swadhinata Sammonana” (posthumous) to former Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.

Dipu Moni said the national committee has prepared a list of 568 personalities for giving the awards. She said the list is not complete and it will be expanded with the inclusion of more personalities who made great contributions to the country’s war of liberation.