The government of Bangladesh has honored former U.S. Sen. Frank Church with the Friends of Bangladesh Liberation Honor.
Garry Wenske, executive director of the Frank Church Institute at Boise State, traveled to Dhaka, Bangladesh, in March to receive the posthumous award. The awards were presented to 75 honorees or their representatives on the 40th anniversary of Bangladesh’s independence.
Church was recognized for leading the effort in the U.S. Senate to sanction Pakistan for its role in crushing the Bangladesh independence movement in 1971. Other well-known leaders honored included former Indian Prime Minister Indira Ghandi; former British Prime Minister Edward Heath; former U.S. Ambassador to India John Kenneth Galbraith; and Mother Theresa.
The gold medal awarded to Church will be donated to the Frank Church Collection in the Albertsons Library, where the Senator’s papers document his role in the independence of Bangladesh.