Condolence reference: Munawar Saeed Bhatti—a resilient soul

Friends, colleagues remember former ambassador, praise career achievements

ISLAMABAD: Some people walk the path of this world to inspire others and improve it in one capacity or another. One such person was Munawar Saeed Bhatti, former ambassador and a seasoned diplomat who passed away recently fighting cancer. A condolence reference to pay tribute to him and his efforts was conducted at the Sustainable Policy Development Institute where his struggle was highlighted and he was remembered.

Munawar Saeed Bhatti struggled for the country and served it till his last day with great passion and enthusiasm. He was a Pakistani ambassador who also served as the country’s secretary at UN during the 2010 floors and after his retirement joined SDPI as an advisor. He represented Pakistan at various international forums in Dubai and Brussels primarily.

Remembering Munawar Bhatti, Dr Abdul Qayum Saleheri, executive director of SDPI said that there are certain losses that one cannot talk about but genuinely feel. “Such is a loss of losing Munawar Bhatti and while we think of the loss and remember him and feel the pain, it still feels good to know that he is in a much better place”.

Ambassador Muhammad Qurban recalled Munawar Bhatti as a person with great enthusiasm; vigor and the most inspiring smile on his face. “My last meeting with him was at Islamabad club where he had the same vigor smile despite the long cancer treatment. He was as lively as ever, meeting and greeting everyone very sure about the fact that he has fought cancer and even then he had many plans but God had different plans for him”, said Ambassador Qurban.

Among those who spoke highly about Bhatti was Ambassador Masood Khan, who highlighted that whether it was representing Pakistan in Dubai, Brussels or speaking about human rights at various forums, he has always done an impeccable job when it comes to representing Pakistan on a global forum.

“We have worked together at different places and it has always been a pleasure and a learning experience to work with him. He is an inspiration for all of us and his services to the country can never be forgotten”, said Khan.

Bhatti’s son Zubair Munawar thanked everyone for gathering and speaking highly of him. “It makes me feel very proud to hear everyone remember him in such a positive light”, said Zubair.

Shakeel Ramay, who was also present at the condolence reference, said that he met with the ambassador in 1992. “I had just come back from Delhi and worked with him for about two years. Never in those two years have I ever seen him stressed, angry or frustrated despite the fact that there were several occasions. Even during his last stage of cancer, he would never show his weakness and would always struggle towards improving the areas he was working on”, said Ramay.

Speaking about his relationship with SDPI, Ramay said that Munawar had a strong relationship with SDPI, which has benefited from his wisdom, intelligence and experience.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 19^th, 2015.