22 February - George Washington birth anniversary

 

George Washington ( 22 February 1732 – 14 December 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of the Continental Army, Washington led Patriot forces to victory in the American Revolutionary War and served as president of the Constitutional Convention of 1787, which created and ratified the Constitution of the United States and the American federal government. Washington has been called the "Father of his Country" for his manifold leadership in the nation's founding.

22 February - Saint Lucia got Independence from UK

 

Saint Lucia (Saint Lucian Creole French: Sent Lisi, French: Sainte-Lucie) is an island country of the West Indies in the eastern Caribbean.The island was previously called Iouanalao and later Hewanorra, names given by the native Arawaks and Caribs (respectively), two Amerindian peoples.Part of the Windward Islands of the Lesser Antilles, it is located north/northeast of the island of Saint Vincent, northwest of Barbados and south of Martinique. It covers a land area of 617 km2 (238 square miles) with an estimated population of over 180,000 people as of 2022. The national capital is the city of Castries

The first proven inhabitants of the island, the Arawaks, are believed to have first settled in AD 200–400. Around 800 AD, the island would be taken over by the Kalinago. The French were the first Europeans to settle on the island, and they signed a treaty with the native Caribs in 1660. England took control of the island in 1663. In ensuing years, England and France fought 14 times for control of the island, and the rule of the island changed frequently. Eventually, the British took full control in 1814.Because the island switched so often between British and French control, Saint Lucia was also known as the "Helen of the West" after the Greek mythological character, Helen of Troy.

Representative government was introduced in 1924 with universal suffrage being established in 1951.From 1958 to 1962, the island was a member of the West Indies Federation. On 22 February 1979, Saint Lucia became an independent state, while remaining as a Commonwealth Realm.

22 February - Maulana Abul Kalam Azad death Anniversary

 

Abul Kalam Ghulam Muhiyuddin Ahmed bin Khairuddin Al-Hussaini Azad (11 November 1888 – 22 February 1958) was an Indian independence activist, Islamic theologian, writer and a senior leader of the Indian National Congress. Following India's independence, he became the First Minister of Education in the Indian government. He is commonly remembered as Maulana Azad; the word Maulana is an honorific meaning 'Our Master' and he had adopted Azad (Free) as his pen name.

22 February - Kasturba Gandhi death anniversary

 

Kasturbai Mohandas Gandhi (11 April 1869 – 22 February 1944) was an Indian political activist. She was married to Mohandas Gandhi, more commonly known as Mahatma Gandhi, in 1883.With her husband and her eldest son, Harilal, she was involved in the Indian independence movement in British India. National Safe Motherhood Day is observed on April 11 every year in India, coinciding with Kasturbai Gandhi's birthday.Mohandas affectionately called her Baa and in letters referred to her as Mrs. Gandhi.

She died at the Aga Khan Palace in Pune, at 7:35 PM local time on 22 February 1944, aged 74.

22 February - World Thinking Day

 World Thinking Day, formerly Thinking Day, is celebrated annually on 22 February by all Girl Guides and Girl Scouts.It is also celebrated by Scout and Guide organizations around the world.It is a day when they think about their "sisters" (and "brothers") in all the countries of the world, the meaning of Guiding, and its global impact.

Most recently, World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts has selected an important international issue as the theme for each year's World Thinking Day, and selected a focus country from each of their five world regions. Girl Guides and Girl Scouts use these as an opportunity to study and appreciate other countries and cultures, and equally increase awareness and sensitivity on global concerns. Donations are collected for the Thinking Day Fund which supports projects to help Girl Guides and Scouts around the world.

22 February was chosen as it was the birthday of Scouting and Guiding founder Lord Robert Baden-Powell and of Lady Olave Baden-Powell, his wife and World Chief Guide. Other Scouts celebrate it as B.-P. Day or Founders' Day. 

 A Special cover was released on 22nd February 2022 to celebrate the birth anniversary of both the founder of the Scouts and Guides Movement Robert Stephenson Smyth Baden Powell and his wife Olave Baden Powell.

Source : Wikipedia and https://mbstamps.blogspot.com/

21 February - Father Lini Day Vanuatu

 

Father Lini Day, celebrated on February 21 every year, is a public holiday in Vanuatu. The day commemorates a prominent figure in the history of this South Pacific nation — Father Walter Lini. Did you know that Father Lini was a priest? Yes, before he took charge as the first Prime Minister of the newly formed independent nation of Vanuatu, Father Lini was a ‘Raga’ Anglican priest. From his early days, he observed many injustices against his fellow islanders and wanted to make a difference.

One of the prominent personalities from Vanuatu was Father Lini, a former Anglican Priest. Given that Britain and France were jointly colonizing the island, his greatest worry was the selling of indigenous territory to outsiders. Father Lini founded the New Hebrides Cultural Association with the help of Donald Kalpokas, John Bani, and other islanders to bring about political reform and drive out the colonial forces. Through his association, he published mouthpiece articles that raised awareness of the importance of independence and ignited the minds of the populace. Later, this group evolved into a political movement that gave rise to the New Hebrides National Party — later known as the Vanua’aku Pati.

21 February - Armed Forces Day for the South Africa

 

Armed Forces Day for the South African National Defence Force is celebrated on 21 February, the day of the 1993 reconstitution of the South African Defence Force into its current identity. It has been celebrated with parades nationwide since 2012. Since 2017, the Armed Forces Day event also honors the fallen of the tragic 1917 sinking of SS Mendi, which carried South African forces into the frontlines during the First World War, resulting in one of the biggest military losses ever in South African military history.

21 February - Suryakant Tripathi "Nirala" born in 1897

 

Suryakant Tripathi "Nirala" (21 February 1897 – 15 October 1961) was an Indian poet, novelist, essayist and story-writer who wrote in Hindi. He was also an artist, who drew many contemporary sketches.

Tripathi was born on 21 February 1897 in Medinipur in Bengal.Nirala's father, Pandit Ramsahaya Tripathi, was a government servant and was a tyrannical person. His mother died when he was very young. Nirala was educated in the Bengali medium at Mahishadal Raj High School at Mahishadal, Purba Medinipur.Subsequently, he shifted to Lucknow and thence to village Gadhakola of Unnao district, to which his father originally belonged. Growing up, he gained inspiration from personalities like Ramakrishna Paramhansa, Swami Vivekananda, and Rabindranath Tagore.

After his marriage at the age of 20, Nirala learned Hindi at the insistence of his wife, Manohara Devi. Soon, he started writing poems in Hindi, instead of Bengali. After a bad childhood, Nirala had a few good years with his wife. But this phase was short-lived as his wife died when he was 22, and later his daughter (who was a widow) also expired. Nirala lost half of his family, including his wife and daughter, in the 1918 Spanish flu influenza outbreak.

Most of his life was somewhat in the bohemian tradition. He wrote strongly against social injustice and exploitation in society. Since he was more or less a rebel, both in form and content, acceptance did not come easily. What he got in plenty was ridicule and derision. All this may have played a role in making him a victim of schizophrenia in his later life and he was admitted to Central Institute of Psychiatry, Ranchi.

21 February - International Mother Language Day

 

International Mother Language Day is a worldwide annual observance held on 21 February to promote awareness of linguistic and cultural diversity and to promote multilingualism. First announced by UNESCO on 17 November 1999,it was formally recognized by the United Nations General Assembly with the adoption of UN resolution 56/262 in 2002. Mother Language Day is part of a broader initiative "to promote the preservation and protection of all languages used by peoples of the world" as adopted by the UN General Assembly on 16 May 2007 in UN resolution 61/266,[3] which also established 2008 as the International Year of Languages.The idea to celebrate International Mother Language Day was the initiative of Bangladesh. In Bangladesh, 21 February is the anniversary of the day when the people of Bangladesh (then East Pakistan) fought for recognition for the Bangla language.It is also celebrated in West Bengal, India.

20 February - World Day of Social Justice

 

World Day of Social Justice (Social Justice Equality Day) is an international day recognizing the need to promote social justice, which includes efforts to tackle issues such as poverty, exclusion, gender inequality, unemployment, human rights, and social protections.Many organizations, including the UN, American Library Association (ALA), and the International Labour Organization, make statements on the importance of social justice for people. Many organizations also present plans for greater social justice by tackling poverty, social and economic exclusion and unemployment. The United Nations General Assembly has decided to observe 20 February annually, approved on 26 November 2007 and starting in 2009, as the World Day of Social Justice.

The Declaration focuses on guaranteeing fair outcomes for all through employment, social protection, social dialogue, and fundamental principles and rights.