Mohamed Mijarul Quayes (বং: মো. মিজারুল কায়েস; 2 April 1960 – 11 March 2017) was a Bangladeshi career diplomat. Over several decades he represented Bangladesh in senior postings, most notably as High Commissioner to the United Kingdom and later as Ambassador to Brazil. His work illustrates the roles senior envoys play in managing bilateral relations, consular services and cultural and economic ties.
Career and principal postings
Quayes advanced through the Bangladesh Foreign Service and held prominent diplomatic assignments. He was appointed Bangladesh High Commissioner to the Court of St James's in London and served there from 2009 until 2014. In 2014 he moved to South America to take up the post of Ambassador to Brazil, a posting he held until his death in March 2017. These ambassadorial roles placed him at the center of political, trade and diaspora matters between Bangladesh and host countries.
Roles and responsibilities
As a senior envoy, Quayes was responsible for leading mission staff, protecting the interests of Bangladeshi citizens abroad, promoting trade and investment, and reporting on developments in the host country that affected bilateral relations. Ambassadors and high commissioners also engage in public diplomacy — explaining home-country policies, facilitating official visits, and supporting cultural exchange — functions Quayes performed in both London and Brasília.
Selected postings
- High Commissioner to the United Kingdom (Court of St James's): 2009–2014
- Ambassador to Brazil: 2014–2017
These positions reflected continuity of diplomatic practice: the title "High Commissioner" is used between Commonwealth countries, while "Ambassador" is the standard term for missions to non-Commonwealth states.
Illness and death
In February 2017 Quayes was admitted to a hospital in Brasília; contemporary accounts reported he received treatment there. He died on 11 March 2017 from multiple organ failure. Reports of his hospitalization and passing were covered by national and international media and prompted condolences from colleagues and officials who noted his long service to Bangladesh. The hospital to which he was taken in February is identified in public notices as located in Brasília (hospital report).
Quayes's career is a representative example of the professional diplomat: postings across continents, responsibilities spanning consular care to high-level engagement, and an enduring role in building and maintaining bilateral relationships. Readers seeking official records or contemporaneous announcements can consult government archives or press releases from the missions he led.
Further information and primary sources are available through mission communications and national foreign ministry channels: see the Bangladeshi diplomatic mission pages and archived statements from his time in London and Brasília (official ambassadorial profile).