State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shama Obaed Islam has said that both governments and peoples want Bangladesh-India relations to improve. But if a convicted autocrat and Awami League leaders, based on Indian soil, continue “conspiratorial” activity and the Indian government does not stop it, concern among the people of Bangladesh is natural, she said — adding that India must decide whether it will support fascism.
She made the remarks in response to journalists’ questions at the foreign ministry on Thursday.
Answering a question about the future of Bangladesh-India relations after Sheikh Hasina’s remarks, the state minister said the government had already issued a formal statement and conveyed Bangladesh’s concern to India in diplomatic language, and that the same message had been given several times before.
She said cooperation and dialogue between the two countries on many important issues — including energy, water-sharing and the border — had to continue. But whether Sheikh Hasina would be allowed to continue her activities was a decision for the Indian government to make, she said.
Asked whether cooperation would continue despite diplomatic tension with India, Shama Obaed said government-to-government relations were multidimensional and that one issue could not halt other cooperation, so talks on energy, water-sharing, the border and various matters would continue.
But India had to be more sensitive about activities that hurt the feelings of the July martyrs’ families, injured fighters and the people of Bangladesh, she said. Criticising the Awami League’s recent raising of a “militancy” theme, the state minister claimed the party was, as in the past, still trying to bring a militancy narrative forward for political purposes. While in power, whenever allegations of enforced disappearance, extrajudicial killing and human-rights violations surfaced, the Awami League would try to cover them by raising the issue of militancy, she said, and it was following the same tactic from abroad.
She also said Bangladesh now had a government and opposition elected by the people’s vote, so there was no scope to raise questions about militancy in the country, and that the Awami League was running such propaganda to draw international attention. Criticising the Awami League’s remarks on human rights, Shama Obaed said it was extremely laughable for the Awami League to speak of human rights and democracy.
Raising the enforced disappearances of many people, including Ilyas Ali, extrajudicial killings and the killing of people by firing from helicopters in July-August, she asked where human rights had been then.
In her words, the people of Bangladesh were united regardless of party, opinion, religion or race, and would in no way accept a repeat of the past 17 to 18 years of fascist rule.
On the prime minister’s participation in the BRICS summit, the state minister said Bangladesh was keen to take an active part in multilateral platforms, but that whether the prime minister would attend would depend on his schedule and engagements.
On a response to Bangladesh’s diplomatic message to India, she said Bangladesh had sent a formal message and now had to wait for India’s reply.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report