 "Hasina warns Yunus pushing Bangladesh into ‘chaos’ as extremists fill political ‘vacuum’, admits 'mistakes' in 2024 unrest")
In a lengthy opinion piece, former Prime Minister of Bangladesh Sheikh Hasina called out the radical extremism that has filled the political vacuum in Dhaka. Hasina’s remarks on the political instability in Bangladesh came just weeks ahead of the country going to the polls.
In the Op-ed to The Milli Chronicle, Hasina pointed out how her party, Awami League, has been barred from contesting polls this year, insisting that such exclusion would be detrimental not only to Bangladesh but also to the world. She went on to accuse Bangladesh’s interim chief advisor of abandoning the independent investigation into the July protests and instead encouraging extremism.
“This troubling chaos and political vacuum has given extremist political parties with a fanatical religious ideology – the Jamaat-e-Islami in particular – free rein to assume power, in the absence of a secular counterpart that historically stood against and prevented its rise,” Hasina wrote in her opinion piece published on Saturday.
“This alarming situation will inevitably give rise to years of instability and serious threats to regional security. It is imperative that the international community, and the United States in particular, ensure that any elections are free, fair, and all-inclusive,” she furthered.
Hasina calls out the judiciary
The former Bangladeshi premier also mentioned the atrocities that minorities are facing in Bangladesh since the overthrow of her government in 2024. “There have been numerous violent attacks against Hindu, Christians, Buddhist, and other religious minorities and their places of worship. These reports document patterns of collective punishment in districts associated with secular and opposition political parties, and districts with a sizable minority population,” she wrote.
She also spoke about how opposition political figures, including her, have been sentenced to death in widely-condemned trials before the International Crimes Tribunal of Bangladesh. Hasina recalled how, in her 16-year tenure, she and the government worked under “enormous pressure” and ushered in prosperity in Bangladesh with a 500 per cent increase in the country’s GDP.
“This progress was achieved against the backdrop of several plots to assassinate myself and my sole surviving family member, my sister Sheikh Rehana. All of our parents and siblings, including our 10-year-old brother, were murdered in cold blood in 1975 by the same political forces that are today seeking power,” she averred.
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View AllHowever, she also admitted her mistakes during the July uprising. “Invariably, during this period of extraordinary prosperity, mistakes were also made, and there are many lessons to be learned on the historical path of progress. In particular, during 2024, amidst a campaign of hate propaganda, misinformation and violent insurrection, numerous protestors and police officers were killed,” she wrote, adding that she ordered an impartial inquiry into the violence.
Hasina’s warning to the world
Hasina concluded her statement by insisting that excluding a secular party like the Awami League in the forthcoming elections would lead to the rise of extremism in Bangladesh. She warned that this would be threatening to the event, the United States and its allies.
“The exclusion of the secular Awami League from forthcoming elections is inextricably tied to the rise of extremists, who present a dire threat not only to the people of Bangladesh, but also to the United States and its allies, as a once stable, secular, and prosperous country descends into a source of perpetual instability, decline and terrorism,” the Bangladeshi prime minsiter explained.
“Bangladesh, with a population of 170 million, is situated in a vital strategic region, at the centre of the Bay of Bengal, between India and Myanmar. If it falls in the hands of extremists and their global network, its fallout will carry consequences far beyond its borders,” she concluded.
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