Report in The Daily Star, Nov 02, 2023
The US State Department said dialogue is crucial for free and fair elections in Bangladesh and that it is closely monitoring the electoral environment.
“We do believe that dialogue is important to achieving those goals [free and fair elections],” State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller said at a regular press briefing in Washington yesterday.
He added the US is closely monitoring Bangladesh’s environment leading up to January’s election and is taking the incidents of violence very seriously.
“We are engaging and will continue to engage with the government, the opposition, the civil society, and other stakeholders to urge them to work together for the benefit of the Bangladeshi people and to ensure free and fair elections that are conducted in a peaceful manner,” Miller said.
The statement comes during the opposition BNP’s countrywide blockade, called after its rally in the capital. Around a dozen people have been killed and many others injured, while vehicles and a police hospital were vandalised amid political violence throughout the week.
Miller said holding free and fair elections is everyone’s responsibility, including all political parties, voters, the government, civil society, and media.
In response to question, he said they expect the government to comply with its obligations under the Vienna Convention for the safety of diplomats.
Asked if the US will slap visa sanctions on the those who involved in violence, including the killing of police officers and vandalising the residence of the chief justice, Miller said, “We don’t announce visa or any other sanctions before we make them.”
Meanwhile, Human Rights Watch urged Bangladesh’s international partners to insist that elections cannot be considered fair when the opposition is targeted, harassed, and thrown behind bars.
“International partners should make clear that they will not continue business as usual with Bangladesh as authorities carry out election abuses,” said Meenakshi Ganguly, deputy director of HRW’s Asia Division.
“They should condemn the mass arrests and targeting of the opposition and lay out consequences for trade and diplomatic ties if Bangladesh fails to backtrack on its abuses,” she said in a report published on the HRW website yesterday.
Quoting witnesses, the New York-based rights organisation said Bangladesh police used unnecessary force during political protests on October 28, 2023, when the BNP rally was held in Dhaka.
Although violence was committed by all sides, the events were part of a continuing police crackdown on the political opposition, it said.
The Bangladesh government, it added, is ignoring international calls for restraint and its own pledges to hold a peaceful, free, and fair election planned for January 2024.
“Many Bangladeshis say they have been fearing an escalation in violence because of the government’s crackdown on the political opposition in an attempt to subvert participation and voting.”
The government has increasingly carried out arbitrary mass arrests over the last year in what appears to be a coordinated effort to stifle the opposition ahead of the upcoming election, HRW said.
While the authorities blame BNP for the October 28 violence, the opposition has accused the government of infiltrating its rally to initiate violence and discredit what it said was a ‘peaceful movement’, the report said, adding that political party leaders should call on their supporters to campaign peacefully.
The United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights called on “all political actors to make clear that such violence is unacceptable and to avoid any statements or actions that could constitute incitement to violence”, it further said.
“Witnesses interviewed by Human Rights Watch said that the police excessively shot rubber bullets and tear gas [shells] into the crowd. The government should publicly order the security forces to abide by the United Nations Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials while responding to violent protests.”
The HRW said the mass arrests appear to reflect orders from police officials to systematically arrest and convict opposition members so that they would be disqualified from participating in the national election. Trials are apparently continuing late into the night to ramp up these efforts and, according to BNP, at least 50 people have already been convicted, it said.
“All allegations of ‘torture and other abuses’ of detainees should be thoroughly and independently investigated, and those responsible should be held to account.”
Only one case of torture has ever led to a conviction under the country’s Torture and Custodial Death (Prevention) Act since it was passed a decade ago, according to media reports, HRW mentioned.
https://www.thedailystar.net/news/bangladesh/diplomacy/news/us-keeping-eye-polls-environment-3459216
