A number of our leaders traveled to Bangladesh in late June to take part in Social Business Day – an annual gathering of those involved in the movement to create businesses focused on solving humanity’s most pressing problems. While there, they also witnessed the preparations for memorializing the achievements and sacrifices of July 2024’s Gen-Z-led revolution as well as the progress that has been achieved since then. There is much to report.
But first, as we approach the one-year anniversary of the fall of the prior regime, we encourage you to join us for a special webinar that will take place on July 24 featuring three allies of Friends of Bangladesh who recently returned from the country. To register, click here.
As the trip approached, we were pleased to see this powerful interview of Professor Yunus by CEO magazine published. Hopefully, its many subscribers in India will be inspired by this realistic portrayal of Bangladesh’s Chief Adviser who heads the Interim Government that has been in place since August 8, 2024. In addition, this recent and extraordinary 5-part series about Bangladesh was published in the Deseret News and concluded with this short video.
On June 30, Chief Adviser Yunus held a positive call with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, underscoring the enduring strength of American relations with Bangladesh. A detailed summary of the call can be found here. The U.S. State Department also published a summary.
A blog post about the detentions of political leaders and members of the media was published by the Chief Adviser’s press secretary. (Friends of Bangladesh thought this was important enough to translate into Bengali.) The bottom line is that quirks in Bangladesh’s legal system makes it possible for citizens, when sued by other citizens, to be put in prison pending the resolution of those actions even as the legal process plays out. Under prior regimes, those with the right political connections were often released on bail. The current Interim Government has tended to not interfere in such cases, while at the same time working to reform the legal system to make these kinds of abuses less common.
The post explains further: “Yes, there are numerous cases before the courts — many initiated by victims or families of those who suffered during the prior regime. Some of these cases are flawed or groundless. The interim government has not ignored this reality. Unlike in the past, these prosecutions are not being directed or manipulated by the state. There is no political mandate to imprison opponents. Instead, the interim government has instructed police and prosecutors to proceed with caution, evidence, and fairness. Judicial independence is being respected — and indeed, where it has previously been abused, the government is working to repair it…
“To those who ask why the government is not interfering in questionable prosecutions: we respond that it must not. To intervene now would be to mimic the playbook of the previous regime, where outcomes were pre-determined and political loyalty replaced justice. The interim administration is determined not to repeat that mistake. Instead, reform commissions have been established for the judiciary and police, seeking to address the structural flaws that have long plagued Bangladesh’s legal institutions.”
An important article was published recently by Ziauddin Hyder, a retired World Bank official who is now an adviser to Tarique Rahman, the Acting Chairperson of the BNP. Beyond praising the party he belongs to, Zia underscored the important milestone represented by the recent meeting between Rahman and Professor Yunus. Importantly, the article was published in India, where much misinformation about Bangladesh continues to circulate.
Rather than seek the forgiveness of the Bangladeshi people for its misrule and violence, this month the exiled leaders of the Awami League are portraying the students who led the uprising as terrorists and trying, for some reason, to refocus the nation on a horrific attack that took place more than a decade ago when it was in power. In this post and also this one, London-based Bangladeshi sociologist Dr. Naomi Hossain responded pithily to the Awami League’s false narratives.
Sadly, we should expect more misdirection from the ousted leader and her allies even as the nation attempts to heal from the abuses of the previous 15 years and the wounds of last year’s uprising while building on the progress achieved since then. How difficult would it be for some of the leaders of this once-proud party to denounce both its abuses and its disgraced leaders while seeking forgiveness from the nation and building a new life as a vibrant political movement?
Again, as we approach the one-year anniversary of the fall of the prior regime, we encourage you to join us for a special webinar that will take place on July 24 featuring three allies of Friends of Bangladesh who recently returned from the country. To register, click here.
