Recently, a number of newspapers in India have published interviews, presumably conducted by email, with deposed Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. Here is one example. The reporting on those interviews has been surprisingly uncritical and lacking in context. One even suggested that Chief Adviser Yunus aspires to be appointed President under the next government, despite no evidence to support that.
If those interviews were indeed conducted by email, the journalists were unable to challenge Hasina with tough follow-up questions on the spot. The articles sparked a strong response from the Bangladesh government’s press secretary, Shafiqul Alam. One example of his responses appears below. Previously, Friends of Bangladesh analyzed some international coverage of Hasina’s earlier interviews and the generally negative response to them in Bangladesh.
Dear Editor,
We are utterly baffled that a newspaper as esteemed as yours would allow its platform to be used by Bangladesh’s ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to whitewash her 15-year reign of crony capitalism, rampant corruption, and crimes against humanity.
We had expected at least a minimum level of editorial due diligence to ensure that such wild claims would not be published unchallenged. By failing to do so, you have done a grave disservice to your readers and, regrettably, turned your pages into a vehicle for propaganda.
Hasina’s assertion that the interim government’s decision to ban the Awami League is a “clear violation of Bangladesh’s constitution” is an outright falsehood. This action is fully permitted under the country’s laws, the very same provision Hasina herself used just days before her government was toppled to ban the activities of Jamaat-e-Islami.
Forensically verified voice recordings and sworn testimonies clearly establish that Hasina “ordered or directed the actions of the security forces on the ground” to murder unarmed citizens. Any claim to the contrary is patently untrue.
Moreover, extensive and irrefutable evidence confirms that her directives were not made in good faith, but with the deliberate intent to crush dissent and eliminate those who stood against her mafia-like rule. These findings have been independently verified by the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and other globally respected human rights organizations. To gloss over these atrocities is to participate in a blatant whitewashing of crimes against humanity for which she has been credibly accused.
Even using figures provided by Bangladesh’s own Ministry of Health, as Hasina prefers, the number of lives lost in such a short time at the hands of state forces is staggering. It defies belief that a paper with The New Indian Express’s reputation for sound editorial judgment would allow itself to be used by someone who presided over such a massacre. This is not the fearless, fair journalism you claim to practice; it is favoring the Goliath under the guise of neutrality.
Hasina’s claim that the Awami League is “committed to upholding the Constitution” is a mirage. Her government bent and broke the Constitution repeatedly to prolong her grip on power. Of the last three elections, two excluded the largest opposition party. By her own logic, her government lacked legitimacy, yet she clung to office regardless.
Her statement that “nobody has been able to show that my family and associates benefitted personally from state resources or were complicit in corruption” is another blatant lie. Bangladesh’s own anti-crime watchdogs and state agencies have produced documentary evidence proving the exact opposite.
Her administration also manipulated official statistics to conceal economic mismanagement and exaggerate its achievements. We expected The New Indian Express to challenge such falsehoods, not amplify them.
Finally, her baseless allegations against Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus are a repetition of the same tired falsehoods. The land and fixed deposits she references belong to the Grameen enterprises, the social businesses that Professor Yunus founded but in which he does not own a single share, not to Professor Yunus personally. Despite years of accusations, she has failed to produce a single shred of credible evidence — because none exists.
With this rejoinder, we urge all serious platforms of journalism to return to their highest calling: reporting the truth, however inconvenient it may be for the powerful.
Sincerely,
Shafiqul Alam
Press Secretary
The Interim Government of Bangladesh
