UK lawmaker raises alarm over rising violence against minorities in Bangladesh
London: The United Kingdom Conservative Party leader and MP Bob Blackman raised grave concerns over what he described as a disastrous situation in Bangladesh, citing escalating violence against minorities, where Hindus are being murdered on the streets, their houses and temples set ablaze, and other religious minorities are being subjected to similar violence.
Speaking at the House of Commons, Blackman said, “At the pre-recess Adjournment debate, I raised the situation in Bangladesh, and the Leader of the House quite rightly wrote to the Foreign Secretary about the disastrous situation there. Hindu men are being murdered on the streets; their houses are being burned; the temples are being burned; and other religious minorities are suffering similar fates.”
The British Parliamentarian warned that the February 12 national elections in Bangladesh are unfolding amid democratic concerns, with the major political party, Awami League, banned from participating and Islamic extremists seeking a referendum to bring changes to the country’s constitution.
“Next month, there are due to be so-called free and fair elections. The Awami League, which is a major political party in Bangladesh, is banned from competing in those elections, despite commanding about 30 per cent in the opinion polls. Equally, the Islamic extremists have called for a referendum which would change the constitution of Bangladesh forever,” he added.
Blackman also called for a statement from the British Foreign Secretary next week outlining what action the UK Government will take to safeguard minorities across Bangladesh and ensure free, fair, and inclusive elections in the South Asian nation.
Last week, four UK parliamentarians expressed serious concerns about the ban on widely supported political parties under the Muhammad Yunus-led interim government in Bangladesh ahead of the February polls, saying the move disregards guidance from the United Nations, as well as from the UK and the South Asian nation’s other longstanding allies.
In their joint statement, the British lawmakers from across party lines, including Bob Blackman, Jim Shannon, Jas Athwal, and Chris Law, stressed that the Yunus-led “unelected” interim government should not have imposed such restrictions on Bangladeshi voters and warned that any election excluding major political parties cannot be considered democratic.