Bangladesh Update and a Note of Caution
Aug 13, 2024, Washington D.C.
Hindus for Human Rights (HfHR) Cautions Foreign Intervention Could Jeopardize Bangladeshi Hindus' Push for Equality.
HfHR is generally in favor of granting asylum to persecuted peoples; however, Rep. Thanedar's (D-MI) request to Secretary of State Blinken to grant temporary protected status to all Bangladeshi Hindus and other religious minorities as “refugees” is ill-considered and could worsen their situation.
Interim Government chairman Dr. Muhammed Younus during a visit to Dakha’s largest Hindu temple
What we know so far:
The President of Bangladesh has appointed economist and Nobel Prize winner, Dr. Muhammed Yunus, as the head of the interim government. The top priority of the interim government seems to be to end the violence against Hindus and other minorities. The interim government has just called for a meeting with members of the Hindu community as well as student leaders to address the issue.
Student leaders (including Hindu students) who led the protest against Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina have made it clear that their goal is a secular, democratic Bangladesh, with equal rights for all. The Army is supporting Dr. Yunus and the students.
The Hindu community has boldly come out on the streets to demand equality. The community does not appear keen to abandon their roots and relocate to India, even if that were feasible. One protester declared, “I was born in Bangladesh. I will die in Bangladesh. India can never be my home.” Other protesters rallied with cries of “Hindus won't leave Bangladesh,” underscoring the community’s determination to stay put and fight for their legitimate rights. Hindus have protested and died for Bangladeshi democracy in this student movement. They are asking the interim government to support their fundamental rights in this new moment of freedom.
According to one report, the Hindu community’s demands include “the establishment of a fast-track tribunal for swift trials in cases of attacks on Hindus, the urgent enactment of a minority protection law, upgrading the Hindu Religious Welfare Trust to a foundation, modernising the Pali Education Board, declaring a five-day holiday during Sharadiya Durga Puja, and establishing a Ministry of Minority Affairs.” Another report included a demand to reserve 10% of parliamentary seats for the minorities.
The international community, including the US and the Indian governments, as well as diaspora human rights groups such as HfHR, have emphasized the need to offer our full support to Dr. Yunus and the interim government as they work towards ending the violence and restoring democracy.
In the meantime:
Reports say that the US and UK have canceled their visas to PM Hasina, who appears to be a continuing guest of the Modi government, albeit with some discomfort on the Indian side. However, she and her son are now making accusatory statements against the US and her political rivals in Bangladesh. They seem eager to return to Dhaka, but that’s highly unlikely, as her return would only complicate the interim government’s work of unifying the country.
PM Hasina’s rival, former PM Khaleda Zia of the Bangladesh National Party (BNP) has been released from house arrest and she has called for early elections. A spokesperson for the party has distanced the party from attacks on Hindus despite some evidence to the contrary. He has also expressed dissatisfaction with India for playing host to PM Hasina.
A note of caution:
Given the extraordinarily delicate and fluid situation, we feel that Rep. Thanedar’s request to Secretary Blinken to temporarily label all Bangladeshi Hindus and other minorities as “refugees” is fraught with danger:
It may not represent the wishes of the Bangladeshi Hindus at large, who may resent and reject the idea of being labeled “refugees” in their own country of birth. As their daily protests indicate, the community is demanding the right to equality and not the right to abandon Bangladesh.
Any intervention from the outside that seems to distance the minority community further from the majority will only set back the efforts of the interim government to unify the country: e.g. Any suggestion that points to large-scale out-migration of Hindus to India, even if feasible, will only lead to renewed cries of dual loyalty.
In our view, it would be dangerous to open up any possibility of a mass population transfer, which could trigger mass violence on both sides of the border. Also, those who are falsely promoting the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) as the means for Bangladeshi Hindus to come to India are being irresponsible.
Rep. Thanedar also asserts, “Many from the international community, including some in my own district, have condemned these violent actions. When the Congress returns from recess, we must hold hearings to learn more about the failures to protect the Hindus and other minority groups in Bangladesh, and how to prevent such actions from happening in the future. We must do everything to support them in this critical time.”
We wish to remind Rep. Thanadar and other U.S. lawmakers that the persecution of Muslim minorities in India under the Modi rule has been similar, if not far worse than the persecution of Hindus minorities in Bangladesh. And yet, Rep. Thanedar hasn’t seen it fit to intervene on their behalf. Such a glaring double standard disqualifies him from being an “honest broker” for Hindus in Bangladesh, and we reject his ill-informed and ill-timed prescriptive solution to their plight. We are of the view that Rep. Thanedar’s letter to Secretary Blinken reflects the talking points of his Hindu nationalist supporters and not those of his broader constituency, which must surely include other Hindus and Muslims from South Asia.
Also, any congressional hearing about the minorities in Bangladesh at this point would do a great disservice to the work of the interim government, which appears to be already making progress in establishing peace. Such a hearing would also be a disservice to the Bangladeshi Hindus who have been at the forefront of the student protest, as Hindus have always been in Bangladesh’s quest for secular democracy. A hearing on Bangladeshi Hindus without the buy-in of Bangladeshi Hindus, or without input from other minorities in Bangladesh, would be a travesty and HfHR will strongly oppose such a partisan and sectarian congressional hearing.
####
Hindus for Human Rights is dedicated to speaking up for persecuted minorities, especially in South Asia. Our criticism and engagement with political parties and governments are limited to the area of human rights and religious freedom, and we do not support any political campaigns or parties, governments, or candidates for office other than in the context of voter education.