Bangladesh | 205 attacks on minorities, situation worsening: Open letter to Yunus

At least 205 incidents of attacks across 52 districts were reported against members of minority communities in Bangladesh after the fall of the Sheikh Hasina government on August 5, according to two Hindu organisations in the violence-hit nation.

The Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council and the Bangladesh Puja Udjapan Parishad on Friday (August 9) presented the data in an open letter to 84-year-old Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus, who was sworn in as the head of an interim government, The Daily Star reported.

“We seek protection because our lives are in a disastrous state. We are staying up at night, guarding our homes and temples. I have never seen anything like this in my life. We demand that the government restore communal harmony in the country,” Nirmal Rosario, one of the three presidents of the unity council, said.

Situation deteriorating

Asserting that the situation was deteriorating, Rosario urged Yunus to resolve the crisis by giving it top priority and putting an end to the violence.

The letter, signed by Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council General Secretary Rana Dasgupta and Bangladesh Puja Udjapan Parishad President Basudev Dhar, welcomed Yunus as the leader of a new era born from the unprecedented student- and public-led mass uprising aimed at establishing an equitable society and reform.

“When people’s victory is advancing towards its destination, we, with sorrow and heavy hearts, observe that a vested quarter is hatching a conspiracy to tarnish this achievement by carrying out unprecedented violence against minority communities,” the letter said.

Fear, anxiety, and uncertainty

It said that the ongoing communal violence has caused widespread fear, anxiety, and uncertainty among minorities in Bangladesh and has also resulted in international condemnation.

“We demand an immediate end to this situation,” the report said, citing the letter.

Kajal Devnath, a praesidium member of the unity council, said, “Those involved in attacking minorities must be brought to justice. If a minority individual is attacked for political reasons, it is still unacceptable. Anyone who commits a crime should be judged, but burning homes and looting will not lead to justice.”

Asserting that many Hindu community members are now taking refuge in others’ homes, he said, “I, too, am forced to stay at a friend’s house.”

Yunus’s responsibility

On Friday, Yunus announced the portfolios of his 16-member council of advisors after he was sworn in a day earlier as the chief advisor — a position equivalent to the prime minister.

Yunus’s first task was to bring stability to Bangladesh after he responded to a call by student protesters for him to temporarily lead the country following weeks of deadly anti-government demonstrations against the government led by Hasina, 76, who resigned and fled to India.

Foreign Affairs adviser Hossain said restoring law and order is the key priority of the interim government at the moment, and others will be back on track once the first goal is achieved.

On Thursday, Farhan Haq, Deputy Spokesperson for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, said he stands against any racial attacks amid violence against the minority Hindu community in Bangladesh.

“What we’ve made clear is that we want to make sure that the violence that has been occurring in Bangladesh in recent weeks is tamped down. Certainly, we stand against any racially-based attacks or racially-based incitement to violence,” Haq said.

Horrors of change

Over 230 people have been killed in Bangladesh after violence erupted across the country following the fall of the Hasina government on Monday, taking the death toll to 560 since the anti-quota protests that started in mid-July.

A number of Hindu temples, households and businesses were vandalised, women assaulted and at least two Hindu leaders affiliated with the Awami League party headed by Hasina were killed in the violence in Bangladesh after she fled the country, according to two community leaders in Dhaka.

(With agency inputs)