Bangladesh unrest: US calls for respect for religious freedom, human rights

The United States has called for respect for fundamental freedoms, including religious and basic human rights, in Bangladesh amid attacks on minorities.

“We are consistent with every government in which we have a relationship with. We are clear that there needs to be the respect of fundamental freedoms,” State Department Deputy Spokesperson Vedant Patel told reporters on Tuesday (December 3).

Respect for human rights, religious freedom

“Governments need to respect the rule of law; they need to respect basic human rights as part of that. That’s something we’ll continue to emphasise,” Patel said.

There needs to be respect for religious freedom and basic human rights. Any kind of protests should be and need to be peaceful, he said.

“We continue to stress and emphasise that even those who are in detention need to be afforded appropriate representation and need to be treated with basic fundamental freedoms and human rights,” Patel said in response to a question.

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Interim government has “absolute obligation”

In a separate statement, Brad Sherman, an influential US lawmaker, said the interim Bangladeshi government has an absolute obligation to protect the minority Hindu community in the country. Muhammad Yunus, the head of the interim government, is known to be close to the US, especially Bill and Hillary Clinton. 

Over the weekend, Hindus from Bangladesh organised a rally at the White house demanding release of Chinmaya Das and protection for Hindus of Bangladesh.

“Bangladesh’s interim government has an absolute obligation to protect its Hindu minority and meaningfully address the protests of thousands of minority Hindus in outcry over the recent wave of attacks and harassment,” Sherman said.

Call for measures to prevent further escalation

“With the calls for an investigation from the Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council and the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk for killings and other rights violations during the violent unrest leading up to and after the fall of Bangladesh’s former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, the current administration must demonstrate leadership in eliminating acts of violence against the Hindu community,” Sherman said.

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Utsav Chakrabarti, executive director of HinduACTion, called on the outgoing Biden-Harris administration to take all possible measures to prevent further escalation of violence by radical Islamists against the Hindus in Bangladesh.

“Based on the feedback we are getting from #Bangladesh, Hindu monk and civil rights defender Chinmoy Krishna Brahmachari, who has been incarcerated by the interim government, faces a serious threat to his life, in custody,” he said.

India-Bangladesh ties

India has also been expressing concerns over attacks on minorities, especially Hindus, in Bangladesh.

The relations between India and Bangladesh have come under strain after the interim government headed by Muhammad Yunus came to power following the ouster of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in August.

(With agency inputs)