The UN Human Rights Office and Bangladesh’s interim government signed a three-year Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on July 18 to establish a mission in the country aimed at supporting the promotion and protection of human rights.
Several political parties in Bangladesh have strongly criticised the interim government’s decision to permit the establishment of a UN Human Rights office in the country.
The move, announced during an event organised by the radical Islamist group Hefazat-e-Islam, has sparked widespread criticism.
The radical Islamist party held a roundtable discussion titled ‘Assessing the Agreement on UN Human Rights Commission Office in Dhaka,’ at the Dhaka Reporters Unity in the capital on Monday afternoon.
Hefazat’s Secretary General Sajidur Islam stated that the decision to establish the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) in Dhaka goes against “the values of Islam” and promotes “western hegemony”.
“Open discussions will have to be held with all political parties regarding the opening of this office. For the sake of the country and Islam, we will not be able to speak in the name of anyone,” Bangladesh’s Bengali Newspaper Samakal quoted Hefazat-e-Islam Joint Secretary General Mamunul Haque as saying.
During the discussions, Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) Standing Committee member Salahuddin Ahmed described the move as “unfair”. He urged the interim government to reconsider the decision to avoid what he called “international embarrasment for Bangladesh”.
“The interim government’s decision to allow the establishment of a United Nations Human Rights Commission office in Bangladesh, without any political dialogue, is not justified,” he said.
Meanwhile, Amar Bangladesh Party Chairman Mujibur Rahman Monju accused the UN Women of advocating “western values in Bangladesh”.
Another party, Gono Odhikar Parishad President Nurul Haque Nur, said, “A pro-American government is running the country now. Making such decisions without any discussion is a form of authoritarianism.”
Last week, several radical Islamic parties, including Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh, strongly opposed the decision to establish the UN Human Rights Office in Dhaka.
Hefazat leaders Ameer Shah Muhibullah Babunagari and Secretary General Sajedur Rahman said, “A human rights mission will not be allowed to open in this country for US interests. This is an attempt to interfere with the Muslim family law, Islamic Sharia and religious values of Bangladesh.”
The remarks came after the UN Human Rights Office and the interim government on July 18 signed a three-year Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to open a mission in the South Asian country to support the promotion and protection of human rights.
“The memorandum was signed by UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk and Asad Alam Siam, Foreign Secretary, on behalf of the Government of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh,” read a press statement issued by the OHCHR.
