Killing of BD nationals by BSF not the failure of Bangladesh: Momen

Staff Reporter :
The killing of the Bangladeshi nationals by the Border Security Force (BSF) of India was not the failure of Bangladesh, Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen said on Monday.
 “We don’t want anybody killed on the border. We have obtained assurance from the highest level of India. It’s not our failure. You will also have to see why the person was killed,” he said this while replying to a query of the journalists in the Foreign Ministry.
A Bangladeshi was shot dead by the Indian Border Security Force on the first day of the New Year on the Bangladesh-India international border at Burimari under Patgram upazila in Lalmonirhat on Sunday.
Though the Indian government has assured Bangladesh to cut the border killing to zero, the figure is not declining.
Meanwhile, the Foreign Minister was also asked about the formation of a ‘technical committee’ by different stakeholders of different ministries to resist the propaganda about Bangladesh, Dr Momen said that it was not a ‘technical committee’, but a ‘coordination committee’.
“It will not see the misinformation only, rather there are various challenges of Bangladesh ahead which need proper attention to build a smart Bangladesh,” he added.
He added, “We have an array of challenges including employment, environment and food security. Keeping the daily essentials to a tolerable level is also a big challenge for us. My colleagues will suggest to me as to how we can overcome such issues in the coming days in an effective way to be successful.”
The formation of such a committee came up during a virtual meeting of the Heads of Bangladesh Missions abroad with Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen and Law Minister Anisul Huq held at the state Guest House Padma on Sunday with the Foreign Minister in the chair.
The meeting discussed various issues prioritizing the foreign policy and how to deal with issues like employment, manpower, investment and image of the country.
Apart from it, the committee will sit regularly to find out effective ways to present correct information about Bangladesh against misinformation or fabricated information about the country and the government.
Meanwhile, the Foreign Minister on Monday told the journalists: “We asked them to suggest us how to combat the challenges of Bangladesh. What sort of strategy and steps we should take for it. Are the initiatives taken by the government enough? What ill things, others are speaking, are secondary matter. The media is busy with such things.”
About the free, fair election, Momen said that the government was not worried about the next parliamentary election and the polls would be held timely.
“The government believes in free and fair elections. People will exercise their franchise to whoever they want. Elections will be held at the time of election. We believe in people,” he added.
In reply to a query whether the government has assured the foreigners about free and fair elections, he said, “It is your (journalists) headache. We don’t need to assure the foreigners. If I do my jobs, they will understand.”
About the participatory election, he said, “The government is committed to hold a free, fair and inclusive election. If all parties join the election, it is fine, if not, that is okay.”