US urges BD govt to be impartial in investigation, detention

Diplomatic Correspondent :
The United States have urged the government of Bangladesh to transparently and impartially investigate the reports on violence, harassment, intimidation and unjustified detention of the political figures of the oppositions.
The US has also urged the government to respect and protect the fundamental freedom of expression, association and peaceful rallies of the opposition parties.
“When it comes to reports of violence, harassment, intimidation, unjustified detention, we call on the government to investigate these reports thoroughly, transparently, impartially, and to hold the perpetrators to account,” US Spokesperson Ned Price said in a scheduled briefing in New York on Tuesday.
In reply to a query whether US will call for immediate release of the opposition leaders including BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia who has been in house arrest for a long time, Ned Price said, “We call on the government to ensure that no party or candidate threatens, incites, or conducts violence against another party or candidate, and genuine elections require the ability of all candidates to engage voters free from violence, harassment, and intimidation.”
“We call on all parties in Bangladesh to respect the rule of law, to refrain from violence, from harassment, from intimidation,” he said.
About the recent developments, in Bangladesh, including political party BNP’s clash with law enforcers and the arrest of their party senior leaders and workers, the spokesperson said, “The message that we’ve conveyed regarding what we’ve seen in recent months in Bangladesh have been one of concern, concern about reports of intimidation, of political violence in Bangladesh.”
“We’ve called on the government to respect and protect the fundamental freedoms of expression, of association, and peaceful assembly for the people of Bangladesh,” he said.
“That’s something you’ve heard from me. It’s something you’ve heard from this department. It’s something you’ve heard from our ambassador in Bangladesh. We stand by those calls, and we’ll continue to issue them. It is what we do around the world,” he said.
Even Ned Price was asked about the Russian statement that US was intervening in the internal issues of Bangladesh in the name of human rights when US Ambassador Peter Haas was ‘harassed’ by the partisan supporters while he was visiting the home of opposition activist Sajedul Islam Sumon to meet with the families of victims of enforced disappearances.
He said, “Look, I’m just not going to weigh in on what we have heard from Russia on this. As you know, we often don’t weigh in on propaganda. What I can say from our part is that we routinely meet with a variety of stakeholders across the political spectrum in every country in which the United States has a diplomatic presence, and, of course, that includes in Bangladesh.”