The Hindu : 'Bangladesh image getting besmirched'

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Jan 14, 2004

International

International

'Bangladesh image getting besmirched'

By Haroon Habib

DHAKA, JAN. 13. The United States Congressman, Joseph Crowley, has warned that Bangladesh's image abroad might be tarnished due to the recent incidents of religious intolerance in the country.

"The image of Bangladesh as a moderate Muslim country is very important, but it is increasingly coming under threat because intolerance has taken hold in the country," the visiting Congressman told The Daily Star in an interview. During a meeting with the Congressman at the Dhakeswari National Temple on Monday, minority stated that the country's minorities were being persecuted, oppressed and marginalised in society. They cited a series of recent incidents in which members of minority communities were targets of violence. Asked if he had raised the issue during his discussions with the Government, Mr. Crowley said, "I have brought up specific occurrences while speaking with all levels of Government up to the Prime Minister."

He told the minority leaders that he had met members of the Hindu-Bouddha-Christian Oikya Parishad and those of Ahmadiya community in New York, and added that the U.S. would keep a watchful eye on the developments concerning the country's minorities.

The Khaleda Zia Government recently banned all religious books of the Ahmadiyas following demands by a section of Islamist extremists to declare the community as non-Muslim. The Congressman said his visit to the 800-year old Hindu temple was symbolic of religious tolerance. "I am here to demonstrate that tolerance is the most important thing." He also noted that an overwhelming number of Muslims in Bangladesh are "loving and peaceful" who want to live in peace with their neighbours of other religions. The U.S. wanted to promote the pluralistic and moderate side of Bangladeshi society, Mr. Crowley said, but added that the friendly relations between the two countries must also include the element of honesty. He said just as recent U.S. actions in the international arena had drawn criticism from Bangladesh, his country too wanted to take a critical approach to the events here.

Appreciating the history of the Dhakeswari temple, Mr. Crowley stressed restoration of some of its run-down structures. The Parishad leaders told Mr. Crowley that their organisation was not communal, but democratic. They also expressed solidarity with the U.S.-led war on terror and hoped the U.S. would assist the minorities in Bangladesh to achieve equal rights. In particular, they asked for U.S. assistance in repealing the eighth amendment to the Constitution that makes Islam the state religion, and overcoming conditions that, they said, forced the minorities to live like "second class citizens".

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