Bangladesh previous two national elections lacked legitimacy: global leaders

CHT DESK:

One hundred eighty-three global leaders, including 104 Nobel laureates in an open letter to Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina urged her to halt the current trial proceedings against Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Professor Muhammad Yunus immediately.

The open letter, published on https://protectyunus.wordpress.com/ , for protecting Dr Yunus, also expressed their hope that the upcoming national election in Bangladesh would be free and fair while the administration of the election would be acceptable to all major parties.

“We are deeply concerned by the threats to democracy and human rights that we have observed in Bangladesh recently. We believe that it is of the utmost importance that the upcoming national election be free and fair, and that the administration of the election be acceptable to all major parties in the country. The previous two national elections lacked legitimacy”, the letter reads.

“One of the threats to human rights that concerns us in the present context is the case of Nobel Peace Prize laureate Professor Muhammad Yunus. We are alarmed that he has recently been targeted by what we believe to be continuous judicial harassment. This letter attempts to build upon an earlier appeal to you by 40 global leaders who were concerned about his safety and freedom”, It also reads.

“We respectfully ask that you immediately suspend the current judicial proceedings against Professor Yunus, followed by a review of the charges by a panel of impartial judges drawn from within your nation with some role for internationally recognized legal experts. We are confident that any thorough review of the anti-corruption and labor law cases against him will result in his acquittal”, the statement said.

“As you know, Professor Yunus’ work, which has been inspirational to all of us, focuses on how social business can be a force for international progress resulting in zero poverty, zero unemployment, and zero net carbon emissions. He is a leading example of how Bangladesh and Bangladeshis have contributed to global progress in recent decades. We sincerely wish that he be able to continue his path-breaking work free of persecution or harassment”, it also reads.

“We hope that you ensure the resolution of these legal issues in an expedient, impartial, and just manner while also ensuring a free, fair, and participatory national election in the coming months, and respect for all human rights. We will join with millions of concerned citizens around the world in closely tracking how these matters are resolved in the days ahead”, they said also in their statement.

Signatories of the letter included, among others, Barack Obama, the 44th president of the United States, Jose Ramos-Horta, the president of East Timor, and Mary Robinson, the former president of Ireland and Hillary Rodham Clinton, former U.S. secretary of state.

Among the 183 signatories, 104 are Nobel laureates, 71 are elected officials and business and civil society leaders and eight are concerned citizens of the world.

The global leaders sent the letter ten days after former US president Barack Obama had written a letter of support to Dr Muhammad Yunus.

Dr Yunus, the founder of Grameen Bank, shared an image of the letter of August 17, signed by Obama on his verified Facebook page on Sunday.

‘I have long been inspired by your efforts to empower people through offering them the means to lift their families and communities out of poverty. As I said when having the opportunity to meet you in the White House in 2009, your work has inspired millions to imagine their own potential,’ said the former US president in the letter.

It also reads, ‘During this period, I hope it gives you strength to know that many whose potential you invested in, and those of us who care about a more equitable economic future for all, are thinking of you, and I hope that you continue to have the freedom to do your important work.’