State Minister for Foreign Affairs Md. Shahriar Alam on Tuesday said the government had unmasked some people including a section of civil society and their political intentions through the recent visit of UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet.
“We believe in engagement. We are committed and we have enough goodwill (to look into human rights issues). We could prove it,” he told the reporters at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, noting that it is very “low and mean” as some people sought her intervention in terms of election.
The State Minister said those people who are spreading misinformation and sought UN rights chief’s intervention during her visit are actually helping the anti-Awami League political platform (BNP-Jamaat). “It’s an evil effort to malign the government.”
He said the BNP and Jamaat with their people at home and abroad have continuously been spreading misinformation.
The state minister expressed his surprise as some people raised some issues which go beyond the UN human rights chief’s mandate and said those people do not have adequate knowledge on how the UN system operates.
Shahriar said Bachelet made it clear during her meeting with a section of civil society that it is not within her mandate to address the demands related to the next national election in Bangladesh. He described such effort “objectionable” and it is not a healthy practice at all.
Shahriar said the UN human rights chief understood where these people came from and what their intention was. He, however, said the government has a great respect for the civil society for their role in various areas while a section of it has a political intention.
Shahriar said the so-called opposition parties have a big “misperception and misconception” that their many demands will be met once they raise the issues with the UN human rights chief. “They live in a fool’s paradise.” The State Minister said Bachelet did not meet the opposition leaders but engaged her colleague to talk to them.
The government of Bangladesh invited the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights. She hoped her visit would build on the government’s engagement with the UN’s human rights mechanisms and help deepen cooperation with us, furthering the promotion and protection of human rights in Bangladesh.
In Dhaka, she met with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and ministers – foreign affairs, home affairs, law, and education – and other officials.
For all the significant human rights challenges ahead – economic, climate-related, political, social and humanitarian – she was convinced that if the powerful resources within the whole society are harnessed, and policies and responses are crafted with the participation of many diverse voices, Bangladesh will continue to shine brighter in its remarkable development journey.
