BNP leaders on Thursday held a meeting with Canadian Political Counselor Bradley Coates, a day after paying a courtesy call on the British High Commissioner to Bangladesh Robert Chatterton Dickson.
A delegation, headed by BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, participated in the two-hour long meeting at the party chairperson’s office in Gulshan.
The overall situation of the country was discussed with Bradley Coates in the meeting, following his appointment in Bangladesh a month earlier, BNP Organising Secretary Shama Obaid who participated in the meeting told The Business Standard.
She said the Canadian diplomat inquired about the suppression the BNP leaders and activists went through during their nationwide programmes in the last few days and discussed the human rights situation in the country.
Shama Obaid said, “BNP is strengthening its diplomatic activities ahead of the upcoming 12th parliamentary elections. We are raising the issues of attacks on BNP rallies, killing of our men and lawsuits against our leaders before the foreign diplomats in these meetings.”
However, Bradley did not agree to talk to the media when asked about the meeting.
Shama Obaid said, “Our diplomatic activities are always ongoing. All political parties do that. But that activity is sometimes visible, and sometimes not.”
On 7 September, a delegation led by BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir met British High Commissioner Robert Chatterton Dickson.
The British High Commissioner Robert Chatterton Dickson then expressed his concern over the recent attacks on BNP people.
In the context of two BNP workers killed in clashes with the police in Bhola and Narayanganj, the British High Commission expressed concerns in a post on its verified Facebook page on Wednesday.
The post said, “Engagement with political parties in Bangladesh is an important part of our diplomatic presence.”
The UK has previously expressed concerns over recent violence between political parties and law enforcement in Bangladesh.
