100 days of Interim Government of Bangladesh have been completed. On this occasion, the chief adviser. Muhammad Yunus was interviewed by India's influential newspaper The Hindu. The interview, conducted at Jamuna, the chief adviser's residence in Dhaka, was published in the online edition of The Hindu on Monday (November 18). In the interview, the term of the interim government, elections, reforms, persecution of minorities and bringing Sheikh Hasina back to the country, Dr. talked about various issues. Yunus.
Will Awami League be given the opportunity to compete in the next election? In response to the question of Suhasini Haider, the journalist of Hindu. Muhammad Yunus said, 'It has already been announced. We did not want to decide on political parties. BNP did it. He said, all political parties must contest elections. So they have already given the verdict. We cannot ignore the opinion of a major party in the country.'
In response to the question that you have no objection to contesting the Awami League elections, the chief adviser said, 'I am not a political leader who will choose one party or another. I'm just trying to help politicians turn their aspirations into reality.'
In the interview, Dr. also talked about his team and its closure. Yunus. He also clarified that he never considers himself a politician.
So when is the election? How 'short-lived' is this government? Dr. in response to such questions. Yunus said, “When we are not in charge, we make it clear that we will not be just a caretaker government who will come and elect and hand over responsibility.” Our main responsibility is to bring reforms for Bangladesh. But we didn't want to stay long.
He said that the election process has started from the first day. It is a unique process. On the other hand, the reform process is also going on in parallel. We have created the Election Commission. We expect the names of Chief Election Commissioners to be announced in the next few weeks. They will act as an independent body to ensure fair elections.
But they cannot hold any elections until other reforms are implemented. The Constitutional Reform Commission has to decide whether we will have a bicameral parliament or not. Whether there will be proportional representation in Bangladesh or not. What will be the term and term limit.
Highlighting the newly elected US President Donald Trump's statement on minority persecution in Bangladesh, the Hindu journalist wants to know how confident he is about the continuation of international assistance to Bangladesh even during the new administration of the United States.
Dr. in response. Yunus said, “I think President Trump has not made any statement about Bangladesh.”
The Hindu journalist said, 'He gave, about the situation of minorities…'.
Dr. in response. Yunus said, 'Perhaps Trump is not properly informed. This is propaganda, which is going on all over the world. But when he learns the reality of working with Bangladesh, Trump will be surprised how differently he has been informed about Bangladesh.'
He also said, 'I don't think everything will change just because of a new president in the United States. Foreign policy and country-to-country relations generally do not change with a change in presidency. Moreover, if there is a change in Trump's second term, then we have to remember that this is also Bangladesh 2; That we call new Bangladesh.
So we will wait. If the US representatives come and see and if our economy continues to do well they will be interested. They are the biggest government buyer in Bangladesh, so are we. Good relations have developed between the two countries over the years. We hope it will be stronger.'
The journalist of Hindu said that you are calling Trump's words as a result of propaganda. But not only him, the Indian government has also made several statements about the treatment of Hindus in Bangladesh, the burning of houses, in some cases, killings, and even alleged cases of rape. What do you say about it?
Dr. in response. Yunus said, 'In the first phone conversation with Prime Minister Modi (August 16), he specifically talked about the mistreatment of minorities in Bangladesh. But I told him clearly, these are propaganda. It didn't happen the way the news came in the press.'
The Hindu journalist's question, 'So who do you think is behind this?'
Dr. in response. Yunus said, 'I don't know. But these campaigns do not match the reality. There is a group of people behind all the incidents.'
