Chief Adviser's Press Secretary Shafiqul Alam said that Bangladesh's minority issues have been unfairly presented in the international media and the top parliamentary hearings of the influential country. He called on secular newspapers and international human rights organizations to investigate cases of alleged religious violence in Bangladesh.
In a statement posted on his verified Facebook account, he said, 'When Netra News published the report of Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Oikya Parishad on attacks on Hindu community in the post-revolution period, I expected Oikya Parishad to make a statement on the matter.'
He further said, 'Netra News is a leading investigative website, which has earned a reputation for reporting on major corruption and human rights violations in Bangladesh.'
The press secretary pointed out that the Netra News report showed that almost all the incidents of the 9 Hindu deaths reported by the Minority Council were linked to political, personal or other reasons, which were not communal violence.
He said, 'We had hoped that Oikya Parishad would respond to the Netra News report, as it raised serious questions about the Parishad's data collection and reporting methods.'
He also said that Oikya Parishad published another controversial report on attacks on minorities in Bangladesh in July this year.
Shafiqul Alam said, 'They said at least 45 minorities (mostly Hindus) were killed in the fiscal year 2023-24 (which started on July 1, 2023). Again, the report appeared on the front and back pages of Bangladeshi newspapers. Despite serious questions about the veracity of such a claim by Oikya Parishad, no media has challenged it.'
He said, 'According to the country's largest human rights organization Law and Arbitration Center (ASK), no one was killed in anti-minority violence in 2023 and only two people were killed this year (January to October).'
The press secretary said, ASK is a secular group, which has been led for years by an Awami League confessor. Its current chairman is human rights lawyer ZI Khan Panna. who told local media that he would be interested in defending mass murderer Sheikh Hasina at trial.
Shafiqul Alam said, 'The reports of the Unity Council have far-reaching implications. Recently a British Member of Parliament quoted the Oikya Parishad report while talking about attacks on minorities in Bangladesh.
He said, 'The post-revolution attack on Hindus report has been viewed more than 11 million times on social media. To our knowledge, powerful and wealthy Hindu American groups, Indian national and regional newspapers, and top Indian analysts—cited this report to highlight the plight of minorities in Bangladesh. Experts say that the Oikya Parishad reports are the biggest source of false information about anti-minority violence.
Shafiqul Alam also said, 'Violence against minorities occurs in Bangladesh. We are still not a model country in terms of communal harmony. Religiously offensive Facebook posts have also led to incidents of violence. Some marginalized groups and individuals often spread hatred against minorities.'
“In recent weeks, greater efforts have been made by the interim government, political, religious and civil society leaders to keep people calm during religiously motivated incidents,” he said. At this time, some of them have shown extraordinary political maturity in these events.'
However, he claimed, Oikya Parishad's reports systematically exaggerated incidents of violence against minorities.
The press secretary said, 'We hope that leading secular and liberal newspapers will conduct their own investigations into the alleged incidents of violence against minorities. We hope that international human rights organizations, such as Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, will conduct similar investigations.
He noted that in 2013, Human Rights Watch conducted an excellent investigation into the massacre of security personnel. Hopefully, they will do a similar investigation here.
If the government acts to refute these rumours, there may be skepticism towards its report, he said.
Alam said 'Independent press and human rights organizations should investigate these incidents. This is a serious issue, as the issue of Bangladesh has been unfairly presented in the international media and in top parliamentary hearings of influential countries.'
He also said, 'Some call for sending UN peacekeepers to Bangladesh or to intervene inside the country based on these reports. That is why the interim government wants a fair investigation into the alleged incidents of persecution of minorities.' Live the news
