Amir of Jamaat-e-Islami Dr. Shafiqur Rahman said, “If we have made any mistake and it is proven beyond doubt, I will apologize to the nation.” He said this at the “Meet the Press'' event with Bengali media journalists in the UK on Tuesday local time at a restaurant in East London.
In response to a journalist's question about the role of Jamaat-e-Islami in 1971, the current Amir of the party said, “If we have done any wrong in 1971 and if it is proven beyond doubt, I will apologize to the nation.” In the judgment of British Court Chowdhury Mainuddin in the name of war crime tribunal in our country, the judges here have called that verdict Genocide of Justice.
Dr. Shafiqur Rahman referred to the torture and persecution of Jamaat during the rule of Awami League and said, 'For 15 years we were not allowed to sit in our office, we were not allowed to speak, we were not allowed to hold any rally, we could not go to the nation through journalists.'
Jamaat's Amir, demanding recognition of those killed in the 24th mass uprising as 'national heroes', said, “People from all classes of the country participated in this coup. Even those outside the country fought as best they could. We congratulate and thank them all.'
He said, 'We could not advance due to ethnic disunity and corruption. Corruption is a national shame for us. The UK has been able to hold itself to a prestigious position around the world as it has kept itself largely free of corruption. But we couldn't. The society will not be clean if those who will manage the society are not clean.'
Referring to the unbridled corruption of the ousted Awami League government. Shafiqur Rahman said, 'The amount of development that could have been done has not actually happened. The cost shown in a development project in Bangladesh, in other countries of our region, such development projects have been completed at one-third of the cost. No project has been completed on time in our country, time after time has been extended. And with that, the cost of the project has been increased. This is how the country has been looted and destitute.'
Barrister Abu Bakr Molla, European spokesperson of Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, was also present at the event. Imam Uddin recited from the Quran and artist Kamal Hossain performed patriotic songs in the program directed by Abu Saleh Yahya.
