US Senate has condemned the political violence in Bangladesh and urged political leaders in the country to engage directly and substantively in a dialogue toward free, fair, and credible elections.
It passed a simple resolution expressing the sense of the Senate regarding the critical need for political dialogue in Bangladesh and it was put forward by Senator Richard Durbin with eight co-sponsors.
The resolution was passed just two days after the 10th parliamentary election held on January 5.
The US, UK, the United Nations, European Union, the Commonwealth, France, Germany and Canada have expressed discontent over the polls where candidates were elected unopposed in more than half of the 300 seats and voter turnout on the January 5 was low.
The resolution expressed great concern about the continued political deadlock in Bangladesh that distracts from the country’s many important challenges and urged political leaders to take immediate steps to rein in and to condemn the violence as well as to provide space for peaceful political protests.
It urges political leaders in Bangladesh to ensure the safety and access of observers in its upcoming elections.
It also supports United Nations efforts to foster political dialogue between political factions in Bangladesh. The resolution was introduce in Senate in December 12.