After receiving a letter from US Secretary of State John Kerry, the main opposition BNP Monday briefed foreign diplomats in Dhaka about the party’s stance on the next parliamentary polls.
A visiting delegation of the European Union also met with top leaders of the ruling Awami League, urging it to ensure holding of a free, fair and credible election with participation of all parties and sit with the opposition to resolve the existing political deadlock.
On Sunday, US Secretary of State John Kerry sent letters to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and Leader of the Opposition Khaleda Zia, urging the two top leaders to find a way to hold free, fair and credible elections.
Awami League Presidium member Matia Chowdhury last night confirmed the Dhaka Tribune of having received Kerry’s letter, saying she did not know the contents of the letter, but “I presume the US expressed its views about the election in Bangladesh.”
She said: “I am sure Mr Kerry did not say anything in the letter about going beyond our constitution. His country also has a constitution and they follow it.”
US Ambassador in Dhaka Dan Mozena had gone to the Prime Minister’s Office and the BNP chairperson’s Gulshan office to hand over the letters. BNP Vice-Chairman Shamsher Mobin Chowdhury received the letter for Khaleda.
A BNP delegation led by acting secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir briefed the diplomats at a city hotel Monday on the party’s “position against the prime minister’s statement that the next election would be held without dissolving parliament,” said Osman Farruk, adviser to Khaleda.
The diplomats included those from the US, the UK, Australia, Sweden,Japan, China, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Denmark, Nepal, Pakistan and a few other countries but no one from India. BNP Standing Committee member Jamiruddin Sircar, Khaleda’s advisers Osman Farruk and Amir Khoshru Mahmud Chowdhury, and Shamsher Mobin Chowdhury briefed the foreign envoys.
“We told the envoys that we would not take part in any election under this government, but we are ready for talks to resolve the crisis.
“The envoys told us that they wanted to see a credible and participatory election,” Amir Khoshru told the Dhaka Tribune.
Asked if they discussed anything about the formula of an interim government, Osman Farruk said: “Nothing related to the interim government formula was discussed. We basically discussed the crisis centring the election-time government.”
Khoshru said Mirza Fakhrul had briefed the diplomats on the entire political situation while Jamiruddin Sircar talked about the complications of holding an election without dissolving parliament.
Awami League-EU delegation meet
Awami League Joint Secretary Mahabub-ul-Alam Hanif said the EU had called for a dialogue to resolve the political crisis.
“The Awami League is ready for talks, but the party believes that parliament is the best place for such talks. If the talks fail in parliament, dialogues could be held outside it,” he told reporters after the party delegation’s meeting with the EU team at Sheikh Hasina’s Dhanmondi office Monday evening.
EU team leader William Hanna said the EU hoped that democracy in Bangladesh would continue and they wanted a free, fair and credible election to be held in Bangladesh. He emphasised the need for participation of all parties in the polls for the sake of democracy.
He said observers from the EU would come to Bangladesh to oversee the next parliamentary polls. “We want a strong Election Commission and the European Union has been providing the Election Commission with technical assistance to that end,” he added.
The Awami League delegation included Presidium member Kazi Zafarullah, Foreign Minister Dipu Moni, party Foreign Affairs Secretary Col Faruk Khan, Food Minister Dr Abdur Razzak and Deputy Office Secretary Mrinal Kanti Das.
The seven-member delegation included EU Ambassador William Hanna, Mualla Chilakri, Christina Alves, Tom Bil and Pedro Almeida.
EU delegation to meet Khaleda today
The European Union delegation will meet BNP Chairperson and Leader of the Opposition Khaleda Zia at her Gulshan office at 6:00pm today, an official of the BNP chief’s press wing told the Dhaka Tribune Monday.
Kerry’s letters
Dan W Mozena declined to elaborate on the contents of Kerry’s letter: “Obviously I would not go into the context of the letters at all but the thrust of the letters is to encourage both leaders to find a way forward for free, fair and credible elections.
“The whole world is coming together to support elections in Bangladesh and then Secretary Kerry is adding his voice.”
The US ambassador, however, expressed hope that the letters would have impacts on the two leaders.
BNP leader Shamsher Mobin told the Dhaka Tribune: “Kerry has expressed his concern over the prevailing political situation in the country. Kerry put stress on reaching a meaningful understanding immediately through dialogue for a participatory and credible polls.”
Kerry wrote to the two top leaders just 15 days after UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s phone calls requesting them to reach an amicable solution.
On August 21, Chinese envoy Li Jun told reporters that he was trying to encourage a one-to-one dialogue between the two rivals.
In May, Ban had sent Oscar Fernandez-Taranco, assistant secretary general for political affairs of the UN, apparently to create ground for a political dialogue.
Taranco met the prime minister, the opposition leader, the speaker, the chief election commissioner, leaders of political parties and select members of civil society. After the meetings he expressed concern that time was running out for finding a solution towards holding of free, fair, credible and non-violent elections.
Earlier on April 17, ambassadors of Arab and Muslim-majority countries based in Dhaka met BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia and discussed possible ways out of the current political crisis.
