Mehjabin Bhanu
Various tensions are being heard about the relationship between Bangladesh and the United States. It has now become an international issue beyond national boundaries. And Amal Sarkar of India has written an article about this. His article was published yesterday (June 04, 2023) in ‘The Wall’. Considering the needs of the readers, we have published this article. Arguably, it is a mere coincidence that America announced its new visa policy for Bangladesh a few days before Henry Kissinger’s birth centenary. We, the residents of the subcontinent have an idea about this former US Secretary of State. Wishing a healthy life to this infamous American, I would like to take this opportunity to register my protest against his past as an Indian. In the 1971 India-Pakistan war, which was on the one hand the struggle for the liberation of the people of East Pakistan and the struggle for the independence of Bangladesh, the US Secretary of State at that time not only wanted to strangle the aspirations of the freedom-loving people of East Bengal, but also indulged the brutality of the Pakistani force’s day after day. Ignoring all etiquettes of diplomacy, he sought Pakistan’s victory. Sent fleet to Indian Ocean to help Pakistan. This is the US Secretary of State who made lewd comments about Indians and Indira Gandhi. (Source: Secret tapes of Nixon-Kissinger talks) It was this man who was crushed by the defeat of the Pakistani forces on the soil of Bangladesh and called the newly independent country a ‘bottomless basket’. Genocide in Cambodia, the overthrow of the elected government in Chile – Kissinger’s name has repeatedly been involved in many such incidents. And the whole world knows what his country has done in Vietnam, Iraq, Afghanistan. Even if it is a coincidence, this question will torment the mind of the conscientious, patriotic citizen of Bangladesh, whether people like Kissinger and his country, who are ready to crush democracy and human rights, are the ones who announced the new visa policy to ensure free elections in Bangladesh. It has been said that the US administration will not grant visas to those who will try to disrupt the elections. We, that is, India and Bangladesh are partners in each other’s ups and downs since the liberation war. The news of the internal politics of Bangladesh on the US visa policy has also created considerable curiosity. Two things are surprising. It seems that some of the leaders of the opposition camp in Bangladesh are very excited about the visa policy, the joy of winning the war, they have decided to close their eyes and ears for the time being about the misdeeds of America in the war of liberation and elsewhere in the world. Although there are some patriotic, thoughtful people in the opposition camp, far from cheering on the US visa policy, who are downright fed up with America’s grandstanding. There is no difference in the policies of any Trump or Biden administration regarding the military rulers of Myanmar. The second is more concerned about foreign democracy and human rights. However, who does not know that these are now facing big questions especially in America. In a country where black people are still not safe. The military rulers of Myanmar, without the name of the American election, are silent despite the bombing of the protest-gathering of the pro-democracy countrymen. They are selling arms to that country. The Biden administration is silent on the human rights of the Rohingya. Democracy like Myanmar, how many precedents are there to strangle human rights? However, instead of going to Suu Kyi’s country, why did the US leaders choose Hasina’s country to fly their flag of democracy and human rights? Before discussing the cause of America’s predicament, some old context is necessary. Bangladesh is a symbol of fulfilling the expectations of self-governing, liberation-seeking, freedom-seeking people to the whole world. Unfortunately, at the same time, the reverse trend that has been flowing since the birth of the country has not dissipated even today. In the election that finally forced the people of East Bengal to jump into war to wrest away the spoiled independence called by Sheikh Mujibur, almost a quarter of the people voted against self-rule, independence. They did not have to leave the country after independence. If that had been the case, the president of the infant state would not have been murdered four and a half years after independence. The BBC said about the brutal killing on August 15, 1975, “Pakistanis who did not risk killing Sheikh Mujib during the liberation war, were killed by the people of their own country.” The rise of fundamentalism, designed to obliterate Bengali ethnicity during the long military rule in Bangladesh after the assassination of Bangabandhu, strengthened anti-independence forces. The political goal was not to allow the democratic system to stabilize. To be honest, this contradiction prevailed within Bangladesh for many years after independence. Because of the language movement, the passion of the people about the liberation war, the killing of Sheikh Mujibur and his family, the autocratic rule of the military rulers, the rise of fundamentalist forces and the continuous political hostility, I have seen ten or fifteen years ago, many of the ordinary Bangladeshis do not have a shred of pride for the country. It is not uncommon for corruption, undemocratic environment, voting irregularities, grandfathers, and syndicate culture to emerge around development in such a country. Boycott of elections, vandalism, destruction of public property strengthens the undemocratic environment. Remarkably, America has remained silent about this dark phase of Bangladesh. They suddenly raised the clamor for the upcoming elections of the National Parliament of Bangladesh. However, the killing of Bangabandhu was an attempt to eradicate politics. The politics that gave birth to the spirit of liberation war, democracy, socialism, secularism and Bengali nationalism. She is the daughter of Bangabandhu—this identity is like the shadow of a banyan tree on Sheikh Hasina’s head, and that is why she is the eyesore of the fundamentalist forces against Bengali nationalism. Attempts to kill him did not decrease. It is by his hand that Bangabandhu’s dream of Sonar Bengal has spread its wings. Padma Bridge has awakened patriotism and self-respect among the common Bangladeshis. And the direction of discussion about Bangladesh in the outside world, centered on infiltration, poverty, hunger, illiteracy, ill health, has changed, and their development has come to the forefront. Many Henries Kissinger are also associated with this story of building Asia’s longest double-decker bridge (road and rail) in turbulent Padma with his own money. As there are World Bank officials who refused to give loans to the list, there are also the leaders of the opposition parties in the country and a section of the civil society, who have repeatedly claimed that it will not be possible to bridge the two banks of the Padma. To their surprise, the present government inaugurated a hundred bridges in that country a few months ago. Bangladesh now has ‘non-existent’ infrastructure, which is called infrastructure in Bengal. Dhaka Metro has started its journey, the underpass under the Karnaphuli river in Chittagong is about to be launched. Biden’s American foreign policy is to restore democracy and human rights in the country. They are imposing it on Bangladesh in the form of a fatwa, completely ignoring the dark past of the country. Is democracy a booster dose of corona or a polio vaccine that will cure the disease? If they really wanted the South Asian country to do well, they would not have targeted the security forces in the first place, which have been very successful in ridding the country of radicalization and terrorism. India is also the beneficiary of this achievement of the security forces of Bangladesh. Our North-Eastern people can now sleep peacefully as the anti-Indian terrorists in Bangladesh have been eradicated. Looking at America’s past and current foreign policies and strategies, I don’t think that the real purpose of their visa policy on this small country in South Asia is different. Firstly, what they have done in different countries of the world, they want a puppet government in Sheikh Mujibur’s country as well. There may be an attempt to implement the ‘minus-two formula’ of the then caretaker government in the much-discussed one-eleven or one-eleven episode in Bangladesh politics a decade and a half ago. The US ambassador in Dhaka continues to play the pressure game in the name of negotiation with the proposal of the caretaker government of BNP. Considering BNP’s history of politics and violence, it is difficult to choose Khaleda Zia’s party over Sheikh Hasina. Therefore, they may have to pay for the fact that BNP is stuck demanding elections under the caretaker government. Because, the goal of the minus-two formula was to keep the two main politicians of Bangladesh, Hasina and Khaleda, away from politics and put a non-political person in power. It is important to remember that America’s close friend Muhammad Yunus turned down the offer to head the caretaker government a decade and a half ago, not because of any policy objection. He was actually interested in playing long innings, so didn’t want to take on short-term responsibilities. As a result, it is difficult to emphasize that he will not be a chess piece in the current Bangladesh equation of America. Second, the Biden administration wants fundamental changes in Bangladesh’s foreign policy introduced by Sheikh Mujib. That is, leave the middle position and lean towards America. China’s growing military and commercial influence in this part of South Asia is also a concern for India. Therefore, India-US increased understanding is not impossible to prevent China. But America’s grandstanding may push Bangladesh further towards China. As a close neighbor, the loss is more for India. China has huge investment in Bangladesh. Still, Sheikh Hasina and Narendra Modi said in one voice that India-Bangladesh relations have reached a unique height. Significantly, all the objections of the anti-independence forces in Bangladesh are about India. They don’t care about China and America. I went to that country a few months ago and saw that one of the reasons for some people’s anger on Hasina is that she allowed India to use Bangladesh’s roads-rivers-ports in order to facilitate communication with the northeastern states of the country. India is also in danger if America does not stop snooping in Bangladesh.
