Govt thankful for global support amidst propaganda, misinformation

The government has assured all international partners that the overall situation is turning back to normalcy thanks to the timely and appropriate measures taken by the government and the people.

“The government remains thankful to the international community for their overwhelming support and understanding, especially against the backdrop of the wide circulation of propaganda, misinformation and disinformation,” said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) in a statement on the recent situation in Bangladesh.

The exact human toll during the recent violence and terrorist acts is becoming evident as the government assesses the tragic loss of lives, casualties and damages to public properties, it said.

Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan on Sunday stated that the death toll reached 147 as per available information.

The government is reaching out to the families of the deceased, with assurance from the Prime Minister herself to ensure justice for their losses.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is personally monitoring the treatment and rehabilitation of those injured and has also assured of livelihood opportunities for the family members of the deceased.

The government of Bangladesh has taken note of the concerns expressed by some international partners, including civil society organisations and media, over the recent incidents of violence and terrorist acts in Bangladesh, MoFA said.

“In this connection, the government looks forward to engaging constructively with international partners in pursuance of its efforts to build a peaceful, just and inclusive society that offers the opportunity for the youth to have its voices heard and realize its potentials in a safe and secure environment,” MoFA said.

The government remains sensitized to the need for addressing the trauma suffered by the victims and their families.

“It is by now evident that a vested quarter led by the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami and their student wings (i.e. Islami Chhatra Shibir) appropriated the largely peaceful quota reform movement by a section of the university students to unleash a reign of terror, anarchy and mayhem,” MoFA said.

They also enlisted the support of some violent extremist groups and managed to take over the students’ movement for their recurrent ploy to overthrow a democratically-elected government by disrupting public life and grounding the economy to a halt.

The same vested quarter now continues with its disinformation campaign, both locally and internationally, to project the lawful measures and responses by the security and law enforcement agencies against their terrorist activities as “crackdown on student protests,” MoFA said.

Such distorted projection gained ground even when the concerned student leaders of the quota reform movement made a public announcement distancing themselves from the BNP-Jamaat-led terrorist activities.

The government urged the international community not to conflate the issue-specific students’ movement with the subsequent terrorist activities that necessitated the legally-mandated deployment of armed forces in aid of civil power and imposition of curfew for specific locations during specified hours to save people’s lives and properties.

In fact, MoFA said, the students’ protests had continued peacefully for several weeks in the aftermath of a High Court Division judgment of 5 June 2024 reinstating the public service quota system that the government itself had abolished in 2018 in response to a previous round of students’ movement.

At the clear instruction of the government, the concerned university authorities and law enforcement agencies ensured that the protesting students could fully exercise their right to peaceful assembly and freedom of expression this time as well.

The government also facilitated appropriate arrangements for the students to deliver a Protest Memo to the President during this period.

The government made it clear from the outset that its own position on the question of quota reform was mostly aligned with that of the student protesters.

It also filed an appeal before the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court for annulment of the High Court Division judgement, and assured the students of appropriate action once the Appellate Division delivered its judgement on the matter.

Subsequently, the Prime Minister assigned a Ministerial Committee to meet with the coordinators of the student movement to discuss their demands.

Accordingly, based on the directives given by the Appellate Division through its judgment of 21 July 2024, the Government Gazette on the reformed quota system was issued on 23 July 2024.

The reformed quota system went beyond the initial demands of the protesting students and thus duly addressed the underlying cause of their movement.

Regrettably, however, despite repeated assurances of appropriate measures by the Honourable Prime Minister through a televised address on 17 July 2024, the BNP-Jamaat combine instigated unrest and violence among a section of the student community by provoking inflammatory rhetoric and slogans, including by distorting the Prime Minister’s words at a Press Conference (on 14 July 2024), MoFA said.

The situation soon spiralled out of control of the protesting students, and led to unprecedented levels of violence, anarchy and brutalities that can only be termed as terrorist activities.

These resulted in the most tragic and egregious loss of a number of civilian lives, including some young people and minors.

It has now surfaced that the perpetrators of the terror attacks were given assurance of “bounty” for killing law enforcement personnel and ruling party affiliates, the statement said.

There were calculated attacks against a number of Key Point Installations and other public properties, notably metro rail stations and elevated expressway; public health facilities; disaster management office; national broadcasting facility like Bangladesh Television headquarters; firefighting vehicles, and digital connectivity including national data center, central broadband infrastructure and optical fibre networks.

The targeted breaching of a high-security prison and setting free nine convicted militants were part of an attempt to roll back the decade-long gains in containing terrorism and violent extremism.

The government remains committed to hold accountable through proper investigation all those responsible for each incident of death among students and the ensuing terrorist acts involving killings, arson, vandalism, subversion and sabotage.

An Inquiry Commission led by a Judge of the High Court Division of the Supreme Court, constituted on 18 July 2024, has already started working to this effect.

In addition, a number of relevant departmental inquiries are also being conducted to ascertain responsibilities for the corresponding acts of killings and violence, including any case of negligence.

The government ensures that the due process of law would be followed in ensuring accountability and justice for the reported terrorist acts.

The law enforcement agencies are under clear instruction to bring to justice individuals on the basis of evidentiary proof of their involvement in the alleged terrorist acts, without any form of reprisal or harassment against the protesting students and innocent civilians.

The political leadership remains on guard to ensure that the law enforcement agencies continue to operate within the bounds of law and avert the possibility of excesses or wrongdoings under any circumstances.

Against the backdrop of the continued propagation of misinformation and disinformation, especially on the social media, the government has made the following points for the attention of the international community.

One: There is no scope for associating the mostly peaceful and issue-specific students’ movement with the ensuring terrorist acts perpetrated by the BNP-Jamaat combine against the State.

Two: The government reiterates that all acts of killings and terrorist acts would be brought to justice through impartial and objective investigations to identify those responsible irrespective of their affiliations.

Three: There has been no single case of “shoot-at-sight” by the security forces in aid of civil power deployed in the aftermath of the terrorist acts.

Four: There has been no case of firing from helicopters during the law enforcement operations, other than for surveillance, rescue of stranded law enforcement personnel at certain locations, and facilitating passage for firefighting vehicles during emergencies.

Five: There was no otherwise motive behind the inadvertent deployment of one white Anti-Personnel Carrier that still had the UN insignia visible through the colour coating used to cover it. While the APC under question was quickly pulled out of service, the other images of law enforcement transports using UN insignia lacked any evidentiary basis.

Six: The broadband and mobile internet connectivity has been restored with full functionality by now. Other forms of communications, including land-based and mobile telecommunications, were functional through the entire period of unrest and violence.

Seven: It is to be flagged that the print and electronic media continued to operate all along, with exemption allowed for media personnel along with other emergency service providers during curfew hours.

The government has and would continue to uphold the people’s right to freedom of expression and opinions at any cost.

To conclude, MoFA said, the government of Bangladesh would continue to work together with the people in general to come to terms with the unprecedented losses and damages inflicted by the vested quarters.