MillenniumPost
Opinion

Hiccups in Bangladesh

Rohingyas, pro-terror forces and atrocities on minorities; Bangladesh needs to step up and combat the rising issues

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina of Bangladesh will be completing half a year of her governance after her overwhelming victory at the end of last year. With the renewed mandate, Hasina now is in complete control at the helm having effectively marginalised his political opponents especially the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and its leader Khaleda Zia putting Hasina in a very comfortable position with no threat from any political quarters. In fact, she is actively thinking of banishing ex-PM Khaleda Zia to the UK where BNP Chairperson and Khaleda's son is in exile. He is a convict and his mother is facing several criminal charges.

While the political front may look hunky dory with the opposition completely decimated, yet, Hasina-led government has no window for any complacency. Unfortunately, some emerging trends may snowball into major problems unless addressed without further delay.

The Rohingyas, numbering well over 7 lakhs (some estimate the number at even 10 lakhs) are, according to credible media reports, seem to be gradually getting out of hand possibly due to lowering of guards by the law enforcers. It may be recalled that in August 2017, the Rohingyas were pushed to Bangladesh by the Myanmar army and they found shelter in bordering Bangladesh. Their numbers swelled over a passage of time while the Bangladesh government struggled to rehabilitate them in camps within the barbed wire and tightened security.

Notwithstanding the heavy security and vigilance, these Rohingyas are now seen to be involved in many undesirable activities including in drug and human trafficking, in the racket of manufacturing fake passports, etc. Many of them are allegedly complicit in cases of child lifting. Meanwhile, according to the Bangladesh Home Minister, Asaduzzaman Khan, Rohingyas are slowly spreading all over Bangladesh. He also admitted that it is becoming increasingly difficult for the government to contain nefarious activities.

There are innumerable cases of breaches of the barbed wire fencing in the camps leading to escape of refugees and them resorting to criminal acts. Burqa-clad women are also known to have dodged their identity by being complicit in several unwanted activities. One was recently caught for her involvement in Rajshahi in preparation of fake passports. With the multiple activities, gangs of middlemen have also sprung up who facilitate in human trafficking of women to the Middle East. One such gang was arrested by Chittagong railway police. It would, therefore, confirm the Home Minister's admissions that Rohingyas are spreading all over the country. Their presence in Rajshahi poses the possibility of transgressing to the Indian side too due to reasons of proximity.

Bangladesh has recently relocated Rohingyas from the stretch starting from Teknaf to Ukhia with the installation of several check posts. Still, there needs to be more vigil. The most important aspect that merits constant attention is ensuring that the refugees are not enticed into radicalisation. Soon after their arrival in Bangladesh, there were reports of Pakistani terror groups' attempts to indoctrinate some of them ostensibly to carry out subversive activities in India by infiltrating them through porous borders. Their number is so large and their economic conditions so pitiable, that they remain vulnerable to the religious extremists.

In this context, it is pertinent to mention that in the recent past, 46 women cadres of the banned Jamaat-e-Islami (JeI) were arrested in Alamdanga and much incriminating material including obnoxious literature were recovered from their possessions. JeI's nexus with radical forces and Pakistan are well known. They're India's sworn enemies, and Hasina and their role in the liberation struggle and later are well known. Many of their top leaders were hanged for their crimes against humanity.

This incident of arrest should be taken as a wake-up call. There remains a distinct possibility of fomenting terror in the light of Easter Sunday (April 21) bombings in Sri Lanka and National Towheed Jamaath (NTJ) coming to light for carrying out terror attacks in parts of India. Given the Bangladesh JeI's track record, agencies must be alert in finding out its connections in Bangladesh. After all, Bangladesh has seen deadly terror strikes from homegrown terrorists and cases of radicalisation. Thankfully, Prime Minister Hasina has been tough in dealing with the pro-terror and fundamentalist forces. Still, it needs to be watchful.

The third challenge in Bangladesh is regarding minorities, especially Hindus. The Hindu Baudhya Christian Oikya Parishad (HBCOP), the alliance of minorities in Bangladesh in a recently held meeting in Dhaka, disclosed that the atrocities on the minorities particularly on the Hindus, are showing an upward trend. According to the HBCOP head, Rana Dasgupta, from January to April this year, saw 250 cases of communal disturbances targeting Hindus with 23 loss of lives with 17 receiving life threats. This apart, there have been glaring cases of extortion, grabbing of Hindu immovable property, forced eviction and some cases of desecration of Hindu places of worship.

Significantly, there have been cases of unnatural deaths of some prominent Hindus including Palash Ray in Panchagarh. Journalist Probir Sikdar's house was vandalised with stray cases of arson. Overall, Hindus do not feel completely secure. Rana Dasgupta further said that the government's much-hyped claims of 'zero tolerance' towards any excesses in the minorities must be seen to be action-oriented, on the ground. But that is not happening. To draw the government's attention on the plight of the minorities, the HBCOP is organising a protest march on May 25. Surely, the minorities deserve a safe and secure environment to live in Bangladesh and Hasina, considered secular and protector of minorities must pay extra attention to them especially when the communal and divisive forces are raising their ugly head in South Asia.

(The author is a security analyst who served in Bangladesh and a former National Security Advisor to Mauritius. Views expressed are strictly personal)

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