Shawdesh Desk:

Chief adviser professor Muhammad Yunus on Friday urged the international community to continue and deepen engagements with Bangladesh to help meet its people’s quest for democracy, rule of law, equality and prosperity so that it could emerge as a just and inclusive democratic society.

‘I call upon the international community to engage with ‘new Bangladesh’ anew that aims to realise freedom and democracy, beyond letters, for everyone,’ he said while addressing the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York of the United States.

Delivering his speech in Bangla, the chief adviser of the interim government said that the country’s youth and commoners together entrusted him and his council of advisers with enormous responsibilities to reconstruct a decaying state apparatus.

‘As we took to the office, to our utter shock and dismay, we discovered how endemic corruption turned a ‘functioning democracy’ into a farce, how key institutions were ruthlessly politicised, how public coffers were reduced to rubble, how oligarchs took over business, how ‘chosen few’ concentrated wealth in their hands and amassed and laundered wealth out of Bangladesh.’

In all, justice, ethics and morality, almost at every level, reached a low. Under such circumstances, his government was asked to rebuild Bangladesh and give back the country to the people, while it was also asked to correct the ills of the past and build a competitive and agile economy, and a just society, Yunus said.

‘In a drastically changed scenario, all political parties are now free to voice their views and opinions. A key priority for my government is to make all in public positions and institutions accountable for their decisions and actions.’

‘We are committed to promote and protect the fundamental rights – for people to speak in freedom, to assemble without fear or inhibition, to vote whosoever they choose, to uphold the independence of the judiciary and freedom of press, including in the cyber domain.’

The chief adviser said that the government prioritised allocation in education and health sectors instead of grandiose infrastructure development so that children of a farmer or worker could scale the highest in the society. ‘We also aim at ensuring good governance, across all sectors.’

The 2006 Nobel Peace Laureate assured that his government would adhere to all international, regional and bilateral instruments that Bangladesh was party to. ‘Bangladesh will continue to remain an active proponent of multilateralism, with the UN at the core.’

He said that Bangladesh was open to nurture friendly relations with all countries based on mutual respect, upholding its dignity and pride and shared interests.

About the reform agendas, CA Yunus said that his government had initiated several actions in just seven weeks of assuming power.

Responding to the request of the Bangladesh government, UN high commissioner for human rights has dispatched a fact-finding mission to probe the gross human rights violations during the recent student-people movement and to suggest for sustainable course correction, he said.

Referring to the enforced disappearances took place in Bangladesh, Yunus said that his government acceded to ‘the International Convention for Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance’ within two weeks in office.

‘Formulation of the required national legislation is underway so that ‘we can effectuate its early implementation’. An inquiry commission has started probing into all the cases of enforced disappearances reported during the past decade and a half.’

‘In order to restore people’s trust and confidence, and to ensure that the tragic past never recurs in future Bangladesh, we have initiated reforms in certain prioritised sectors,’ he continued.

Affirming not to let any foreign business interest to be affected, he said that the government rolled out extensive reforms in banking and financial sectors to create a conducive environment for business.

‘Beyond rhetoric and numbers, we aim to establish effective safeguard mechanisms to ensure the sustainability of these reforms and create an enabling environment towards conducting free, fair and participatory elections.’

About the student-led revolution that paved the way to build a new Bangladesh free from discrimination, Yunus said that he stood in this assembly of nations thanks to an epochal transformation that Bangladesh witnessed this July and August.

‘The power of the ordinary people, in particular our youth, presented to our nation an opportunity to overhaul many of our systems and institutions. The uprising, led by the students and youth, was initially aimed at ending discrimination. Progressively the movement evolved into a people’s movement. The world eventually saw how people-at-large stood against autocracy, oppression, discrimination, injustice and corruption, both on the streets and online,’ he told the audience at UNGA.

‘We were moved by the wisdom, courage and conviction our youth showed. Even braving bullets, bare chest. Young girls were fiercely vocal against the illegitimate State power. School-going teenagers laid down their lives. Hundreds lost their eyes, forever.’

Mentioning that mothers, day labourers and scores of people across cities lent their shoulders for their children, he said that defying sweat, rain and fear of death, they defeated all the evil designs and machinations of the few who manipulated the state machinery against truth and just aspirations of people for years.

He said that the student-people movement left an estimated over 800 martyrs in the hands of the autocratic regime.

About global peacekeeping, he said that Bangladesh viewed that maintaining peace and addressing conflicts was central to peoples’ progress.

‘During the recent Revolution, our valiant armed forces have once again shown their commitment to peace by standing firmly with the people in fulfilling their aspirations for freedom during a most difficult time in our history,’ he said.

‘Bangladesh remains equally committed to peace-building, from the inception of the UN Peace-building Commission. We look forward to promoting and enhancing Bangladesh’s value-driven contributions to the UN peace-keeping operations’, professor Yunus added.