The head of the Bangladesh interim government Muhammad Yunus was greeted with massive protesting crowds outside his hotel in New York. Yunus is on a visit to the United States to attend the 79th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) session. Overseas bangladeshis gathered en masse to protest the mistreatment of minorities under the Yunus regime.
Bangladesh is currently undergoing an extremely volatile political situation. The elected government of Sheikh Hasina was ousted by a student protest in August. Consequently an interim caretaker government was formed under the Chief Adviser and Nobel laurete Muhammad Yunus.
Under Yunus the attacks on minorities have been relentless, hindus, christians, buddhists and others have suffered at the hands of radical Islamist mobs that have targeted the villages, families and homes of minorities. Yunus has been accused of standing by and letting the mobs run rampage across the country. Over 1000 people have succumbed in the violent clashes so far.
Now on Yunus’ visit to the USA, crowds gathered outside his hotel in New York and chanted slogans of “go back” and “step down”. Dr. Rahman, one of the protestors said, “I am here to protest the illegal, unelected person representing 117 million people of Bangladesh. He is not elected; he has been appointed by students. He doesn’t care about minorities or anybody. He has illegally occupied the country.”
“Muhammad Yunus took the power unconstitutionally, illegally. He captured power with dirty politics and a lot of people have been killed. So far, our elected PM Sheikh Hasina has not resigned. We request UN humbly that he did not represent Bangladeshi people here,” Sheikh Jamal Hussain, a protestor told ANI.
Another protester, DM Ronald, echoed these sentiments and said, “We believe in a secular democracy. After he took the power by force, he started killing Hindus, Muslims, Christians. Our people are not safe in Bangladesh.”
What is Yunus doing in the USA
The Bangladesh chief advisor Muhammad Yunus is set to address the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) on September 27. Yunus has a series of high-profile meetings lined up on the sidelines of the UNGA including a meeting with US President Joe Biden on Tuesday, Dhaka Tribune reported.
According to Bangladesh Foreign Affairs Advisor, Muhammad Yunus will meet with leaders including the Prime ministers of the Netherlands, Pakistan, and Nepal, as well as the President of the European Union, the US Secretary of State, the UN Secretary-General, the UN Human Rights chief, the World Bank President, and the USAID Administrator. Foreign Minister of China Wang Yi is scheduled to call on the chief adviser.
Yunus will also attend a high-level side event on the Rohingya crisis. Yunus will then attend a high-level event – ‘Meet the Friends of Bangladesh’. He will also be hosting a reception on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of Bangladesh’s membership in the United Nations.
Bangladesh army Chief assures backing
Meanwhile the Bangladesh Army Chief General Waker-uz-Zaman has vowed to back the Yunus interim regime. General Waker-uz-Zaman and his troops stood aside in early August amidst the raging student protests that led to the ouster of Sheikh Hasina. The veteran politician resigned after 15 years in power and fled to neighbouring India, and Muhammad Yunus took charge.
In a rare media interview, Zaman told Reuters at his office in the capital Dhaka on Monday that the interim administration led by Muhammad Yunus had his full support and outlined a pathway to rid the military of political influence. “I will stand beside him. Come what may. So that he can accomplish his mission,” Zaman said.
He also informed that the interim government’s chief adviser and the army chief meet every week and have “good relations”, adding that the military is helping the interim government’s effort to stabilize the country after a period of turmoil. “I’m sure that if we work together, there is no reason why we should fail,” he said.
General Zaman has promised to keep his forces “professional”, saying it would not intervene politically. “I will not do anything which is detrimental to my organization,” he told Reuters. “I am a professional soldier. I would like to keep my army professional.”
Chief Adviser Muhammed Yunus has promised to carry out essential reforms to the judiciary, police and financial institutions, paving the way to hold a free and fair election in the country in the coming eighteen months.