Sadly, the global human rights community has many issues to address, and more than a few in Bangladesh. For example, outrage has been growing about the scandalous conviction of human rights defenders Adilur Rahman Khan and ASM Nasiruddin Elan, leaders of the respected Bangladeshi human rights organization Odhikar.
Now, Amnesty International’s Secretary General has issued a scathing press release about how the Bangladeshi government has “weaponized” labor law to harass Professor Muhammad Yunus.
The statement says, “Amnesty International believes that initiating criminal proceedings against Mohammad Yunus and his colleagues for issues that belong to the civil and administrative arena is a blatant abuse of labour laws and the justice system and a form of political retaliation for his work and dissent.”
Agnès Callamard, Secretary General of Amnesty International, added: “Mohammad Yunus’ case is emblematic of the beleaguered state of human rights in Bangladesh, where the authorities have eroded freedoms and bulldozed critics into submission. The abuse of laws and misuse of the justice system to settle vendettas is inconsistent and incompatible with international human rights treaties including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which Bangladesh is a state party.”
No amount of photos of the Prime Minister speaking briefly with other global leaders can distract from her regime’s deplorable record on human rights, democracy, and freedom of the press.