Protect Yunus

Following his excellent initial analysis of the labor law case lodged against Professor Yunus and three other Grameen Telecom board members, Shayan S. Khan, Executive Editor of the respected Dhaka Courier, wrote a short follow up article on his lively, informative, and entertaining Facebook page. Because so many ill-informed statements and claims are circulating about this case, we felt it was important to share Khan’s excellent article in full, which we do below with his generous permission.

One of the most misleading claims going around is that it wasn’t the government, but rather the employees of Grameen Telecom who filed the case against Dr Yunus. It was there in the statement by the Supreme Court Bar Association yesterday: শ্রম আইনের মামলা সরকার দায়ের করেনি, তা অধিকার বঞ্চিত শ্রমিকরাই তাদের ন্যায্য অধিকার আদায়ের জন্য দায়ের করেছেন।

The English version of the press release states: “The government filed no cases against him on labour issues; rather the cases were filed by the oppressed labourers for materializing their legal lawful and genuine claim and right.”

In recent weeks, we’ve heard the same claim from the highest levels of government, and Nayeemul Islam Khan on Khaled Mohiuddin’s show last night kept repeating it, going unchallenged throughout.

We’re going to look at what the High Court judgement of August 8, that was later upheld in the Supreme Court (both going against Dr Yunus), says. It is available on the Supreme Court website. Copy/pasting the relevant section verbatim:

Facts in short are that Mr. S.M. Arifuz Zaman, Labour Inspector (General) Department of Inspection, Factories and Establishment, Dhaka lodged a complaint on 20.08.2021 with the

third Labour Court, Dhaka alleging that in course of inspection of Grameen Telecom Company (hereinafter referred to as GTC) he detected the infringements of the following provisions of Bangladesh Labour Ain, 2006 and Bangladesh Labour Rules, 2015.

(1) On completion of probationary period jobs of the labourers and employees are not made permanent in violation of section 4(7)(8 ) of the Bangladesh Labour Ain, 2006 (herein after referred to Act No.42 of 2006)

(2) Labourers and Employees are not granted annual leave with pay or money against earned leave in violation of section 117 of Act No.42 of 2006, and,

(3) Labourers Participatory Fund and Labour Welfare Fund were not constituted and 5% of the net profit of the GTC was not deposited in above funds under the Labour Welfare Foundation Law, 2006.

Later, Justice S M Kuddus Zaman, who authored the verdict on behalf of himself and Justice Shahed Nuruddin, writes about a reference to case law made by Dr Yunus’s lawyer:

“In the case of S.M. Jahidul Islam and others Vs. Syed Ahmed Chowdhury reported in 4 CLR (AD) 2016 the Appellate Division has opined that no complaint under above Ain should be made directly under section 307 without seeking redress to the Labour Court for nonpayment of service benefits.”

Section 307 of the Labour Act is where it says “Whoever contravenes, or fails to comply with, any of the provisions of this act or the rules, regulations or schemes” shall be punishable with fine or imprisonment i.e. it brings punishment in the form of a prison sentence into the picture for violations of the Act.

Towards the end, while dealing with the case law reference, Justice S M Kuddus Zaman writes:

“We have carefully gone through the judgement of the Supreme Court of Bangladesh reported in 4 CLR (AD) (2016) and found that above case was filed by an individual labourer for realization of his service benefits. On the other hand this case was filed by an authorized Inspector of the Government…”

So the judge has even differentiated between the two cases on the basis that one was filed by a labourer, and one by a government officer. If that’s not the government, I don’t know what is.

Elsewhere, while describing the DIFE inspector’s activities, Justice Kuddus Zaman writes how the visit that led to him filing the case on 20.08.21 was made “on the direction” of a higher authority: “On the direction of the higher authority he again inspected GTC on 06.08.2021 and finding repetition of above violations….”

If it wasn’t filed by the government, someone should tell that to the judges handling the case. The fact is it was, and that is the basis on which it is proceeding, and the workers were only later brought on board. [Emphasis added]

Each day, new expressions of support for Professor Yunus emerge from both within Bangladesh and beyond. All are appreciated, valued, and helpful to our cause of protecting Professor Yunus so that he can continue his essential work, free of persecution. One message to the Prime Minister from Azerbaijan came across our desks yesterday, and with the permission of the author we have decided to publish it. This letter is one example of many messages of support, solidarity and outrage that we expect will continue to come until this crisis is over. Statements like this help to focus the attention of the national and international media on this matter, such as this important article published yesterday by the BBC.

Dear Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina,

The International Eurasia Press Fund, as a civil society organization with the General Consultative Status of the UN ECOSOC, expresses deep concern over the recent allegations against Dr Muhammad Yunus, a distinguished figure who has dedicated his life to the betterment of society through his groundbreaking work for peace and poverty alleviation, as evidenced by the numerous awards and honours he has received, including the Nobel Peace Prize.

As someone who has closely followed Dr. Yunus’ career and contributions, throughout his life, Dr. Yunus has consistently demonstrated a commitment to ethical practices, social justice, and the empowerment of the underprivileged, including his support for peace.

Dr. Yunus’ pioneering concept of projects has transformed the lives of countless individuals around the world, particularly women and those living in poverty. His efforts have helped individuals to break free from the cycle of poverty and create sustainable livelihoods for themselves and their families. The impact of his work on global development and poverty reduction is undeniable.

In July 2016, Dr. Muhammad Yunus visited Azerbaijan upon the invitation of the International Eurasia Press Fund. During his visit, he demonstrated his unwavering support for the people of Azerbaijan and individuals worldwide. Furthermore, his book “Banker to the Poor” is a guidebook, allowing local residents to engage with and learn from the exceptional work of Dr. Muhammad Yunus.

To this day, the influence of Dr. Yunus continues to resonate in Azerbaijan. Many young individuals and students have chosen to follow in his inspirational footsteps, focusing on the transformative potential of social business as a catalyst for global progress, with the ultimate goals of eradicating poverty, reducing unemployment, and achieving net zero carbon emissions. As a result, multiple “3zero clubs” have emerged among university students in Azerbaijan, dedicated to pursuing these ambitious objectives.

Given Dr. Yunus’ longstanding dedication to uplifting marginalized communities and his unwavering commitment to ethical practices, I find it difficult to believe the allegations that have been levied against him. It is crucial to remember that allegations are not convictions, and everyone deserves the right to a fair and impartial investigation.

I kindly urge you to consider the immense positive impact that Dr. Yunus has had on society and to approach this situation with a fair and unbiased perspective. It is my hope that Dr. Yunus will be able to continue his invaluable work without the shadow of these allegations tarnishing his legacy.

Signed,

Umud Mirzayev

President, International Eurasia Press Fund

The last week has seen remarkable displays of courage from Bangladeshis demonstrating solidarity with Professor Yunus despite their government’s abominable and terrifying human rights record. First there was a bold statement from 34 leaders, and more recently there have been supportive street protests. Now comes an incisive essay from Shayan S. Khan, the Executive Editor of the venerable Dhaka Courier.  He addresses head on the lame government response that they are in no position to interfere in a judicial process, without acknowledging how degraded and politicized the Bangladeshi judiciary has become over the last 15 years. Below is the essay in full, taken with the author’s generous permission from his Facebook page. He posted an important follow-up article to this one that can be found here. 

Travesty of justice, guaranteed

It’s ridiculous – nobody is saying Dr Yunus should be spared because he is a Nobel laureate. That is a non-starter, an invalid request. The reason the Nobel laureates are banding together, and rights advocates and anyone who cares for transparency and justice at home or abroad is because a man is being persecuted, unfairly, clearly unfairly. Nobody would give a damn if he seemed truly guilty of the crimes alleged. They would wash their hands of him. And at this stage we should mention it’s not just him, there are 4 others with him, all trustees of Grameen Telecom. The first and foremost red flag is that allegations that are civil in nature have been filed as a criminal case.

What are these allegations? Not killing or mistreating or abusing employees. Delays in making them, or their job status, ‘permanent’ at Grameen Telecom. We all do jobs at different organisations. Has anyone ever even contemplated that their bosses should not only be hauled up in court, but also be jailed for such delays?

The difference between civil and criminal cases is that in civil cases the penalty is a fine, or compensation. In criminal cases the perpetrator goes to jail. What sounds like the appropriate course of action in the situation we just discussed?

Without going into whether the employees’ complaints have merit, when Dr Yunus’s lawyers petitioned to have the case thrown out on that basis (civil v criminal), a full bench of the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court sat to reject that petition. There could be no greater signal that these courts have it in for Dr Yunus this time. The trial in the labour court started just two days later. They seem to be in an awful hurry too.

In a country where 3.2 million cases remain pending with the courts, where labour court cases take especially long to be resolved, if at all, this case has proceeded with remarkable haste.

Important also to note that the first case filed in this connection was not by any of the employees, but by the Department for Inspection of Factories and Establishments, or DIFE, the same guys who are supposed to go check fire alarms, etc, workplace safety at factories, restaurants, eateries, after an ‘inspection visit’ of the Grameen Telecom offices, a private trust, back in September 2021. I’m not saying they can’t do it, but how many of you working in an office setting, not a factory or restaurant or production facility, have experienced DIFE visits going through employee records?

A full bench of the highest court of appeal is supposed to be your highest chance at getting justice, in any judicial system. Unfortunately after 15 years of one-sided politicisation, in Bangladesh today, the fuller the bench, the higher the chances of the higher judiciary being used to pursue political ends.

Travesty of justice, guaranteed.

In a postscript he added, “I should just clarify that the politicisation has always been there of course, not just in the last 15 years. But when power changed hands every 5 years, it meant at any one time the panel of judges in say the Supreme Court or High Court had appointees from both sides, meaning a spectrum of views were present. It is the one-sided politicisation in the last 15 years that ruined everything, as every single judge today is an AL appointee in hock to their agenda.”

There are two important things to know about compulsive liars when they feel under pressure and vulnerable. First, the scope of their lies grows – their untruths become, as they say in the United States, “whoppers.” Second, they are usually more easily disproven than their run-of-the-mill lies.

Take, for example, Bangladesh’s State Minister for Foreign Affairs statement in this article: “‘But you have seen the two-page advertisement that cost at least a million dollars, with most of the signatories being retired individuals. It raises doubts,’ he said, referring to a letter published in the form of an ‘advertisement’ in the Washington Post on March 7 in favour of Dr Yunus.” In this article, the figure he cites is “about $2 million.”

In fact, if someone were to look at this public document published by the Washington Post, the maximum that the March ad could have cost was $83,430, based on the Per Column Inch (PCI) rate of $927 applied to a full-page ad. In fact, the Protect Yunus Campaign negotiated a significant discount below this published amount, as many ad buyers (especially nonprofit ones) do. (It would be indiscreet to say exactly how much of a discount they gave us, but it was substantial.) The fact-checkers working in the Foreign Ministry—if there are any!—could have easily discovered this fact had they spent even ten minutes researching the matter.

The other lie is that the ad was two pages. It is obvious to anyone who saw the ad that it was one page: A7, to be exact.

Another criticism that was leveled at the time the Post ad was published concerned the fact that it was a paid advertisement, rather than news coverage of Professor Yunus’ persecution by his own government. The Campaign responded to that at the time, but a better response can be found in the fact that the Post has recently covered this crisis.

Now, a New York Times ad has just been published based on a more recent open letter to the Prime Minister. When you hear criticisms of this effort in solidarity with Professor Yunus, remember that when liars are feeling the heat, they lie big. We won’t go to the trouble of disproving all the “whoppers” to come, but we invite other people of goodwill to try their hand at doing so. It’s usually not difficult.

If you are as outraged about all this as we are, check out our call to action to get involved and help resolve this crisis in a humane and just manner.

For the last 13 years, the government of Bangladesh under Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has been persecuting Nobel Peace Prize laureate Professor Muhammad Yunus, as part of a much broader assault on human rights, democracy, and the rule of law in Bangladesh. In March, 40 global leaders signed a letter asking the Prime Minister to stop this senseless campaign against one of its most accomplished and admired citizens.  With a trial of Professor Yunus now underway, 190 global leaders including 108 Nobel laureates have signed a new letter calling on her to desist. That letter, which was released August 28, 2023, is below with all the signers (a few of whom were added after August 28); concerned citizens have also been signing and are also listed at the bottom. A related news release was issued. Citizens around the world are being asked to join this campaign by responding to its call to action. This letter, which was done in solidarity with 34 courageous Bangladeshi leaders who issued their own statement of support, was published as a full-page ad in the international edition of the New York Times on August 31, just as Professor Yunus’ “trial” resumed.

================

August 28, 2023

Dear Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina,

We write to you as Nobel Prize laureates, elected officials, and business and civil society leaders, and as friends of Bangladesh. We admire how your nation has made laudable progress since its independence in 1971.

However, we are deeply concerned by the threats to democracy and human rights that we have observed in Bangladesh recently. We believe that it is of the utmost importance that the upcoming national election be free and fair, and that the administration of the election be acceptable to all major parties in the country. The previous two national elections lacked legitimacy.

One of the threats to human rights that concerns us in the present context is the case of Nobel Peace Prize laureate Professor Muhammad Yunus. We are alarmed that he has recently been targeted by what we believe to be continuous judicial harassment. This letter attempts to build upon an earlier appeal to you by 40 global leaders who were concerned about his safety and freedom.

We respectfully ask that you immediately suspend the current judicial proceedings against Professor Yunus, followed by a review of the charges by a panel of impartial judges drawn from within your nation with some role for internationally recognized legal experts. We are confident that any thorough review of the anti-corruption and labor law cases against him will result in his acquittal.

As you know, Professor Yunus’ work, which has been inspirational to all of us, focuses on how social business can be a force for international progress resulting in zero poverty, zero unemployment, and zero net carbon emissions. He is a leading example of how Bangladesh and Bangladeshis have contributed to global progress in recent decades. We sincerely wish that he be able to continue his path-breaking work free of persecution or harassment.

We hope that you ensure the resolution of these legal issues in an expedient, impartial, and just manner while also ensuring a free, fair, and participatory national election in the coming months, and respect for all human rights. We will join with millions of concerned citizens around the world in closely tracking how these matters are resolved in the days ahead.

Sincerely,

Nobel Laureates:

PEACE

Barack H. Obama, 2009

José Ramos-Horta, 1996

Mairead Corrigan-Maguire, 1976

Shirin Ebadi, 2003

Leymah Roberta Gbowee, 2011

Albert Arnold Gore Jr., 2007

Tawakkol Karman, 2011

Denis Mukwege, 2018

Nadia Murad, 2018

Maria Ressa, 2021

Oscar Arias Sanchez, 1987

Juan Manuel Santos, 2016

Rigoberta Menchu Tum, 1992

Jody Williams, 1997

CHEMISTRY

Peter Agre, 2003

Thomas R. Cech, 1989

Martin Chalfie, 2008

Emmanuelle Charpentier, 2020

Aaron Ciechanover, 2004

Johann Deisenhofer, 1988

Jacques Dubochet, 2017

Joachim Frank, 2017

Walter Gilbert, 1980

Alan Heeger, 2000

Richard Henderson, 2017

Dudley R. Herschbach, 1986

Avram Hershko, 2004

Roald Hoffmann, 1981

Robert Huber, 1988

Martin Karplus, 2013

Brian K. Kobilka, 2012

Yuan T. Lee, 1986

Robert J. Lefkowitz, 2012

Jean-Marie Lehn, 1987

Michael Levitt, 2013

Tomas Lindahl, 2015

W. E. Moerner, 2014

Paul L. Modrich, 2015

John C. Polanyi, 1986

Jean-Pierre Sauvage, 2016

Sir John E. Walker, 1997

Arieh Warshel, 2013

Sir Gregory P. Winter, 2018

ECONOMICS

Abhijit Banerjee, 2019

Esther Duflo, 2019

Sir Oliver Hart, 2016

Finn E. Kydland, 2004

Paul R. Milgrom, 2020

Edmund Phelps, 2006

Alvin E. Roth, 2012

Vernon L. Smith, 2002

Joseph E. Stiglitz, 2001

LITERATURE

J. M. Coetzee, 2003

Herta Muller, 2009

Orhan Pamuk, 2006

Wole Soyinka, 1986

MEDICINE

Harvey J. Alter, 2020

David Baltimore, 1975

Françoise Barré-Sinoussi, 2008

J. Michael Bishop, 1989

Elizabeth H. Blackburn, 2009

William C. Campbell, 2015

Peter C. Doherty, 1996

Jeffrey Connor Hall, 2017

Leland H. Hartwell, 2001

Jules A. Hoffmann, 2011

Tasuku Honjo, 2018

H. Robert Horvitz, 2002

Sir Michael Houghton, 2020

Craig C. Mello, 2006

Edvard Moser, 2014

May-Britt Moser, 2014

Sir Paul M. Nurse, 2001

Ardem Patapoutian, 2021

Sir Peter J. Ratcliffe, 2019

Charles M. Rice, 2020

Sir Richard J. Roberts, 1993

Michael Rosbash, 2017

Gregg L. Semenza, 2019

Hamilton O. Smith, 1978

Jack W. Szostak, 2009

Harold E. Varmus, 1989

Eric F. Wieschaus, 1995

Torsten N. Wiesel, 1981

Michael W. Young, 2017

PHYSICS

Barry Clark Barish, 2017

Steven Chu, 1997

Andre Geim, 2010

Sheldon Glashow, 1979

David J. Gross, 2004

John L. Hall, 2005

Takaaki Kajita, 2015

Wolfgang Ketterle, 2001

Anthony J. Leggett, 2003

John C. Mather, 2006

Michel Mayor, 2019

Arthur B. McDonald, 2015

Konstantin Novoselov, 2010

Giorgio Parisi, 2021

James Peebles, 2019

Roger Penrose, 2020

William D. Phillips, 1997

H. David Politzer, 2004

Brian P. Schmidt, 2011

Horst L. Stormer, 1998

Daniel C. Tsui, 1998

Carl E. Wieman, 2001

David J. Wineland, 2012

Elected Officials & Business and Civil Society Leaders

Abdulaziz Altwaijri, Director-General of ISESCO 1999-2019

Enzo Amendola, Member of Parliament, Italy and Former Minister of European Affairs

Ban Ki-moon, 8^th Secretary General of the UN

Laura Boldrini, Former President of the Parliament, Italy

Kjell Magne Bondevik, Prime Minister of Norway 1997-2000, 2001-2005, Deputy Prime Minister 1985-1986, Minister of Foreign Affairs 1989-1990

Bono, Musician and Activist

Dumitru Bragish, Prime Minister of Moldova 1999-2001

Sir Richard Branson, Founder, Virgin Group

Jesper Brodin, CEO, Ingka Group (IKEA)

Sharan Burrow, Former General Secretary, International Trade Union Confederation

Kathy Calvin, Former President and CEO, UN Foundation

Carla Castro, Member of Parliament, Portugal

Hikmet Cetin, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkey 1991-1994, 20th Speaker of the Grand National Assembly 1997-1999, Deputy Prime Minister of Turkey 1995

Hillary Rodham Clinton, Former U.S. Secretary of State

Emil Constantinescu, President of Romania 1996-2000

Mirko Cvetkovic, Prime Minister of Serbia 2008-2012

Sam Daley-Harris, Founder, RESULTS and Civic Courage

Lt. Gen. (Rtd) Roméo Dallaire, Founder, Dallaire Institute for Children. Peace and Security

Bill Drayton, Founder, Ashoka

Marian Wright Edelman, Founder and President Emerita, Children’s Defense Fund

Maria Fernanda Espinosa, President of the UN 73rd General Assembly

Ameenah Gurib Fakim, President of Mauritius 2015-2018

Christiana Figueres, Former UN Climate Change Executive Secretary

Walter Fust, Director-General Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation 1993-2008

Peter Gabriel, Musician

Ron Garan, Former NASA Astronaut

Kul Gautam, Former Deputy Executive Director of UNICEF and Assistant Secretary General of the UN

Pamela Gillies, Former Vice Chancellor and Professor Emerita, Glasgow Caledonian University

Peter C. Goldmark, Jr., Former CEO, Rockefeller Foundation and International Herald Tribune

Justice Richard Goldstone, South African Former Judge and Former Chief Prosecutor of the UN International Criminal Tribunals for the Former Yugoslavia and Rwanda

Dr. Jane Goodall, DBE, Founder, the Jane Goodall Institute & UN Messenger of Peace

Mats Granryd, Director General, GSMA

John Hewko, CEO, Rotary International

Anne Hidalgo, Mayor of Paris

André Hoffmann, Vice Chairman, Roche Holding AG

Arianna Huffington, Founder and CEO, Thrive Global

Mo Ibrahim, Entrepreneur and Philanthropist

Mladen Ivanic, President of Bosnia and Herzegovina 2014-2018

Baroness Helena Kennedy, KC Member of the House of Lords UK

Kerry Kennedy, President, Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights

Vinod Khosla, Venture Capitalist

Zlatko Lagumdzija, Former Prime Minister of Bosnia and Herzegovina

Annie Lennox, Singer, Songwriter, and Activist

Yves Leterme, Prime Minister of Belgium 2008, 2009-2011

Dame Sara Llewellin, Chief Executive, Barrow Cadbury Trust

Igor Luksic, Prime Minister of Montenegro 2010-2012

Giorgi Margvelashvili, President of Georgia 2013-2018

Rexhep Meidani, President of Albania 1997-2002

Hiro Mizuno, UN Special Envoy on Innovative Finance and Sustainable Investments

Dr Amre Moussa, Secretary-General of the Arab League 2001-2011, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Egypt 1991-2001

Narayana Murthy, Founder, Infosys

Susan Ness, Board Member, Vital Voices Global Partnership

Jacqueline Novogratz, Founder and CEO, Acumen

Francis Martin O’Donnell, Ambassador of SMOM to Slovakia 2009-2013, Resident Coordinator UN/UNDP Ukraine 2004-2009, Serbia and Montenegro 2000-2004

Jean Oelwang, Founding CEO and President, Virgin United

Dr. Michael Otto, Chairman of the Supervisory Board Otto Group

Borut Pahor, President of Slovenia 2012-2022

George Papandreou, Prime Minister of Greece 2009-2011

Rosen Plevneliev, President of Bulgaria 2012-2017

Paul Polman, Business leader

Sir Malcolm Rifkind QC, Former UK Defense Secretary and Foreign Secretary

Lord George Robertson, Former Secretary General, NATO 

Mary Robinson, Former Prime Minister of Ireland

Ismail Serageldin, Co-chair Nizami Ganjavi International Center, Vice President of the World Bank 1992-2000, Emeritus Librarian of Alexandria

Rosalia Arteago Serrano, President of Ecuador 1997, Vice-President of Ecuador 1997-1998

Michael Sheen, Actor

Wayne Silby, Founding Chair, Calvert Funds

Marina Silva, Minister of the Environment and Climate Change, Brazil

Yeardley Smith, Actress

Sharon Stone, Mother

Petar Stoyanov, President of Bulgaria 1997-2002

Laimdota Straujuma, Prime Minister of Latvia 2014-2016

Dr. David Suzuki, Prof. Emeritus, University of British Columbia

Boris Tadic, Former President of Serbia                                                                         

Eka Tkeshelashvili, Deputy Prime Minister of Georgia 2010-2012, Minister of Foreign Affairs 2008

Hamdi Ulukaya, Founder, Chairman and CEO, Chobani

Raimonds Vejonis, President of Latvia 2015-2019

Melanne S. Verveer, Executive Director of the Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security at Georgetown University

Vaira Vike-Freiberga, President of Latvia 1999-2007, Co-chair Nizami Ganjavi International Center 

Filip Vujanovic, President of Montenegro 2003-2018

Kateryna Yushchenko, First Lady of Ukraine 2005-2010

Viktor Yushchenko, President of Ukraine 2005-2010

Nicola Zingaretti, Member of Parliament, Italy

Concerned Citizens

Susan Davis (New York, USA)

Roshaneh Zafar (Lahore, Pakisan)

Dr. Eldrid Herrington (London, UK)

Jo Ousterhout (Lisbon, Portugal)

Beth Malcolm (Toronto, Canada)

Prof. Dr. Morshed Nasir (Bangladesh)

Laura Mosedale (London, United Kingdom)

Dr. Sabrina Scherzer (Trondheim, Norway)

Rebecca Eastmond (London, UK)

Juliet Valdinger (London, UK)

Marina Nogueira Martins e Silva Monterosso (São Paulo, Brazil)

Mohammad Imran Hossain (Ansary)

Heidrun Aufles (Hamnvik, Norway)

Vishakha N Desai, President Emerita, Asia Society (New York, USA)

Nina Nayar (Cochin, India)

Delwar Hossain (Toronto, Canada)

Manouchehr Shamsrizi, M.P.P. FRSA (Hamburg/Berlin, Germany)

Professor Muhammad Ali Akond, Department of Botany, Jahangirnagar University (Dhaka, Bangladesh)

Reyad Hossain

Chris Temple (California, United States)

Abul Azad (Montreal, Canada)

Richards St-Pierre (Sherbrooke, Quebec, Canada)

Diana Carolina Quintero Giraldo (Peru)

Razib Mohammad (Canberra, Australia)

Dr Daphne Hering (Berlin, Germany)

James Happell (Melbourne, Australia)

Masaharu Okada (Fukuoka City, Japan)

Oliur Sun, Writer and Activist (Bangladesh)

Altaf Zaman (ACT, Australia)

Ashir Ahmed (Fukuoka, Japan)

Michael Wirtz (Cologne, Germany)

Toni Heigl (Munich, Germany)

Sadia Hossain (Bangladesh)

Christina Papadam (Utrecht, Netherlands)  

Samantha Caccamo (Lugano, Switzerland) 

Suresh Krishna (Bangalore, India)

Khorshed Khan (Niles, Illinois, USA)

Kate Robertson (London, UK)

David Jones (London, UK)

Rafaela Sperandio Chammé Caterina (Sao Paulo, Brazil)

Adnan Zaman (Dhaka, Bangladesh)

Vinatha M Reddy (Bangalore India)

Samit Ghosh (Bangalore, India)

Håkon da Silva Hyldmo (Trondheim, Norway)

Yuka (Tanaka) Takahashi (Fukuoka, Japan)

Laure Nitschmann (Paris, France)

M. Jahangir Alam Chowdhury, PhD (Dhaka, Bangladesh)

Jean BERNOU

Denis SABARDINE (Paris, France)

Mohammad Saiful Islam (Malaysia)

Catherine Ann Matt (Fairfield, Iowa, United States of America)

Jo Kelly (Auckland,New Zealand)

Carla Corazzol (Ann Arbor, USA)

Lorri Stein (Long Beach, California)

Davia B. Temin (New York, USA)

Peter Bladin (Seattle, USA)

Alex Counts (Hyattsville, USA)

Noor Shams (New York, USA)

Nuren Abedin (Fukuoka, Japan)

Md. Ilias Miah (Dhaka, Bangladesh)

Wahid Mashfy (Dhaka, Bangladesh)

Brice de Gromard (Montmorency, France)

Liza Patris (Paris, France)

Carlos Lopez-Gutierrez (Santander, Spain)

Mohammad Shamsul Alam (Bangladesh)

Mrs. Heike Eggers (Hamburg, Germany)

Jérôme Dodji Fiayiwo (Togo)

Md. Saidur Rahman (Chittagong, Bangladesh)

Kabir Hosen (Munich, Germany)

Claudia Slacik (New York, USA)

Ida Hariati Hashim (Malaysia)

Vijay Mahajan (New Delhi, India)

David Weir (Santa Fe, USA)

Sunil Rao (Madison, Wisconsin, USA)

Clarke Áine (Brussels, Belgium)

Md. Hasibul Hasan (Bangladesh)

Algis Krupavicius (Kaunas, Lithuania)

Kate Bulger (Berkeley, USA)

M Zakir Hossain Khan (Bangladesh)

Afnan Hasan Imran (Bangaldesh)

Muhammad Shoheb Manik (Bangladesh)

Alan Webber, Mayor (Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA)

Gareth Morrell (Dobbs Ferry, NY, USA)

Kayoko Tsuchiya (Tokyo, Japan)

Haruki Kamiya (Aichi, Japan)

Ito Tomoaki (Osaka, Japan) 

Ms. Atsuko Nakasone (Okinawa Japan)

Kaishu Nakasone (Tokyo Japan)

Prof. Hiromi Inayoshi (Tokyo Japan)

Joshua Rudolph (Hamburg, Germany)

Olivier Vandecasteele, Humanitarian (Brussels, Belgium)  

Katharina Schroeder-Boersch (Wiesbaden, Germany)

Prof. Dr. Henrik Schroeder-Boersch (Wiesbaden, Germany)

Ticiana Holanda Rolim Queiroz (fortaleza- CE – Brazil)

Jeff Snell, PhD (Madison, Wisconsin, USA)

Qamar-ul Huda (Annapolis, MD, USA)

Joanne Carter (Washington, DC)

Shahriar Shuvo (Dhaka, Bangladesh)

Scott Leckman (Salt Lake City, USA)

Charan Prasai (Lalitpur metropolis, Lalitpur, Nepal)

Olena GUBKINA (Marseille, France)

Gordon Edward Knowles (Brisbane, Australia)

Marta Ribeiro (Braga, Portugal)

Maria del Sel (Buenos Aires, Argentina) 

Kazumi Morishita (Japan)

Saskia Bruysten (Amsterdam, The Netherlands)

Katrien Buys (Rio de Mouro, Portugal) 

Silke Cramer (Berlin, Germany)

Pascale Simon (Brussels, Belgium)

Christoph Auerbach (Munich, Germany)

Marilou van Golstein Brouwers (Blaricum, The Netherlands)

Bastian Mueller (Berlin, Germany)

Larissa Berbare (Sao Paulo, Brazil)

Tulio Marra Guimaraes Notini (Sao Paulo, Brazil)

Elaine Campos Martins (São Paulo, Brazil) 

Fernanda Baroncini (São Paulo, Brazil)

Filipe Charters de Azevedo (Lisboa, Portugal)

Camila Fava Pestana (São Paulo, Brazil)

Lucas Ramalho Maciel (Brazil)

Archana Nambiar (Bangalore, India)

Dr. Hellen Fitsch (Frankfurt, Germany)

Daniel Hires (Barcelona, Spain)

Katrina Dunn (Perth, Australia)

Prof. Elisabetta Righini (Urbino Italy)

Wasim Mushtaq (London, UK)

Jasmin Mir (Berlin,Germany)

Tatjana Sait-Mauthofer (Frankfurt, Germany)

Md. Rafsun Sheikh (Bangladesh)

Jayna Sheats (Aptos, CA, USA)

Fiamma Degl’Innocenti (Florence, Italy) 

Mohammed Mominul Haque and the Peace And Justice Alliance (Canada)

Daniel Ayebare (Uganda)

Flavio Vaz Saldanha (Brazil)

Elsa Warde (Paris, France)

Elliot Hirshon (Huntingdon, Pennsylvania, USA)

Rima Karim (Toronto, Canada)

Stephen Hirshon (Pennsylvania, USA)

Frank Bömers (Winden, Germany)

Danielle Keiser (Berlin, Germany)

Tony Lent (Westport Point, MA USA)

Anne Pratt (Boston, USA)

Manish Rajoria (Bhopal, India)

Barbara Kleinjohann (Berlin, Germany)

Allida Black, Ph.D. (Arlington, Virginia, USA) 

Srinivas Bonam (India)

Kasozi Noah (Uganda)

Alex Pappas (Port Charlotte, FL, USA)

John Miracle M. (Owerri, Nigeria)

Muhammad Kasim Dakogi (Mokwa, Nigeria)

Manon Caillon (Nantes, France)

Julia Wilson (Del Mar, California, USA)

Peter Holbrook CBE (London, UK)

Alison Grun (France)

Unni Beate Sekkesæter (Tana, Finnmark, Norway)

Lucy Findlay MBE (U.K.) 

Paula Gamester (U.K.)

Sarah Anderson (Tunbridge Wells, United Kingdom) 

Charles Anderson (Tunbridge Wells, United Kingdom) 

Oscar Anderson MBE (Tunbridge Wells, United Kingdom)

Max Anderson (Tunbridge Wells, United Kingdom)

Francesca Anderson (Tunbridge Wells, United Kingdom)

Charles Anderson (Tunbridge Wells, United Kingdom) 

Mark O Kelly (London, UK)

Marilu Germscheid (Lugano, Switzerland)

Jennifer Beason (Denver, CO, USA)

Samuel Suter (Sens, Switzerland)

Claire Fobe (Brussels, Belgium)

Per Bach (Denmark) 

Thomas Stelzer (Vienna, Austria)

Muhammad Jamaluddin (Bangladesh)

Amy Denro (Brighton, UK)

Emily Mudge (Eaglehawk, Australia)

Lucretia de Jong (Melbourne , Australia) 

Chris Martin (Edinburgh, Scotland, U.K.)

Jo Pritchard (West Byfleet, UK)

Scott Irwin (Glasgow, Scotland, UK)

Mansur Ahmed (Woodbury, Minnesota)

Craig Span (Maple Glen, Pennsylvania, USA) 

Daniel Nowack (Geneva, Switzerland)

Md Abdul Jalil (Rajshahi, Bangladesh) 

Sona Mahtani (Saint Martin Seper, France)

Laura Rana (London, UK)

Umar Abdullah (Tampa, USA)

Jenny Medhurst (Stockton-on-Tees, UK)

Cato Gehrels (Utrecht, The Netherlands)

Marc Tolo (Lawrenceville, NJ)

Caterina Occhio (Amsterdam, The Netherlands)

Francesca D’Onofrio (Naples Italy)

Anna Colombini (Reggio Emilia, Italy)

Aitor Ojanguren (Bilbao, Spain)

Davide Patruno (Bari, Italy)

Adeline Comperev (Matera, Italy)

Elisabet Nyquist (Milan, Italy)

Irene Aprile (Baronissi, Italy)

Viola Capotosti (San Gemini, Italy)

José E. Alejandro Sánchez Ibarra (Milan, Italy)

Giusi Biaggi (Italy)

Federica Franze (Milan, Italy)

Carolina Nunez Soriano (Tegucigalpa, Honduras)

Cristina Toscano (Milan, Italy)

Elisabet Nyquist (Milan, Italy)

Gaynor Coley (Wadebridge, Cornwall UK) 

Viviana Bassan (Milan, Italy)

Eugenia Chiara (Milan, Italy)

Nicola Coxon (London, England)

Nica Chan (Aprilia, Italy)

Sandra Dauber (Box Elder, South Dakota, USA)

Alison Grun (Lyon, France)

Tatiana Glad (Amsterdam, Netherlands)

Prof. Joachim von Braun (Bonn, Germany)

Aron Benjamin Handreke (Munich, Germany)

Kaki Hopkins (Dallas, Texas, USA)

Christina Dendys (Ottawa, Canada)

Yoan Noguier (Avignon, France)

Sandrine Dixson-Decleve (Brussels, Belgium)

Lily Cole (London, United Kingdom)

Mushtaque Chowdhury (South Bend, Indiana, USA)

Cecilia Chapiro (New York City, USA)

Joanna Klimczak (Montreal, Canada)

Cam Donaldson (Glasgow, UK)

Josie Barnett (New York, USA)

Rasa Valinskienė (Skuodas City, Lithuania)

Florence Gaudry-Perkins (Paris, France)

Sibanji Cholwe (Lusaka, Zambia)

Barbara Kleinjohann (Berlin, Germany)

Arvinder Singh Walia (London, United Kingdom)

Paul Picknett (Tadworth, United Kingdom)

Aminu Musa Gusau (Zamfara State, Nigeria)

Livia Malcangio (Rome, Italy) 

Loïc Badin (Paris, France) 

Karen Lowthrop MBE (Beverley, Yorkshire, United Kingdom) 

Lucy Ferguson (London, UK)

Karen Badenoch (Colchester, UK)

Gordon Starr (San Francisco, USA)

Emma Cornubert (Berlin, Germany)

Philippe Guichandut (Paris, France)

Md. Sohag Ali (Rajshahi, Bangladesh)

Martin C. Lukas (Trondheim, Norway)

Nanang Indra Kurniawan (Yogyakarta, Indonesia)

Malcolm Hayday, CBE, founding chief executive Charity Bank (Almeria, Spain)

Cheryl McDaniel (Spokane, Washington, USA)

Azizur Rahman, Ph.D. (Toronto, Canada)

Titles are for identification purposes only.

For more information and how you can help, visit: https://protectyunus.wpcomstaging.com/

If you are reading this, it is probably because you care about the work, life, and safety of Nobel Peace Prize laureate Professor Muhammad Yunus. If so, those of us involved in helping keep him safe welcome you into the “Protect Yunus” campaign. 

We have identified several action steps that any citizen can take to help our cause.  They are:

1. Take a photo of yourself with a sign or piece of paper that has the words #IStandWithYunus and post it on social media. Think creatively about where you could take it. For example, in front of a Bangladesh embassy or consulate, if one is near you. Or simply in your home or neighborhood. Here is an example on Twitter of what you can do.
2. Circulate the January 2024 open letter to the Bangladeshi Prime Minister by 243 Global Leaders including 125 Nobel laureates, and also an early August 2023 letter, to your friends, colleagues, and associates, and urge others to take action in support of it.
3. You can also circulate the Protect Yunus Campaign’s statement about the unjust verdict against Professor Yunus on January 1, 2024 that carries a prison sentence of six months.
4. Add your name as a concerned citizen wishing to endorse and sign the August 2023 open letter by sending your name, country, and city to this email address: protectmdyunus@gmail.com. Those writing from Bangladesh may not want to include the name of their city in order to protect their identity. We will list individuals in the order in which they send us their requests to join as co-signers along with the more than 160 original signers, including more than 100 Nobel laureates. Unless you indicate otherwise in your message, we will add you to our mailing list so you can receive future updates and calls to action.
5. Write to your elected representatives at the federal level (such as your Congressperson and Senators if you live in the United States) and urge them to take action in support of Professor Yunus and human rights in Bangladesh.
6. Write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper about the Bangladesh government’s treatment of Professor Yunus and the human rights situation there generally (you can read about the human rights issues in Bangladesh here).
7. Follow the PY Yunus Campaign on Twitter to stay informed, and retweet our postings.
8. Get involved with some of the great organizations Professor Yunus has started in the United States, such as Grameen Foundation and Grameen America, and ones advocating for and advancing social business and sustainable change globally. For those under 35 years of age, form or join a “Three Zero Club”.
9. Make a financial contribution to the Protect Yunus Campaign to help us sustain our efforts (which is tax deductible, to the maximum extent allowable by law, for U.S. taxpayers).

We welcome your suggestions about how we can best work together to protect Professor Yunus.  You can email us anytime at protectmdyunus@gmail.com.

Among the growing list of public figures and concerned citizens expressing solidarity with Nobel Peace Prize laureate Professor Muhammad Yunus during the senseless persecution he has suffered from his own government is Barack Obama, the 44^th president of the United States and a Peace Prize laureate himself.

President Obama recently wrote to Professor Yunus. The text of the letter appears below:

August 17, 2023

Dear Professor Yunus,

I have long been inspired by your efforts to empower people by offering them the means to lift their families and communities out of poverty. As I said when having the opportunity to meet you in the White House in 2009, your work has inspired millions to imagine their own potential.

During this period, I hope it gives you strength to know that many whose potential you invested in, and those of us who care about a more equitable economic future for all, are thinking of you, and I hope that you continue to have the freedom to do your important work.

Sincerely,

Barack Obama

Expect more expressions of solidarity from leaders and the public in the days ahead, as we near the resumption of Professor Yunus’ trial on meritless charges on August 31.

There has been growing global attention being paid to the persecution of Nobel Peace Prize laureate Muhammad Yunus, especially since his farcical trial began on August 22. Now the Economist, long known for its trenchant and in-depth of Bangladesh, has weighed in—following up an important article in late 2022.

These two articles, plus a recent one in the Financial Times, clearly contradict the false narrative that human rights abuses and the treatment of Professor Yunus in Bangladesh are not newsworthy. To the extent these important developments have not been covered by some international media, it mainly due to the difficulty they have had securing visas to visit and report on Bangladesh.

The new Economist article, titled “Bangladesh is lurching towards repressive one-party rule,” is scathing yet truthful. It begins: “To foreign donors, development wonks and some of the world’s poorest people, Muhammad Yunus is a hero. The Bangladeshi economist, social entrepreneur and founder of Grameen Bank pioneered the use of microloans and other services for those too marginalised to access conventional banking systems. In 2006 Mr Yunus won the Nobel peace prize for his work in grassroots development—empowering the most impecunious. The model he helped pioneer did much to improve economic, social and health conditions in Bangladesh. It has since spread across continents. Yet to Sheikh Hasina Wajed, the prime minister who has ruled Bangladesh since 2009 (and once before), Mr Yunus is diabolical. With a general election due in January, she salts campaign speeches with attacks on him.”

It continues, “Sheikh Hasina appears to find it unbearable that anyone might oppose or outshine her. The 75-year-old leader, whose father was Bangladesh’s first president, talks as if she will be in charge for ever. The coming election may seal Bangladesh’s descent into a one-party state.

“Sheikh Hasina’s sense of entitlement to Bangladesh is rooted in tragic loss… Yet the personality cult she has built for her assassinated father—and by extension herself—is pernicious. Those who join this cult are assisting a regime thick with cronyism and corruption. In return for backing the government, favoured tycoons win banking licences and other plums. Meanwhile, Bangladesh’s years of strong economic performance look imperilled. Its economic growth is far too reliant on one sector, clothing, as well as on remittances from Bangladeshis toiling overseas.

“This amounts to a dreadful threat to Bangladesh’s progress.”

Expect more commentary about this crisis in the days ahead.

A labor law case against Professor Yunus that dates back to 2021 was coming to a head in late August 2023, and could result in his imprisonment for up to six months on meritless charges. The first day of the trial was August 22, 2023. An international law firm has undertaken a high-level review of the case. On the basis of that review, it is the conclusion of the Protect Yunus Campaign that Professor Yunus is facing six months in prison for a crime that he not only did not commit, but that legally does not exist.

By way of background, Bangladesh is considered by Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index to rank 147 out of 180 in terms of how corrupt it is perceived to be (i.e., very corrupt), on a par with Iran and Guinea. Dissent and political opposition is not tolerated, with reports of extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances and the intimidation, harassment and arrest of journalists. It is widely alleged that Sheikh Hasina’s 2018 election to office was the product of election rigging. Events are moving quickly in Bangladesh, driven by a forthcoming election and a presumed desire to imprison Professor Yunus prior to that election.

Professor Yunus is the Chairman of Grameen Telecom. Four innocent board members of Grameen Telecom, including Professor Yunus, are now facing six months’ imprisonment in the immediate future, having been pursued by the Bangladeshi state in relation to various allegations regarding breaches of the Bangladesh Labor Act of 2006. The allegations relate to (a) employees not being converted to full-time status after an apprenticeship, (b) employees not being paid in lieu of annual leave, and (c) employees not being paid regarding the Workers Profit Participation Fund. The allegations are factually incorrect, and overlook the not-for-profit nature of Grameen Telecom. The employees of Grameen Telecom are receiving benefits as if they were regular employees, but Grameen Telecom has no provision for any permanent job structure precisely because it is a not-for-profit company, and employees are therefore appointed on a contractual basis.

Not only are the allegations entirely without merit, but the legal process being followed is wrong in law. Professor Yunus is being pursued criminally alongside his fellow defendants, when the Act only creates civil liability for the alleged breaches of it. The route the case has taken to date, from the initial investigation to its subsequent passage through various layers of the Bangladeshi court system, has been inappropriate, and is clear evidence of the Bangladeshi authorities’ and judiciary’s sanctioning of the persecution of Professor Yunus. Supporters of Professor Yunus have seen judges who have initially challenged the prosecution fall in line with the state’s narrative. A miscarriage of justice is happening and the Bangladeshi state must not be allowed to carry it to its conclusion.

Expect some strong statements of support for Professor Yunus in the days ahead.

International condemnation of the Bangladesh government’s abuses of human rights continues to pour in. For example, Human Rights Watch recently published a press release and analysis titled, “Bangladesh: Excessive Force Against Political Protesters.”

It began with some startling facts: “Bangladesh police indiscriminately fired rubber bullets, tear gas, and water cannons, and beat opposition party supporters with batons during protests in late July 2023, Human Rights Watch said today. In the days leading up to a major demonstration on July 29, the authorities arrested over 800 leaders and activists of the main opposition party, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), in what appears to be a systematic effort to target and detain political opponents.

“The election-related abuses occurred during a visit by the European Union’s special representative for human rights, Eamon Gilmore, and at the end of the EU’s exploratory mission to assess the conditions for full monitoring during the January 2024 national elections.”

It continued with this revelation: “The mass arrests appear to reflect leaked minutes from a police meeting that outlined orders to systematically arrest and convict opposition members so that they would be disqualified from participating in the national election.”

It added an observation that underscored the importance of the growing international attention being given to democratic backsliding in Bangladesh: “In the leaked minutes, a senior police officer admitted that ‘[there] is a lot of pressure on the government from outside regarding the elections.’” 

In addition, there was a recent letter from 14 Republican members of the U.S. House of Representatives to the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations that followed up an earlier letter from six of them to President Biden. It included some stark language: “We write to you today to express our concern with Sheikh Hasina’s government in Bangladesh, and her government’s reported terrorizing, torturing, and even murdering of Bangladeshi citizens. A large number of human rights organizations, including Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, Freedom House, and Reporters Without Borders, have documented human rights abuses by Sheikh Hasina’s government in Bangladesh, including intimidation, assault, false imprisonment, torture, disappearances, and even extra-judicial killings.” The letter received significant coverage in the Bangladeshi media.

Finally, respected journalist Patrick Pexton, formerly the ombudsman at the Washington Post, wrote an article for The Hill titled “Authoritarianism Threatens a Nobel Laureate” about the continuing persecution of Professor Yunus (one of many human rights abuses in the county). He writes that Yunus, despite the long list of his accomplishments for Bangladesh, “…has gotten himself crossways with an increasingly authoritarian and corrupt government.”

He continues, “Hasina, the daughter of the country’s revered founder, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, has been backsliding badly on democracy in recent years. She increasingly suppresses opposition parties, stifles dissent, imposes restrictions on the media and disappears political opponents. International organizations have also expressed doubts about the fairness of the last two elections in Bangladesh.

“Like all authoritarians, Hasina cannot stand sharing the limelight with anyone. And in recent years she has cast her shade on Yunus, whom she wrongly views as a potential electoral rival. In speeches over the years, she has called him a ‘usurer,’ a ‘cheat’ and worse.”

These criticisms from abroad have helped galvanize Bangladesh’s previously moribund opposition to bring the country to a standstill at times while demanding a free and fair national election under a neutral caretaker administration, as was done successfully in the country in 1991 and 1996.

It is more important than ever that continued attention be paid by members of the media, the diplomatic corps, foreign ministries, and concerned citizens to the crisis in Bangladesh and the steps being taken to resolve it in a just manner.