Why is America silent on the anarchy and attacks on Hindus in Bangladesh? Understand

US Silence On Bangladesh Crisis: America, which teaches the world about rights and democracy, is silent about the attacks on minorities and Hindus in Bangladesh. Its silence is very deep. The latest example of this is seen when the mention of atrocities happening in Bangladesh was removed from the details of the conversation between PM Modi and Joe Biden. Why is America avoiding criticizing the situation in Bangladesh under the caretaker government of Mohammad Yunus?

According to the India Today report, India and the US are two strategic allies and experts believe that these two allies are not unanimous in the case of Bangladesh. These experts have suggested that India should keep this in mind while moving forward. In fact, when it comes to India’s interests in Bangladesh, the US has been in the opposite camp. It tried to prevent the liberation of Bangladesh from Pakistan in 1971 and then supported pro-Pakistan political parties.

America worked for years to stop Sheikh Hasina

It has always supported the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), during whose rule anti-India forces found safe haven in Bangladesh. The US worked for years to weaken the regime of the Awami League led by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

What do experts say

Geostrategist Brahma Chellaney says, “The US tried to prevent the birth of Bangladesh but even today it is not in agreement with India on Bangladesh. It has welcomed the recent regime change there and has remained silent on the ongoing human rights violations, including attacks on minorities, arbitrary arrests, forced resignations and physical assaults on political prisoners.”

On August 26, US President Joe Biden returned from his visit to war-torn Ukraine. Narendra Modi During this, they also discussed the crisis in Ukraine and Bangladesh. The Indian statement mentioned that Prime Minister Modi and Biden expressed their shared concern over the “situation in Bangladesh”, but the White House statement was silent on this issue and focused only on the Ukraine-Russia war.

According to India’s Foreign Ministry statement on the Modi-Biden talks, “They (PM Modi and Biden) emphasized on restoration of law and order and ensuring the safety of minorities, especially Hindus, in Bangladesh.”

The reason behind America’s silence on Bangladesh

What could be the reason for America’s silence on the crisis in Bangladesh and the attacks on Hindus there? One is that it takes advantage of every opportunity to point fingers at India over rights. Bangladeshi-American political analyst and faculty member of the University of Dallas Shafqat Rabbi says, “America has systematically weakened Sheikh Hasina in the last decade.”

“US official statements, reports by the US human rights watchdog (HRW), Amnesty International and various US-affiliated media and NGOs around the world have gradually transformed Sheikh Hasina from a role model of women empowerment to one of the rare female dictators in the world,” Rabbi told India Today.

Meanwhile, Rabbi, who has a good network in Bangladesh, says the US Embassy in Dhaka regularly holds sessions with civil society, expatriate opinion makers, social media influencers to “keep the hopes of democratic rejuvenation alive.”

“Once Hasina had overcome all her domestic political opponents, keeping alive the desire for democracy through such engagement was a long-term US strategy, which it used to systematically undermine Hasina’s position in Bangladeshi society and abroad,” Rabbi says. By weakening Hasina, the US is preparing the ground for a favourable government at the right time.

It should also be remembered that Muhammad Yunus was considered part of the ‘One-Eleven’ depoliticisation process, which is seen as a US plan to change power in Bangladesh. Shafqat Rabbi points out that many people from the US network have access to the caretaker government of Bangladesh. So after working to weaken the Hasina administration and seeing a government whose people are linked to its interests, the US will think twice before criticising the new dispensation in Bangladesh.

Question asked from US administration

On August 12, the Biden administration was asked what steps it was taking to stop atrocities against Hindus in Bangladesh. In fact, two Democrat MPs had written a letter to President Biden on this issue. Neither was it strongly condemned by the US, nor was any promise of action made.

It is clear that after speaking and working against the Awami League government, the US will not easily accept the crisis in Bangladesh. Be it Afghanistan or Iraq, the US tried to establish democracy in the 20th century and left those countries in a bad state.

India has to be cautious

Being a neighbouring country, Bangladesh is very important for India for strategic and security reasons. Any disturbance there will affect India, whereas the US is not concerned with any kind of crisis in Dhaka.

Security expert Faran Jeffrey says Bangladesh remained under India’s radar for so many years because Pakistan alone was not capable of changing the situation. He says, “But as soon as Uncle Sam suddenly entered the picture, everything changed.”

US Assistant Secretary of State Donald Lu visited Dhaka in mid-May and met politicians and civil society leaders. In June itself, Bangladesh witnessed unprecedented protests against the ruling party. It was Lu who was accused of tackling the protests. imran khan had accused him of trying to topple his government.

There is also discussion about how a CNN correspondent has fueled the story of India being behind the recent floods in Bangladesh. The Indian government has already rejected those allegations with solid facts. Security experts have warned that India will be in a difficult position both internally and externally if the US considers it “a non-aligned transactional partner rather than a reliable strategic ally”.

Though the US’s role in the regime change in Bangladesh, like in other countries in the region, is highly questionable, there are enough indications of how it acted. Against this backdrop, it is not difficult to understand why the US is silent about the post-Hasina chaos in Bangladesh and the attacks on Hindus there.

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