Ottawa, Dec 22: Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus, currently serving as the Chief Advisor of the Bangladesh interim government, remains silent instead of standing for justice while the South Asian nation continues to grapple with violence and human rights abuses, several human rights bodies said in a letter to the Norwegian Nobel Committee.
In the letter, issued by the human rights representatives, which was shared by Canada-based think tank organisation ‘Global Centre for Democratic Governance (GCDG) in its social media platform X, they expressed grave concern over Yunus failing to publicly exercise moral leadership commensurate with the severity of the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Bangladesh.
The human rights institutions stressed that “when an individual entrusted with both global moral authority and national responsibility remains publicly silent” amid such widespread suffering in the country, that silence carries serious “ethical consequences”.
The letter was issued amid widespread violence in Bangladesh, under the Yunus-led interim government, targeting minorities, media houses, cultural institutions and diplomatic missions following the murder of radical Islamist leader Sharif Osman Hadi.
“For more than a century, the Nobel Peace Prize has represented humanity’s highest ethical commitment to peace, justice, human dignity, and moral courage. Its authority rests not only on the prestige of its recipients but on the moral clarity it embodies during moments of widespread human suffering,” the letter read.
Highlighting what they described as an alarming deterioration of human rights conditions in Bangladesh, the signatories cited credible reports and eyewitness accounts of targeted violence, destruction of homes and livelihoods, attacks on cultural and religious institutions, and systematic intimidation of vulnerable communities, particularly religious and ethnic minorities. Women and children, they said, are among those most affected.
Minorities protests against persecution
Minority groups in Bangladesh on Monday held a protest in the national capital over the interim government’s failure to prevent the persecution of minorities, as authorities announced the arrest of 21 suspects linked to the lynching of a Hindu man, attacks on media offices and violent demonstrations near an Indian diplomatic mission.
Leaders of Hindu and other minority organisations on Monday formed a human chain in Dhaka against the lynching of Dipu Chandra Das, saying the interim government has failed to stop violence, killings and persecution of minority communities.
Das, a garment factory worker in central Mymensingh city, was dragged out of the factory by a mob and lynched to death on Thursday. His body was then set on fire. His killing sparked widespread protests by factory workers, students and rights groups while India expressed concerns as well. (Agencies)
