34 Jamaat MPs abroad during long march, party says visit part of planned programme

As the Jamaat-e-Islami-led 11-party alliance remains engaged in its long march programme over an eight-point demand, 34 of the party’s members of parliament (MPs) are currently on an overseas trip. Their family members have also accompanied them on the 17-day tour. Altogether, the delegation consists of 71 people.

The overseas trip by Jamaat’s MPs during the opposition’s long march, organised to protest various government activities and demand solutions to several crises, including gas and electricity shortages, has sparked debate. Jamaat, however, says the trip was planned in advance and that the MPs were taken abroad as part of the party’s planned programme.

Sources close to Jamaat said that 25 to 26 of the 34 MPs in the delegation have brought family members with them.

They are accompanied by Jamaat’s central Majlis-e-Shura member and Dhaka North city unit Ameer Mohammad Selim Uddin, as well as former MP Major (retd) Mohammad Akhtaruzzaman, who recently joined Jamaat. Writer Ziaul Haque is also part of the delegation.

According to sources, members of the delegation arrived in Malaysia in two groups on 13 and 14 September. They stayed there for the first three days before travelling to Singapore on 17 September. They reached the Philippines from Singapore last Saturday.

After completing the trip, they are scheduled to travel to Saudi Arabia on 24 September to perform Umrah. They will have a stopover in Bahrain along the way. They are expected to return home on 30 September.

During their visit to Malaysia, Jamaat’s MPs met Maszlee Malik, the country’s former education minister and head of the international affairs bureau of the political party Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR). He is also associated with the Institute of Advanced Islamic Studies (IAIS) Malaysia.

In a Facebook post on 17 September, Maszlee Malik said that he had hosted the Jamaat MPs. In the post, he wrote that, on behalf of the PKR International Affairs Bureau and IAIS Malaysia, he had shared some thoughts on the challenges reform-oriented political parties face around the world.

He also mentioned that the meeting included a discussion of Professor Ziauddin Sardar’s concept of ‘post-normal times’. He further said that the importance of transparency, truthfulness, integrity and accountability among elected representatives, as well as listening attentively to the public, was emphasised.

Jamaat sources said that Maszlee Malik had taken the initiative to meet the MPs. The delegation also visited various locations, including Kuala Lumpur City Centre and the International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM).

The Jamaat MPs arrived in Singapore from Malaysia on 17 September. They visited Nanyang Technological University, which was ranked the world’s best university in the artificial intelligence category in the 2025 Global Ranking of Academic Subjects.

The delegation also took part in a symposium at the university. Various issues were discussed there, including the context behind Singapore’s rise to its current position.

After completing their Singapore visit, they arrived in the Philippines on Saturday. They are scheduled to hold meetings with representatives of various political parties and prominent individuals in the country, as well as visit tourist attractions.

The delegation will leave the Philippines for Saudi Arabia on 24 September. Before performing Umrah, they also plan to visit some places around the airport during a stopover in Bahrain. After completing Umrah in Saudi Arabia, they will return home on a flight on 30 September.

Among the Jamaat delegation travelling abroad is Syed Zainul Abedin, a member of the party’s Central Majlis-e-Shura and MP for Dhaka-4. Speaking to Prothom Alo on Sunday afternoon, he said the MPs had travelled abroad with the permission of the Jamaat ameer. The Speaker of the National Parliament had also been informed about the trip.

Speaking about the purpose of the visit, Syed Zainul Abedin said many of the MPs had not previously had the opportunity to travel abroad. The purpose of the trip was to understand the historical background of developed countries, their current circumstances, how they emerged as developed nations and the state of their economies.

Major (retd) Mohammad Akhtaruzzaman, a member of the delegation, told Prothom Alo on Sunday afternoon that the trip had been planned earlier. However, it was postponed because of the third session of parliament.

He also said many Jamaat members had become MPs for the first time, while many had never had the opportunity to travel abroad. The purpose of the trip was to broaden their perspectives. He described the visit as a kind of training programme.

Speaking to members of the delegation, Prothom Alo learned that this was not a political visit. However, they had met MPs from Malaysia’s ruling and opposition parties. They said these meetings had taken place on the basis of prior acquaintance and organisational contacts.

Sources close to Jamaat said the MPs were holding meetings with ruling and opposition parties, Islamist political parties and important state figures in various countries during the trip.

The meetings were covering the challenges faced by political parties, parliamentary etiquette, the role of MPs, transparency, integrity, accountability and planning.

A source close to Jamaat said various plans had been drawn up to put Jamaat-e-Islami in a position able to take responsibility for running the country. One of these plans was to enhance the international knowledge and experience of the party’s senior and younger leaders. The current foreign trip was part of that plan.

The sources said plans were in place for party members to travel to various countries around the world, including Europe and the US, in the future, not just on this trip. Alongside MPs, young leaders and leaders of the student organisation would also take part in these trips. The plans include visiting tourist attractions and meeting prominent individuals to gain knowledge and experience.

When asked about the matter, Ahsanul Mahboob Zubair, secretary of Jamaat-e-Islami’s publicity and media cell, told Prothom Alo on Sunday evening that many party members had travelled abroad before as part of Jamaat’s plans. This trip was a continuation of that. However, this time it had been planned specifically for MPs.