UN willing to support interim govt: Spokesperson
The United Nations has reiterated its interest to support the interim government as well as the people of Bangladesh as needed.
Farhan Haq, deputy spokesperson for the UN secretary general, expressed the interest while responding to a query at a press conference at the UN headquarters in New York on Thursday.
A journalist drew his attention to what he said renewed protests and violence in Bangladesh and noted that the violence this time were perpetrated by the student protesters at attempts to commemorate the death of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. He asked if the secretary general had any comments on these protests.
In response, the deputy spokesperson said, “Our comment is essentially the same as what we have been saying for the previous protests — that we encourage the right to peaceful protest to be respected by all. And we call on security forces to ensure that no one engaging in peaceful protest is harmed.”
The UN is very committed to supporting the interim government and people of Bangladesh in a successful transition that strengthens the protection of human rights.
In a further question, a journalist sought to know about the secretary general’s view on the fact-finding mission from the UN, which is set to visit Bangladesh next week to investigate atrocities and killings resulting from the former dictator Sheikh Hasina's shoot on-sight order earlier this month.
Farhan Haq replied, “We will have to see what the work of the group is. At this stage, I do not have any comments on them.”
However, he later told the reporter that the high commissioner and Muhammad Yunus discussed a comprehensive range of support that the UN could provide to the interim government and the transition, including on accountability issues.
A team will visit Dhaka from next week to discuss areas of support and the modalities for an investigation of human rights violations in the context of the recent violence and unrest. The high commissioner is very committed to supporting the interim government and people of Bangladesh in a successful transition that strengthens the protection of human rights, he added.
Responding to another query regarding the UN support to the Bangladesh government, he said, “I can certainly confirm that we remain willing to support the Government and people of Bangladesh as needed.”