Sajeeb Wazed Urges International Community to Save Bangladesh from Falling in Grasp of Islamic Extremists

In his public appearance at a discussion on a book that brought to light the ongoing minority persecution and unprecedented rise of Islamists, Sajeeb Wazed appeals to international community to raise voice against the upcoming “sham” polls that has been rigged to install a weak government that would remain loyal to foreign masters US, opening door to already emboldened Islamist extremists to exert more influence than before. Alongside the extrajudicial and draconian ban on Awami League, all the progressive parties have been denied equal opportunity to stand on the polls, he says, a move designed to favour the Muslim Brotherhood-aligned Jamaat e Islami, the advocates for Sharia law.

In his virtual address, Sajeeb Wazed also sought to debunk one-sided narratives peddled against her mother and the country’s largest party, Awami League (AL), involving the violence in July and August 2024 that resulted in regime change in Bangladesh.

He also sought an independent inquiry into every single death and pointed out how the Yunus regime indemnified killers of cops and Awami League activists in the run-up to the regime change with a weaponized judiciary.

Here are the excerpts of his speech  

Awami League Was In Favour Of Lower Quota In Jobs

The demand by the student movement for removing quotas in government jobs was a legitimate demand. But most people didn’t know the Awami League government removed the quota years ago.  We left it to the court.

We had the opposition, the Islamists, and the CIA jumped in, turning the movement violent. You had militants who were armed, attacking police stations.

If you listen to audio recordings of my mother presented in the court, you hear discussions about armed militants attacking police, and at that point, the situation became violent.

All Deaths In Violence Regrettable

There were innocent protesters, and civilians were hurt. All deaths are regrettable. Our government did not want any deaths when they happened. The violence was initiated by militants, not the government.

For the past 17 months, we had an unelected regime holding on to power without a mandate. Not just that. One of the first things that the regime did was to release convicted militants and terrorists from jails. These are the terrorists convicted of conducting holy artisan attacks, of the killing of bloggers, and of the killing of a local US embassy staff. Our government tried them and sentenced them to jail. But the regime released them. Because the regime is backed by Islamists, extremists.

Protesters Were Innocent Students But Militants Infiltrated

Do you think the protesters were Islamists? No. The protesters were not Islamists and militants. The militants jumped in behind the protest. And they have gone on record on television and facebook taking credit if we did not cause, did not kill the police, did not burn down structures, we would not have succeeded.

Why Yunus Is Backed By Islamists

So Yunus and the current regime owed them a favour. So they are backed by Islamists. And the current regime is an Islamist regime. They try to deflect the blame for violence onto mob justice. Yunus’s press person refers to them as pressure groups. So they exert pressure on behalf of the government for the government’s agenda by beating people and killing. Judges, if you don’t rule the way we want, we will surround your house and threaten to beat you up. For the media, if you want to speak against us, we will burn down your office. It happened right during August 2024. Several progressive television and news outlets were burned down. And more recently two largest dailies – their offices were set on fire.

Why the Upcoming Election Is Flawed

Many people in the country may have a sense of relief that if elections happen, at least we will be saved from the regime. But what is the reality?

The reality of the situation is that they (the regime) blame the Awami League. They say, “We have to ban the AL because the AL kills students”. I take full responsibility for that. Many innocent civilians and students died during the protest. Similarly, many police officers perform many of our activities.

Flawed UN Report On July August Violence Hampered Justice

The UN report lists 1400 killed. But the UN report includes hundreds killed between August 5 and August 15, 2024, ten days after our government was no longer in power. Those were our activists, those were our police officers. In a blanket statement, the UN report blames the Awami League for the killing of cops and Awami League activists when the AL was not even in power. That is how ridiculous the situation is.

Yunus’s Indemnity vs Awami League’s Pledge For Justice

On the contrary, my mother promised justice. Our government had formed a judicial inquiry commission to investigate all killings. The killings by the cops, the killings of the cops, the killings of all civilians and party activists, regardless of the party. Our government did not give indemnity to anyone. We promised justice.

This regime immediately issued an ordinance granting impunity to anyone for the killing of all police officers and all Awami League activists. Those killings were justified as mob justice. Those who orchestrated these killings were above the law. That is the situation we are heading into an election. And they banned AL.

Progressive Forces Banned: Polls Made Two-Party Race

There is a de facto ban on AL. However, there is also an effective ban on all the progressive parties. It’s a two party race, just BNP and Jamaat e Islami. Jatiya party the third largest party in the country, there offices burnt down. Many of their leaders were behind bars. Even houses of many of its leaders were burnt down. They are not allowed to conduct any election activity or speak in public. All the progressive parties are suppressed. This is a  very one-sided election. This is not an election at all.

On one hand, you have the BNP, which is one of the largest parties in the country. Sooner or later, the BNP would have come to power. However, here is a point to note.

US Embassy Abstains from Taking Action Against BNP  

Tarique Rahman, the head of BNP, was convicted based on evidence provided by an FBI agent who traveled to Bangladesh to provide testimony. So, the US has plenty of evidence to charge him with corruption. And they choose not to do that. Why? Because they have that in their hand. Under US law, the US takes upon itself the power that they can charge any foreign person in any country, including a head of state. They have done that several times: In Panama and even in Venezuela recently. I am not debating whether these people deserve it or not. But the fact is, the US did that.

Yunus ‘s Referendum Follows Dictator’s Playbook

Until recently, BNP has opposed the referendum. Without representation, the referendum is an exercise to change the constitution. Our constitution has no scope for a referendum. Our courts have ruled that the referendums that the military dictators held in 1980 and 1990 were against the constitution. Yet the regime is trying to hold the referendum again, even though it is not in the constitution. Courts have ruled that referendums are unconstitutional. Because that is the only way they can try to legitimize the change to the constitution. The existing system demands two third majority for amending the constitution. If it is a fair election, it is almost impossible for a single party to win two-thirds majority . In this scenario, there is a risk.

US Forced BNP To Campaign For Referendum

So what you have now is Tarique Rahman and the BNP, who for months campaigned vehemently against the referendum. But just days ago, the party has taken a complete U turn and said vote yes for the referendum. Until recently, they have telling their voters to vote no. But now Tarique Rahman has announced to vote yes for the referendum.

US Plot To Install a Puppet Regime in Bangladesh  

Why, because the Americans want this referendum. The state department wants this referendum. Because it weakens the power of the government, it weakens the power of the prime minister. It makes a single-party government almost impossible. So that there will always be a coalition government in Bangladesh which will always be a weak government that can be controlled.

Why BNP Chief Tarique Rahman Follows US Bidding

And Tarique Rahman, at this point, has to follow the bidding of the US embassy in Bangladesh because, as the prime minister, he will have to do that. If not, the US can always bring up the corruption charges against him, simply arrest him from Bangladesh, and put him in prison in the US.

This really is the dream scenario for the US state department to have a prime minister whom they have that much control over so that they can arrest him anytime and bring him into their prison so that he cannot dare to do anything against US interests.

Jamaat Only Holds 10% Vote, Ban On Progressive Parties Boosting Radicals.  

On the other hand, you have Jamaat. Mind you, historically, Jamaat never had any public base. Only 5 % to 10% vote across the constituencies and a very few stronghold constituencies. If the Awami League were allowed to contest, the Jamaat would have been confined to 5% to 10%. Even without the AL running, their vote numbers are around 17%, meaning 15 seats maximum the outfit can hope to achieve with all parties running. Which is why it is really critical for this regime, which is backed by Jamaat, to ban the Awami League. Polls conducted by independent bodies showed that the BNP was not really gaining in popularity. BNP is stuck in 20%. Jamaat is stuck in 15% to 20%. That is 40% of the total vote. There is over half of the country is either undecided or at least 15% to 20% in the last few surveys refuse to say who they will vote for. Why are these people refusing to say? Because there is such a climate of fear that if they say they want to vote for the Awami League, they are likely to be attacked. Even in this climate of fear, 11% says they will vote for the Awami League, which is why it is critical for the regime to ban the largest progressive party. Because there is actually a possibility that if there is a free and fair election, the Awami League might actually win. They could not take that risk. So, Jamaat is hoping that if they can rig the election a bit, they can come to power.

Introduction of Postal Ballot: A Weapon of Vote Rigging

For the first time in history, the regime has allowed postal votes. Now why in the past postal votes were not allowed in Bangladesh?

Unlike other countries, in Bangladesh, it is very difficult to verify these votes. You have no idea where these votes went, who filled them, or who sent them back. Already scores of videos surfaced online showing thousands of postal votes, especially from Middle Eastern countries, were opened and pre-filled in favour of Jamaat with a yes for the referendum by a group of people. That is the reality. Why is this possible? Because if you do regular ballot stuffing on election day, it will be noticeable by journalists.

In the case of postal ballots, foreign observers have no insight. Journalists don’t get to see. They just get the cameras from the election commission.

Consequences of Yunus’s Patronage for Jamaat

Regardless of whether Jamaat comes to power or not, without the Awami League and the progressive parties, Jamaat is going to gain a lot which they would have no chance otherwise. From where they would have eyed for 15 to 20 seats maximum, now they are going to perform far beyond their actual popularity.

Jamaat Seeks To Undo Past Gains, Eyes To Rule Bangladesh With Shariah

You have heard recently that the Jamaat head made derogatory remarks centering women. They have done it repeatedly in the past. Their charter calls for an Islamic state based on Sharia law. That is Jamaat’s goal. People often don’t understand that as Muslims, we are moderate. When we form a political party, we put it on our political faith, either liberal or conservative. We don’t espouse religion just like other countries. You don’t espouse that you are a religious party unless your goal is to establish governance based on religious law. There is no such thing as a moderate Islamist party. The fact that they are Islamists means they want Sharia law. And that is Jamaat’s goal. You have seen this regime backed by Jamaat already released terrorists. You have Al-Qaeda operatives known to the US, operating freely in Bangladesh under the regime. You have had Lasker e Taiba commanders speaking at public rallies in Bangladesh.

Alarming Security Implications for India Ahead

For India, this is very alarming. And regardless of whether BNP comes to power or not, Jamaat is going to have outside influence. The BNP regime will be a puppet of the US Embassy. So, Jamaat is going to have a complete free hand to do whatever they want. Pakistan will have a free hand to do whatever it wants in Bangladesh. And this has very, very serious security implications for India for its eastern border. Many in the Indian government feel they are doing their best, but it's not possible.

Appeal To International Community  

The international community now needs to denounce the election as not free and fair. Not only because the Awami League is banned, but also all progressive parties are under in effect ban. This is not an election. This is a show. If you allow this show to happen, do not denounce it ahead of time as unfair, then they will go ahead. And Bangladesh will have a state-managed government. After that, what will happen to Bangladesh remains very murky. How long will it continue? Again, it is impossible to predict.

Precarious Future Ahead For Bangladesh

As a party, the Awami League will not go anywhere. The party still holds 40% of the vote. We are a party that people believe in as a symbol of progressiveness in the spirit of liberation. Tens of millions of voters are not going to change their mind overnight or not even in years or decades. But in the meantime for five to ten years, what is Bangladesh becoming to be like? I urge the international community, if you do not speak out against these elections now, whether it is less than 11 days to go.

Inflated Voter Turnout: Yunus’s Design to Legitimize Rigged Polls

Worrying over voter turnout is irrelevant because they are stuffing postal ballots, and they are intimidating voters to turn out at polling centers and cast ballots against their will. That is exactly what is happening in Bangladesh. So the voter turnout will be inflated for reasons like thousands of thousands of fake postal votes.

Fear of Awami League’s Popularity Hunts Yunus and Islamists

Not on behalf of the Awami League, if you think people of Bangladesh will not vote against AL, then fine, let them vote against AL. Why fear the Awami League running the election? Then, I am not afraid that this is your last chance to prevent Jamaat e Islami from becoming a major political force in the country. This radical Islam and terrorism will become a major force for the next five to ten years, perhaps even longer.

Predictable Outcome: Weak Government, Foreign Puppet And Empowered Islamists

On one hand, you have a weak government that is a foreign puppet. And on the other hand, you will have Islamists. Bringing in Islamists conducting Islamist activities, trying to impose Shariah law. Minorities will be persecuted and forced to flee the country. This is exactly what has been going on throughout the time.

Awami League’s Fight Against Terrorism Recalled

The only time minorities were mostly safe was under the 17 years of the Awami League. That rule of the Awami League was the only time when Bangladesh was free from terrorism. The only time in India’s history when its eastern borders were safe from insurgency from Bangladesh was during the 17 years of the Awami League government. These are facts.