Dr. Yunus to lead interim govt in Bangladesh

Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus was named as the chief of the interim government on Tuesday night, few hours after the president, Mohammed Shahabuddin, dissolved the 12th parliament formed through the controversial January 7 general election.

The selection was made at a meeting of a 13-member delegation of the Student Movement Against Discrimination with the president and army chiefs of the three defence forces at Bangabhaban, a day after the fall of Sheikh Hasina.

President’s press secretary Joynal Abedin confirmed the matter saying that the rest of the members of the interim government would be finalised later in consultation with political parties and other stakeholders.

Emerging from the meeting, Nahid Islam told journalist in front of Bangabhaban that they finalised the name of Professor Muhammad Yunus as the chief of the interim government.

He said that they placed a list of 10–15 members for the interim.

‘We will finalise the list consulting other stakeholders. It will be completed in 24 hours or a few hours more,’ Nahid said.

He said that Professor Yunus would return home tonight or tomorrow.

Earlier on the day, the office of Yunus confirmed that he had accepted the proposal made by the protesting students to lead the interim government.

‘Professor Mohammad Yunus, now staying abroad, has accepted the protesting students’ proposal to lead the interim government. He is expected to arrive in Dhaka at midnight today or tomorrow,’ Yunus Centre spokesperson Lamiya Morshed told New Age on Tuesday.

She said that the student coordinators contacted him over the phone.

‘Muhammad Yunus initially was reluctant, but at the insistence of the students, he accepted the proposal of playing a role in rebuilding the nation,’ Lamiya added.

Earlier on the day, a press release from the president’s office confirmed that a decision to dissolve the parliament was made in line with the president’s discussions with the chiefs of three defence services, leaders of different political parties, representatives of civil society and leaders of the Student Movement Against Discrimination on Monday.

Sheikh Hasina’s Awami League held the majority in the parliament, where most other members, who won as independent candidates, were her party leaders as most opposition parties, including the main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party, did not contest the election.

The Bangabhaban press release also confirmed the release of Bangladesh Nationalist Party chairperson Khaleda Zia.

The president’s move came in response to an ultimatum from student protest leaders, who had set a deadline of 3:00 pm for the dissolution of parliament.

The press release also confirmed that the process to release the students and others arrested between July 1 and August 5 in different cases had started, and many had already been released.

According to court officials, over 2,200 politicians and students were released from jail. 

The arrested politicians and students secured bail a day after Awami League president Sheikh Hasina’s resigned as prime minister on Monday and fled the country, ending her 15-year authoritarian rule amid an unprecedented student-led mass uprising against her regime.

She left her Ganabhaban official residence by a military helicopter with her sister Sheikh Rehana before the army chief, General Waker-Uz-Zaman, confirmed her resignation at a press conference in front of his Dhaka cantonment office.

Thousands of people stormed the prime minister’s Ganabhaban residence in jubilation soon after she left, and some climbed atop a statue of the country’s founding president, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.

Indian newspaper India Today reported on Tuesday that former Bangladesh prime minister Sheikh Hasina would stay in India for a few more days as her purported plan to seek asylum in the UK hanged in the balance.

Hasina’s ouster followed a major reshuffle in the top posts of the Bangladesh Army as Major General Ziaul Ahsan, a key accused of serious human rights violations, was relieved of his post.

Lieutenant General M Saiful Islam was among those transferred as his job was handed over to the foreign ministry, according to an Inter-Services Public Relations press release.

In the absence of a government, an unusual situation prevailed in the country on Tuesday, as no police were present in most police stations and there were also no traffic police on the streets.

Amid such a situation, the Bangladesh Ansar and Village Defence Party have been assigned to control traffic in Dhaka city.

According to a notice issued by Ansar and Village Defence Force Assistant Director (VDP Training) and public relations officer Mohammad Rubel Hossain, apart from handling traffic duty, they have been assigned to ensure security at all police stations across the country.

The United Nations said on Tuesday that they want to make sure that all of the authorities—political, military, and anyone else—who have a say in the current transition, work together so that there will be a peaceful and democratic transition in Bangladesh.

‘We are in touch with authorities in the region, and our country team is in touch with authorities in Bangladesh, and we’ll see where we go with that,’ said deputy spokesman for the UN Secretary-General Farhan Haq at a regular briefing in New York.

‘But right now, the situation is moving very swiftly. We’ll have to see what happens once the dust settles,’ he said.

He said that they are watching the situation in the country very closely and will continue to call for calm and restraint.

The UN deputy spokesperson urged all parties to respect the right to peaceful assembly and expression.

‘We urge security forces to protect those out on the streets of Dhaka and other cities in Bangladesh,’ he said.

The United States welcomed the announcement of an interim government and urged any transition to be conducted in accordance with Bangladesh’s laws.

The State Department's spokesperson, Matthew Miller, said at the daily briefing in Washington on Monday that they were monitoring the situation carefully.

The United Kingdom foreign secretary, David Lammy, expressed concerns regarding the situation in Bangladesh and said everyone needs to work together to end this violence.

European Union diplomats in Bangladesh expressed concern about reports of attacks on minority groups after Sheikh Hasina resigned as prime minister and fled the country. -NA