Zakir Hossain from Dhaka
Bangladesh PM’s information and broadcasting adviser Zahed Ur Rahman on Tuesday said militancy existed in the country earlier and continues to exist, but insisted the threat was “not at an alarming level”.
“We do not want to deny reality; we want to combat it,” he said at a weekly press conference at the Secretariat. “However, the risk regarding militancy in the country is not at an alarming level.”
“I want to tell the public this much, the risk is not such that one needs to be afraid. But as the old saying goes, if we don’t acknowledge a crisis or a disease, it can’t be treated. So, it is there, and we are working to bring it down to zero,” he said.
Responding to questions, Zahed said the Sheikh Hasina-led Awami League government had earlier magnified the militancy issue to retain power. “Militancy exists in Bangladesh. During the Awami League government, the issue of militancy was presented on a massive scale; they used it as a narrative to stay in power. Their message was, ‘There are militants in Bangladesh, they will take over everything, so don’t worry about whether I hold a fair election, just keep me in power.’ That was a narrative. It was exaggerated during that government’s time.”
He added, “During the term of the interim government, some people have tried to claim that there are no militants in Bangladesh at all. That is another extreme (position), and it is also false.”
On the current situation, he said, “Being cautious now is necessary because we’ve noticed that during the interim government’s time, people with these (militant) tendencies have shown a trend of becoming more organised and appearing more openly in public. We could say this is an impact of that. This government will combat these activities.”
Zahed also cautioned against indiscriminate use of the term. “We should not generalise the word militant too much. In the past, we clearly saw stories where a house would be surrounded, claims would be made that bombs were being built there, and then Rab would kill people in ‘crossfires.’ So, we will be very careful with how we use this term,” he said.
His remarks came hours after home minister Salahuddin Ahmed denied any militant activity in the country. “I do not recognise that term (militancy). There is no such activity in our country,” he told reporters at the Coast Guard headquarters after a programme marking its 31st anniversary.
He said extremist elements existed in every country. “There are always some extremist groups, radical forces or fundamentalist political groups around the world — we are familiar with that,” he said.
Calling militancy a politically used term from the “fascist era”, he added, “In the current context of Bangladesh, there is nothing like that.”
The minister said Bangladesh’s intelligence and vigilance systems remained active within disciplined forces and unlawful activity would be dealt with under military law. On reports of a Police Headquarters warning over possible militant attacks, he said no such letter had been issued, though precautionary steps were always taken during national occasions.