Bangladesh witnesses radical uprise

Added: (Sat Oct 21 2006)

Pressbox (Press Release) - Just in past couple of weeks, US media had been focusing on the alarming issue of rise of Islamist millitancy in Bangladesh. This has happened when Islamist millitants threatened to kill a pro-peace journalist in Bangladesh named Salah Uddin Shoaib Choudhury, Editor of largest tabloid weekly Blitz and subsequently bombed the office of this newspaper. It was also reported in the press that, the editor was mercilessly beaten on 5th October by armed thugs belonging to ruling Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP). Eminent columnist Michael Freund also wrote a number of pieces in Jerusalem Post on this issue.

In the Wall Street Journal (October 10, 2006) journalist Bret Stephens wrote in his oped titled 'Darkness in Dhaka': "Meet Salah Uddin Shoaib Choudhury. As these lines are being written, Mr. Choudhury, a gadfly Bangladeshi journalist, is running for his life. Assuming he survives till Thursday, he will face charges of blasphemy, sedition, treason and espionage in a Dhaka courtroom. His crime is to have tried to attend a writers' conference in Tel Aviv on how the media can foster world peace. If convicted, he could face the death penalty.

Welcome to Bangladesh, a country the State Department's Richard Boucher recently portrayed in congressional testimony as "a traditionally moderate and tolerant country" that shares America's "commitment to democracy, human rights and the rule of law." That's an interesting way to describe a country that is regularly ranked as the world's most corrupt by Transparency International and whose governing coalition, in addition to the ruling Bangladesh Nationalist Party of Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, includes two fundamentalist Islamic parties that advocate the imposition of Shariah law. There are an estimated 64,000 madrassas (religious schools) in Bangladesh. The Ministry of Industries is in the hands of Motiur Rahman Nizami, a radical Islamist with a reputation of a violent past. In March the Peace Corps was forced to leave the country for fear of terrorist attacks. Seven other journalists have also been brought up on sedition charges by Ms. Zia's government, most of them for attempting to document Bangladesh's repression of religious minorities.

But few stories better illustrate the Islamist tinderbox that Bangladesh has become than Mr. Choudhury's. "When I began my newspaper [the Weekly Blitz] in 2003 I decided to make an end to the well-orchestrated propaganda campaign against Jews and Christians and especially against Israel," he says in the first of several telephone interviews in recent days. "In Bangladesh and especially during Friday prayers, the clerics propagate jihad and encourage the killing of Jews and Christians. When I was a child my father told me not to believe those words but to look at the world's realities."
With that in mind, Mr. Choudhury, then 38, began publishing articles sympathetic to Israel in the Weekly Blitz while reaching out to Jewish and Israeli writers he encountered on the Web. That led to the invitation by the Hebrew Writers' Association, and to Mr. Choudhury's only crime: By attempting to travel to Israel in November 2003, he violated the Passport Act, which forbids citizens from visiting countries (such as Israel and Taiwan) with which Bangladesh does not maintain diplomatic relations. Violations of the Passport Act are usually punishable by a fine of $8.
But that wasn't the sentence meted to Mr. Choudhury. Following his arrest he was taken into police custody and, as he tells it, blindfolded, beaten and interrogated almost incessantly for 10 days in an attempt to extract a confession that he was spying for Israel. He refused to offer one. He spent the next 16 months in solitary confinement in a Dhaka jail, where he was denied medical treatment for his glaucoma.

By then, Mr. Choudhury's case had come to the attention of Congressman Mark Kirk (R., Ill.), who intervened with Bangladesh's ambassador to the U.S. to secure Mr. Choudhury's release on bail, though the charges were never formally dropped. Help also came from Richard Benkin, a Chicago-area activist who has taken up Mr. Choudhury's cause, and the American Jewish Committee, which invited Mr. Choudhury to the U.S. in May to receive its Moral Courage Award. But Mr. Choudhury says he decided to forgo the trip after a government minister warned him, "If you go, it will not be good for you."

In July, the offices of the Weekly Blitz were bombed by Islamic militants. In September, a judge with Islamist ties ordered the case continued, despite the government's reluctance to prosecute, on the grounds that Mr. Choudhury had hurt the sentiments of Muslims by praising Christians and Jews and spoiling the image of Bangladesh world-wide. Last week, the police detail that had been posted to the Blitz's offices since the July bombing mysteriously vanished. The next day the offices were ransacked and Mr. Choudhury was badly beaten by a mob of 40 or so people. Over the weekend he lodged a formal complaint with the police, who responded by issuing an arrest warrant for him. Now he's on the run, fearing torture or worse if he's taken into custody.

Much of Mr. Choudhury's current predicament can be traced to Ms. Zia's reluctance to cross her Islamist coalition partners, who are keen on the case of the "Zionist spy" and would like nothing more than to see him hang. It doesn't help that a powerless caretaker government will take charge later this month in preparation for next January's elections. The U.S. Embassy in Dhaka has kept track of Mr. Choudhury and plans to send an observer to his trial. But mainly America's diplomats seem to have treated him as a nuisance. "Their thinking," says a source familiar with the case, "is that this is the story of one man, and why should the U.S. base its entire relationship with Bangladesh on this one man?"

Here's an answer: Bangladesh does not mean much strategically to the U.S., except for the fact that it is home to some 120 million Muslims, many of them desperately poor and increasingly under the sway of violent religious notions imported from Saudi Arabia. The Bush administration, which every year spends some $64 million on Bangladesh, has made a priority of identifying moderate Muslims and giving them the space and cover they need to spread their ideas. Mr. Choudhury has identified himself, at huge personal risk, as one such Muslim. Now that he is on the run, somewhere in the darkness of Dhaka, will someone in the administration pick up the phone and explain to the Bangladeshis just what America expects of its "moderate and tolerant" friends?"

In his article in Jerusalem Post titled 'US slams trial of Bangladeshi editor', Michael Freund wrote:

"The United States has denounced the Bangladeshi government's decision to try a moderate Muslim editor for advocating ties with Israel, saying he is "clearly a victim" of "Bangladesh's dysfunctional legal and judicial systems.

As The Jerusalem Post first reported last month, Salah Uddin Shoaib Choudhury, editor of the Weekly Blitz newspaper, an English-language publication based in the Bangladeshi capital of Dhaka, faces multiple counts of espionage and sedition in connection with his articles critical of Islamic extremism and favorable to Israel. If convicted, he could be sentenced to death.

Choudhury was arraigned in a Dhaka court on October 12, and prosecutors will begin calling witnesses against him when the hearings reconvene on November 13. Although Choudhury's lawyer will be permitted to cross-examine the prosecution witnesses, he will not be able to call any of his own to testify in Choudhury's defense.

"Like thousands of Bangladeshis every year, Mr. Choudhury is clearly a victim of Bangladesh's dysfunctional legal and judicial systems," Gregg Sullivan, a spokesman for the State Department, told the Post. "He was held without bail for 15 months and the sedition case against him appears to lack a strong legal basis."

Sullivan said the US Embassy in Dhaka had sent an observer to attend Choudhury's trial. "We intend to continue following the case of Mr. Choudhury, and have made that clear to Bangladeshi authorities," he added.
Sullivan said Choudhury is "the only Bangladeshi journalist who has been formally charged with sedition in recent years," even though other Bangladeshis have voiced similar sentiments regarding the rise of Islamic fundamentalism in their country.

As the Post reported exclusively on Wednesday, Choudhury was recently attacked and beaten in his office by a crowd of some 40 people that included senior members of Bangladesh's ruling party.

On October 5, a mob stormed the premises of Choudhury's newspaper and beat him, fracturing his ankle. They also looted cash that was kept in the company safe. No arrests were made, and Bangladeshi police refused to allow Choudhury to file charges against his attackers.

Asked to comment on the incident, Sullivan said there were
indications that it was related to a "property dispute" rather than the sedition charges pending against Choudhury.

"We have made clear to Bangladeshi officials our interests in Mr. Choudhury's case and have urged the Bangladeshi government to ensure that individuals like Mr. Choudhury are granted full rights and due process in accordance with Bangladeshi law," he said.

Choudhury's troubles date back to November 2003, when he was arrested at Dhaka's international airport as he was preparing to board a flight to travel to Israel, where he was due to deliver a speech on promoting mutual understanding between Muslims and Jews. His visit to Israel would have been the first by a Bangladeshi journalist. Bangladesh does not recognize Israel's existence.

After being held in prison for 17 months, where he was reportedly tortured, Choudhury was released in April 2005.

But authorities in Bangladesh, which is ruled by a coalition government that includes Islamic extremists, decided to pursue charges against him.
Spearheaded by American human-rights activist Dr. Richard Benkin, a number of international organizations have called for Choudhury's release."

And finally on 20th October, Washington Times in its editorial titled 'Persecution in Bangladesh' wrote:

"Bangladesh receives roughly $60 million in U.S. aid every year. One would think that the Bush administration should expect something in return, such as a commitment to hold off the forces of radical Islam which currently threaten Bangladesh's stability. But if the case of a moderate Muslim on trial for sedition is any evidence, Bangladesh is swiftly slipping into Islamists' hands.

In happier times, Salah Uddin Shoaib Choudhury operated an independent, English-language newspaper out of Bangladesh's capital, Dhaka. Angered by the rise of Islamists, Mr. Choudhury took the bold step of using his publication to oppose his country's radicalization. That caught the attention of the Hebrew Writers' Association, who in 2003 invited Mr. Choudhury to Israel to speak at a conference on establishing peaceful Jewish-Muslim relations. Mr. Choudhury accepted the invitation, but was detained at the airport by Bangladeshi authorities.

That's where Mr. Choudhury's life took a tragic turn. After being blindfolded and beaten, he was held in solitary confinement for 17 months, as the government tried to build a case that Mr. Choudhury was an Israeli spy. The charge was preposterous, but in Islamists' eyes, anyone who advocates peaceful relations with the Zionist entity must be a traitor. With the help of U.S. Rep. Mark Kirk and human-rights activist Richard Benkin, Mr. Choudhury was eventually released from prison. The sedition charges, however, remained pending.

Mr. Choudhury's ordeal didn't end there. In July, his newspaper offices were bombed by Islamist radicals; in September, a judge with ties to Bangladesh's Radical Party ordered his sedition trial to resume; then, earlier this month, a mob of 40 militants beat Mr. Choudhury in his offices. It is believed that Bangladeshi officials were among the mob. No one expects Mr. Choudhury to get a fair trial.

Throughout all of this, Bangladeshi Prime Minister Khaleda Zia has been noticeably absent. Her effort to balance the growing radicalization of her government with the impression that Bangladesh is a moderate Muslim country is failing badly. Both Mr. Choudhury's supporters and enemies see this trial as a crucial moment in Bangladesh's history: Either Bangladesh will live up to its image as a moderate and tolerant country or the Islamists will gain even more control.

We also see it as a crucial moment for the war on terror. The United States must encourage people like Mr. Choudhury to speak out. But when they do, it must also do all it can to protect them. Freeing Mr. Choudhury will tell others like him that when you stand against Islamists, the United States will stand with you."

Interestingly, Bangladesh embassy in Washington remains mum despite such tremendous media coverage. It may also be mentioned here that, Chicago Tribune also published an oped on this issue while Daily pennsylvanian has been continuing to publish several articles on the heroic mission of this Muslim editor.

Despite strong international media coverage, ruling party in Bangladesh remains reluctant in punishing the thugs belonging to its Cultural Wing. Moreover, the state machinery is trying to harrass the editor and the atackers continue to give life threats on him. Under such circumstance, US may suspend annual US$ 60 million to Bangladesh as this country is gradually slipping into the tight grips of Islamofascists. There are some other groups in US, which are now demanding suspension of buying readymade garments from Bangladesh, till the country ensures total war against Islamist millitancy and ensures secular judicial system. Such circumstances evidently show that Bangladesh is going to face tremendous adversities in the months to come.