Bill against Jamaat, Hifazat, other radical groups in Bangladesh placed in US Congress

Representatives from the US congress have placed a Bill expressing their concern over radical religious extremism in Bangladesh.

Sponsored by Congressman Jim Banks (Republican – Indiana) and co-sponsored by Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard (Democrat – Hawaii), the Bill names the Hifazat-e Islam and the Jamaat-e-Islami as ‘theocratic extremist groups’ that pose a threat to democracy and religious minorities.

Jim Banks. Photo: US State Department

Placed on Nov 20, the Bill calls on Bangladesh to stop radical organisations that pose a threat to stability and democracy and to protect minorities.

It also urges US agencies to halt partnerships and funding deals with the Jamaat, its student front Islami Chhatra Shibir, and Chattogram-based Hifazat.

The Bill is titled ‘Expressing concern about the threat posed to democracy and the democratic process by theocratic groups operating in Bangladesh’.

It states that Islamist militants led by the Jamaat were responsible in part for the “approximately 3,000,000 deaths, more than 10,000,000 displacements and 200,000 rape of women” during the course of the 1971 Liberation War.

It cites the Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council to state that the BNP, Jamaat and Shibir were responsible for attacks on religious minorities “as a result of which 495 Hindu homes were damaged, 585 shops were attacked or looted, and 169 temples were vandalised between November 2013 and January 2014”.

The Bill states that Jamaat activists have also attacked religious minorities in the country more recently.

File Photo: Homes belonging to Hindu residents in Rangpur were attacked by Islamists on Nov 10, 2017 after demonstration against a Facebook post allegedly belittling Islam. Police said Jamaat leaders were behind the arson attacks.

It also takes aim at Hifazat, calling it an extremist group that is “attempting to fundamentally transform Bangladesh from a secular democracy to a totalitarian theocracy”.

Such theocratic extremist groups pose an ‘ongoing threat’ to the country’s stability and secular democracy and leave minority groups at grave risk of violence, it said.

The Bill also notes what it calls a growing trend of Islamic extremism in Bangladesh tied to pro-IS activity and concern from NATO regarding al-Qaeda activities in the region.

It urges the US House of Representatives to acknowledge the victims of the 1971 Liberation War and Bangladesh’s foundation as a secular democracy, to call for the government of Bangladesh to stop radical organisations that threaten stability and this democracy and to protect minority groups.

It also calls on the United States Agency for International Development and the State Department to halt all partnerships and funding arrangements with groups affiliated with the Jamaat, Shibir, and Hifazat.

The House of Representatives has referred the Bill to the House Committee on Foreign Affairs.

File Photo: Jamaat-e-Islami supporters take out a procession at Jatrabari area in Dhaka on Aug 3, 2013 against the High Court verdict cancelling their party’s registration.

The move comes ahead of the Dec 30 parliamentary elections in Bangladesh.

The Jamaat, which has lost its registration with the Election Commission, is contesting in the polls as a key ally of the BNP.

The Jamaat was responsible for war crimes, such as mass killings, rape and looting across the country in 1971, the war crimes tribunal said in different verdicts.

Several Jamaat leaders have been imprisoned and hanged for the atrocities committed during the Liberation War.

Hifazat made global media headlines when its members rampaged through Dhaka’s commercial hub Motijheel after a sit-in against government policies, especially on religion, education and women, and atheist bloggers in May that year.

In recent years, however, the group has won the favour of the ruling Awami League.

In the face of Hifazat’s pressure, the authorities removed a ‘Lady Justice’ statue from the Supreme Court premises last year.

The government has also recently accorded a top Qawmi madrasa degree the status of post-graduate degree.