Arab envoys meet Khaleda

Dhaka-based ambassadors of Arab and Muslim countries on Wednesday night met BNP chief Khaleda Zia and discussed possible ways out of the current political crisis in Bangladesh.

Staff Correspondentbdnews24.com
Published : 17 April 2013, 09:57 AM
Updated : 17 April 2013, 12:02 PM

“We want the people of Bangladesh to live in peace and would like to see democracy strengthen in this country,” the envoys were quoted by a BNP spokesman to have told the Opposition leader.

Shamsher Mobin Chowdhury, a BNP vice chairman, told reporters after the meeting that the ambassadors would also meet the government leaders.
“The ambassadors said they believed there should be a compromise formula worked out between the two parties and that an acceptable election was possible,” Chowdhury said.

Khaleda Zia told the envoys that she too wanted a “free, fair and acceptable” election but had not been approached by the government, Chowdhury said.
“If anyone took any steps for negotiations, she would gladly cooperate,” she was quoted by Chowdhury as saying to the envoys.

Asked if the envoys were acting on the advice from any Western country, Chowdhury said: “The ambassadors told us that it was their own initiative.”

Asked if there was any discussion on the war crimes trials, Chowdhury said that the issues included current political situation, rule of law, good governance, law and order, corruption and fairness in judicial process.

Envoys of Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Morocco, Qatar, Libya, Egypt, UAE, Oman and Iraq attended the meeting that lasted for two hours.

Chairperson’s advisers Reaz Rahman and Sabih Uddin Ahmed, Chowdhury, her Special Envoy to Saudi Arabia Mohammad Enamul Huq assisted Khaleda Zia during the meeting that ended at 10:45pm.