Are sanctions against RAB a change in US policy in Bangladesh? | Human Rights News

Dhaka, Bangladesh – Although the bilateral relations between the United States and Bangladesh have broad and historical roots, the latest steps taken by the administration of President Joe Biden have raised concerns in the South Asian nation.

First of all, Bangladesh was not among the 111 countries invited to the famous Biden virtual Summit for Democracy, December 9th and 10th.

Then on Friday, the US imposed it human rights sanctions About the elite paramilitary force in Bangladesh Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) and seven of its current and former officials, who have been involved in hundreds of forced disappearances and extrajudicial killings since 2009.

The penalties mean that the RAB will not be allowed to own property in the United States, nor will it conduct a financial transaction with a U.S. organization or employee. The sanctions also ban the entry of seven current and former senior RAB officials, including Bangladesh Police Chief Inspector Benazir Ahmed, into the United States.

Meanwhile, local media reported that General Aziz Ahmed, a former Bangladeshi army chief, had had his US visa revoked and was “desirable” for the United States.

In February this year, a study by Al Jazeera – All the men of the Prime Minister – General Ahmed revealed how he helped his brother Haris Ahmed escape from prison Among other allegations of a 1996 assassination, serious nepotism against an army officer and misconduct.

So far, the US reaction to Dhaka sanctions against the RAB has been blatant and sporadic, with the Bangladeshi foreign minister saying the US had “only invited weak democracies” to the summit and said the interior minister had relied on sanctions against paramilitary forces. too much news ”.

The Foreign Ministry, however, called on US Ambassador to Bangladesh Earl R Miller on Saturday to express Dhaka’s displeasure over sanctions against the RAB.

Human rights violations

The U.S. is the largest export destination in Bangladesh, with nearly $ 7 billion in shipments, about 90% of which. ready-made garments (RMG). Bangladesh is one of the most competitive RMG industries in the world, with the country’s average annual growth rate rising seven percent in the last two decades.

The United States is also one of the largest development partners in the South Asian nation, home to about 160 million people, and has repeatedly trained its security officials and police. According to the US State Department, Bangladesh is the largest recipient of US aid, behind Asia, Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Against this backdrop, experts say the latest US move seems to be a “warning” to Bangladesh over human rights and ongoing slippage. “lean towards authoritarianism” Reported to Sheikh Hasin.

Mubashar Hasan, an assistant researcher at Western Sydney University, told Al Jazeera that US sanctions show that the Biden administration has made a “significant policy change” not only in Bangladesh but also in US foreign policy in general, bringing electoral democracy. and human rights at the heart of its external relations.

“Perhaps Biden understood that if the idea of ​​democracy lost its appeal abroad, it would be difficult to separate the US or the West from authoritarian regimes,” Hasan said.

U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, while announcing sanctions against the RAB, said: “We are committed to putting human rights at the center of our foreign policy, and we reaffirm our commitment to attracting and promoting care using appropriate tools and authorities. accounts, wherever they occur. ‘

Bangladeshi human rights activist Nur Khan Liton told Al Jazeera that well-documented reports clearly indicate that the RAB was involved in human rights violations, including extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances.

“We have been asking the Bangladeshi government for a long time to set up an independent commission of inquiry into the disappearances and crossfire, but the government has ignored our call,” he said.

“The United States, of course, observes the human rights and democracy situation in a country and makes decisions based on credible reports. So it is not surprising that the RAB is being punished with such sanctions. “

Over the past decade, the U.S.-based Human Rights Watch (HRW) has published four reports on the RAB that identify human rights violations. In its 2011 report, Crossfire: Human Rights Abuses by Bangladesh’s Rapid Action Battalion, HRW focused entirely on out-of-court killings of paramilitary forces.

HRW’s 2017 report on secret arrests and enforced disappearances, We Don’t Have Him, identified RAB as responsible for many of these incidents.

One of the convicts, RAB Deputy Chief of Staff KM Azad, however, defended the operations of the forces, saying he never violated human rights.

“If the removal of a criminal under the law is a violation of human rights, then we have no objection to violating these human rights in the interest of the country,” he told reporters after announcing US sanctions last week.

Wider implications

In a statement to Al Jazeera, a spokesman for the US State Department said: “We highly value our cooperation with the Bangladeshi government and work closely on regional and global challenges. We have discussed with Bangladesh leaders the importance of defending human rights and the rule of law. even though we are collaborating on other bilateral issues. ”

But some experts believe the US movement against Bangladesh has a wider impact.

Michael Kugelman, South Asia’s deputy director and chief thinker at the Wilson Center in Washington, D.C. . .

“After all, the U.S. does not punish leaders of countries that want to work closely. It is certainly a moment that a few weeks ago a senior US State Department official was in Dhaka singing the praises of the relationship, ”Kugelman told Al Jazeera.

He said Bangladesh could “take a prominent position” in South Asian geopolitics, as it is located in the Indian Ocean and is part of a “tug-of-war” to influence the region’s rivals, India and China.

“A Dhaka tug of war doesn’t want to be a part of it,” Kugelman said. “So it is expected that the US will want to increase its commitment, but this move to punish the RAB suggests that Washington may be misreading Bangladeshi’s thinking.”

He said the US had made the move “not to move away from Dhaka, but to send a strong message because they want to engage more,” but if Dhaka improves its rights record.

Ali Riaz, a senior professor at Illinois State University, told Al Jazeera that recent U.S. moves are not an indicator of a complete shift in U.S. policy toward Bangladesh, but “a weakening of U.S. patience.”

“For a long time, Washington saw Bangladesh through the prism of India, but (the sanctions) indicate that Bangladesh is separating itself from Indian politics,” he said.

“These steps are also in line with the Biden administration’s focus on human rights. These steps will create some tensions between the two countries.”

Riaz said the consequences of sanctions will determine whether or not other countries like the UK or Canada to join the US in the move against Bangladesh.

“But the question is whether the US will take the opposite course and move Bangladesh away from the United States, which will harm Bangladesh’s economic interests and security. It is a clear indication that China will take advantage of the situation and increase its influence, “he said.