opinion
Politics of Freedom and Prosperity Index
On April 16, 2024, the Freedom and Prosperity Center of the Atlantic Council, dedicated to advancing ‘US leadership’ and emphasizing the ‘central role of the Atlantic community’, released a country report titled ‘Freedom and Prosperity in Bangladesh’ in Dhaka. The report suggests that while Bangladesh experienced a decline in freedom, it witnessed progress in terms of prosperity.
The findings are also appeared contradictory and beset with a series of loopholes with recommendations ignored a msassive scale of social safety net scheme put in place by the current government. However, certain newspapers painted a gloomy picture, disseminating fake news.
From a methodological standpoint, the rationale behind selecting 1995 as the benchmark year for comparison remains unclear in the Bangladesh Country Report. The report fails to explain this choice, necessitating a reference to the ‘2024 Atlas: Freedom and Prosperity Around the World’ for clarification. This lack of clarity may lead to confusion among readers of the Bangladesh Country Report.
Before delving into the report’s details, a significant contradiction warrants attention. The Executive Summary suggests a correlation between freedom and prosperity, asserting that countries granting more freedoms witnessed increased prosperity from 1995 to 2022.
However, the report presents conflicting data for Bangladesh. In 2000, Bangladesh ranked 107 in prosperity and 116 in freedom, by the present, its prosperity rank improved to 99, while its freedom rank deteriorated to 141.
This inconsistency challenges the notion of a direct correlation between freedom and prosperity in Bangladesh, undermining the report's foundational premise. Moreover, referencing China and Singapore implies a cautionary message from the US against replicating their economic models, despite their non-democratic nature.
Now, let’s dive into the primary theoretical underpinning of the report, which posits that freedom leads to prosperity rather than the other way around. This perspective was reiterated by Peter Haas, the US Ambassador to Bangladesh, in his speech marking the publication of the report, as reported in The Daily Star on April 18, 2024. Ignorant of neo-liberal bias and touted as a god by the opposition outfit BNP and Jamaat, Ambassador Haas emphasized the ongoing debate regarding whether prosperity fosters greater freedoms or vice versa. He endorsed the Atlantic Council's research, describing it as ‘groundbreaking’ for accurately identifying the linkage between freedom and prosperity. According to him, freedom is not merely a consequence of prosperity but serves as the fundamental engine driving it forward. Moreover, Hass has been already lost the venerable cover of neutrality , unlike many other foreign envoy .
In his foreword for the ‘2024 Atlas: Freedom and Prosperity Around the World’, published by the Atlantic Council, Daron Acemoglu, renowned for his work in ‘Why Nations Fail’, emphasizes the centrality of institutions in development, particularly liberal democratic ones. While institutions play a crucial role in achieving material prosperity, their nature and operation vary across regions. The key criterion lies in whether these institutions effectively engage the majority and function efficiently. French President Emmanuel Macron advocates for greater efficiency and agility in European democracy. Ultimately, the government's legitimacy, and even its form, hinges on its performance. Whether through peaceful or violent means, governmental changes may occur due to perceived failures in performance, a principle applicable not only to China but also to any Western democracy.
When examining the relationship between freedom and prosperity, it’s crucial to contextualize it within the historical stage of development. In emerging economies, the process of primitive accumulation can appear harsh. Similar brutality was witnessed in the past when the West exploited colonies and non-Western populations during the early stages of capitalism. Despite this, Bangladesh surpasses many Western countries in terms of economic development at this stage.
The West, particularly the US, initially hoped that fostering economic prosperity in China would naturally lead to political freedom. However, this expectation has not materialized, leading to frustration. The latest report expresses concerns about the sustainability of the Chinese and Singaporean economies. As they grapple with this dilemma, it remains unclear how the West will reconcile diminishing democracy with India's forecasted GDP growth by the IMF. To address this, they have expanded the definition of ‘prosperity’. However, in this report, prosperity is narrowly defined as individual human prosperity, excluding critical factors like infrastructural development. Bangladesh’s significant achievements in infrastructure have been overlooked in this broadened definition.
Interestingly, the West often prioritizes economic liberalism above other concerns such as democracy and rights. The architect of neoliberalism, FA Hayek, notably visited Chile to lend support to military dictators who had ousted the democratically elected President Salvador Allende, with backing from the US. Neoliberalism advocates for shock therapy, where complete liberalization, including privatization, is implemented, with the belief that the economy may initially falter but will eventually experience rapid growth. However, the application of this theory has often resulted in havoc for many countries. Freedom alone cannot guarantee prosperity.
In least-developed countries like Bangladesh, governments should prioritize investments in health, education, food security, and other social services. Embracing Amartya Sen’s concept of Development as Freedom (1999), the combination of freedom and equality holds the promise of ushering in a realm of prosperity and security on earth.
Let’s end this short piece with an example to showcase how scoring in different subindexes is ideologically biased. The Freedom and Prosperity in Bangladesh report for April 2024 highlights Bangladesh’s property rights score of 17.2 out of 100. Interestingly, the 2024 assessment by the US Treasury Department acknowledges some progress in Bangladesh's recent efforts to promote intellectual property rights. However, there seems to be a neoliberal bias in the approach to property rights, potentially undermining Bangladesh’s focus on social welfare. If Bangladesh were to remove state and cooperative ownership from Article 13 and certain sections of Article 47 of its Constitution, its score might significantly improve. Yet, such a move would deviate from the principles of building a social welfare state. Ultimately, Bangladesh must uphold the ethos of its liberation war, emphasizing values of equality, human dignity, and social justice.
Professor Dr. Mizanur Rahman is the former chairman of the National Human Rights Commission.
US remains firmly committed to supporting both freedom and prosperity in Bangladesh
The perennial debate persists: Does prosperity foster greater freedoms, or is it the other way around?
The Atlantic Council's ground-breaking research into the linkage between freedom and prosperity offers a compelling case for the latter. Freedom isn't merely a byproduct of prosperity; it's the very engine that propels it.
Their report on Bangladesh, being released today, provides some sobering insights. Let me start with the Atlantic Council's Freedom Index, which ranks Bangladesh 141st out of 164 countries, placing it in the "mostly unfree" category. Perhaps more troubling, since 2000, Bangladesh has fallen 25 places. Atlantic Council's index is different from other indexes; it is not just about elections. Instead, it measures economic, political, and legal freedoms. In fact, Bangladesh ranks higher on political freedoms than it does on economic and legal freedoms.
Bangladesh fares better on the Prosperity Index, where it ranks 99th out of 164 countries, placing it into the "mostly unprosperous" category. Here, the index is broader than just GDP per capita. It also includes health, inequality, environment, minority rights, and education.
To be certain, this snapshot masks the huge development successes Bangladesh has achieved since Independence. But it also highlights the enormous challenge ahead in moving from being a "mostly unprosperous" least developed country today to a middle-income country in 2026 to a developed country by 2041, as forecast in the government's Vision 2041 plan.
Out of the 164 countries the Atlantic Council has looked at, not a single country ranked "mostly unfree" is also ranked "prosperous." This suggests that to become prosperous, Bangladesh must then take bold steps to expand economic, political, and legal freedoms for its people.
This isn't a one-size-fits-all solution. Every nation faces unique challenges on its path to freedom and prosperity. The United States, a friend and development partner to Bangladesh for over 50 years, acknowledges its shortcomings in this area.
Every country grapples with issues like corruption, and securing economic and political rights. The key lies not in avoiding problems, but in actively acknowledging and tackling them.
The United States remains firmly committed to supporting both freedom and prosperity in Bangladesh. We will continue exploring ways to assist Bangladesh in achieving its Vision 2041 goals. We strongly believe that by unlocking its full potential through increased freedoms, Bangladesh can become the next Asian Tiger—a Royal Bengal Tiger, of course!
Modi's Moment: How Narendra Modi is Changing India and the World
"Touch my vest," Narendra Modi told a startled Newsweek team interviewing the Indian prime minister in his residence in New Delhi in late March. "Come on, touch it." Modi challenged Nancy Cooper, Newsweek's global editor in chief, to guess what the blue jacket was made of. Cooper suggested silk. "It's recycled plastic bottles," Modi said, clearly enjoying the reaction of his surprised guests.
The vest and the moment are vintage Modi: innovation, tradition, masterful messaging and, inevitably, some controversy. The vest was made popular by India's first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, whose great-grandson Rahul Gandhi is leading the opposition campaign to prevent Modi from winning a rare third term in elections next week. It became known as the "Nehru Jacket" and was a symbol of newly independent India's national pride as well as a fashion statement adopted by The Beatles and Sammy Davis Jr. Unlike Nehru, who preferred beiges and grays, Modi wears his modified version of the garment in brilliant hues. Indian retailers began selling "Modi Jackets" to capitalize on the prime minister's enormous personal popularity. And in 2018, when former South Korean President Moon Jae-in tweeted out his thanks for the prime minister's gift of perfectly tailored "Modi Vests"—not "Nehru Jackets"—the controversy nearly broke the Indian internet.
In Modi’s India, opponents and journalists feel the squeeze ahead of election
"Whatever you can rightly say about India, the opposite is also true," the Cambridge economist Joan Robinson once said. Modi, like the country he leads, is full of apparent contradictions. A relentless modernizer, Modi embraces the past. He speaks with equal pride of digital payments, green technology and his role in an ancient 11-day ritual to bring a revered Hindu deity to life. Modi merchandises his brand like a celebrity with T-shirts, mugs and caps, and yet appeals to ordinary Indians by picking up trash from the beach or sweeping the streets. Perhaps uniquely among leaders of major powers, he wins praise from Joe Biden and Vladimir Putin and has warm relationships with both men. Modi's campaign slogan calls for inclusive progress, yet many religious minorities feel excluded by his Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party.
Partly because of these contradictions, Modi has a contentious relationship with the media and gives interviews rarely. India has tumbled on the World Press Freedom Index under Modi. And the prime minister sees himself as a target of hostile coverage by journalists who do not accept that India is both less liberal in ways that are important to the West and much better governed than at any time in its recent history.
Thousands attend a rally in India's capital to challenge Prime Minister Modi ahead of elections
Understanding an Indian prime minister has never mattered more. The country Modi leads is increasingly shaping the world we live in. Washington sees India as an important counterweight to China across the developing world. A globe-girdling Indian diaspora, cultivated for decades by Modi, has already reshaped Silicon Valley. Now Indian ideas, innovations and ambitions are poised to do the same in everything from finance and fighting poverty to space exploration. By 2075, the Indian economy is projected to surpass America's and become the world's second largest behind China. This also means that India is by far the biggest potential carbon emitter in the world and its choices about the future will likely play an outsized role in defining the destiny of our planet and the species we share it with.
During his 90-minute interview with Newsweek and in written correspondence, Modi tackled these issues and talked of his unbridled optimism about India. "I feel negativity has a low shelf life," he said. "On the other hand, positivity is perennial."
Modi says he channels his positive energy into his monthly radio program Mann Ki Baat (Talks from the Heart) that one survey said had 230 million regular listeners. The state radio show is one of the many ways the prime minister appears accessible to ordinary Indians and puts his personal stamp on myriad changes shaping their lives. To Western observers, Modi's messaging tactics can come across as political theater, the squandering of public resources on the making of one man's myth. What they miss is the revolutionary impact these tactics have had on people in a hierarchical society shaped by millennia-old caste structures, centuries of colonial exploitation and decades of rule by the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty whose charismatic leaders are dismissed by Modi's followers as members of a Western-educated elite.
Not every message lands the way Modi intends it. A Mann Ki Baat episode notched up the most dislikes ever on the BJP's YouTube channel after the prime minister dished out advice on dog breeds but dodged a dispute over delayed exams.
Modi says he treats all communication with the Indian people as a two-way street. "A leader should have the ability to connect to the grassroots and get unfiltered feedback," he said.
A magnetic orator who fills stadiums wherever he goes, Modi is coy about his speaking skills. "I didn't even know that I am good at communication," he said. Ask him about listening skills and he swells with pride: "I am god-gifted with this quality."
Modi, who grew up relatively poor and traveled the country for years as a Hindu community organizer, says he has spent at least one night in each of about 80 percent of India's 806 administrative districts, roughly equivalent to counties in the United States. "So I have direct connections almost everywhere, which helps me get direct feedback," he said, driving home the point with a story about a man he met on his travels calling him at 3 a.m. about a rail accident when he was chief minister of the western state of Gujarat so it could be addressed immediately.
Whatever one makes of Modi's messaging strategy, it appears to be working. Hundreds of millions of Indians are listening to Modi, tuning into his positive message and feel heard by him. India's urban consumers are the most optimistic in the world, according to an IPSOS survey released in March. The national index score of 72, higher than any of the other 28 economies surveyed, "indicates consumers have confidence in the economy, jobs, personal finances and investments, now and for the future," IPSOS said.
It is easy to be optimistic about the Indian economy. Asia's economic miracles have been built around a demographic sweet spot when the working age population reaches the point that dependents—retirees and children—form the smallest share of the population. Japan hit this tipping point in 1964. China in 1994. For India, already the world's fifth largest economy, the sweet spot of a historically low dependency ratio won't arrive until 2030 and it will last at least 25 years. This demographic destiny is one of the reasons Bhaskar Chakravorti, dean of global business at the Fletcher School of Tufts University, co-authored a Harvard Business Review article in which he recommended "Inevitable India" as an advertising slogan for the government in New Delhi, a play on the decades-old tourism campaign "Incredible India."
"The narrative-building apparatus around Narendra Modi has made him appear to be an indispensable figure in the inevitability of India," Chakravorti told Newsweek, echoing a common critique of the Modi government claims about the economy. But demographics don't tell the whole story of the economic promise of Modi's India. In the past decade, Modi has transformed India's infrastructure, building roads, bridges, ports, airports and digital networks at astonishing speed. A country that was once notorious for potholes, bottlenecks, crumbling terminal buildings and traffic snarls caused by cattle, is now competing with the best on many fronts. India's ports are more efficient than America's or Singapore's with ship turnaround times of less than a day. It will soon boast the world's third-largest metro network after China and Britain. A Venmo-like Unified Payments Interface connects 300 million users to a system that accounts for nearly half the world's instant payments.
Modi's tenure has ratcheted up the productive capacity of the world's most populous country. Goldman Sachs cites these infrastructure investments in its projections of India's explosive economic growth over the next half-century when it overtakes the United States. Goldman's projections show the U.S. economy doubling in size by 2075 and China's just about tripling. The Indian economy will grow 15-fold. The economic value of these investments understates their impact on the way Indians, like the Chinese and Japanese before them, see themselves. "India is undertaking a vast national project of state-building under Modi," Ravi Agrawal, editor in chief of Foreign Policy magazine, wrote this week. "Modi is projecting an image of a more powerful, muscular, prideful nation—and Indians are in thrall to the self-portrait."
Modi resists comparisons with Japan and China and talks instead of "human-centered development" woven around India's traditional values. "India has run the world's largest poverty-eradication drive in the last 10 years and has pulled 250 million people out of poverty," he said. While that number is impressive, it is not unprecedented. China lifted about 800 million people out of poverty in the three decades before 2018.
And yet, the world needs India to pursue a different path from China's. The future of the planet depends upon it. India's gross domestic product is roughly the size that China's was in 2007, in the midst of a surge of growth that made it the world's second-largest economy. At roughly the same time, China emerged as the world's largest carbon producer. Today China produces about 30 percent of the world's carbon, nearly three times as much as the United States, which still has a much larger economy and much older infrastructure. America's carbon footprint is shrinking, while China's is still growing. India, already the world's third-largest carbon emitter, is at a much earlier stage of its polluting capacity. Unless it changes trajectory, India will eat up 36 percent of the world's remaining carbon budget—the total volume of carbon that scientists estimate all of humanity can produce and still keep global warming to below 1.5 degrees Celsius, according to a 2022 McKinsey report.
Fortunately for the planet, Modi has chosen a different course. "There is no contradiction between our physical infrastructure building and our commitment to fight climate change," he said, rattling off an impressive list of initiatives, investments and goals that will help India get to net-zero emissions by 2070. McKinsey estimates these investments and policies will make for a potentially planet-saving transformation of India's economic path. India's carbon emissions per person should peak at around 2.7 metric tons in the 2030s, McKinsey projects. That means that even when the average Indian's carbon footprint is at its largest a decade from now, they will still be producing only a third of the carbon emitted by a Chinese person today and a fifth of what an American produces.
This greener growth is but one facet of the contrasting roles India and China will play in the global economy. Western companies looking to move their supply chains out of the firing line of U.S.-China tensions are turning to India, with Apple being one of the first to open a plant there.
And yet China's ambitions have loomed larger, and for far longer, in New Delhi than it has in any Western capital. In the 1950s Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru turned down two offers of a permanent seat on the U.N. Security Council, not wishing to take China's place on that body, according to the Wilson Center's Cold War History project. India's External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar described those decisions and other efforts to placate Beijing's Communist rulers as "India second, China first" in a speech this month.
Nehru's deference to his powerful neighbor did nothing to prevent the relationship from deteriorating into a border conflict in 1962, which went very badly for India. Since then, China has been the central geopolitical preoccupation of every Indian prime minister. Nehru's daughter, Indira Gandhi, broke with her father's policy of Non-Alignment and signed a friendship treaty with the Soviet Union in August 1971, a month after U.S. National Security Adviser Henry Kissinger made his historic visit to China.
While Modi still has close relations with Moscow, he has taken a considerably more assertive approach to foreign policy—and that has drawn him closer to the United States, which now views China as an adversary. "As President Biden has said, our relationship with India is one of the most consequential in the world," a U.S. State Department spokesperson told Newsweek. "The United States supports India's emergence as a leading global power."
Modi has personally pressed Chinese President Xi Jinping to resolve their border dispute. And he definitely wants that permanent seat on the Security Council. In his sharpest shift from India's proudly Non-Aligned past, Modi has joined the Quad, an alliance with Japan, Australia and the United States, whose unstated purpose is to counter China's influence in the Indian Ocean and Pacific regions. "The Quad has established itself as an important platform for ensuring peace, stability and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific," Modi said, playing down the Sino-centricity of its mission.
India's many geopolitical and economic strengths are not the whole story. The government's relationship with religious minorities appears to have gotten significantly worse under the ruling BJP, which Modi now leads. Modi's supporters see Hindu nationalist policies as leveling the playing field, taking away privileges granted to Indian Muslims, Christians and others by colonial rulers and past governments after independence. Restoring what Hindus see as the status quo is key to both progress and national unity, they believe. That Modi shares this view becomes apparent in a conversation about the Hindu shrine of Rama at Ayodhya, now built on the site of a mosque that a Hindu mob destroyed in 1992.
The site was disputed for more than a century; a Mughal ruler built the mosque on top of a structure that Hindus believe marked the place where Rama was born. The Supreme Court eventually resolved the dispute in favor of Hindus, and Modi himself led the dedication of the shrine in January after an 11-day fast.
He scoffs at any suggestion that India's religious minorities, including 200 million Muslims, are mistreated. "These are usual tropes of some people who don't bother to meet people outside their bubbles. Even India's minorities don't buy this narrative anymore," Modi told Newsweek.
Many of India's Muslims, Christians and other non-Hindu groups don't see it that way. Asaduddin Owaisi, a member of Parliament, knows the BJP's majoritarian policies are popular enough to win elections. He also sees them creating an atmosphere that enables attacks on Muslims, from physical violence to discrimination in food, dress and education. "Modi's electoral victories are basically a mandate...for anti-Muslim policies," Owaisi, president of the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen, one of India's Muslim political parties, told Newsweek.
Other fault lines run through the economy. Official data show India's unemployment at just under 4 percent. Many economists see those numbers as something of a mirage. "If you visit a notary in New Delhi, you will probably see four people around him, all supposedly employed. One to hold the pen, one to move the paper, one to place the seal and the fourth to make tea," said Chakravorti, making a point about India's massive problem with underemployment.
The unemployment rate for people with college degrees is nine times higher than that for those who cannot read or write, the International Labour Organization said in an April report. This dynamic creates a surge of overqualified applicants for government jobs. When a state police department posted job ads for manual office helpers, it was looking for candidates who had completed fifth grade. More than 33,000 people with college degrees applied. These trends have a disproportionate impact on Indian women, who have made remarkable progress in getting access to higher education and now make up more than 40 percent of all STEM graduates but just about a quarter of the STEM workforce. "Indian women are rising with clear aspirations," said Debjani Ghosh, president of the National Association of Software and Service Companies.
Finding productive employment for an exploding workforce will be key to seizing India's new economic opportunities and addressing the inequality that has plagued it for generations.
Despite these and other challenges, polls show Modi headed for a third consecutive term as prime minister, something no Indian leader has accomplished since 1962. Even in 1962 and with no serious national opposition, Jawaharlal Nehru, architect of modern India, won only a diminished majority. By contrast, Modi's BJP looks set to increase its majority in the lower house of parliament, the Lok Sabha, in a multistage election that ends in June with 960 million people eligible to vote. The main opposition Congress, dominated by Sonia Gandhi, the Italian-born widow of Nehru's grandson, and fronted by her son Rahul Gandhi, appears headed for its worst-ever showing. Congress Party President Mallikarjun Kharge declined to comment for this article; other senior Congress leaders did not respond.
Modi himself, at 73, is more popular than the BJP. In regional elections outside the main Hindi-speaking heartland in northern and central India, national parties usually support their regional leaders, hoping to win over local voters in a country with more than 120 major languages. In the Modi era, the BJP has reversed that strategy and built its regional campaigns around him. In February, Morning Consult gave Modi a domestic approval rating of nearly 78 percent, making him the most popular global leader in its survey, with more than double the support of Joe Biden. Norwegian politician and peace negotiator Erik Solheim posted the survey on X, formerly Twitter, and asked, "Maybe it is time for Western media to give India and Modiji some positive coverage?"
Whatever the nature of the coverage, this election could well represent a turning point for India. For decades after independence in 1947, India was cast in Nehru's image: secular, democratic, socialist, scientific and unapologetically non-aligned in the great power contests of the Cold War. A crushing victory at these elections would complete the process of casting India in Modi's image: democratic, populist, technocratic, far more assertive on the world stage than Nehru ever imagined, and unapologetically Hindu and nationalist.
Turning the "Nehru Jacket" into the "Modi Vest" was just the beginning.
Danish Manzoor Bhat is Newsweek's Asia editorial director.
Building Stronger Partnerships for Our Shared Prosperity
Over 2.6m Bangladeshi men and women live and work in Saudi Arabia.
Whether they are employed in the Kingdom’s growing technology industry or are constructing the city of the future in NEOM, they are supporting the profound transformation of our country.
We are incredibly grateful for the contribution made by Bangladeshi citizens, through their dedication, talents and ambition. I am also proud of the opportunities our country offers Bangladeshis who choose to work internationally – more Bangladeshis work in Saudi Arabia than in any other country, and the Kingdom was the top source of remittances to Bangladesh in 2022-2023, with $3.8 billion.
This relationship, underpinned by shared prosperity, highlights the importance of ongoing collaboration between Saudi Arabia and Bangladesh on labor affairs.
Together we are responsible for ensuring the well-being, fair treatment, and professional progress of Bangladeshis currently employed in Saudi Arabia, as well as those who may take up new jobs in the future.
On behalf of the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development (HRSD) of Saudi Arabia, it is our privilege to be responsible for collaborating with labor-exporting countries such as Bangladesh, helping to build a safer, fairer, and more prosperous future for our workforces.
Saudi Arabia’s participation at the Abu Dhabi Dialogue earlier this year provided a forum to share experiences and best practices with Asian nations as we seek to work together to build and deliver a labor market for the future. Importantly, the event recognized the mutual value labor migration brings to the economic development of all nations involved. The meeting of Saudi Minister for HRSD H.E. Ahmed Al Rajhi and Bangladesh’s Minister of State for Expatriates' Welfare and Overseas Employment Mr. Shafiqur Chowdhury has fortified our nations' commitment to fair labor practices and transparent recruitment. It is a promising step towards safeguarding Bangladeshi workers' welfare andenriching our collaborative ties.
This event was just one in a series of regular meetings between the governments of our two nations. An important focus of the Ministry’s discussions with Bangladesh in recent months has been strengthening the Professional Accreditation Initiative. Saudi Arabia and Bangladesh have already begun collaboration in this area, and we launched the Workers’ Recruitment and Skill Verification Program in Bangladesh in February 2023. The program was initially focused on five professions: plumbers, electricians, welders, automotive electricians, and air conditioning technicians, but it has since expanded to include a wider range of roles.
The Skill Verification Program, which is free of charge for prospective employees and aims to recognize and promote skills in the workforce, has been received positively in Bangladesh. NGOs such as Building Resources Across Communities (BRAC) have commended it, noting its mutual benefit. This highlights the real-world benefits of collaboration between our two countries.
The Ministry has long championed international labor collaboration and market inclusivity. With the 2021 Labor Reform Initiative (LRI), Saudi Arabia entered a new chapter of labor rights, empowering expatriate workers with job mobility and reinforcing fair employment practices. This landmark move significantly uplifts worker rights and strengthens legal protections.
Ongoing labor reforms are enhancing work conditions, job security, and employee rights in the Kingdom. With stricter labor law enforcement, a new wage protection system, and upgraded safety regulations, these changes underscore Vision 2030’s commitment to elevating living standards and driving positive shifts in the labor market. In advancing these reforms, the Kingdom looks beyond mere compliance; we are actively engaging with partners to further enrich the experiences of Bangladeshi workers in our nation.
It is a collaborative endeavour to forge a labor market that not only empowers but also honors every worker from Bangladesh with the respect and remuneration they deserve. This commitment transcends economic necessity—it embodies our mutual dedication to prosperity and a vision where progress is shared,and a collaborative spirit shapes a future that benefits all.
His Excellency Dr. Abdullah Abuthnain is the Vice Minister for Labor of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Entwined by history, bound by ambition: The BNP-Jamaat nexus again comes to the fore
In 1971, amid the tumult of the Liberation War, as the Pakistan army unleashed a campaign of terror—slaughtering millions, ravaging villages in their hunt for freedom fighters, and committing the rape of 20,000 women—it was the leaders and members of Jamaat-e-Islami who mounted a vigorous effort to quell the burgeoning independence movement and shield the perpetrators of these heinous war crimes. Acting as the principal accomplices to the Pakistan army, Jamaat's strategy to undermine and deceive the public about the noble quest for autonomy was as shocking as the scale of the carnage being perpetrated.
In stark opposition to the "Joy Bangla" slogan championed by freedom fighters, these war criminals propagated "Long Live Pakistan", vilifying all proponents of freedom, including war heroes and the Awami League leadership, as "enemies of Islam" and "criminals", while vehemently defending the actions of the Pakistan army. Leaders and members of Jamaat, along with their cohorts in Al-Badr and Al-Shams, colluded with the Pakistan military in acts of war crimes, aiming to extinguish the aspirations of liberty as envisioned by Awami League leader, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.
Contrary to the fate of the Nazis, who were held accountable at the Nuremberg Trials, the war criminals affiliated with Jamaat were instead empowered and given free rein after Bangladesh's independence, especially after the tragic assassination of the Father of the Nation and most of his family in 1975. They found patronage under military dictator Ziaur Rahman, the founder of BNP, and subsequently under his widow and son. The latter, despite evading justice, continues to run the party from the UK.
Five decades on, as the nation commemorated March 25, demanding international acknowledgment of the 1971 genocide, BNP leaders reignited national outrage by hosting the Ameer (President) of Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami at an event orchestrated by Tarique Rahman loyalists, according to media reports. The Ameer's vow at this gathering of "Let us continue to fight unitedly… we will win" underscores the enduring and deep-seated alliance between BNP and Jamaat.
This declaration of mutual support mirrored earlier instances, such as before the national election when Tarique solicited Jamaat's backing from London to disrupt the polls. Prior to the election, both parties collaborated to instigate violence against law enforcement and voters, aiming to seize power undemocratically under the guise of championing democracy.
The aftermath of independence saw the rise of violent extremism, particularly by Islami Chhatra Shibir, targeting leaders of the Chhatra League and engendering a culture of militancy within educational institutions, accompanied by a proliferation of hate speech online. I personally suffered an attack and mourn the loss of my junior, Arif Raihan Dweep, who was fatally stabbed in BUET, along with countless others who fell victim to Shibir's brutality on campuses, simply for their association with BCL.
As calls for the acknowledgment of war crimes grow louder, BNP's unabashed support for Jamaat is evident. Their collective failure to denounce the atrocities committed by the Pakistan army and their collaborators highlights BNP's endorsement of impunity for one of history's gravest genocides. Both parties have voiced concerns over the country's human rights situation, yet remain conspicuously silent on the 1971 genocide orchestrated by Jamaat.
This persistent silence and support for impunity raises a pressing question: Is there any precedent in the world where groups comprised of war criminals are permitted to participate in politics, sometimes even hailed by foreign entities as "essential for democracy"? As the shadow of the Liberation War looms large over Bangladesh, the reconciliation with its past remains a crucial step toward justice and democratic integrity.
The writer is coordinator, Awami League Web Team. Views expressed in this article are his own.
Bangladesh Genocide: the self-righteous innocent deniers
The genocide of Bengalis in what is now the independent nation of Bangladesh by the Pakistani Army and its supporters in 1971 is perhaps the least researched and acknowledged of all the post-World War II genocides that occurred in different countries. Donald Beachler, in his "The politics of genocide scholarship: the case of Bangladesh," published in, Nov 2007 stresses that "[n]o book-length study of the genocide in Bangladesh has been published in the United States; essays about it have appeared in some collections on genocide not in others." Beachler could find only one scholarly study titled "Atrocities against humanity during the liberation war in Bangladesh" by Akmam, Wadratul (2002), which addresses the Bangladesh Genocide.
Not only has the Bangladesh Genocide received the least attention, but the historical context of the 1971 Liberation War and the Genocide have been systematically distorted and denied by academics, journalists, and politicians on the right and pro-Maoist left.
Why denying Genocide?
Charny (2001) and Charny and Fromer (1990) coined the term 'Innocence-and-Self-Righteousness denial' to identify opportunist deniers. According to Charny (2001), the 'Innocence-and-Self-Righteousness,' the deniers "claim that they only intend to ascertain the truth. They "do not believe that human beings could have been so evil as the descriptions of the genocide imply." And they espouse 'forgive and forget' approach as genocide "took place a long time ago." However, Charny warns about the fake innocent denials, which in "many instances of ...are not at all innocent, but are the full-blown lies of deniers who are attempting to look like honest scholars and peace-promoting people. Such deniers, as Charny also argues, "… may more simply be out for their personal gain, economic advantage, or even more simply career advantage..." As it concerns the denying of the Bangladesh Genocide, two notable deniers seem to fit the profile of 'Innocence-and-Self-Righteousness' are Sarmila Bose (2005 , 2011 ) and David Bergman (2012 , 2014 ).
Sarmila Bose, the self-righteous innocent denierWhile Bose (2005) rightly notes the lack of systematic study of the violent conflicts during the Liberation War or Mukti Juddho, she intentionally uses the term "civil war" to highlight the internal strife that led to the conflict. The term “civil war” allegedly came from Henry Kissinger. Nayanika Mookherjee (2006) dismisses Bose’s use of the term 'civil war' and argues that such nomenclature as an attempt to "deflect the attention from its genocidal connotation" of the Pakistan military atrocities.
Bose defends her article as being "a systematic analysis of the context and nature of violence in the conflict of 1971." Yet, she deliberately twists evidence by emphasizing atrocities on Biharis to discount the extent of the Pakistani army's Genocide and the rapes of Bengalis. Ms. Bose continues to deny the genocidal acts of the Pakistani military and its collaborators in a 2011 book. Bose ignores Brownmiller (1975) , Jahan (2004) , Chaudhury (1972) , numerous reports, documentaries, victims' testimonies and selectively draws references and reports from Pakistani sources and uses the interviews of former Pakistani military commanders.
For instance, Brownmiller, a well-cited and authoritative book on violence against women, reports that the number of rapes committed by the Pakistani military ranges from as low as 200,000 to as high as 400,000. Jahan describes the horrific violence by the Pakistan army. Chaudhury provides a vivid illustration of the sufferings of the victims of rapes. A documentary broadcasted by the US-based NBC news network on February 20, 1972, shows a government shelter where many rape victims had babies (often referred to as war babies) and narrates, "It's the women who are silent, women like Sheeba…sixteen years old, widow and pregnant with a child of a Pakistani soldier." Shahriar Kabir (2007) also presents in a documentary the testimonies of the victims of rapes by the Pakistani military and its collaborators. None seem to matter in Sarmila Bose's tenacious defense of the Pakistani military's brutal action against Bengalis.
David Bergman, the seeker truth, and self-righteous innocent denierDavid Bergman, a disputed journalist, fits in Charny’s self-righteous innocent denier category. For instance, in a 2012 blog post, Bergman writes that “crimes were committed by both sides during the war” in the 1971 war. In another opinion piece in 2014, Bergman claims an innocent motive by asserting
“…it is important that journalists and independent researchers do assess the accuracy of this iconic figure of three million. This is not in order to minimise the extent of atrocities committed by the Pakistan military and its collaborators which were undoubtedly very significant, but for the purposes of a more accurate representation of history that is not in thrall to partisan interests.”
In both writings, Bergman claims journalistic and scholarly motives to discount the extent of Pakistani brutality on the Bengalis, largely borrowing from Sisson and Rose (1990). Beachler (2007) labels Sisson and Rose as Genocide deniers. According to Beachler, Session and Rose not only “denied a genocide took place” but also provided controversial death counts based on Pakistani accounts. Beachler (p. 486-87) elaborates as follows:
“They [Sission and Rose] cited the book Witness to Surrender by Siddiq Salik published in Karachi in 1977, as supporting their assertion, but they appear to have been truly convinced by their interviews with the military officers involved in Operation Searchlight. Their corroboration of Salik’s book seemed to close the case for Sisson and Rose. Either they were unaware of the evidence pointing to genocide in Bangladesh or they chose to disregard it without ever informing the reader of their reasons for doing so.”
But what are Bose and Bergman's motivations behind Genocide denials? A person's credibility provides access to opportunities, and access to opportunities allows access to opportunities for financial, social, and political gains. Bose and Bergman derive their credibility from their association, affiliation, and, perhaps most importantly, their names. Sharmila Bose's name, sounding like a Hindu and the Hindus being one of the main targets of the Pakistan Genocide, appears to give her compassionate credibility among her readers. Why would a person of Hindu origin defend Pakistani atrocities? David Bergman, sounding Jewish name and Jews being the victims of the worst Genocide in the 20th century, provides him a shield to satisfy the Islamists and Pakistan as a credible seeker of truth. Again, why would a person of Jewish ancestry defend a group of Islamic extremists who desire their demise? Also, both Bose and Bergman derive their credibility by being connected to prominent families involved in India and Bangladesh's independence movements. Sarmila Bose is the grandniece of India's revered Independence movement leader, Subhas Chandra Bose. David Bergman is the son-in-law of a prominent leader of Bangladesh's independent movement, Dr. Kamal Hossain. Sarmila Bose's financial motivation is exposed in her defense of the Pakistani cause. She and William Milam, a former U.S. Ambassador to Bangladesh and Pakistan, defended the sale of F-16 fighter jets to Pakistan. Milam and Bose also defended Pakistan as a stable Muslim democracy while also praising former military ruler General Musharraf as a modernizer. While David Bergman’s financial motivation is unknown, a prominent Bangladesh editor with who Bergman worked questions his journalistic ethics.
Genocide denial-albeit innocent, is the act of revisionism and set dangerous historical contextCharny (2001) stresses that any form of denial, even the seemingly innocent denial, must be rejected and exposed. The impact of such revisionism “is no less vicious and dangerous than denials generated by anti-Semitism, or anti-Armenianism, or a generic anti-life position of celebrating the deaths of any victims of mass murder.” According to Charny, innocent deniers, such as Sharmila Bose and David as Bergman, purportedly engage in “a vicious form of intellectual and moral dishonesty” and equate them to accomplices and bystanders “who, in the course of actual events of genocide, enable and allow the actual perpetrators to execute the genocide.”
ABM Nasir, Ph.D. is the Professor of Economics,North Carolina Central University. He can be reached at [email protected]
World Oral Health Day 2024: Empower everyone, everywhere to value and care for oral health
On World Oral Health Day on 20 March 2024, the World Health Organization is calling for action in countries of the South-East Asia Region and among partners to promote oral health and reduce the burden of oral diseases.
Oral diseases are among the most common noncommunicable diseases worldwide. Despite being largely preventable, there were estimated to be more than 3.5 billion cases of such diseases and other related conditions globally in 2019. It is unfortunate that between 1990 and 2019, estimated case numbers of oral diseases in the world increased by more than 1 billion - a 50% increase.
These diseases impact health systems, economies, and individuals in participating in society and achieving their potential. They cause physical symptoms, functional limitations, and a detrimental impact on emotional, mental and social well-being.
Against this backdrop, WHO Member States at the Seventy-fifth World Health Assembly agreed to adopt a global strategy on oral health, including a framework for tracking progress with targets to be achieved by 2030. The global strategy sets the bold vision of universal health coverage (UHC) for oral health, reaching all individuals and communities by 2030. This enables people to enjoy the highest attainable state of oral health and live healthy and productive lives, including by tackling social and commercial determinants and risk factors of oral diseases and conditions.
Among the six WHO regions, South-East Asia reported the highest number of oral diseases and conditions in 2019 – approximately 900 million cases – reflecting the Region’s large population. Our Region also has the world’s highest oral cancer incidence and mortality, with the estimated age-standardized mortality for males at 8.1 per 100 000 being more than double the global average of 3.7 per 100 000.
The incidence rate for males and females at 14.4 and 4.5 per 100 000 respectively are also more than double the global average. Across our Region, the oral disease burden also shows strong inequalities, with higher prevalence and severity among poor and disadvantaged populations who generally have lower access to prevention, care and rehabilitation.
Fulfilling its commitments to technical guidance, WHO provided actionable guidance and technical support to all countries through the Action Plan for oral health in South-East Asia 2022–2030. The Action Plan focused on addressing the burden of oral diseases and conditions specific to the Region and the inequalities in access for vulnerable groups.
Four countries in our region have formulated national plans aligned to the Regional Plan which was approved in 2022. The key actions that are being adopted by countries include:
- developing packages of essential oral health services that meet priority needs to be delivered in primary health care settings
- designing innovative and effective workforce models with the engagement of both public and private oral health providers to address shortages and distribution imbalances in the workforce, and
- expanding oral health promotion in schools, workplaces and other community settings to engage, empower, and instill life-long oral hygiene practices
Contributing to the global target of environmentally sound oral health care, Thailand is one of three countries selected by WHO and UNEP globally to build capacity in the environmentally sound management of associated wastes under the Minamata Convention. A series of four online courses on oral health is being launched on OpenWHO to support countries build capacity of non-oral health and oral health professionals on essential services.
Interventions to reduce the burden of risk factors for oral diseases which are also common to noncommunicable diseases, through the implementation of WHO technical packages, continue to be priorities in the Region. These risk factors include tobacco use, the harmful use of alcohol and diets high in sugar.
I am pleased that all Member States are implementing the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control and the WHO MPOWER package. The Regional Office launched the Quit Tobacco app, the first of its kind by WHO, which targets all forms of tobacco and helps users to identify triggers, set targets, manage cravings and stay focused on quitting. Five countries have enforced taxes on sugar-sweetened beverages.
While pledging the continued technical support of WHO, I urge all stakeholders to leverage the guidance to accelerate progress towards a South-East Asia in which all people are empowered and enabled to lead healthy and productive lives and enjoy the highest attainable state of oral health.
Saima Wazed is the Regional Director, WHO South-East Asia Region
Countries in Asia and the Pacific need to work together to protect our common forest and fresh water resources
United we stand, divided we fall – it’s an old cliché, but when talking about access to fresh water in this Asia and Pacific region, it’s worth reminding ourselves how imperative it is to work together, within countries and across borders, to share and protect this precious resource.
Like water, our forests recognize no boundaries, but they are equally vulnerable and play such an important part in our region’s commonly shared ecosystem. They too need a united front to protect and restore our forests for the common good.
Taken together, water and forests are two of mother nature’s children.
Titas Gas disconnects over 11,300 gas connections in Munshiganj
This month, the world and our Asia-Pacific region observes two special days, back-to-back – International Day of Forests on the 21st of March, and World Water Day on the 22nd.
While each day has its own theme, ‘Forests and Innovation’ and ‘Water for Peace’, their natural bond is evident and essential. The latter reminds us that water can be a tool for peace, but unfair advantage by one country or community, or lack of access to water, can spark and intensify conflict and hostility. Likewise, neglect and over-exploitation of forests can lead to land disputes that can spill across borders, and impact communities, particularly those of Indigenous peoples in our region.
This is why countries in Asia and the Pacific need to work together to protect and enhance our common forest and water resources for this generation and for those still to come.
From the perspective of forests and water’s link to agrifood systems in Asia and the Pacific – the systems that provide us with the nutrition we need each day to survive and thrive – the stakes are high. In this region, water resources form the basis of agrarian prosperity and economic development. The vast majority of aquaculture produced in the world comes from this region, as just one example.
Yet more than 90 percent of this region’s population is on the brink of a water crisis, with water scarcity increasing across Asia and the Pacific. Transboundary water resources add a layer of complexity to the water scarcity challenges, with over 780 million people depending on transboundary rivers in the Asia-Pacific region.
And so governance of these shared water resources is vital for sustaining livelihoods, agriculture, and development, as well as for securing regional and international peace and prosperity. However, national water policy and regulatory responses in the Asia-Pacific region are often limited and, in some cases, not effectively operationalized in practice. Meantime, transboundary water treaties and institutions need greater political support.
With 3-year-old’s demise, death toll from Gazipur gas cylinder blast rises to 3
Hence, there is an urgent need to support countries in building stronger policy frameworks to navigate water scarcity, ensure inclusion in water management decisions, collect data, and establish sustainable and equitable water allocation systems. Working together, with shared commitments and actions, water and peace can coexist.
In this region, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), has established an FAO Asia-Pacific Water Scarcity Programme to bring water use to within sustainable limits. FAO is also helping to improve transboundary cooperation for effective management of shared water resources, working with eight countries in the Asia-Pacific region.
Reducing degradation of forests goes hand-in-hand with securing water resources. In forestry, FAO has worked with partners to compile a range of innovative technologies in the forest sector. Many of these innovations are being successfully applied in the region. Examples include the use of drones and advance remote sensing in forest management. Many countries in this region, with help from FAO, are deploying geospatial technologies for strengthening national forest monitoring.
Such innovations are important in the context of promoting sustainable supply and use of forest ecosystem services and crucial for advancing a sustainable bioeconomy. Employing them further can help achieve many other objectives too, like mapping and securing customary land which can empower the region’s Indigenous Peoples.
Indeed, innovative approaches under the United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration can contribute one third of the total climate mitigation needed to limit warming to below 2°C by 2030, while boosting food security and livelihoods.
We can already see the power of research and science and how they are pushing the boundaries of what we can do to protect and make better use of our forests and our water resources. By doing so, we can provide significant socio-economic and environmental benefits for countries in the Asia and Pacific region.
Let’s work together to help Mother Nature’s children not only survive but thrive.
Jong-Jin Kim is Assistant Director-General and Regional Representative, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
Opportunities and Challenges: Ambassador Haas reflects on two years in Bangladesh
My country’s 16th President, Abraham Lincoln, once said, “The best thing about the future is that it comes one day at a time.” As I begin my third year as U.S. Ambassador to Bangladesh, these words ring true – each day, I remain impressed by the potential of the country, by the energy and resiliency of its people, and by its vibrant civil society.
As I said last year, Bangladesh has come a very long way from its beginnings. As I look to the future – a future that comes one day at a time – I see opportunity, but also significant challenges. Prior to the January 7, 2024 parliamentary election, the United States advocated publicly for a free and fair election that would reflect the democratic aspirations of the people of Bangladesh.
This did not happen. The United States still cares deeply about democracy – in Bangladesh and elsewhere. Quite simply, we believe democracy is the best way to achieve enduring economic prosperity that serves all of a country’s people. We will continue to support the brave members of civil society and human rights defenders. We will continue to call for an end to the systematic repression and harassment of media professionals who are just doing their jobs. We will continue to press for greater freedom of speech and assembly. And we will continue to call for meaningful political dialogue to pave the way for a more open, peaceful, and democratic society.
At the same time, we will look for areas where Bangladesh and the United States have shared interests. On these issues, the United States is willing to move as quickly as Bangladesh is. I have already begun a series of meetings with cabinet members of the new government, looking for opportunities where we can collaborate on areas of mutual importance.
Social and environmental resilience, for example, is critically important. My team and I intend to continue engagement with Bangladesh on climate change and the transition to clean energy. Climate change affects everyone, Americans and Bangladeshis alike. And I hope to build on our excellent cooperation that brought more than one hundred million of Covid vaccines to the people of Bangladesh.
The security relationship between our countries and in the region is also an important one. Our militaries (or armed forces) and law enforcement officials are finding more ways to expand their ability to work together to counter security threats and alleviate the impact of natural disasters. We also hope to play a role in the modernization of Bangladesh’s military.
On the labor front, the United States believes that Bangladesh must align its laws, policies, and practices with international labor standards. President Biden has set out a Global Labor Strategy that prioritizes labor rights around the world. This Strategy will guide our actions in encouraging Bangladesh to adopt laws and policies that ensure workers can form and join independent, democratic unions freely and without fear, reprisal or retribution.
The United States remains committed to supporting Bangladesh’s progress on labor rights, including through targeted development assistance. The United States is by far the largest foreign investor in Bangladesh, as well as the largest single market for Bangladesh’s exports of goods and services. We can – and should – make our economic relationship function for everyone’s benefit.
Finally, we will continue to work closely with the government to sustainably provide humanitarian assistance to nearly one million Rohingya survivors of genocide, and to seek a safe, voluntary, dignified, and sustainable return home for all, once conditions in Myanmar allow.
The future comes one day at a time, and each day brings opportunity. Know that the United States stands with the people of Bangladesh as you reach towards that future – and we will always support you on your journey.
Good-bye Helal bhai
I didn’t even know that Ihsanul Karim Helal bhjai was seriously unwell and was hospitalized. I learnt that from the obituary published in the media. They refer to his month long hospitalization but not the cause of his ill health. It doesn’t even mention how old he was. It’ as if I was reading an anonymous death notice and a stranger had died. Except that I knew him and loved him like my own older brother.
Nothing else mattered to me when I read the notice. I felt an overwhelming sense of sadness and loss. It didn’t matter that I hadn’t met or talked to him in the last decade.
BBC days
I was the reporter for the BBC Bengali service during the heady days of Awami League’s final years out of power for long that is 1994-95. I did my daily dispatch for six days and Helal bhai held the weekend. He was then working for the BSS and was absolutely the nicest person to be with in the tumultuous days of street protests, violence and the rest.
We however came from two different media positions. I held then and still do that a journalist will find it very difficult to report objectively if they have strong political beliefs. In fact I was a political “cynic “type who didn’t even subscribe to any political identity. I still don’t.
Helal bhai was very different because he was not just a loyalist of the Awami League but close to the current PM. In fact the entire family was in some ways. Helal bhai never hid his views and saw that as his duty. Yet Helal bhai’s reporting held no bias and it was both a surprise and a pleasure to see that. After all, I cared more about him than media reports.
He was more of a desk person in the sense that he knew his way around and people who were involved in politics. He could get information simply by asking, which I couldn't do that easily. I was more of the street variety reporter and perhaps closer to Ataus Samad bhai that way. We liked the gunfire and smoke, billowing smoke rising from burning tires and interviews done on the run. But Helal bhai’s credibility was unshakeable and the audience reports clearly showed that.
His brief background
BDNews 24 has published this brief bio.
“ Ihsanul, karim a distinguished journalist with a career spanning over 40 years, was born on Jan 5, 1951, in Kushtia. He graduated from Dhaka University and did his post-graduation at the Indian Institute of Mass Communication (IIMC).
He joined the Liberation War in 1971 and fought in the western frontier as a member of the Bangladesh Liberation Force (BLF).
He started his career as a staff correspondent of the government-run news agency Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha or BSS in 1972. He worked as the bureau chief of BSS in New Delhi for five years from 1997.He also worked as the Bangladesh correspondent of several international media, including the BBC, and the Press Trust of India. Nicknamed Helal, he was known to his colleagues as “Helal Bhai”.
He was appointed the prime minister’s press secretary in 2015 for a year. His contract was extended by three years in 2016 and a further three years in 2019.Before joining the Prime Minister’s Office, Ihsanul worked as the president’s press secretary, and managing director and chief editor of BSS.
He is survived by his wife Shireen Karim, a son and a daughter. “
The details of his life are there but what no bio or obituary can capture is his grace, dignity and friendship. Good bye Helal bhai. Till we meet again.