United News of Bangladesh

More than 500 foreign observers and journalists are set to visit Bangladesh to monitor and cover the upcoming referendum and national parliamentary election, officials said. A total of 540 foreign nationals will arrive in the country, including around 60 representatives from foreign election commissions and election-related institutions invited by the Bangladesh Election Commission (EC), about 330 international observers from global organisations, and nearly 150 foreign journalists from 45 international media outlets. Among the EC-invited guests are the chief election commissioners of Bhutan and Nigeria, the chairman of Malaysia’s Election Commission, and the standing committee chairman of the International Conference of Asian Political Parties (ICAPP) from South Korea. Delegations are also expected from Turkey, Malaysia, Indonesia, Nigeria, the Philippines, Georgia, Russia, Sri Lanka, South Africa, Jordan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Pakistan and Iran. Around 150 foreign journalists will cover the referendum and election, including reporters from Al Jazeera, NHK, BBC News, Associated Press (AP), Reuters, ABC Australia and Deutsche Welle, as well as media organisations from Spain, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Australia, India and Pakistan. International election observers include 223 members from the European Union, 25 from the Commonwealth, 28 from the Asian Network for Free Elections (ANFREL), 12 from the International Republican Institute (IRI), and others from different organisations. The Election Commission said visa arrangements for foreign guests, observers and journalists have already been completed and necessary measures have been taken to ensure they can observe the referendum and election independently and impartially.

Foreign Affairs Adviser Md Touhid Hossain on Tuesday said the government will encourage foreign nationals who wish to come as election observers but does not want anyone arriving in the guise of the observers with the intention of tarnishing Bangladesh’s reputation. “We will definitely encourage those who want to come as observers. But we do not want anyone to come intentionally to tarnish our reputation in the name of observation,” he said. Talking to reporters at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Hossain reaffirmed the government’s strong commitment to holding a ‘free, fair and transparent’ election in Bangladesh. No response on request for Hasina’s extradition: Touhid Hossain US-based International Republican Institute (IRI), the European Union and the Commonwealth have already sent pre-election assessment missions to Bangladesh. “We think it’s a good sign,” said the Foreign Affairs Adviser, adding that as the election approaches, more delegations will definitely come to observe. “We want election observation to take place so that the transparency, freedom and fairness of the election are clearly demonstrated before everyone,” Hossain added. The interim government plans to hold the 13th parliamentary election in early February next year.