More than 160 global leaders, 104 Nobel Laureates and 79 global figures, have sent an open letter to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina of Bangladesh on August 28, 2023, against the political victimization of Professor Muhammad Yunus. It is the largest diplomatic yet scathing pressure and concern of the international community against the Hasina regime’s political vengeance against the Bangladeshi Nobel Laureate in particular, and her human rights violations in the country in general.
The signatories to the letter included former US President Barack Obama, former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, former UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon, former President of Ireland Mary Robinson, President of East Timor Jose Ramos-Horta, and Nobel Laureates Albert Arnold Gore Jr (peace), Orhan Pamuk (literature), Harvey J Alter (medicine) and others.
Their latest concern emanated from an international law firm stating that Professor Yunus faced six months in jail for the crime he did not commit, nor does this crime exist. The leaders write, “This letter attempts to build upon an earlier appeal of March 2023 to you by 40 global leaders who were concerned about his safety and freedom.” According to Sam Daley-Harris, the founder of the US-based Civic Courage and the anti-poverty RESULT, “the attacks on Muhammad Yunus are what you’d expect from an authoritarian government. When a government controls all the levels of power, the media, the courts, and the parliament, it does whatever it can to stay in power.”
“We write to you as Nobel Prize laureates, elected officials, and business and civil society leaders, and as friends of Bangladesh. However, we are deeply concerned by the threats to democracy and human rights that we have observed in Bangladesh recently,” reads the letter. In addition to suspending all judicial proceedings against Professor Yunus and resolving the cases through impartial, and possibly international judges, the letter also urges the Hasina regime to ensure a free, fair, and participatory national election that is due soon.
The letter concludes with the signatories saying, “We will join with millions of concerned citizens around the world in closely tracking how these matters are resolved in the days ahead.”
The Coalition for Human Rights & Democracy in Bangladesh (CHRD Bangladesh) fully supports the Open Letter of eminent global leaders and urges the Sheikh Hasina government to drop all politically biased cases against Professor Yunus and others, and honor internationally recognized standards of human rights and democracy for the people of Bangladesh.