The Speaker of Parliament has expressed hope dialogue between the two main political parties would help ‘ease the current deadlock’.
“Both the parties are positive about a dialogue. Just the place, time and topic of their discussion are yet to be decided. The deadlock will end when the dialogues begin,” Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury said.
She made the remarks on Sunday after meeting the UN Assistant Secretary-General for Political Affairs Oscar Fernández-Taranco.
Chaudhury said Taranco wanted to know about the role of the Speaker for a possible dialogue.
It can take place in Parliament, but the two parties will have to decide. A discussion in Parliament will be free from all forms of discrimination since everyone has equal rights here, she added.
“Parliament can hold all forms of discussions. I want the opposition to return to Parliament,” said Chaudhury who has been in the office for a few weeks.
The team of representatives from UN is meeting with the relevant people to ensure that the next parliamentary election is free and fair, she said.
When asked if the ongoing political conflict was discussed in their meeting, the Speaker said they were trying to encourage all sides to have dialogue.
About her own role and what she wanted to achieve by these two squabbling sides to the discussion table, Chaudhury said, “They (BNP and AL) will have to reach a decision. I will facilitate it once they decide.”
The UN Assistant Secretary-General, however, refused comment before the media about what he discussed with the Speaker but mentioned that a press briefing will be held on Monday.
Taranco arrived in Dhaka on Friday on a four-day tour to examine the pre-election environment in Bangladesh.
Taranco met Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina at the Ganabhaban and Leader of the Opposition Khaleda Zia on Saturday.
Two teams from BNP and Jatiya Party have also met the UN Assistant Secretary General.
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and heads of diplomatic missions in Dhaka have expressed their concerns over the raging political conflicts and called for talks to resolve the crisis.
Source: bdnews24
