The European Union (EU) has described the current Bangladesh situation as very critical and fears further attacks like that of Gulshan café and is actively considering sending back their staff members’ families to Europe.
“We’re not overreacting,” the BBC Bangla quoted EU Ambassador in Dhaka Pierre Mayaudon as saying on Wednesday.
He said their concerns after the July 1 attack are yet to be removed and mentioned that it will be insulting to those killed and their family members if anybody says that they are overreacting.
In an interview with the BBC Bangla, the EU Ambassador said they are actively considering sending back their staff members’ families to Europe due to the current security concern. “We’ll take the final decision within the next few days.”
A security expert from the EU headquarters has already arrived in Dhaka and the expert will complete the security evaluation within a week, the EU envoy was quoted as saying.
Ambassadors of the European countries last week met commerce minister Tofail Ahmed and urged the government to ensure security all over Bangladesh and not just concentrating only on the diplomatic zone, as their business and development activities are spread across the country.
After the meeting with the commerce minister, Pierre Mayaudon, said, “It’s ssential that we care not just about the security condition in Gulshan, Banani and Baridhara, the areas where we live. We care about the security situation in every square kilometre of this country.”
The EU runs its development activities outside the diplomatic enclave and its investors also have businesses outside the diplomatic enclave.
The terrorist attack on the Dhaka cafe has dramatically changed the EU’s perception over the security arrangement available in Bangladesh.
Source: Prothom Alo