The US is encouraged to see that people from different faith groups live together peacefully in Bangladesh, but there are some elements who divide and create conflicts, said US Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom Rashad Hussain today.
“By and large, from my observation, for example, I see Hindus and Muslims are living together peacefully,” he said after holding a meeting with the State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shahriar Alam at the foreign ministry today.
Asked about his statement on the violence against the Hindu community during Durga Puja celebration last year, he said he was very concerned about that.
However, he said, “We were also very encouraged to see strong statement from the government.”
He said he visited some people of the Hindu communities this morning and their own assessment was that Hindus and Muslims are living together largely peacefully.
“But, there are some people who are coming from the outside and trying to create conflicts so we must not allow those that are trying to divide us and create that type of division,” Rashad Hussain told journalists.
Asked who were the outsiders trying to create division, he said that’s a question for the law enforcement agencies to investigate.
“We must encourage those who are trying to bring people together and condemn those who are trying to divide us.”
He said the US believes in religious freedom of all –Christians, Buddhists, Muslims and Hindus.
“We want to see religious freedom for all people everywhere in the world. Whether it is Pakistan, Bangladesh, India or the United States. That’s our message here.”
Hussain, the first Muslim-American ever to hold the title of ambassador-at-large for Religious Freedom, was also President Obama’s special envoy to the Organisation for Islamic Cooperation (OIC). He began his four-day visit to Bangladesh on April 17.
He visited the Rohingya camps in Cox’s Bazar, Hindu-Buddha-Christian Oikya Parishad leaders, students and faculty members of the Department of World Religions and Culture, University of Dhaka and participated in an iftar with 19 Bangladeshi US government Exchange Alumni at EMK Centre in the city.