Refusing to stand together with ‘terrorists and war criminals’, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has said that the nation is already united against terrorism and militancy.
“Don’t you think national unity against terrorism and militancy has been forged? I think the nation is already united,” she said at a press briefing at the Ganabhaban on Sunday.
But the ‘case is different’ when it comes to those who ‘burn people to death or commit war crimes’, she added, in a thinly veiled attack on the BNP and coalition partner Jamaat-e-Islami.
“Those, who after getting united will be able to eliminate terrorism for real, has already come together and this unity will persist. This is the reality,” Hasina said.
Without naming BNP chief Khaleda Zia, the prime minister said no-one will be allowed cause harm.
After the July 1 terror attack at an upscale cafe in Dhaka’s Gulshan, Khaleda had called for national unity regardless of party affiliations and views.
In response, leaders of the ruling Awami League had first asked her to sever all ties with the Jamaat, which had opposed Bangladesh’s independence from Pakistan in 1971.
Several pro-BNP professionals have also urged Khaleda to leave the Jamaat’s side.
Asked whether she thought extremism and terrorism will stop if the government sits with the BNP, Prime Minister Hasina said she wondered whether terrorism will stop if a dialogue is held.
“That means, maybe they are trying to say that they will continue backing and carrying out terrorist activities if we don’t hold discussions.”
Hasina, who heads the Awami League, said her administration has ramped up security and precautionary measures from the ground up throughout Bangladesh to stop terror attacks.
She also spoke about the raft of measures the authorities have taken since the attack earlier this month.
The prime minister held Sunday’s press conference to brief the media on her recent visit to Mongolia to attend the 11th summit of the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM).
Source: New Age