Hasina sees local, foreign conspiracy

Denying the existence of Islamic State in Bangladesh, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina yesterday said a local and foreign conspiracy is afoot to establish that cohorts of IS are active in the country.

"By doing this they want to place Bangladesh in the same line with other Muslim countries reeling under militancy, terrorism and conflicts.

Our acknowledgement in this regard would make it easy for them to invade Bangladesh like other countries," she said.

The prime minister was speaking at a press briefing at her Gonobhaban residence in the capital.

The briefing was organised to inform the media about the outcome of her first official visit to the Netherlands on November 3-6.

Hasina said, "Many quarters are pressing us to confess the IS existence in Bangladesh to create a situation here like the ones in Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Libya".

Without naming any country, she said, "They want to bring Bangladesh in line with those countries and that is the part of their conspiracy.
"My question is, if they can take an acknowledgement from us of the existence of IS in Bangladesh, what will be the situation of our country?" she asked, adding, "We don't want a situation in Bangladesh like Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria or Libya."

"International parties are involved with the conspiracy as well. Unfortunately, some of our local people too are linked with it. As a nation we will have to face dire consequences if we don't take care about it," she warned.

She also urged people to remain conscious about the issue.

Hasina said her government is under tremendous pressure to acknowledging that militants of Islamic State exist in Bangladesh.

"But, our observation is clear as we know the elements behind the recent killing of foreigners, bloggers and police personnel," she claimed.

The prime minister said, "many incidents" are taking place across the world and Bangladesh is also not out of that "common phenomenon".

Hasina held the BNP and Jamaat responsible for the recent killings in Bangladesh.

She alleged after failing to dislodge the government through subversive activities, arson, petrol bomb attacks and killings, they have now resorted to secret killings. "They want to create an unstable situation here," she said.

The prime minister said the people who were caught in connection with the killings are mostly members of a particular group. During their student days, they were involved with the politics of Islami Chhatra Shibir and BNP, she alleged.

Hasina lamented that the conspiracy is going against Bangladesh at a time when the country is progressing economically.

She claimed her government has information that a group of people is supplying money and another group is carrying out the killings and subversive incidents.

On the claim of some western countries about the insecurity of their citizens in Bangladesh, the premier said many Bangladeshi people were murdered in the USA over the years.

No one can ask the question to the US president why the US cities became unsafe for them, she pointed out.

Hasina said the government has taken the best possible and adequate security measures all over the country to ensure law and order.

NO TALKS WITH KHALEDA

Ruling out any dialogue with BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia, the prime minister said she (Khaleda) missed the opportunity when it came to reach a national consensus before January 5, 2014 elections.

Now Bangladesh is not in a situation or political crisis for what the government needs to sit with a "killer", Hasina said.

Also, the prime minister questioned the intension of Khaleda for the national dialogue, saying Khaleda is carrying out the killings and subversive activities to press home their demand for sitting in the dialogue and declare the national election.

NETHERLANDS VISIT

Hasina said her just-concluded visit to the Netherlands has added a new dimension to the bilateral relations between Dhaka and Amsterdam and further brightened country's image on the world stage, particularly in Europe.

"I believe that the tour has further consolidated and widened the bilateral cooperation between the Netherlands and Bangladesh and made it visible," she said.