Bangladesh has demanded a formal public apology for the “atrocities” committed by Pakistan during the 1971 Liberation War and raised pending financial claims during the first Foreign Office Consultations (FOC) meeting in 15 years. Bangladesh has also sought $4.52 billion from Pakistan as part of its share of pre-1971 assets. After the 1971 War, East Pakistan split from West Pakistan to form an independent Bangladesh.
This came up at FOC meeting between Bangladesh Foreign Secretary Jashim Uddin and visiting Pakistani counterpart Amna Baloch, ahead of Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar’s visit to Dhaka on April 27 and 28.
Foreign Secretary Amna Baloch led the Pakistani delegation while Foreign Secretary Md Jashim Uddin represented Bangladesh. Bangladesh and Pakistan are trying to rebuild their strategic ties after one-and-a-half decades to remain engaged on pending issues.
“We have raised the historically unresolved issues with Pakistan. These issues need to be resolved to establish a solid foundation for our bilateral relations,” Md Jashim Uddin told reporters after the meeting. He said the issues included “the repatriation of stranded Pakistanis, equitable distribution of undivided assets, transfer of foreign aid funds sent for the victims of the 1970 cyclone, and a formal public apology for the genocide committed by the then Pakistani military in 1971”.
“We said this is the right time to settle the historical unsettled issues,” the Bangladesh Foreign Secretary said, adding these issues needed to be resolved for having a “solid foundation of our relations” for mutual benefits and interests.
Asked what was the Pakistani side’s response to the call, Uddin said they would like to “remain engaged” with a positive outlook to discuss the unsettled issue in future.
After the talks at the State Guesthouse in Padma, Baloch called on Bangladesh Interim Government Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus and Foreign Affairs Adviser Touhid Hossain separately.
According to the Foreign Secretary, Dhaka also asked Pakistan to pay up the unpaid $200 million foreign donation for victims in the then East Pakistan after the 1970’s cyclone.
Asked if the money devaluation over the decades was taken into consideration in quoting the amounts, the officer said the issue was tabled during the FOC and its details are expected to come up during the subsequent talks.
The Foreign Secretary said the FOC fixed April 27 and 28 for Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar’s planned Bangladesh visit. The talks come amid a thaw between the two countries after the ouster of Sheikh Hasina in August last year.
The Yunus-led government appears to be playing down the role of Hasina’s father Mujibur Rehman in Bangladesh liberation in 1971. The Indian Army took over 90,000 Pakistan soldiers as Prisoners of War.
The Pakistani Army’s crackdown on the Bengali population of East Pakistan in March 1971 has been a sore point between the two nations since the formation of Bangladesh. During the Pakistani Army’s ‘Operation Searchlight’, around 30 lakh Bengalis were believed to have been killed, and scores of women raped.
The two sides also discussed the launch of direct flights between Bangladesh and Pakistan. Bangladesh also raised the issue of the repatriation of more than 3 lakh Pakistanis stranded and living in relief camps in Bangladesh.
Pakistan’s Foreign Secretary Amna Baloch also met Muhammad Yunus and Foreign Affairs Adviser Md Touhid Hossain separately on Thursday.
India’s rebuke to Dhaka: Focus on your own minorities
India on Friday rejected remarks by Bangladeshi officials on violence in West Bengal and asked Dhaka to focus on protecting the rights of its minorities instead of indulging in “virtue signalling”.
“We reject the remarks made by the Bangladesh side with regard to the incidents in West Bengal,” Ministry of External Affairs(MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said. “This is a barely disguised and disingenuous attempt to draw a parallel with India’s concerns over the ongoing persecution of minorities in Bangladesh where the criminal perpetrators of such acts continue to roam free,” he said.
Jaiswal was responding to media queries regarding comments made by Bangladesh officials on the developments in West Bengal. “Instead of making unwarranted comments and indulging in virtue signalling, Bangladesh would do better to focus on protecting the rights of its own minorities,” he said.
The sharp reaction came after Shafiqul Alam, the Press Secretary to Bangladesh Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus, on Thursday called on New Delhi and the West Bengal government to take “all steps to fully protect the minority Muslim population”. “We condemn attacks on Muslims that caused loss of lives and properties,” he had said. “We urge the Governments of India and West Bengal to take all steps to fully protect the minority Muslim population,” Alam had added.