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DHAKA: The Retired BCS Officers’ Platform (ROP), an organisation of retired Bangladesh Civil Service officials, has strongly condemned the alleged harassment of Nobel Peace Prize laureate and former interim government chief adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus at John F. Kennedy International Airport in the United States.
In a statement issued on Friday (October 16), the organisation’s president and former secretary Mohammad Abdul Qayyum and secretary general and former senior secretary K.M. Kabirul Islam expressed their outrage over the incident.
The statement said they were deeply angered by the discourteous and insulting behaviour of some individuals towards Yunus during his visit to the United States on October 12. They described such conduct towards an octogenarian senior citizen in a wheelchair as extremely disrespectful and unacceptable.
It added that freedom of expression is a fundamental right of every citizen. However, blocking an elderly person’s path and subjecting him to discourteous and distasteful behaviour could not be accepted under any circumstances. The organisation’s leaders also claimed that the allegations against Yunus were false, fabricated and imaginary.
According to the statement, Yunus took responsibility as chief adviser of the interim government amid the political crisis following the July uprising and played a role in helping the nation overcome the crisis. It said he had also set a rare example by peacefully handing over power following a free and democratic election.
The statement further said the nation was grateful to Yunus for his role in rebuilding the country after the fall of fascism, addressing the economic crisis, pursuing political and administrative reforms, and taking initiatives to establish a democratic system.
The ROP leaders urged the people to remain united in the spirit of the July uprising to protect the country’s independence and sovereignty and to remain vigilant against conspiracies.
They also called on the government to immediately pursue legal action through diplomatic channels against those responsible for tarnishing the country’s image.
