The Bay WaveYunus in the past two months has been slapped with a $5 million tax bill, a travel ban, and a suspended jail sentence for allegedly violating labor laws, on top of well over a hundred pending cases against him.
Yunus Says He is Not Welcomed by the Ruling Regime
The United States Department of State has voiced its concerns regarding the legal proceedings against Nobel laureate Professor Muhammad Yunus in Bangladesh.
Addressing the issue during a routine press briefing in Washington, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller acknowledged the potential misuse of Bangladesh’s laws to target and intimidate Professor Yunus.
Miller highlighted the comments made by a Bangladesh Anti-Corruption Commission attorney, who accused US Ambassador to Bangladesh, Peter Haas, of interference in favor of Professor Yunus. In response, Miller clarified that Ambassador Haas was merely reiterating the US government’s concerns in his capacity as the highest-ranking US representative in Bangladesh.
“So, we are aware of the comments in question. You have heard me speak before about the US Government’s concerns surrounding the cases against Muhammad Yunus, including that they could represent a potential misuse of Bangladesh’s laws to harass and intimidate the Professor,” the US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller told a routine press briefing on Monday at his office in Washington, responding to a question.
His attention was drawn to the Bangladesh Anti-Corruption Commission attorney’s recent remark where he accused and sought legal action against the US ambassador to Bangladesh, Peter Haas, for his comments in favor of Nobel Laureate Professor Muhammad Yunus, saying the ruling regime was politically harassing Professor Yunus.
Professor Muhammad Yunus, renowned for his pioneering work in microfinance, currently faces corruption charges in Dhaka. Despite experiencing a hostile environment in the country, Professor Yunus remains hopeful of eventually receiving justice. Refuting allegations leveled against him, including being labeled a “blood-sucker of the poor” and a “tax evader” by the Prime Minister, Professor Yunus expressed bewilderment over the hostility directed towards him.
Recently, Ambassador Haas hosted Professor Yunus at a dinner, where they discussed collaborative efforts to improve the lives of people globally. During the event, Professor Yunus engaged in dialogue with Greg Nelson, chief technology officer of Opportunity International, an organization dedicated to promoting microfinance programs worldwide. The discussions also touched upon the health programs of Grameen and Opportunity International, exploring potential avenues for collaboration between the two entities.
In an exclusive interview with New Age, Professor Yunus emphasized the importance of democratic transformation in fostering integrated economic development. While disavowing any intention to reenter politics, he stressed the significance of democratic principles and national unity in addressing political challenges. Professor Yunus cautioned against foreign intervention in Bangladesh’s internal affairs, advocating for democratic solutions to national issues.
While asked about his remarks by DW regarding democracy and his intention to go back to politics, Yunus denied his intention to go back and said everyone should want to see proper democracy in the country.
Earlier, the State Department, which has sanctioned Bangladeshi individuals accused of undermining the Jan. 7 election in which Hasina won a fourth consecutive term, said the case against Yunus was “tried with unusual speed” in what could be an effort to “harass and intimidate” him.
“We worry the perceived misuse of labor and anti-corruption laws could raise questions about the rule of law and dissuade future foreign direct investment, and we encourage the Bangladeshi government to ensure a fair and transparent legal process for Dr. Yunus as the appeals process continues,” spokesperson Matthew Miller told reporters on Feb. 13.
A deputy attorney general in Bangladesh was fired in September after telling reporters that Yunus was being judicially harassed.
Yunus has received expressions of support from around the world. In August, almost 200 prominent global figures, including 108 Nobel laureates, signed an open letter to Hasina asking for a review of the charges against Yunus by a panel of impartial judges.
“We are confident that any thorough review of the anti-corruption and labor law cases against him will result in his acquittal,” the letter read.
Its signatories included former United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and former President Barack Obama, who in 2009 awarded Yunus the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest U.S. civilian honor.
In a letter to Hasina on January, 12 U.S. senators also urged an end to what they called “persistent harassment” of Yunus and “the pattern of abusing laws and the justice system to target critics of the government more broadly.”
Officials in Bangladesh say the country has an independent judicial system and that critics abroad are interfering inappropriately.
“The signatories to the letter would be well advised to counsel Dr. Muhammad Yunus to operate within the bounds of law instead of making unjustified insinuations about Bangladesh’s democratic and electoral processes,” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in September, in response to the letter from the Nobel laureates.
Bangladesh, a Muslim-majority parliamentary democracy of 170 million people, is the world’s eighth-most-populous country and one of its least developed. Last year, it ranked 127th out of 142 countries in the World Justice Project’s Rule of Law Index, and its score has been steadily decreasing.
Yunus reiterated in interviews with NBC and CNN’s Amanpour Show, “This is where I grew up.”
Yunus, who had been teaching at Middle Tennessee State University, returned to Bangladesh after it gained independence in 1971. In 1983, he founded Grameen Bank, which gave small, long-term loans on easy terms to low-income individuals, especially women, so they could start their businesses, a concept known as microcredit.
The hope was that such loans, which have now spread around the world including in the United States, could be used to help eradicate poverty, though results have been mixed.
Since returning to power in 2009, Hasina has attacked Yunus continuously, calling him a “bloodsucker” of the poor and accusing Grameen Bank of charging them exorbitant interest rates.
Yunus denied that his organization had engaged in abusive practices and said there was a difference between “right microcredit” and “wrong microcredit,” in which companies charge high interest rates.
Microcredit “should be done as a social business, not a profit-making business,” he said.
The only reason Hasina might view him as a political threat, Yunus said, is that “she sees that I’m very popular among the people because I’ve worked for them and I’ve visited almost every village in the country doing my work.”
Though friends in the United States and elsewhere have urged him to leave Bangladesh, Yunus says that is not an option “because this is where I grew up.”
He said he was also concerned for the people he works with.
“If I go, what happens to them? They will be in jail,” he said. “And I’ll blame myself — ‘Why did I leave them to be in jail while I’m enjoying life in another country?’”
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