MP’s detention in Oman embarrassing for expatriate Bangladeshis: MoFA

The detention of Member of Parliament Khadizatul Anwar Soni – for holding a political meeting without prior permission in Oman – is an embarrassment for expatriate Bangladeshis, the foreign ministry has said.

"We expect that expatriates will uphold local laws and regulations, especially during visits by high-level delegations from Bangladesh, to avoid encountering such uncomfortable situations," spokesperson at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Seheli Sabrin said during a briefing yesterday.

"Such incidents are embarrassing for expatriate Bangladeshis and the government," she said.

She also said 17 Bangladeshi citizens, including MP Khadizatul Anwar Soni, have been released from police custody in Oman.

Seheli said they were detained as no prior permission was taken to hold a meeting.

The Bangladesh Mission in Oman took instant steps following the detention and they were released after a discussion between both sides.

The meeting was held at Haffa House Hotel in Muscat on Tuesday.

Teesta issue

Meanwhile, Seheli Sabrin said Dhaka welcomes the recent recommendation made by India's Parliamentary Standing Committee regarding Teesta water sharing agreement describing it as "encouraging and significant".

"It is surely encouraging and meaningful; especially MPs from all political parties of India are in this committee. That is why such a recommendation generated hope among us," Seheli Sabrin said regarding a question.

She said they noticed through the Bangladesh Mission in New Delhi that the committee recommended reaching consensus on Teesta water sharing through meaningful dialogue to strengthen the relations between the two countries.

The Parliamentary Standing Committee on External Affairs in India recently unanimously recommended to the government to resolve the pending Teesta water sharing issue at the earliest "to improve the bilateral relation further" with Bangladesh.

Recalling earlier discussions, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina reiterated Bangladesh's long pending request for concluding the interim agreement on the sharing of the waters of the Teesta River, the draft of which was finalised in 2011.

In September last year, PM Hasina and her Indian counterpart Narendra Modi also directed the officials to work together to address issues such as pollution in rivers and to improve riverine environment and river navigability in respect of common rivers.

The standing committee composed of all parties' lawmakers submitted the report on "India's Neighborhood First Policy" in both the houses of the Parliament – Rajyasabha, upper house and Loksabha, lower house, on 25 July.

The report contains a special chapter on the bilateral relations between India and Bangladesh.

Extraditions of Rashed-Noor

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has stated that the concerned countries are not interested in addressing the political process in the return of Rashed Chowdhury and Noor Chowdhury, the self-confessed killers of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, who are in the US and Canada.

Seheli Sabrin said, "It is regrettable that these self-confessed murderers are avoiding punishment using the law as shields. There has been no interest from the two countries to resolve the issue of their extradition in a political process."

"The US and Canada continue to state that their judicial departments are aware of the matter, citing their judicial departments or related legal processes," she added.

EMF observers

Regarding the foreign observers who visited Bangladesh recently at the invitation of the Election Monitoring Forum (EMF), Seheli Sabrin said, "If any information is requested from the Election Commission regarding the foreign observers, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will provide appropriate assistance."

When asked whether there are discussions with diplomats about the return of arson terrorism in politics, the spokesperson said, Bangladesh government has a zero tolerance policy against any type of terrorism.

"The government's clear stand against such terrorist activities is communicated to foreign embassies through various channels," she added.