BD Alert July 17 2012

If you care for the third largest Muslim country in the world, Bangladesh and want to help Muslims there, you can do so by sparing 10 minutes today! Tomorrow might be too late.

 

Finally the bi-partisan Congressional Human Rights Commission will be holding a hearing tomorrow on the worsening human rights in Bangladesh. They are talking about all appropriate issues except the human rights of the Islamic opposition leaders who are subject to unfair trials for the fake 40 year old charges of rape and murder during the war.

 

It is extremely critical that you call your congressman today.

 

Action Item 1:

Call your Congressman today. Tomorrow will be too late!

 

Click here to find out who your congressman is and his or her contact information.

 

Ask them the following question:

Are you attending the hearing of Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission on human rights in Bangladesh?

 

This hearing will take place at 1:00 PM on 7/19/2012, in B-318 Rayburn HOB.
The hearing is open to members of Congress, congressional staff, the media and the interested public.

 

If they are not attending please urge them to do so. Tell them to attend or send a senior staff person to attend it. Ask them to raise questions about the human rights violations of political detainees falsely accused of crimes 40 year ago. Are these war tribunal fair according to the international standards?

 

 

Action Item 2:

Call the following Congressman who are the members of the Commission and urge them to include questions about the killing opposition through unfair trails of opposition leaders on 40 year old charges.

 

James McGovern CoChair (D-MA) 202-225-6101

Frank Wolf CoChair (R-VA) 202-225-5136

Tammy Baldwin (D-WI)             202-225-2906

Janice Schakowsky (D-IL)            202-225-2111

Keith Ellison (D-MN) 202-225-4755
Donna Edwards (D-MD) 202-225-8699

Christopher H. Smith (R-NJ) 202-225-3765
Joseph R. Pitts (R-PA)            202-225-2411

Trent Franks (R-AZ)  202-225-4576


There are a whole lot of members of this commission which are listed here. If you can spare time you can call them as well.

 

The hearing will be about torture, arbitrary arrest and enforced disappearances by police, violence against women, rape, dowry-related assaults, acid attacks and sexual harassment, labor rights, and the criminal behavior committed by elements of a security force called the Rapid Action Battalion.

The list of issues mysteriously does not include the fake war crime tribunal which is being used to kill of the Islamic opposition including two former ministers who have served Bangladesh so honorably.

 

Please download a pdf of this action alert, print and distribute it in your community.

 

Background:

Bangladesh is the second largest exporter of textile products in the world amounting to $18 billion dollars in 2011. All of that is at risk now at the hands of the ruthless regime, which is killing all voices, all opposition, media and now the Human Rights organizations.

 

This government is the one who dismissed the icon of Bangladesh, the Nobel Laureate Professor Muhammad Yunus.

 

We must act now to save Bangladesh from going backward.