Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has said the United States might not want her, or the progress her government made, to continue.
The prime minister made the remark while commenting on the US sanctions on the Rapid Action Battalion and other issues in an interview with BBC anchor Yalda Hakim which was aired on Tuesday.
As Hakim asked why the US imposed sanctions on one of the paramilitary organisations in Bangladesh, Sheikh Hasina said, “I don’t know, maybe they don’t want me to continue – or, the progress we are making for Bangladesh, they may not accept it. This is my feeling.”
“That paramilitary organisation was set up by the US. Actually, with their advice, it was established in 2004 and all the training and equipment – everything was provided by the US,” she said.
“I feel the way they trained them, they are acting [in] such a way. Why they put sanctions on them, it’s a big question to me,” she said.
In response to Hakim's question about the motivations [of the US] to target her, Sheikh Hasina revealed that her father had been killed by conspirators.
“These individuals, who were responsible for the murder of her family members, including her 10-year-old brother, did not want anyone from her family to come to power,” she said.
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The prime minister said the killers had got indemnity and her family could not sue them. They did not issue any sanction at that time rather sheltering one of the killers in their country.
“We are repeatedly requesting them to send him back but they are ignoring it. I don’t know why they are doing so,” she said.
In the wide-ranging interview, the prime minister also discussed 2024's general elections, Bangladesh's human rights record and the plight of the minority Rohingya refugees now living in Bangladesh.
Yalda Hakim shared few clips of the interview on Twitter but on BBC’s site, the interview could not be watched outside the UK. But, BBC Bangla service posted a transcript of the interview in Bangla.
Responding to Hakim’s questions on Bangladesh's human rights record and concerns over extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances, torture and crackdowns, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina denied the accusations, saying the allegations were not proven.
“Some groups mentioned a large number [of enforced disappearances] but when we enquired it was perhaps five or six persons. Actually, some people hide themselves because of different issues,” she said.
Bangladesh never supports extrajudicial killings, Sheikh Hasina said, adding: “I don’t know about any other country but in our country, the law is there.”
She said any law enforcement agency gets punished in Bangladesh for its “misdeeds.”
