Michelle Bachelet’s Visit to Bangladesh: Spotlight on the Rohingya Crisis, 1971 Genocide, and Bangabandhu’s Assassination

The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet paid an official visit to Bangladesh on 14-17 August 2022. For the first time in the history of Bangladesh, the UN Human Rights Council chief visited Bangladesh and extensively exchanged views with multiple stakeholders - the government policy makers, civil society members, academics, students, and the Rohingyas in the camps. Bachelet has a long political career in her own country, Chile where she became the President of the State for two terms, 2006-2010 and 2014-2018.She has been serving as the UNHCHR since 2018. A medical doctor by profession, Bachelet was the first woman in Chile to lead the defense ministry and later on as the head of the government. 

Bachelet's visit to Bangladesh bears enormous importance for an array of issues. Bachelet was highly appreciative of Bangladesh’s economic progress and commitment to human rights in the global fora. In her words, “Bangladesh has made remarkable economic and social progress and is aiming to graduate from Least Developed Country (LDC) status in a few years. Starting from a low baseline, Bangladesh has made strides in socio-economic development, poverty eradication, access to education and health, women’s and children’s mortality, access to food, water and sanitation.” She further added, “Bangladesh has a solid framework in its constitution, laws and international commitments to draw from in facing human rights challenges. It is party to all the core UN human rights treaties, except for the International Convention for the Protection of all Persons from Enforced Disappearance.”

This visit has provided a rare opportunity to Bangladesh to raise four major issues that drew her attention and certainly will have an impact on wider knowledge of the UN community. These issues are the 1971 Genocide in Bangladesh, the heinous assassination of Father of the Nation, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the Rohingya crisis and the climate justice. Bachelet was briefed on the history of Bangladesh. Her exchange of views with the government policy makers, including the Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, civil society members and journalists touched upon these issues of critical importance to Bangladesh.

Given her long political career and sufferings under the military regime of Pinochet, she could easily relate her own stories with the same of the Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and the citizens of Bangladesh. She sums up her observation in the media statementin the press conference, “My visit coincided with an important day of national mourning, commemorating the assassination of the first Prime Minister of independent Bangladesh, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, on 15 August 1975. It was a day which naturally lent itself to reflections on the history of Bangladesh – its painful past, a people’s struggle for independence and for their human rights, millions of whom had been forced to flee in 1971.” 

Bachelet’s visit to the Rohingya camps in Cox’s Bazar has been extremely significant to deal with this challenge. Her predecessor, Zeid Ra‘ad al-Hussein called the persecution of the Rohingyas as “textbook example of ethnic cleansing”. She has rightly acknowledged the role of Bangladesh in mitigating the sufferings of the Rohingyas. To her, “The importance of Bangladesh’s humanitarian contribution – and its historical significance – cannot be overstated. The international community must sustain its support to Bangladesh in its response, and press Myanmar to create conditions for return, address the root causes and pursue accountability.” She further added that “These are people who fled extreme violence and systematic discrimination five years ago, in one of the largest movements of people in recent history. What I heard in my conversations with women, young people, religious leaders and other Rohingya refugees in the camps was a resounding hope that they will be able to return to their villages and homes in Myanmar – but only when the conditions are right. 

Bangladesh did not forget to bring the issue of trial of Bangabandhu to establish justice and redress the worst violations of human rights to Bangabandhu and his family. She was reminded of sheltering the absconding killers of Bangabandhu in the countries that talk about human rights a lot and tend to protect human rights globally. Although UN Human Rights Council does not directly deal with the issue of genocide, the history of heinous torture against Bengalis in 1971 was mentioned to Bachelet on a number of occasions. Bacheletuttered that she would try to raise this issue at different levels in the United Nations. 

Bachelet underscored the need for addressing climate change issues at the global level. She emphasized that rising temperatures and heat stress have already affected rice production in Bangladesh. She asserted that international community ‘must heed’ the voice of specially affected countries like Bangladesh and act to deploy every possible resource to ensure climate justice. Bachelet asserted that “Now is the time for action. We have spoken a lot, and we must walk the talk.”The UN Human Rights chief has demonstrated a considerable degree of urgency in tackling climate issues on which there is going to be another COP called COP27 to be held in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt from 6-18 November 2022.

Most importantly, through this high-profile visit Bangladesh was able to assert its own perspective on domestic and global issues. The in-person visit of Bachelet would demystify the spreading of flawed information about human rights and political environment in Bangladesh. She could see the real Bangladesh. Bangladesh was also able to raise a critical viewpoint to her that socio-political conditions in the country need to be understood to evaluate the issues of human rights in the country. 

Bachelet made a profoundly significant statement about her understanding of pains that the Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has been experiencing for decades. She says, “I can understand her pains as well, you know, because if we live situations that are similar in that sense,” noting that her father died in 1974 while Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina lost her father in 1975. Her father, General Alberto Bachelet was arrested and tortured for opposing the military coup led by Gen Augusto Pinochet. He died in 1974 of a heart attack caused by the torture inflicted on him. Bachelet left Bangladesh with high optimism, “I hope my visit will build on the government's engagement with the UN’s human rights mechanisms and help deepen cooperation with us, furthering the promotion and protection of human rights in Bangladesh.”

 
By: Shafiqul Elahiis 

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