6 members of European Parliament letter to EU regarding Bangladesh election

Six members of the European Parliament have written a letter to the European Union (EU) about the upcoming Bangladesh national election. The six members are — Ivan Stefanec (Slovak Republic), Michaela Sojdrova (Czech Republic), Andrey Kovatchev (EPP, Bulgaria), Karen Melchior (Denmark), Javier Nart (Spain) and Heidi Hautala (Finland).

In a written letter to High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell on Monday, June 12, the 6 members raised question on Bangladesh human rights violations and reminded the European Union role in making the upcoming parliamentary election free and fair.

In the letter, they said, "Through this letter, we want to express our concern about the human rights violation in Bangladesh and call for the restoration of democracy and rule of law in Bangladesh ahead of the upcoming general election."

Referring to the extrajudicial killings, abductions, torture and false cases of opposition political activists in Bangladesh, they said, "Since coming to power in 2009, this government has narrowed the democratic space and failed to respect the fundamental rights guaranteed by the constitution.

Freedom of expression, including the press freedom, has been curtailed in recent years, particularly since the enactment of the Digital Security Act 2018."

Above all, they emphasized on the Bangladesh national election to be held at the beginning of 2024.

They urged the European Union to play a role in negotiating with the government and the opposition political parties, especially with the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), to ensure a free, fair and impartial general election.

The letter emphasized on engaging the major political parties to find a sustainable and democratic solution to the ongoing crisis.

The European Parliament six members have suggested to repeatedly remind Bangladesh about the terms of GSP Plus incentives and the ban on the entry of those involved in human rights violations into the European Economic Area, if necessary.