The US has stressed the need for respect for religious and other fundamental freedoms, and basic human rights in Bangladesh amid alleged attacks on minorities.
“We are clear that there needs to be the respect of fundamental freedoms; there needs to be respect of religious freedom and basic human rights,” State Department Deputy Spokesperson Vedant Patel said while answering questions related to Bangladesh during a regular press briefing on Tuesday.
Two British MPs recently urged the UK government to engage with the Bangladesh government about the alleged violence against minorities. A journalist drew Patel’s attention to the issue and asked if the US would address this concern through diplomatic and policy measurement.
“So we are consistent with every government in which we have a relationship with … Any kind of protests should be and need to be peaceful, and that any kind of crackdown – not even crackdown – that governments need to respect the rule of law, they need to respect basic human rights as part of that. And that’s something we’ll continue to emphasize,” Patel said.