April 17, 2007
US 'Happy' with Bangladesh's Interim Government
Dhaka
US Ambassador Patricia Butenis praised Chief Advisor Fakhruddin
Ahmed, the head of Bangladesh's caretaker government, for indicating
a timeframe for holding elections even as state officials clinched a
departure "deal" with former prime minister Khaleda Zia.
The caretaker government "has attained a lot of achievements in a
short time and is enjoying tremendous popular support," Butenis was
quoted as saying.
Media reports of the "courtesy call" paid by her Monday, however,
made no mention of fast-moving political developments elsewhere in
the country.
Zia has agreed to leave Bangladesh with most of her family members
as part of a government "deal" concluded late Monday, while her arch
rival, Sheikh Hasina, is currently in the US.
Butenis appreciated Ahmed's Saturday address to the nation when he
said the elections would take place in end-2008. She said the US
government "is satisfied with the caretaker government's
performance," United News of Bangladesh (UNB) news agency said.
A pro-active diplomat, Butenis has been in the thick of the
developments leading to and after the general elections, due Jan 11,
were called off amidst weeks of political turmoil. She was one of
the diplomats engaging various parties and trying to resolve their
differences.
US officials have expressed their keenness on Bangladesh holding
elections and returning to democracy. However, the emergence of an
un-elected interim government that is widely perceived as
"army-backed" and "army-guided", has been a point of criticism.
The New York Times last Saturday for the first time criticised the
Bush administration for "ignoring" this phenomenon. It also
cautioned the new Bangladeshi authorities that taking recourse to
the "Pakistani path" of military rule was no answer to Islamic
radicalism.
Butenis said the Election Commission is carrying out its jobs,
including electoral reforms, as per its commitment, the Daily Star
said.
"We are pleased with the activities of the Election Commission and
have offered assistance to this organisation," the envoy said.
She said the US government "is observing the caretaker government's
activities positively". She added that if a new Bangladesh
ambassador to Washington is appointed, bilateral cooperation would
be further enhanced.
In response, Ahmed said the Election Commission needed logistic
support, and "a coordinated cooperation of the development partners
will be helpful".
The Ahmed government has decided to seek foreign funding for
carrying out "electoral reforms" that includes updating of electoral
rolls and preparation and issuing of photo identity cards for the
voters.
Ahmed assured Butenis that "the task of the Election Commission
towards holding elections and the government's other activities,
including keeping wheels of the economy moving, will go
simultaneously".
He also informed Butenis about his meeting with US assistant
secretary of state for South Asian affairs Richard Boucher in New
Delhi on the sidelines of the recent 14th SAARC (South Asian
Association for Regional Cooperation) summit, reports said.
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