Distinguished Professor Ali Riaz has been interviewed and quoted on the political situation in Bangladesh, especially about the performance and challenges faced by the interim government led by Nobel Laureate Professor Muhammad Yunus and Bangladesh’s relationship with India.
Dr. Yunus was sworn in as the head of the Advisory Council on August 8, three days after Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was deposed in a popular uprising and fled the country. Dr. Riaz was interviewed by Australian Broadcasting Corp. on August 11 discussing the context of the uprising and what is expected of Yunus. On August 13, Riaz was quoted in a report in The Dispatch and in The Washington Post. On August 14 in Nikkei Asia, Riaz described Bangladesh’s new leader as inspiring.
As discussion on Hasina’s extradition from India intensified, Riaz told CNBC18 of India on August 16 that Hasina needs to stand trial for atrocities and crimes against humanity. He was quoted in the Dutch newspaper de Volkskrant.
Riaz gave two extensive interviews on various aspects of the current political scene and potential trajectories. In the interview with the Jurist News he further explained Hasina’s extradition issue and India’s role. “(As India) has provided refuge to Hasina, it should be cautious in its comments and restrain its guest from making comments. Then, if Bangladesh, under the extradition agreement signed in 2016, asks for India to extradite Hasina, it should do so. Bangladesh has extradited Indians previously.”
In an interview with the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum’s Simon-Skjodt Center for the Prevention of Genocide, Riaz said Bangladesh watchers should follow how the supporters of the deposed Hasina regime—both in Bangladesh and in India—behave in the coming months. “If they succeed in creating instability through violent activities, it may engender a cycle of reprisal, and the country may plunge into a low-intensity conflict, which in turn can pose serious risks to civilians.”
On the role of Indian media, Riaz was quoted August 23 by the South China Morning Post. He underscored that restoring stability has become a challenge for the interim in an interview with the DW Bengali service on the same day. As the Bangladesh-India relationship continued to dominate the news, Riaz was quoted by Aljazeera as saying that anger against India within Bangladesh was “a reflection of the discontent that has been simmering for years over legitimate issues.”
