Bonik Barta collage The United States has not changed its policy on imposing
visa restriction on individuals responsible for undermining democratic and
election process in Bangladesh, a State Department spokesperson has said.
To a question at a regular briefing in Washington DC, US
State Department Principal Deputy Spokesperson Vedant Patel, however, would not
provide any updates on the enforcement of the policy against the backdrop of
controversial elections in Bangladesh.
“So I don’t have any updates or changes to offer when it
comes to policy. My understanding is
that these policies don’t sunset just because the election is over, but I don’t
have any updates to offer,” he told the questioner.
“That is – yes. There
is no change in policy,” he added replying to a supplementary question on the
same topic.
Responding to a question on Nobel Laureate Professor Dr
Muhammad Yunus, Patel said, “Look, we share concerns voiced by other
international observers that these cases may represent a misuse of Bangladesh’s
labor laws to – as a way to intimidate Doctor Yunus.”
“And our hope is that we would encourage the Bangladeshi
Government to ensure a fair and transparent legal process for Doctor Yunus as
the appeals process continues,” he said.
