Expressing Sense of the House of Representatives that Bangladesh SHould Drop Charges Against Salah Uddin Shoaib Choudhury

Floor Speech

EXPRESSING SENSE OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES THAT BANGLADESH SHOULD DROP CHARGES AGAINST SALAH UDDIN SHOAIB CHOUDHURY

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Mr. BOOZMAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

At the outset, I would like to express my appreciation for the outstanding leadership of Congressman Kirk in introducing this timely resolution. It has my wholehearted support.

Mr. Choudhury is a Bangladeshi journalist and the editor of the Weekly Blitz, the largest tabloid English-language weekly in Bangladesh. He is currently facing a sedition trial for daring to reach out to Jewish and Israeli writers, as well as for speaking openly about the threat radical Islam poses in Bangladesh.

Mr. Choudhury was arrested in November 2003 when he tried to attend a conference in Israel and then was subjected to brutal treatment while in prison. Although he was released last year, in large part due to the efforts of Congressman Kirk and others, the Bangladesh government refuses to drop the charges against Mr. Choudhury, apparently trying to intimidate him into silence.

Last May, the American Jewish Committee presented Mr. Choudhury with the Moral Courage Award recognizing his efforts to promote dialogue between Muslims and Jews and his courage in speaking out against Islamic extremism.

Unfortunately, however, the authorities in Dhaka refused to permit him to visit the U.S. to receive the honor.

Mr. Speaker, Bangladesh and the U.S. have been good friends for over 35 years. Despite many handicaps, Bangladesh has made good progress in some key areas of development, including agricultural production, improved literacy rates, basic social services, and empowering women through employment and education.

As the fourth most populous Muslim country in the world, a moderate and stable Bangladesh can play an important role in regional and world affairs.

Today, however, Bangladesh is at a crossroads. National elections are being postponed amidst electoral chaos; meanwhile, the military appears to be playing an increasingly large role within the Bangladeshi interim government.

The prospect of holding free and fair elections during the first half of 2007 appears to be much in doubt. More broadly, endemic political polarization, corruption and related governance concerns, as well as the rise of violent extremists remains substantial challenges for the Bangladeshi society.

Mr. Speaker, in this context I urge the authorities in Dhaka to send a strong signal about the importance Bangladesh attaches to tolerance and the rule of law by dropping these politically motivated charges against Mr. Choudhury. I support the resolution and urge its adoption.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

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Mr. BOOZMAN. Mr. Speaker, again in closing, I want to thank the chairman of the Middle East Subcommittee, Mr. Ackerman, for bringing this forward. Certainly we want to thank Mr. Kirk for his hard work and then Mrs. Lowey for making this a very bipartisan effort, and I would urge all of my colleagues to support this.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

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