On January 27, 2005, The
New York Times Magazine printed an article entitled “The
Next Islamist Revolution?” with scarce coverage
of the human rights of Hindu minorities in Bangladesh. HAF
responded with the following letter.
Dear Editor,
Grizwold's article ("The Next Islamist
Revolution?" NYT Magazine, January 23, 2005) accurately
articulated the dangerous reality of Bangladesh becoming a
haven for Salafi Islamism and other fundamentalist Islamic
groups. But the perfunctory coverage given to the gross injustices
suffered by the Hindu minority is, however, very disappointing.
Since independence from the British in 1947,
Bangladesh's minority population has been steadily diminishing
as repressive policies and violence have forced many Hindus
to leave. While Hindus constituted 25 per cent of Bangladesh's
(then East Pakistan) population at the time of the partition
of India in 1947, the Hindu population had thinned to about
10 per cent in 1991. The global database of Internally Displaced
Persons, established by the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC)
in 1998, records that 200,000 Hindus and other minorities
were forced from their homes in the aftermath of the October
2001 election victory of the Bangladesh National Party. Fasan
Chowdhury, journalist and activist, calculated that by 1991
the "missing" Hindu population in Bangladesh was
20 million, and characterized the "low intensity"
violence against the Hindu minority a "silent disaster".
This violence against Hindus, and the assassination
attempt in 2004 on the more moderate Sheikh Hasina of the
Awami League Party, should be cause for worry to all who value
freedom of religion and expression.
Sincerely,
Ramesh N. Rao, Ph.D.
Member, Executive Council
Hindu American Foundation
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