Foreign minister Momen on the US ambassador’s comments ‘You, the media, made him say this’

[Black_cats]

Foreign minister Momen on the US ambassador’s comments ‘You, the media, made him say this’​

Diplomatic Correspondent
Dhaka
Published: 11 Oct 2022, 12: 35

Foreign minister AK Abdul MomenFile photo
Foreign minister AK Abdul Momen advised the media to not ask questions regarding politics and other internal matters of the country to foreign ambassadors, claiming such questions prompt the ambassadors to comment on Bangladesh’s internal affairs.

The minister said this to the reporters at his office on Tuesday when asked about the comments made by US ambassador Peter Haas about Bangladesh’s next parliament elections.

“You (the media) made him (Haas) say this. The poor guy (Peter Haas) is forced to answer such questions. It’s better if you guys don’t demand answers from foreigners. You should come to us with such questions. You go to them (foreign ambassadors), that’s why they make such statements,” Abdul Momen said.

Peter Haas, US Ambassador to BangladeshProthom Alo

The foreign minister further said, “Due to our colonial mindset, we prefer something when it comes from a foreigner. That’s why we go to them. We have to come out of this habit,” he added.

“Democracy is different in different countries. Bangladesh is a leader in democracy. In the Indian sub-continent, we adopted democracy in the sixth century. In 1971, we shed blood for democracy, three million people laid down their lives," the foreign minister said.

“Has any other country in the world done this? In this country, we have protested whenever the people’s voice has been muzzled, whenever their democratic rights have been snatched away,” Abdul Momen said.

He continued, “When genocide happened in this country, no one came to help us. When genocide took place in Myanmar, no one gave refuge to the displaced people. Who gave them refuge, it was Bangladesh. Sheikh Hasina opened our borders. She upheld democracy.”

Abdul Momen said, “The current government is committed to hold a free, fair and transparent election and stands against death of any citizen owing to election violence. We are trying to make sure that no one dies.”

“There is good and bad in every country’s democracy. It’s not always perfect. It’s a process. Through continued efforts, democracy matures. We have some weaknesses. We are trying to work out how we can work on those flaws. But that doesn’t mean that their (democracy) is the best. Even they have flaws, problems”

When asked if the government will issue a statement to tell foreign ambassadors to refrain from commenting on Bangladesh’s elections, Abdul Momen said, “We believe, the diplomats in our country are matured. They are respected individuals. We believe they will abide by diplomatic etiquette.”

‘You, the media, made him say this’

“Due to our colonial mindset, we prefer something when it comes from a foreigner. That’s why we go to them. We have to come out of this habit.”

en.prothomalo.com

 

[epebble]

Foreign minister Momen on the US ambassador’s comments ‘You, the media, made him say this’​

Diplomatic Correspondent
Dhaka
Published: 11 Oct 2022, 12: 35

Foreign minister AK Abdul MomenFile photo
Foreign minister AK Abdul Momen advised the media to not ask questions regarding politics and other internal matters of the country to foreign ambassadors, claiming such questions prompt the ambassadors to comment on Bangladesh’s internal affairs.

The minister said this to the reporters at his office on Tuesday when asked about the comments made by US ambassador Peter Haas about Bangladesh’s next parliament elections.

“You (the media) made him (Haas) say this. The poor guy (Peter Haas) is forced to answer such questions. It’s better if you guys don’t demand answers from foreigners. You should come to us with such questions. You go to them (foreign ambassadors), that’s why they make such statements,” Abdul Momen said.

Peter Haas, US Ambassador to BangladeshProthom Alo

The foreign minister further said, “Due to our colonial mindset, we prefer something when it comes from a foreigner. That’s why we go to them. We have to come out of this habit,” he added.

“Democracy is different in different countries. Bangladesh is a leader in democracy. In the Indian sub-continent, we adopted democracy in the sixth century. In 1971, we shed blood for democracy, three million people laid down their lives," the foreign minister said.

“Has any other country in the world done this? In this country, we have protested whenever the people’s voice has been muzzled, whenever their democratic rights have been snatched away,” Abdul Momen said.

He continued, “When genocide happened in this country, no one came to help us. When genocide took place in Myanmar, no one gave refuge to the displaced people. Who gave them refuge, it was Bangladesh. Sheikh Hasina opened our borders. She upheld democracy.”

Abdul Momen said, “The current government is committed to hold a free, fair and transparent election and stands against death of any citizen owing to election violence. We are trying to make sure that no one dies.”

“There is good and bad in every country’s democracy. It’s not always perfect. It’s a process. Through continued efforts, democracy matures. We have some weaknesses. We are trying to work out how we can work on those flaws. But that doesn’t mean that their (democracy) is the best. Even they have flaws, problems”

When asked if the government will issue a statement to tell foreign ambassadors to refrain from commenting on Bangladesh’s elections, Abdul Momen said, “We believe, the diplomats in our country are matured. They are respected individuals. We believe they will abide by diplomatic etiquette.”

‘You, the media, made him say this’

“Due to our colonial mindset, we prefer something when it comes from a foreigner. That’s why we go to them. We have to come out of this habit.”

en.prothomalo.com

In the Indian sub-continent, we adopted democracy in the sixth century.

What is that? I thought Magna Carta was the first modern democracy. Greeks practiced a sort of democracy at city level. The word democracy is Greek.

Oh, he means this: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vajjika_League#Constituent_tribes

Sixth Century B.C. But it was a Federal Republic, not a Democracy.

 

[Cheepek]

In the Indian sub-continent, we adopted democracy in the sixth century.

What is that? I thought Magna Carta was the first modern democracy. Greeks practiced a sort of democracy at city level. The word democracy is Greek.

Oh, he means this: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vajjika_League#Constituent_tribes

Sixth Century B.C. But it was a Federal Republic, not a Democracy.

Sabha and Samiti in Vedic Civilization – GKToday

The term Sabha denotes both the assembly (in early Rig-Vedic) and the assembly hall (Later Rig-Vedic). Women who were called Sabhavati also attended this assembly. It was

www.gktoday.in

 

[Destranator]

“You (the media) made him (Haas) say this. The poor guy (Peter Haas) is forced to answer such questions. It’s better if you guys don’t demand answers from foreigners. You should come to us with such questions. You go to them (foreign ambassadors), that’s why they make such statements,” Abdul Momen said.

The foreign minister further said, “Due to our colonial mindset, we prefer something when it comes from a foreigner. That’s why we go to them. We have to come out of this habit,” he added.

I actually fully agree with Momen on this. Asking foreign ambassadors to comment on our internal matters has always been my gripe with our media.
No matter how incompetent our politicians are, they should be held fully accountable on internal matters by the media.

 

[bluesky]

In the Indian sub-continent, we adopted democracy in the sixth century.

What is that? I thought Magna Carta was the first modern democracy. Greeks practiced a sort of democracy at city level. The word democracy is Greek.

Oh, he means this: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vajjika_League#Constituent_tribes

Sixth Century B.C. But it was a Federal Republic, not a Democracy.

FM Alga Momen believes in his BAL party policy to deny democracy and would like to continue a midnight vote stuffing election without the participation of voters.

This Alga Momen was referring to an episode in Bengal when the Royal Courtiers SELECTED Gopal, a very influential Feudal Lord, as the Sovereign King/ Raja of the country. It was done after much quibbling among them when the last of previous Sovereign died, as far as I remember.

Alga Momen thinks it was a case of pure democracy and similarly, his BAL party Lords should also SELECT Hasina to remain the PM without holding a genuine election.

BAL wants BD to be another North Korea.

 

[epebble]

Sabha and Samiti in Vedic Civilization – GKToday

The term Sabha denotes both the assembly (in early Rig-Vedic) and the assembly hall (Later Rig-Vedic). Women who were called Sabhavati also attended this assembly. It was

www.gktoday.in

Thank you for the link. An assembly by itself does not make democracy unless the citizens have meaningful choice in selecting their leaders. Otherwise, USSR had Supreme Soviet

Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

China has National People's Congress https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_People's_Congress
Cuba has National Assembly of People's Power https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Assembly_of_People's_Power
Even our Dear Old North Korea has Supreme People's Assembly https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supreme_People's_Assembly

And we all know what kind of democracies they are/was.

 

[Cheepek]

Thank you for the link. An assembly by itself does not make democracy unless the citizens have meaningful choice in selecting their leaders. Otherwise, USSR had Supreme Soviet

Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

China has National People's Congress https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_People's_Congress
Cuba has National Assembly of People's Power https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Assembly_of_People's_Power
Even our Dear Old North Korea has Supreme People's Assembly https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supreme_People's_Assembly

And we all know what kind of democracies they are/was.

"The references to samiti come from the latest books of the Rig-Veda showing that it assumed importance only towards the end of the Rig-Vedic period. Samiti was a folk assembly in which people of the tribe gathered for transacting tribal business. It discussed philosophical issues and was concerned with religious ceremonies and prayers. References suggest that the Rajan was elected and re-elected by the Samiti."

 

[epebble]

"The references to samiti come from the latest books of the Rig-Veda showing that it assumed importance only towards the end of the Rig-Vedic period. Samiti was a folk assembly in which people of the tribe gathered for transacting tribal business. It discussed philosophical issues and was concerned with religious ceremonies and prayers. References suggest that the Rajan was elected and re-elected by the Samiti."

So it was a sort of primitive democracy like the Greek City States. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Athenian_democracy

 

[bluesky]

"The references to samiti come from the latest books of the Rig-Veda showing that it assumed importance only towards the end of the Rig-Vedic period. Samiti was a folk assembly in which people of the tribe gathered for transacting tribal business. It discussed philosophical issues and was concerned with religious ceremonies and prayers. References suggest that the Rajan was elected and re-elected by the Samiti."

Why are you referring to unrelated RigVed things all the time? Did our FM utter a single word about all those mythological periods?

Momen said 6th century because he has a very low capability to memorize history. It is about 8th Century Bengal when Gopala was selected by the Royal Courtiers as the Sovereign King of Bengal. Gopala was the first King of the Pal Dynasty of Bengal.

It was a time of anarchy in Bengal that comprised present-day Bangladesh, west Bengal, Bihar, Jharkhand, and Odissa.

Please read history to know about it instead of talking about religious texts based on imagination.

 

[mangochutney]

3 million died my backside

 

[Cheepek]

Why are you referring to unrelated RigVed things all the time? Did our FM utter a single word about all those mythological periods?

Momen said 6th century because he has a very low capability to memorize history. It is about 8th Century Bengal when Gopala was selected by the Royal Courtiers as the Sovereign King of Bengal. Gopala was the first King of the Pal Dynasty of Bengal.

It was a time of anarchy in Bengal that comprised present-day Bangladesh, west Bengal, Bihar, Jharkhand, and Odissa.

Please read history to know about it instead of talking about religious texts based on imagination.

Can you read?

In the Indian sub-continent, we adopted democracy in the sixth century. In 1971, we shed blood for democracy, three million people laid down their lives," the foreign minister said.

Your FM is much more learned than you.
And did you just call the whole Vedic period as "mythological"?

 

[bluesky]

Can you read?

Hi stupid, what do you want me to read? Your Ramayana and Mahabharata mythologies? Just get lost and do not bring up unnecessary things like your RigVed in this thread. It is about what Momen said.

Bloody nasty Indian, keep the thread about what it is.

 

[Cheepek]

Hi stupid, what do you want me to read? Your Ramayana and Mahabharata mythologies? Just get lost and do not bring up unnecessary things like your RigVed in this thread. It is about what Momen said.

Bloody nasty Indian, keep the thread about what it is.

Just shut your ignorant mouth.

If you think your FM doesn't know the difference between Bengal, Bangladesh and Indian subcontinent; you just need to do the following till he explains it himself some day.

 

[bluesky]

Just shut your ignorant mouth.

If you think your FM doesn't know the difference between Bengal, Bangladesh and Indian subcontinent; you just need to do the following till he explains it himself some day.

View attachment 886394

Don&t cite your Rigved when the topic is about Bangladesh. Bloody Hindian!!!

 

[epebble]

Why are you referring to unrelated RigVed things all the time? Did our FM utter a single word about all those mythological periods?

Momen said 6th century because he has a very low capability to memorize history. It is about 8th Century Bengal when Gopala was selected by the Royal Courtiers as the Sovereign King of Bengal. Gopala was the first King of the Pal Dynasty of Bengal.

It was a time of anarchy in Bengal that comprised present-day Bangladesh, west Bengal, Bihar, Jharkhand, and Odissa.

Please read history to know about it instead of talking about religious texts based on imagination.

The minister is not infallible, but he is no lightweight.

He attended the University of Dhaka and earned a BA in economics in 1969, and an MA in development economics in 1971.
Momen became a civil servant, serving as Private Secretary to the Minister of Rural Development, Local Government and Cooperatives from 1973 to 1974; Private Secretary to the Minister of Trade and Commerce, and Mineral Resources and Petroleum from 1974 to 1975; Section Officer, South Asia, East Asia and Middle East, Ministry of Commerce from 1975 to 1976; and Director, Office of the President's Advisor on Trade and Commerce from 1976 to 1978. Meanwhile, he completed an LLB in law and jurisprudence from Central College, Dhaka, in 1976.

Momen continued his education in the United States, receiving a PhD in economics from Northeastern University, Boston, Massachusetts, in 1988. He taught economics and business administration at Merrimack College, Salem State College, Northeastern University, the University of Massachusetts, and the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.

In 1998, Momen became an economic adviser at the Saudi Industrial Development Fund (SIDF). He left Saudi Arabia in the wake of the 2003 Riyadh compound bombings, and returned to Massachusetts. There he taught in the Department of Economics and Business Administration at Framingham State College until appointed Bangladesh's Permanent Representative to the United Nations in New York in August 2009.

Momen served as President of the UNICEF Executive Board at the international level in 2010. He was vice president and Acting President of the 67th United Nations General Assembly.

Momen was President of the United Nations High-Level Committee on South-South Cooperation in 2014