Showing posts with label Donald Lu. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Donald Lu. Show all posts

Monday 5 August 2024

Is there any similarity between toppling of Hasina and Imran regimes?

According to my friend Muda Guppa, on Monday Sheikh Hasina prime minister of Bangladesh relinquished power that reminded a planned non-confidence move against ex-prime minister of Pakistan, Imran Khan. 

The only difference was that a member National Assembly, Shehbaz Sharif, became prime minister for the remaining term, whereas in Bangladesh chief of army became head of the government for the interim period till new elections are held.

Muda insisted that in change of regime in Bangladesh and Pakistan, United States played a key role, and the architect of change in regimes in both the countries was Donald Lu, US assistant secretary of state.

In the recent past I have been taking about three types of countries which United States hates.  During her three regimes Hasina made Bangladesh from strong to stronger, evident from GDP growth rate and foreign exchange reserves held by the country.

However, Bangladesh was lured to approach IMF for a bailout package.

Muda insisted that United States was not happy with Hasina due to her tilt towards China, which has been mediating between countries having long history of animosity. United States believed the restoration of diplomatic relations between Saudi Arabia and Iran would weaken its influence in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA).

It is on record that Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates (UAE) refused to join a naval task forces led by United States and some of the European countries to take action against Houthis of Yemen.

In the saga, India played the role of most trusted friend of Hasina, it took her out of Bangladesh and provided a safe haven.

Muda believes that the whole controversy started when students demanded to end the quota system for the children of those who had fought against Pakistan Army.

Therefore, India has to arrange for a safe exit of Hasina. She and her father Sheikh Mujibur Rahman played a key role in turning East Pakistan into Bangladesh.

 

Tuesday 19 March 2024

Lu highlights poll irregularities in Pakistan

Ahead of his appearance at a Congressional panel on Tuesday, US Assistant Secretary of State Donald Lu submitted a written statement expressing Washington’s concerns about irregularities in the February 08, 2024 elections while also emphasizing the need to stay engaged with Pakistan to help it navigate through the crises it is facing, reports Pakistan’s leading English newspaper.

Lu is the diplomat whose supposed warning to former Pakistan Ambassador to the United States, Asad Majeed was the subject of a cipher sent by the envoy to Islamabad. This is the same document that former PM Imran Khan used to allege a US conspiracy to oust his government in 2022. Khan is currently on trial for mishandling the same confidential document.

Lu is scheduled to testify today before a subcommittee of the US House Committee on Foreign Affairs, at a hearing titled ‘Pakistan After the Elections: Examining the Future of Democracy in Pakistan and the US-Pakistan Relationship’.

This bipartisan hearing is expected to draw significant attendance from both Democratic and Repub­lican legislators.

US diplomat stresses need to help Islamabad navigate economic challenges

In his written testimony, Lu highlights Washington’s concerns about election irregularities in Pakistan, which encompass restrictions on freedoms, electoral violence, and allegations of interference.

He also mentions that several political leaders faced obstacles, such as the inability to register specific candidates and political parties, which disadvantaged them in the electoral process.

Additionally, he highlights the harassment and abuse faced by many journalists, particularly female journalists, at the hands of party supporters.

However, he also acknowledges positive aspects, such as a significant turnout of over 60 million voters, including more than 21 million women, and a record number of women and minority candidates.

His statement emphasizes the importance of fortifying Pakistan’s democratic institutions and fostering economic stability through avenues such as development grants, private sector investment, and humanitarian aid. He also recognizes Pakistan’s mounting debt challenges and stresses the necessity of economic reforms and private sector-led investments to spur economic growth.

Underscoring the significance of counterterrorism cooperation with Pakistan, Lu also advocates for respecting human rights and religious freedoms. Additionally, he commits to collaborating with the subcommittee to implement US policy in Pakistan and advance a vision of a peaceful, democratic, and prosperous nation.

The written testimony, uploaded to the House subcommittee’s website a day ahead of the hearing, notes that Islamabad is an important US partner, being the top destination for Pakistan’s exports.

“Unfortunately, Pakistan is facing mounting debt challenges after the past decade of elevated borrowing, including from [China]. This year, nearly 70 per cent of the federal government’s revenue is expected to go to payments to service this massive debt,” Lu says, explaining why the US needs to stay engaged with Pakistan.

“Pakistan needs economic reforms and private sector-led investments that will deliver economic growth for the Pakistani people and not dig their government deeper into debt,” he adds.

 

Thursday 14 March 2024

Donald Lu to testify before Congress panel

The US House Foreign Affairs Com­mittee has tasked its Subcommittee on the Mid­dle East, Africa, and Cen­tral Asia with conducting a hearing on the future of democracy in Pakistan, scheduled for March 20.

The hearing will also delve into the dynamics of US-Pakistan relations following the February 08, 2024 general elections.

Donald Lu, the Assis­tant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs, will be the sole witness for the hearing. Lu’s alleged involvement in the cipher controversy adds significance to his testimony.

The PTI and its leader, Imran Khan, allege that Lu threatened to destabilize the PTI government during a March 2022 meeting with then Pakistani ambassador in Washing­ton, Asad Majeed Khan.

The issue is frequently brought up during US State Department news briefings by journalists from both Pakistan and the US. The department consistently dismisses these allegations as unfounded.

The decision to have Lu attend the hearing un­­derscores the departm­e­nt’s desire to resolve the controversy by providing clarification on its stance.

In a statement from Houston, Texas, the PTI’s US chapter claimed that persistent efforts by Pakistani Americans led to the much-anticipated announcement of a Congressional hearing on this.

This bipartisan hearing is expected to draw significant attendance from both Democratic and Repub­lican legislators.

 

Saturday 19 August 2023

Bolton urges Congress to take closer look at cipher

The US Congress should look at the allegedly leaked cipher about ousting of Imran Khan, former prime minister of Pakistan, when it returns from summer recess, said a former US national security adviser John Bolton.

In an interview with VoA broadcasting service, recorded this week, Bolton said he worries about the Biden administration’s foreign policy about South Asia because it’s not clearly defined.

Asked if the language used in the cipher was usual for a State Department official, the former Trump and Bush administrations official said he saw the report published by The Intercept news site and noted that it was about an effort to get Pakistan’s support against Russia’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine.

“I would be stunned if that’s exactly what they said. It would be remarkable for the State Department, under any administration, but particularly under the Biden administration, to be calling for Imran Khan’s overthrow.”

The purported cipher that the Pakistan Embassy in Washington sent to Islamabad in March last year, contained the embassy’s account of a meeting between US State Department officials, including Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs Donald Lu, and Pakistani envoy Asad Majeed Khan.

It quotes Lu as telling the Pakistani envoy, “I think if the no-confidence vote against the Prime Minister succeeds, all will be forgiven in Washington because the Russia visit is being looked at as a decision by the Prime Minister. Otherwise, I think it will be tough going ahead.”

Bolton said even if the text published by The Intercept was close to being true, it would be a problem. So, I hope that when Congress comes back from summer recess in early September, perhaps they can take a look at that and find out how accurate that report was. 

In reply to another question, Bolton said Biden administration officials don’t know what their strategic imperatives are. And it’s been confused and inarticulate on the situation in Pakistan.

Explaining his position on the current political situation in Pakistan, he said, “I do not agree with Imran khan on everything he has ever said, and he doesn’t agree with me but when the military take it to the point of dismantling a legitimate political party (and) putting … an elected leader like Imran khan in jail for no apparent reason, they are contributing to delegitimizing their own institution.”

Commenting on the demand by some US lawmakers that Washington should raise this issue with Pakistani authorities, Bolton urged the Biden administration to take a clear position before the terrorists, China and Russia take advantage of the situation.

 

Tuesday 24 January 2023

Bangladesh: Opposition seeking US help

I am obliged to refer to a letter by the Coalition for Human Rights & Democracy in Bangladesh (CHRD Bangladesh) to Donald Lu US Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs. CHRD has appreciated sincere and commendable works during visit of Donald Lu to Bangladesh on January 14-15, 2023.

It has also referred to its earlier letter dated January 08, 2023, emphasizing the importance of Donald’s visit in view of the ongoing volatile political situation generated by the anti-democratic practices by the administration of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in the face of the people’s countrywide movements against her rule.

The people are seeking the end of her fascist regime, which they call illegal because it continued to capture power since 2009 through massive election fraud. Bangladeshis want free and fair elections under a neutral authority. We look forward to the materialization of your objectives at the soonest.

The CHRD Bangladesh may take this opportunity to highlight a few core foreign policy objectives of the US administration: Human Rights, Freedom of the Opposition’s Political Activities and Election Integrity.

Human Rights Human rights still remain a far cry in Bangladesh. The regime apparently maintained a slight pause in its repressing activities during your visit, but intensified them on the people and the opposition immediately afterwards, as if in retaliation of the pressure of your visit.

The human rights violations by the notorious Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) and police might have shown slight improvements since the US sanctions in December 2021, but their routine abuses against the people continued unabated, much of which perhaps escaped the attention of the monitoring agencies.

On January 21, 2023, a RAB member in Dhaka was caught trying to rob a car carrying passengers coming from overseas. Few people can talk, much less criticize, the regime under the draconian Digital Security Act (DSA).

They continue to be severely penalized for mild words against the Sheikh family and the ruling elites. 

In Bangladesh today, only the ruling Awami League has the freedom of activities which include extortion, social crimes and attacks on the political opposition. The opposition parties have little or restricted political activities (lately as prescribed by the ruling authority).

The RAB, police and the party thugs continue to flex their muscles against the opposition and prevent or disrupt their peaceful gatherings and activities. Their attacks on the party gatherings of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) on December 07 and 08, 2022 sent many to their graves, hospitals and jails. Even during your team’s presence in Dhaka on January 14-15, 2023, their terror acts continued on the peaceful gatherings of the opposition in Mymensingh, Chittagong and other cities, sending many to hospitals and jails with multiple charges against each.

Reportedly, 24,000 members of the BNP have been taken to custody since early December of 2022. As of now, tens of thousands of them are in jails, booked under about 3.5 million fictitious charges. 

With the scrapping of the election-time Caretaker Government (CTG) by Sheikh Hasina immediately upon becoming the Prime Minister, the election system in Bangladesh totally collapsed. It became a symbol of heightened corruption and irregularities. No national or local level election had an iota of fairness or honesty.

Everything was controlled and managed by the ruling coterie to make its chosen candidates the winners. As such, as you may note, Sir, the representatives in the parliament, as well as the elected positions in the local bodies, almost entirely belong to the ruling class. In other words, the opposition has no say in any of these forums or anywhere. Any future elections to be free and fair, the existence of these fraudulently elected partisan elements will be a serious blockade.

The Election Commission and the election officials are carefully selected by the government to serve its purpose. With absolute control on the administration down to the lowest levels, including the election apparatus, the opposition is either unable or not allowed to make any electioneering activities or have its presence at the polls.

In many cases, suspected opposition voters were driven away by the Awami League thugs and their votes were proxied in favor of the ruling candidates. In addition, rounding up and sending the opposition leaders and activists to jails prior to elections had been routine tasks of the loyal RAB and police.

The results of the past 14 years are before anyone to examine and judge. Consequently, the country has fallen into a one-party authoritarian dictatorship since 2009. Under the chosen Election Commission, election officials and its fraudulently elected local bodies, the general public has no chance to exercise its free franchise during the polls.

As such, a fair and credible election under the present administration is a simple impossibility. The US may also ponder why the Hasina regime is vehemently opposed to elections under a CTG (citing constitutionality of her own vicious creation).

According to most observers, the ruling government is so unpopular and detested by the people that it has no chance of winning even a comfortable number of seats, let alone winning in a fair election. In view of the above situation, and with a view to ensuring credible elections in Bangladesh, the following steps are extremely essential:

Elections must be held under a neutral Caretaker Government, members of which should not be allowed to seek any elected positions. Prior to that, the government should step down and the parliament be dissolved. They (immediate past government) should have no role in the CTG.

The Election Commission and other election related officials should be reconstituted with neutral and non-partisan elements.

All controversial and partisan officials in the administration, including law enforcement agencies and the military should be removed. Even known partisan officials in the judiciary should also be either removed or suspended. This is needed to ensure the neutrality of the election-time administration.

All authoritarian tools, such as the RAB and DSA should be suspended during the elections.

Honorable Sir, it may be appreciated that if the people of Bangladesh can freely choose their representatives to run the government, most of the other problematic issues like democracy, human rights, freedom, corruption etc. will be resolved automatically. Under a corruption-free and accountable government, the country will be expected to move forward to greater progress and security, both locally and globally. It is the unelected or fraudulently elected or illegal regime that causes problems for the people and the world.

Finally, unless the future elections in Bangladesh are credible, fair and participatory, all the sincere efforts of the US will end in futility. The CHRD Bangladesh certainly does not desire such an outcome from your visit, Honorable Sir.

Tuesday 5 April 2022

Russia condemns United States attempt to punish Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan

Wading into the political battle raging in Islamabad over the alleged threat made against Imran Khan’s government by an American official, Moscow on Tuesday accused the United States of committing “another attempt of shameless interference” in the internal affairs of Pakistan to punish a “disobedient” Imran Khan for not supporting the US position on Ukraine, reported DAWN, Pakistan’s leading English Newspaper.

But rejecting the Russian allegation of interference in Pakistan’s domestic politics, the US State Department said on Tuesday that it “does not support one political party over another”.

In a statement issued in Moscow, spokesperson for the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Maria Zakharova, noted that President Arif Alvi had dissolved the National Assembly on April 03, 2022 on Imran Khan’s advice, which was based on a claim that the US orchestrated a plan to topple his government.

“Immediately after the announcement of the working visit of Imran Khan to Moscow on February 23-24 this year, the United States and its Western associates began to exert rude pressure on the prime minister, demanding an ultimatum to cancel the trip,” Ms Zakharova said.

“When he nevertheless came to us, (US diplomat Donald Lu) called the Pakistani ambassador in Washington and demanded that the visit be immediately interrupted, which was also rejected,” she stated.

“According to the Pakistani media, on March 07 this year, in a conversation with Pakistani Ambassador Asad Majid, a high-ranking American official (presumably Donald Lu) sharply condemned the balanced reaction of the Pakistani leadership to the events in Ukraine and made it clear that partnerships with the United States are possible only if Imran Khan is removed from power,” the spokesperson added.

The Russian official claimed that further development of the situation left no doubt that the US decided to punish the ‘disobedient’ Imran Khan, noting how lawmakers from within the PTI switched sides to the opposition while the no-confidence vote was submitted to parliament.

“This is another attempt of shameless US interference in the internal affairs of an independent state for its own selfish purposes. The above facts eloquently testify to this,” she said.

“The Pakistan Prime Minister himself has repeatedly stated that the conspiracy against him was inspired and financed from abroad. We hope that Pakistani voters will be informed about these circumstances when they come to the elections, which should be held within 90 days after the dissolution of the National Assembly.”

The Russian Foreign Ministry’s statement came a couple of days after Imran Khan named US Assistant Secretary of State for Central and South Asia Donald Lu as the official who made threatening remarks about his regime in a letter, which the premier had brandished during a public rally in Islamabad last month.

Last month, the National Security Committee, which includes all services chiefs, had decided to issue a “strong demarche” over the letter, terming it “blatant interference in the internal affairs of Pakistan”.

The Prime Minister has alleged that the no-confidence motion against him is part of the “foreign conspiracy” to oust him from power.

When Dawn approached the US State Department for comment on the Russian statement, one of their spokespersons said that “there’s no truth to these allegations”.

The US official also explained the US position on the current political turmoil in Pakistan, pointing out that it had no favourites in this dispute.

The official said Washington “supports the peaceful upholding of constitutional and democratic principles”, indicating that the US does not want tensions between the ruling and opposition parties to lead to violence and it would support any solution that’s based on the Pakistani Constitution.

Further underlining Washington’s neutrality on this issue, the spokesperson said, “We do not support one political party over another. We support principles of rule of law and equal justice under law.”

This statement covers more ground than previous US statements on the dispute, which did not go beyond denying “allegations” of US involvement. Apparently, the detailed Russian statement, which included serious allegations against the United States, necessitated the added detail.