Attempted attack on Mahfuj: Govt urges London to complete full investigation
Govt condemns it, says democracy demands passion; self‑control
Condemning the attempted attack on Information and Broadcasting Adviser Mahfuj Alam in London, the interim government on Saturday night called on the Metropolitan Police in London to complete a full investigation, using available footage to identify individuals who committed offences and bring them to justice.
The government also urged political leaders and community organisers to publicly and unequivocally repudiate violence and intimidation in the diaspora, whatever their factional loyalties.
In a statement last night (13 September), the government affirms the right to peaceful protest - and the equal right of officials, students and citizens to speak and assemble without fear.
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"Democracy demands passion; it also demands self‑control," said the government, noting the cause of Bangladesh's evolution as a democracy that protects all citizens' security and dignity requires both.
On Friday, as Information and Broadcasting Adviser Mahfuj Alam left a SOAS-University of London programme marking the first anniversary of Bangladesh's July Uprising, a group of demonstrators threw eggs at Bangladesh High Commission vehicles and briefly tried to block their path.
London's Metropolitan Police intervened effectively; reports indicate Mahfuj was not in the cars struck.
The Bangladesh High Commission said police were in constant contact and assured "full security" for the Adviser during his engagements.
The incident in London follows an attack on Mahfuj a couple of weeks ago while he was on government business in New York.
During an event at Bangladesh's Consulate General, protesters threw eggs (and, per multiple accounts, bottles) and smashed glass doors; the mission subsequently wrote to local authorities, including the State Department's local office, seeking action.
Press Secretary of the Chief Adviser Shafiqul Alam publicly condemned the attempted harassment.
The government condemns this latest attack with the same conviction that our government, the people of Bangladesh and the authorities of both host countries stand on the side of civilised values while the thugs inhabit the world of barbarism and bullying, reads the statement.
This pattern of conduct has no place in any democracy that values argument over aggression and debate over thuggery.
"As we said after the attack in New York, violence is not protest; intimidation is not free speech. Those words apply with full force in London as they did in New York," said the government.
The government reaffirmed the principle asserted after the New York incident: fundamental freedoms of speech, assembly, and peaceful protest are cornerstones of democracy, but they must be exercised with responsibility and respect.
Targeting consular vehicles and attempting to obstruct them is not only reckless, it offends the norms that safeguard dialogue between nations.
"We acknowledge the Metropolitan Police response and urge continued coordination to identify offenders and pursue appropriate charges," said the interim government.
"To those who organised or abetted this behaviour: grow up. If you believe in your cause, make your case - peacefully, lawfully, and with dignity. Eggs, fists and mob theatrics persuade no one; they merely prove to the world that you have no argument left," the statement reads.
To universities, venues and the diaspora: stand firm for civil discourse.
"Host the difficult conversations, but insist on conduct that protects speakers, audiences and lawful protesters alike," the government said.
"The measure of a movement is not how loudly it shouts or how violently it acts, but the discipline, dignity and responsibility it upholds."
