STATEMENT OF JOHN
GASTRIGHT
DEPUTY ASSISTANT
SECRETARY OF STATE FOR
SOUTH AND CENTRAL ASIAN
AFFAIRS
BEFORE THE HOUSE
COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN AFFAIRS
SUBCOMMITTEE ON THE MIDDLE EAST AND SOUTH ASIA
AUGUST 1, 2007
Pakistan
Mr. Chairman,
thank you for this opportunity to appear before the Committee. As you know, Mr. Chairman, Pakistan plays a key role in some
of our most critical foreign policy goals, such as eliminating terrorism and
violent extremism as a threat to our security, and creating a regional
environment inhospitable to terrorism and other forms of violent
extremism. Pakistan is
also critical to Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan. Without Pakistani support and cooperation, we
would face severe difficulties in supplying, reinforcing, and protecting our
Coalition Forces deployed in neighboring Afghanistan to defend the
democratically elected Afghan government.
Most of the logistical support for those forces in Afghanistan passes through Pakistan. Pakistan
also is key to our strategy of linking the landlocked, energy-laden nations of
Central Asia to the dynamic markets of South Asia.
A stable,
prosperous, democratic Pakistan
is key to the stability and prosperity of the entire region and plays a
critical part in all our policy goals for the area. A successful
transformation of Pakistan—politically,
economically, and democratically—would bring the benefits of
prosperity, good governance, and justice to 160 million Pakistani
people. This in turn would help to reverse the inroads made by violent
extremism and help Pakistan
to move toward modernity and moderation, eventually becoming a model in the
Muslim world. Our interests in Pakistan are immediate as well as
long-term and strategic; we will be working together to address the issues and
concerns in this region for many years to come.
Therefore, one of our most important objectives is to forge a long-term
strategic partnership between the United States
and Pakistan
that is strong, multi-dimensional, and enduring. But at the same time we must address our immediate security
concerns emanating from that country. Our assistance
will help the Pakistani people to enjoy the benefits of security,
prosperity, democracy, and good governance as well as improve governance in
the least governed and most vulnerable areas of Pakistan.
The remainder of
2007 presents challenges and opportunities to accomplish fundamental tasks
essential to achieving our long-term goals in Pakistan. This year will help determine whether Pakistan
makes a successful transition to a democratically elected, civilian government,
and we intend to assist President Musharraf to fulfill his commitment to this
goal. We believe that Pakistan must transition to
civilian democracy and we are backing the Pakistani government’s efforts to
make that transition. Civilian democratic rule will allow the
Pakistani military to focus on its primary job of providing security for the
people of Pakistan and
ensuring that Pakistan
fulfills its international obligations to combat terrorism and violent
extremism. I believe we have a good plan in place to work with Pakistan
on all of these fronts. The challenge is to maintain the right balance
and implement the plan quickly and effectively.
The upcoming presidential and parliamentary elections will
be critical benchmarks in determining Pakistan’s progress toward full
democracy. To help Pakistan
transition to a sustainable democracy, we are helping strengthen the
accountability and transparency of Pakistan’s democratic and civic
institutions. The U.S. Agency for International Development and the State
Department are working with international partners to provide the necessary
tools for a democratic parliamentary election in Pakistan later this year. We are helping to create new computerized
electoral rolls to help ensure that all Pakistani citizens eligible to vote
will be able to, provide over 300,000 transparent ballot boxes, and display the
new voter lists at 45,000 centers nationwide.
Additionally we are working with the Asia Foundation and
others to train 60,000 polling staff and other officials, provide 175,000 voter
screens to ensure voter privacy, train local media on providing election press
coverage, and build voter awareness. We
have focused on funding nongovernmental organizations that encourage women to
participate in Pakistan’s
electoral process with a particular focus on the FATA and the Northwest Frontier
Province. Finally, we are working to ensure that the
election is adequately monitored by independent observers. But we also know that a thriving democracy
requires more than just holding elections. Democracy requires a free
press, the right to free assembly, a fair and impartial criminal justice
system, a vibrant civil society, and broadly participative and responsive political
parties and institutions. We are working to strengthen those important
aspects of democracy as well.
The July 20
judgment issued by Pakistan’s
Supreme Court that reinstated Chief Justice Chaudhry is an index of the
independence of Pakistan’s judicial system. The President submitted the issue to the
judicial branch and promised to abide by its judgment, and despite the
unfavorable ruling, did precisely that.
The Chief Justice having been reinstated by the Court, the matter was
resolved in accordance with the Pakistani constitution and both
President Musharraf and Prime Minister Aziz accepted the Supreme Court’s
decision. We think this outcome
demonstrates to the world that the democratic institutions of Pakistan are able to function in
accordance with the rule of law and be honored by all participants.
Most moderate
Pakistanis are concerned about the growing threat of extremism and
violence. Last month, the Pakistani
government moved decisively against extremists in Islamabad’s Red Mosque after Mosque leaders
spurned opportunities to peacefully resolve the standoff. At the same time, the Government of Pakistan
is increasing pressure on the militants and extremists in
certain areas of Pakistan. Extremists reacted with retaliatory bombings
in the tribal regions and in Islamabad,
killing more than 200 Pakistanis and wounding many
others. Most of the casualties have been
Pakistani security forces, many of whom were moving into
positions in the tribal areas. Islamabad has also borne
the brunt of this retaliation, suffering a suicide bombing at a political rally
that killed 12, and a suicide bombing at a market that killed 18 people. This week Pakistani security forces conducted
another raid on extremists in North Waziristan,
killing some 10 to 12 militants in the operation, according to initial press
reports.
The Government has meanwhile expanded its political efforts in the
Tribal Areas by working to boost the capacity and will of local tribes to
resist and expel violent extremists in their midst, achieving successes in a
few cases such as the expulsion of the al Qaeda-affiliated Uzbeks by
tribal forces in and around South Waziristan. At this moment, the
Pakistan Army is redeploying thousands of additional troops to the border area
and strengthening border posts and controls.
Since January, Pakistani forces have helped kill or capture major
Taliban figures such as Obeidullah.
In the Federally Administered Tribal Areas and the
Afghan-Pakistani border regions, the government is implementing a comprehensive,
sustainable development strategy to combat terrorists and extremists and remove
them from their hideouts by integrating these ungoverned spaces into the
mainstream of Pakistan’s
economy and government. The
goal is to render these areas permanently inhospitable to terrorism and violent
extremism.
Of course, we are under no illusions about the difficulties the
Government of Pakistan will face in extending its writ to these previously ungoverned territories.
The Tribal Areas, for example, have the
worst social indicators in all of Pakistan, such as a 3 percent
female literacy rate. We also are clear
about the level of commitment required to prevent Al Qaeda and the Taliban from
continuing to exploit their border hideouts as a safehaven
in Pakistan. In a $2 billion, ten-year sustainable
development plan, the Government of Pakistan is committed to improving living
conditions, expanding governance, and improving security in the Tribal Areas,
and we are asking for $750 million over five years to assist Pakistan in this crucial
endeavor. By boosting security and
governance as well as political and economic development, the people of the
border region will have a real opportunity to embrace peace and
prosperity, while those preaching violence and extremism will be left in the
cold.
President Bush
has announced his intention to work with Congress to create Reconstruction
Opportunity Zones which would further expand cooperation and official ties
between Afghanistan and Pakistan. These zones will be a critical part of our
broader counterterrorism strategy in those areas, designed to connect isolated
regions to the global economy and create vital employment opportunities in
territories prone to extremism. The
zones will encourage investment and economic development by granting duty-free
entry to the United States
for certain goods produced in the zones, and create employment alternatives for
the working-age population who may otherwise be drawn into terrorism, narcotics
trafficking, and other illicit activities.
This initiative includes input from
across the spectrum of U.S.
government agencies—State, Commerce, U.S. Trade Representative, Treasury,
Defense, Agriculture, Labor, Homeland Security, and others. We hope Congress will pass the legislation
necessary to create this trade preference program soon so that we can utilize
this important economic tool in our fight against terrorism.
Our partnership
with the Pakistanis gives us an opportunity to support Pakistan’s own efforts to become a
modern, open, prosperous, democratic state, and a moderate voice in the Islamic
world. That is the vision for Pakistan
that President Musharraf has articulated and demonstrated by reiterating his
resolve to stop talibanization on the frontier and in urban areas, such as the
Red Mosque compound. It is strongly in
the U.S. national interest
that Pakistan
succeeds in realizing this vision.
There has been a
lot of discussion about whether Pakistan
can and should “do more” against the Taliban and Al Qaeda. Islamabad
faces immense challenges on this front, but Pakistan’s contribution has been invaluable. Since
2001, the Pakistani Government has arrested hundreds of terrorist suspects,
turning over to the U.S.
such senior Al Qaeda figures as Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, Ramzi bin al Shibh, and
Abu Zubaida. Pakistan
is an indispensable partner, one whom we not only believe can do more in the
war on terror, but whom we believe is already demonstrating its commitment to
doing more, not only because it is essential to our
security, but because they recognize it is essential to their own. Pakistan has already increased its
military personnel and assets in the FATA region and must now use these assets
to take more effective action against extremists taking refuge there. There are currently 100,000 Pakistani
forces stationed on the rough terrain near the Afghanistan
border, and more than 600 members of Pakistan's security forces have
sacrificed their lives in support of anti-terror efforts,
more than 100 of them in the last few weeks alone. Pakistani security operations in the tribal
areas are disrupting terrorist activities in an area where terrorists
previously felt secure.
In many of its
operations against militants, Pakistani troops are using equipment and training
provided by the United
States.
This assistance has been crucial to bolstering Pakistan’s anti-terrorism
capabilities, and by extension, our own.
The State Department remains committed to working closely with the
Department of Defense, with our Pakistani counterparts, and with Congress to
ensure that Pakistani security forces have the necessary training and equipment
to conduct these operations appropriately and effectively. I am aware of the substantial amount of foreign
assistance—both economic and security—that we provide Pakistan, and assure you that we will work to
see that these valuable resources the American people provide to Pakistan
are utilized efficiently and effectively.
President Musharraf shares with the United States
a recognition that we cannot counter terrorism and other forms of violent
extremism by military means alone. Our
mutual goal is to drain the swamp by creating an environment inhospitable to
terrorists and extremists. That can be
done only by bringing governance into ungoverned areas while persuading the
local people that the benefits of governance are greatly preferable to the
false hope offered by extremist recruiters.
Musharraf’s plans for the most vulnerable areas of Pakistan include not
only security operations to combat terrorists but assistance and development to
provide for basic human services, health, education, economic opportunity and
local governance that provides for civilian security for those that support the
government’s efforts. His plan cannot
succeed without a modicum of security and the support of local tribal leaders,
and Musharraf has tried a number of methods to enlist their cooperation,
including several agreements and undertakings with various tribal groups. For the most part these agreements were
poorly implemented and enforced and failed to produce the results sought by the
Government.
Before these arrangements existed, the
Pakistani Government had tried deploying regular Pakistani military forces to
these areas, but found that this antagonized local tribal leaders at the same
time they pressed Taliban and Al Qaeda. The Government then tried a strategy of
working with the tribes to fight extremists in the area. This strategy had limited success not only
because the tribes failed to stop the extremists but because those who did
cooperate with the government were sometimes murdered by extremists. One unfortunate indicator of the insurgents’ desperation to maintain
their hold is their willingness to kill tribal leaders to intimidate the local
population. It is worth
pointing out that the tribes in these areas have been victims more than
supporters of the extremists. While the
government has reinserted some forces into the tribal areas, long-term denial
of these areas to terrorists will require the eventual support and cooperation
of the local population. We think that in President Musharraf’s
three-pronged security, governance and development strategy the Government has
finally found the right approach in the FATA and we and the international community
should support it.
U.S. development assistance in Pakistan is tailored to help build
sustainable growth and improve living standards that will promote the
conditions for good governance, responsible citizenship, and foreign
investment. In 2006, the United States
spent more than $100 million to help Pakistan upgrade primary and higher
education. Our emphasis is on improving
the quality and affordability of Pakistan’s public schools and to
permit parents of limited means to pursue educational opportunities for their
children beyond religiously oriented madrassahs. Pakistan’s efforts to improve
education are showing results. In Punjab, Pakistan’s
largest province, free textbooks and stipends paid to female students have
increased enrollment by more than two million students since 2001. In the
Tribal Areas, enrollments have increased 38% since 2000 with female enrollment
accounting for 27% of total enrollments. National female literacy rates
in Pakistan
have increased from 32% in 1998 to 40% in 2005.
An additional
$45.7 million in U.S.
funding is aimed at improving maternal and newborn health services and the
accessibility and availability of family planning products, prevent major
infectious diseases and increase access to clean drinking water.
We are also
working closely with our Pakistani and non-governmental partners on key issues
such as furthering women’s rights and legal protection for ethnic and religious
minorities, and combating forced child labor and human trafficking.
Women’s health is a particular challenge in Pakistan, but we know that the rate
of maternal mortality can be lowered significantly with properly trained rural
health providers, and the U.S. Agency for International Development providing
such training.
We continue to
actively pursue our public diplomacy efforts inside Pakistan to ensure that we reach
out to Pakistani citizens to share our own message, and help others understand
American policies, views and values.
Americans continue to be generous in their willingness to help and reach
out to Pakistanis as demonstrated after the devastating 2005 earthquake in
Kashmir, where the immediate and overwhelming support of the U.S. military and the donations of
private Americans saved many lives and garnered the goodwill of the Pakistani
people. Nothing could have been more
effective in demonstrating American values and disseminating a message of
friendship between our peoples.
We are working
with the Pakistani and the Afghan governments to find ways to assist their
efforts to stabilize the areas along their rugged border. The joint statement issued by President
Musharraf and President Karzai in Ankara
this spring demonstrates growing cooperation between the two countries. But it is obvious that tensions remain. U.S. and NATO policies must
continue to foster expanded Pakistan-Afghanistan bilateral dialogue, stronger
economic and trade ties, and deeper cooperation between Pakistani and Afghan
border security forces. With U.S. assistance, Pakistan
is working to secure its border with Afghanistan to prevent the
smuggling of arms, terrorists, and illegal drugs which are fueling the Taliban
insurgency.
Pakistan’s transformation into a moderate democracy and a prosperous and
open nation where its people can thrive is vital to our own future and safety,
as well as to the future prosperity and regional stability of South and Central Asia. I
look forward to working with Congress toward this goal.
Bangladesh
Moving on to Bangladesh,
we find a country in transition. In accordance with the Bangladeshi
constitution, the outgoing government of Prime Minister Khaleda Zia turned over
the reigns of government on October
28, 2006 to the newly appointed Caretaker Government, appointed by
the President to conduct elections within 90 days. From the beginning the opposition accused the
Caretaker Government of party favoritism, unfairness, and incompetence. The former opposition party leader Sheikh
Hasina called for massive demonstrations against the government that turned bloody
and ultimately promised to boycott the elections if her many demands were not
met. Our encouragement of a dialogue or
compromise between the two main parties fell on deaf ears.
On January 11,
2007, on what appeared to be the eve of one-sided, violent elections, the
President, at the urging of senior military officials, declared a state of
emergency, indefinitely postponed elections, dismissed the Caretaker
Government, and replaced it with a non-partisan group of advisers drawn mostly
from the private sector -- all actions permitted under the Bangladesh
constitution. The new Caretaker
Government immediately took measures, such as replacing the Election Commission
and preparing a new and more accurate voter list, which had been key opposition
demands. Some civil liberties were
suspended, and a massive anti-corruption campaign swept dozens of senior
politicians, businessmen, and government officials into custody. Six months later the state of emergency
remains and some civil liberties have still not been restored, elections have
not yet been held, and arrests remain 15 percent higher than last year. And yet independent polls reveal continued
strong support for the Bangladesh
government among Bangladeshis. The
challenge for U.S. policy makers has been to forge a policy that accommodates
the complex realities on the ground in Bangladesh – a country that was fast
becoming a democracy in name only, where money, cronyism, and intimidation
increasingly dictated the outcome of elections, the Parliament could not
function, the electoral winners vanquished the losers, and the opposition’s
sole focus was on bringing down the government at any cost.
From the
beginning, the new Caretaker Government stressed that it sought to restore, not
replace, Bangladesh’s
democracy, by undertaking a comprehensive reform aimed at leading the country
toward free, fair, and credible elections. The government insisted that it
would not be rushed in this difficult task. Initially we were troubled that
this dramatic shift in government might signal a hidden agenda to indefinitely
delay a return to democracy and conceal a secret military coup. We articulated
these concerns to the new Caretaker Government immediately, calling for a
roadmap to elections to be announced as soon as possible and advocating a
lifting of the ban on political activity.
We also insisted that, while we applauded the anti-corruption effort, it
would enjoy our continued support only if conducted with respect for international
standards of human rights and with due regard for due process under the law of Bangladesh. Thus far the Caretaker Government has been
open and responsive to our views, and has taken steps to address each of our
concerns.
Bangladesh is a moderate and tolerant
Muslim-majority country. While its
democratic credentials have not always been perfect, it has held three
elections since the restoration of democracy 16 years ago, and its people take
pride in this achievement. On July 15,
the Bangladesh Election Commission released a roadmap detailing the path to
hold democratic elections by the end of December 2008. With international assistance, the Commission
has already begun creating a new voter list with photographs – a huge step
forward in a country where flawed and suspect voter lists have cast doubt on
previous electoral outcomes. The
Commission plans to start meeting with political parties to discuss electoral
reform in September 2007 and will continue with electoral law reform by
February 2008. Staggered local elections
will begin in January 2008 with national elections scheduled by December
2008. We have commended the Caretaker
Government on the release of this plan, but will continue to encourage them to
honor this timeline.
The next step for
Bangladesh
to take is to lift the ban on political activities, which hampers the parties’
ability to meet and introduce reforms.
Since the Caretaker Government took power there has been a ban on
political activity. At this point it is necessary for the government to lift
the ban so that parties are able to meet legally to initiate internal reforms
and prepare for the upcoming elections.
We will continue to push the Caretaker Government to relax the ban on
politics to allow Bangladesh’s
civil and political society to prepare for elections.
Part and parcel
of electoral reform is political party reform, which I alluded to earlier. Until now, politics in Bangladesh has been dominated by
Sheikh Hasina of the Awami League and Khaleda Zia of the Bangladesh Nationalist
Party. Both have served as Prime
Minister and hold deep grievances against the other, poisoning the interaction
between the two parties. They also
resist any party reforms that will diminish their power. Reformers within each of the parties are
pushing for fundamental changes in party leadership and structure and for
internal party democracy. While this is
a matter for the Bangladeshi people to decide, the United States is actively following
these developments.
Mr. Chairman, you
are no doubt also aware of the Caretaker Government’s anti-corruption
campaign. Bangladesh has the dubious
distinction of consistently scoring among the most corrupt countries in the
world according to Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions
Index. Corruption such as this is not a
simple matter of lining one’s pockets at the expense of wealthy corporations,
or doing a few favors for a friend.
Corruption of this nature eats away at the very tissue of society,
resulting in justice denied to those too poor to bribe, deaths and injuries
from illegal construction, mudslides due to illegal excavation, and poor basic
services due to lax revenue collection. It is no coincidence, for example, that
Bangladesh
has a serious power generation deficit, and that many of the corruption
allegations against high-profile figures involve power projects. As such, the
strong actions the Caretaker Government has taken against corruption are
popular with the average Bangladeshi and underlie the Caretaker Government’s
support among the people of Bangladesh. The government can point to achievements like
moving swiftly to adopt the UN Convention Against Corruption, separating the
lower courts from the executive branch, and streamlining the operations of Bangladesh’s
largest port, cutting transit times through the port from over eight days to
three and trimming the rolls of no-show employees by 50 percent.
However, concern
about the potential for over-zealous anti-corruption efforts yielding human
rights abuses has resulted in a number of inquiries from NGOs, Congress and the
press. Approximately 200 top political
and business officials, from both major parties, have been arrested on
corruption charges since January. In the
first six months of 2007, approximately 286,000 people have been arrested, a
figure 15 percent higher than during the same period last year. This number
includes all arrests throughout the country, from charges of petty theft to
murder, as well as the enforcement of long-standing arrest warrants that, for
political purposes, were never acted upon.
According to the government and human rights NGOs, the vast majority of
those arrested have been released. The
anti-corruption campaign has spared no one, regardless of rank; former Prime
Minister Sheikh Hasina herself was arrested on July 16 on extortion charges
involving a power project when she was Prime Minister. She is being held in a special jail created
for her in the residence of the Deputy Whip of Parliament, where she is allowed
regular access to her lawyers and family.
In a demonstration that Bangladesh
has a system of checks and balances, the High Court ruled against the
government, and in favor of Hasina, in a petition regarding one of her cases
this week. We continue to monitor the
case closely, and urge the government to ensure Hasina’s rights are respected.
The United States
supports, as always, efforts to combat corruption. The reforms being enacted by the government
are necessary to restore integrity to government, impartiality and fairness to
the criminal justice system, and to ensure the proper funding of public
programs from tax revenue. But it is
also essential that the burden of corruption be removed from Bangladesh’s economy to allow it to
function properly, become more efficient in order to continue to grow and
expand. However, we are carefully
monitoring the campaign and seizing every opportunity to urge the Caretaker
Government, both publicly and privately, to respect due process in every action
of the anti-corruption campaign, to follow Bangladeshi law, and ensure that it upholds
international standards of human rights.
Detainees should be granted access to legal counsel and should not be
held indefinitely without being charged. Although some have complained about
the slow pace of individual cases, the courts have made a few convictions and
more trials are on their way. We need to ensure, however, that the drive to rid
Bangladesh
of one evil must not substitute another and must not come at the expense of the
basic rights and freedoms that are necessary for a stable, democratic
future.
The Caretaker
Government has not been without its missteps.
Some of its initial actions toward journalists and detainees did not
accord with the norms we would expect from a democratic country. Initially the government attempted to remove
the leaders of the two largest political parties with out due process. However,
the government has since corrected several initial mistakes. Formal limitations and informal pressure on
journalists has begun to ease and, despite concerns that the increased number
of arrests would result in an increased number of custodial deaths, in fact
there has been a significant drop in the number of deaths by law enforcement
officials so far compared to the same period in 2006. We seek, however, even
more than this; we are asking to see independent investigations of officers,
whether civilian or military, who are involved in these abuses, and appropriate
disciplinary action taken against those who have been found at fault. We will continue to monitor the human rights
situation and, when appropriate, press the Caretaker Government to take the
actions necessary to protect the rights of all during this critical time in Bangladesh’s
history.
Mr. Chairman,
Bangladesh, a country where poverty is rampant, is
also beginning to see further economic growth.
The World Bank and IMF have noted that the Caretaker Government has
carried out more reforms than previous governments have enacted in the last 10
years. GDP growth, at 6.7 percent for
Fiscal Year 2007, was the strongest on record since Bangladesh’s independence. Economic prospects are brightening. But problems remain. Increasing prices of basic staples such as
rice and gasoline are pressuring the poor and electricity shortages hinder
industrial growth. Many of the decisions
taken by the government to improve order and conserve power, for example have
courted dissatisfaction. Efforts to
address chronic power shortages by curtailing the evening hours of shops has
resulted in economic losses to shopkeepers and disrupted work schedules of
those accustomed to shopping after work.
Razing of slums constructed without legal work permits has displaced the
poor. Strict import regulation and the
elimination of small vendors have also contributed to rising costs of basic
commodities. These are some of the
continuing challenges facing the government.
Bangladesh
struggles to collect taxes and is facing growing inflation. However, I am confident that the current
government, led by the former head of Bangladesh’s central bank Fakhruddin
Ahmed, will address these economic challenges through prudent reforms and
completion of the anti-corruption campaign.
Bangladesh has also joined with us to combat
terrorism. On August 17, 2005, the banned terrorist
group Jamaatul-Mujahedin Bangladesh launched a nationwide campaign of
intimidation by detonating nearly 500 small bombs across Bangladesh on a single day. The
arrest of its top leadership in late 2005 and early 2006 under the Zia
government led to a halt in terrorism, but a new spate of arrests in late 2006
and early 2007 indicated that extremists are regrouping with the intent of
conducting new attacks. Upon taking office, the Caretaker Government identified
counterterrorism as a top priority.
Since then, Bangladesh
has pursued extremists, cracking down on the Jamaatul-Mujahedin Bangladesh,
sentencing and executing six convicted militants in March of this year. The United
States will continue to cooperate with Bangladesh, helping it to
strengthen control of its borders and land, sea, and air ports of entry. Further, we will provide, with the consent of
the Congress, additional counterterrorism-related assistance in Fiscal Year
2009. This assistance is necessary to
support Bangladesh
in its quest to rid itself of further violent militants that may emerge from
within the country or seek safe haven in its borders.
The situation in Bangladesh
remains fluid and the Caretaker Government still must prove itself by adhering
to the elections roadmap it has released, and by meeting each milestone and
benchmark, culminating in free, fair, transparent, and fully participatory
elections. It must continue to fight corruption while ensuring that the human
rights of all its citizens are preserved and protected, while fostering the
growth of the very institutions that will make sustaining democracy possible, a
vibrant civil society, a free press, and a fair and impartial judicial
system. The United States will continue working
with our longstanding partner as it moves through this important period in its
history. Together we can strengthen a
growing democracy, eliminate terrorism from Bangladesh,
and provide brighter opportunities for Bangladesh’s over 150 million
citizens.