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Protesters Force 4 Bangladesh Cenbank Deputies to Resign

Commuters wait at a traffic light in Dhaka on August 7, 2024, after former prime minister Sheikh Hasina fled the country. (Photo by MUNIR UZ ZAMAN / AFP)
Commuters wait at a traffic light in Dhaka on August 7, 2024, after former prime minister Sheikh Hasina fled the country. (Photo by MUNIR UZ ZAMAN / AFP)
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Protesters Force 4 Bangladesh Cenbank Deputies to Resign

Commuters wait at a traffic light in Dhaka on August 7, 2024, after former prime minister Sheikh Hasina fled the country. (Photo by MUNIR UZ ZAMAN / AFP)
Commuters wait at a traffic light in Dhaka on August 7, 2024, after former prime minister Sheikh Hasina fled the country. (Photo by MUNIR UZ ZAMAN / AFP)

Four deputy governors of Bangladesh's central bank were forced to resign on Wednesday after about 300-400 officials protested against what they said was corruption by top officials, two sources at the bank told Reuters.
Protesters also demanded the resignation of Bangladesh Bank governor Abdur Rouf Talukder, who was not present during the demonstrations at the bank's headquarters in capital Dhaka, said the sources, who did not want to be named.
Talukder and the bank's spokesperson did not answer calls made to seek comment.
The protests at the central bank came two days after Sheikh Hasina resigned as Bangladesh's prime minister and fled the country following weeks of deadly protests that began as demonstrations by students against government job quotas but escalated into a movement demanding her resignation.
Deputy Governor Nurun Nahar will continue handling operational work at the bank for now but will have to leave when new deputy governors are appointed, said one of the sources.
"Although many officials, including myself, continue to work, we support the protests," said another central bank official who did not join the protests and did not want to be named.
Two of Talukder's deputies were also not in office on Wednesday but agreed to resign after protesters spoke to them by phone, the sources said.
The chief of the financial intelligence department and the policy adviser to the central bank also resigned, the sources said, adding that Bangladesh army personnel ensured the safety of the officials and helped them leave the bank.
Bangladesh Bank announced its monetary policy for the first half of fiscal year 2024-25 last month and the next policy for the second half is due in January.

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UN Chief and Pope Call for Nations to End the Use of Antipersonnel Land Mines

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres speaks during a press conference at the United Nations Climate Change Conference COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan, 21 November 2024. (EPA)
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres speaks during a press conference at the United Nations Climate Change Conference COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan, 21 November 2024. (EPA)
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UN Chief and Pope Call for Nations to End the Use of Antipersonnel Land Mines

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres speaks during a press conference at the United Nations Climate Change Conference COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan, 21 November 2024. (EPA)
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres speaks during a press conference at the United Nations Climate Change Conference COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan, 21 November 2024. (EPA)

The UN head, Pope Francis and others called Monday for nations to end the production and use of land mines, even as their deployment globally grows.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in a message to delegates at the fifth review of the International Mine Ban Treaty, also known as the Ottawa Convention, that 25 years after it went into force some parties had renewed the use of antipersonnel mines and some are falling behind in their commitments to destroy the weapons.

“I call on states parties to meet their obligations and ensure compliance to the convention, while addressing humanitarian and developmental impacts through financial and technical support,” Guterres said at the opening of the conference in Cambodia.

“I also encourage all states that have not yet acceded to the convention to join the 164 that have done so. A world without anti-personnel mines is not just possible. It is within reach.”

In a statement read on behalf of Pope Francis, his deputy Cardinal Pietro Parolin said that antipersonnel land mines and victim-activated explosive devices continue to be used. Even after many years of hostilities, “these treacherous devices continue to cause terrible suffering to civilians, especially children.”

“Pope Francis urges all states that have not yet done so to accede to the convention, and in the meantime to cease immediately the production and use of land mines,” he said.

The treaty was signed in 1997 and went into force in 1999, but nearly three dozen countries have not acceded to it, including some key current and past producers and users of land mines such as the United States, China, India, Pakistan, South Korea and Russia.

In a report released last week by Landmine Monitor, the international watchdog said land mines were still actively being used in 2023 and 2024 by Russia, Myanmar, Iran and North Korea. It added that non-state armed groups in at least five places — Colombia, India, Myanmar, Pakistan and the Gaza Strip — had used mines as well, and there were claims of their use in more than a half dozen countries in or bordering the Sahel region of Africa.

At least 5,757 people were killed and wounded by land mines and unexploded ordnance last year, primarily civilians of whom a third were children, Landmine Monitor reported.

Landmine Monitor said Russia had been using antipersonnel mines “extensively” in Ukraine, and just a week ago, the US, which has been providing Ukraine with anti-tank mines throughout the war, announced it would start providing Kyiv with antipersonnel mines as well to try and stall Russian progress on the battlefield.

“Antipersonnel mines represent a clear and present danger for civilians,” Guterres said in his statement. “Even after fighting stops, these horrifying and indiscriminate weapons can remain, trapping generations of people in fear.”

He praised Cambodia for its massive demining efforts and for sharing its experience with others and contributing to UN peacekeeping missions.

Cambodia was one of the world's most mine-affected countries after three decades of war and disorder that ended in 1998, with some 4 million to 6 million mines or unexploded munitions littering the country.

Its efforts to rid the country of mines has been enormous, and Landmine Monitor said Cambodia and Croatia accounted for 75% of all land cleared of mines in 2023, with more than 200 square kilometers (80 square miles).

Prime Minister Hun Manet joined the calls for more nations to join the Mine Ban Treaty, and thanked the international community for supporting Cambodia's mine clearance efforts. He said they have reduced land mine casualties from more than 4,300 in 1996 to fewer than 100 annually over the last decade.

“Cambodia has turned its tragic history into a powerful lesson for the world, advocating against the use of anti-personnel mines and highlighting their long-term consequences,” he said.