Tarique seized networking, showcased Bangladesh

Bangladesh’s permanent representative to the United Nations, Irene Khan, speaks to The Daily Star about Prime Minister Tarique Rahman’s first visit to the global forum’s general assembly.

Prime Minister Tarique Rahman’s visit to the UN General Assembly was an opportunity for him to introduce himself to the world, talk about his plans for the country and reaffirm Bangladesh’s commitment to multilateralism, said Irene Khan, Bangladesh’s permanent representative to the UN.

“There was a warm welcome as this was [Tarique’s] first time at this high-level event”, which took place at a time when powerful states were “openly defying international law, challenging international consensus, challenging the UN”.

She said the UN’s annual event in New York was a good networking opportunity that Tarique fully leveraged, showcasing Bangladesh’s potential and possibilities while at the same time pledging certain commitments at the global stage by presenting his plans.

Irene believed it was a good debut for Bangladesh’s relatively newly elected PM on the global stage, considering how he was received by different delegations in New York.

Tarique had about 30 meetings, including 10 with UN agencies, one on the Rohingya issue, two on climate change and a major meeting with investors. “It is remarkable because he was [in New York] from Monday evening until Friday evening. So there were just four days in which he had all these meetings.”

Reflecting on the meetings, Irene said, “They were open to him, and they listened, eager to know how Bangladesh is doing, what his vision is. They wanted to understand where Bangladesh is going.”

The PM’s message, in turn, was that Bangladesh seeks international cooperation and is willing to “work with all but being beholden to none”, she said.

“And at the same time, we are open for business. We are looking for investment. That was a strong message from him.” Irene mentioned some of the PM’s plans for investment -- in social development and in upskilling women and the youth.

“People forget that the UN is not only a centre of multilateralism; it is also a marketplace for building relationships with like-minded states or any other kind of states. There are also heads of organisations like the head of the Gates Foundation or the head of the World Bank. And I think he really exploited the opportunities that the UN offered.

“And what struck me as I watched him through all these meetings was that he came across as a sincere person. He was authentic. He did not pretend to be what he was not. He did not pretend to talk about lofty things. He was grounded.”

Asked about Tarique’s speech at the general assembly which focused much on Bangladesh’s local issues despite the UN being a global forum, Irene said there were a whole range of speeches. She said some spoke of their lofty ideas about multilateralism and some spoke about just their own country.

She further said the PM did talk about Bangladesh’s approach to the UN and multilateralism, but most of his speech was about his vision for Bangladesh and what he is doing. “But don’t underestimate the interest that the international community has on what is happening in Bangladesh. The country has gone through a great turbulence and disruption in recent years.”

Irene pointed out that Bangladesh was trying to find a pathway towards stability following the democratic election. “So there was a great deal of curiosity among the international audience about what is happening in Bangladesh.”

She said the PM talked about climate justice, climate impact, and about training 24,000 midwives to improve maternal health and infant survival. “These were very concrete things that he was putting on the table, saying ‘this is what matters in my country and this is what I plan to do’.

“And I don’t think one should dismiss it. I think he was actually making himself accountable to the international community. He was basically saying, these are things that my people need and this is what I’m giving them.”

The envoy said it was not just the PM who was working hard through the week. “He had come with a number of his ministers. And they were working hard too.” For instance, the law minister met the heads of international human rights organisations. “And they gave him a hard time, obviously.”

They discussed what the government was doing with new legislation on the National Human Rights Commission, enforced disappearances and so on. “There were deep questions. And I don’t recall this kind of engagement. The law minister was not just meeting with a delegation but with human rights activists and defenders.

“So not just the prime minister, but his entourage also realised that they were under scrutiny of the international community and it was up to them to engage with them, tell them what they were doing. And that deserves credit.”

MULTILATERALISM IN CRISIS

As regards this edition of the UNGA, she said, “Multilateralism is going through a great crisis, where powerful states are openly defying international law, are challenging international consensus, challenging the UN. There is, in fact, a crisis of public trust in the UN as to whether it is effective not to mention a huge financial crisis.”

But going back to the 1980s and 90s, Irene noted, Bangladesh had set up a pathway for itself where it was a friend to all but beholden to none.

“And there was a strong message along those lines, that we don’t belong to this group or that group. That we are not within the orbit of any superpower, but we are friendly with all and we are here to promote our national interests. That message I think got across quite well and it was welcomed.”

What stood out during the assembly, Irene said, was that by and large, the vast majority -- especially the middle and smaller countries -- stood up against the attacks on the international rules-based system.

“There are these big powers around the world breaking the rules but in the United Nations, we heard speech after speech, where leaders were saying they believe in the international system and they would hold things together.”

“And of course, we had a president of the general assembly who was also from Bangladesh and that was quite an historic occasion. [It was great to see the prime minister giving a speech with the president of the general assembly, who is our foreign minister sitting at the back.”