Enayet Rasul Bhuiyan
Exactly! As the above adage says: we use this expression to say that you should not criticize others if you have similar weaknesses yourself. If you throw a stone in a house made of glass, what happens? It will break the glass. This is the metaphor behind this expression. The idea of karma also comes into play because throwing stones at a glass house could break a window and encourageother people doing the same thing or criticizing you for it.
Benjamin Franklin, a famous early American, first used the above expression in a speech to underscore to people who live in glass houses that they ought not to throw stones at windows of neighbors, if their own windows are made of glass because then others may do the same to them breaking their own windows. In other words drawing attention to their own vulnerability.
There is a similar expression in English which is: “the pot calling the kettle black”. Both the pot and the kettle are black from the fire so one cannot call the other black since it is also black. Don’t call someone a liar if you also lie.
It appears our Foreign Minister (FM), Dr Abdul Momen, was citing the merit of these time tested adages in relation to the sudden and unexpected harsh action of the incumbent US administration in a press briefing recently. Among other things, he sought to highlight the hypocrisy or double standardof the US administration and that too through unusually harsh steps of making some top people in our law enforcement bodies persona non grata in the USA.
The same came also like adding salt to injury making the pain more painful. When the international community representing state players like governments, ruling party leaders, global bodies such as the United Nations and its specialized agencies, media and others, are all without exceptions, cheering on Bangladesh for its commendable performance and achievementsin all spheres of human activities, the US administration very exceptionally chose at this auspicious situation to declare punitive measures against Bangladesh for its supposed violation of human rights.
Our FM rightly minced no words when he told the press conference that the US is chagrined over the alleged (but not proved) disappearance of 6 thousand people in Bangladesh in 10 years when on average such cases of disappearance are 6 lakhs in a year in the USA. So, the adage applies so well here : do not call others black if you are black yourself.
The entire world remains deeply respectful of the role of the government and people of the USA for their great sacrifices during World War II. After this great conflict, the role of the USA in reconstructing war ravaged Europe under the Marshal plan and founding of the United Nations were applauded round the world. For the first time in history, a great power on winning the war sincerely sought to establish for good a profoundly changed world order based on scrupulous adherenceby all state players to the principle of the common good with the USA as the guarantor behind such a system. The grateful world welcomed this US overlordship for its unstinted efforts to crush evil dictatorships and their plans for global domination during World War II as the United Nations (UN) was set up after the war to keep the peace, always.
But did this pax Americana last ?Like other revolutions and purist ideological urges, the American fervor for a moralist world order gradually petered out to the dismay of romantic visionaries of international relations. The UN which was to be a global policeman operating fairly for maintaining a fair world orderbased on equality of nations for the collective good of all, began to be utilized craftily to further the self serving policies of USA itself. One after another, international events and reactions of the USA to them showed up the hypocrisies of USA’s policy. The USA was noted for siding with extremely oppressive military dictatorships in Third World countries just because these dictatorships seemed to be a buffer preventing these countries from going under the control of popular and nationalistic forces who might not agree to be handmaiden of the USA.
The undocumented intention of the Bretton Woods Conference in July 1944 was that the USA would create a global financial, political and military hegemon with itself at the core after World War II ended. This hegemon would seek to keep all other countries outside of it in the physical and cultural senses,subdued, so that they could never rise to challenge the supremacy of the USA. Simultaneously, the Central Intelligence (CIA) of USA was so empowered that it needed not to be accountable to the Presidency or any other authority in its activities against foreign countries that appeared in its perception as likely to be a counterforce to USA’s paramountcy bid.
It was much publicized in the global media that foreign leaders such as Chile’s Allende and our Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and others were either removed from power or assassinated through plots in which the CIA had a complicity. However, CIA’s such powers were restricted and withdrawn from the late eighties as a consequence of intense global concern due to the same. Specially, the unwritten approval to physically eliminate foreign leaders was withdrawn.
The world in 2021 is also not the same as it was in 1971 or 1975. In the changed world, former enemies became friends or friends became enemies. The dynamics of inter-state relations are that nations that learn to adjust or readjust to changes in the international system can expect a worthwhile future in contrast to those which fail to do the same. Thus, it is unpragmatic that after fifty years of its sovereign existence when Bangladesh has only gone on becoming stronger and stronger in every sense, the incumbent US administration is moving backward in its bilateral relationships with Bangladesh. It has banged Bangladesh on an issue which should be of relatively less interest to the USA.
It would suffice to express forthright on the human rights issue in Bangladesh and to await a response befitting diplomatic niceties or norms. As it is, time and again US envoys and other high ups in the US administration highlighted in their comments and statements how important Bangladesh is to them or how highly they value good relations with Bangladesh. But the latest US stance of sanctioning Bangladesh and doing that rather severely, certainly cannot help the cause of improving bilateral relations. Rather it can only do the opposite specially in the backdrop of the history of US government’s role during our war of independence and following attainment of independence.
Bangladeshis have sad memories of how the US government had sent its Seventh fleet to Bay of Bengal to prevent the defeat of Pakistani military in 1971, how it zealously tried to achieve a cease fire in the UN to give a chance to Pakistani forces in Bangladesh to retain some sort of advantage or control. Later, in 1974 ,promised and contracted deliveries of foodgrains for Bangladesh was diverted on the way that worsened famine like conditions in Bangladesh. And yet a little further down the road, we were reliably informed that CIA had a role in the most brutal slaying of the founder of Bangladesh, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman with members of his entire family except a very few.
How can Bangladeshso easily forgive and forget suchevents ? But it has. Today, in the best spirit of international amity and understanding, our people and government have been taking steps to nurture US-Bangladesh relations and take the same to the next higher level. But as the common saying goes : it takes two hands to clap successfully. If we have played our part outstandingly, the US must do the same specially after this rapturous application of sanctions.
We see hope of a good outcome though. After the furor in Bangladesh over sanctions, the US State Department has recently issued a report that undermines considerably the US government’s stand on sanctions against our RAB (Rapid Action Battalion). The State Department report now praises RAB for taking good and welcome steps against terrorism. It also mentioned that cases or allegations of people disappearing have been growing fewer and fewer over the years in Bangladesh. It also credited RAB for helping in the maintenance and improvement of law and order as a whole, for preventing human trafficking and narcotic smuggling and positive actions in other areas that infringe on human rights.
Our Foreign Minister, Dr Abdul Momen, has pointed to these developments as welcome ones. We will hope that the US will now engage in dialogue over the unwelcome issue of sanctioning RAB at the soonest. It appears from our FM’s statements that the US administration is now truly worried about the consequences of the sanction decision and wants to salve Bangladesh’s wounded feelings over it. The US probably realizes now how ‘preponderantly’ the people of Bangladesh do not support the sanctions mode and are feeling humiliated and insulted . The US Foreign Secretary reportedly phoned our FM and had a long talk over the issue and pledged to have detailed dialogue over the same at the fastest.
Washington should realize, above everything, that Bangladesh is not so weak or vulnerable like it was in 1971. Today, the People’s Republic of China (PRC) is a very good and trusted friend Of Bangladesh. The PRC is all for standing by the side of any country which faces high handedness from any quarter. And PRC today is a superpower andpotentially able to protect and promote any country it choses to draw to its bosom.
Bangladesh stands to lose little or nothing over its present stand-off over the sanctions issue with USA.The more US arm twists Bangladesh with sanctions, the more it will lose leverage on Bangladesh. Washington’s loss on this score will translate into China’s gain. Beijing will be glad to take on the role of Bangladesh’s benefactor and protector as Bangladesh stands up to Washington’s pressures and admonitions. Beijing’s influence on Dhaka is already great and it will become even much greater if Washington decides to press the pedal further down over the human rights issue with Bangladesh.
The writer is a senior journalist, former Associate Editor of the Independent.
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