Staff Correspondent

Awami League General Secretary and Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader on Saturday said efforts are being made to resolve the issue of Myanmar's firing reaching St Martin's Island through discussions with the country.

He said Bangladesh will continue to seek resolution through discussions, avoiding war. However, if attacked, a response will be given.

He made these remarks at the Awami League president's office in Dhaka’s Dhanmondi on Saturday afternoon.

“Our neighbouring country Myanmar has some internal crises. They have 54 ethnic groups. There are conflicts among them. It will be very unfortunate if we suffer from their internal crises,” he said.

“A military government is in power there. We are trying to solve it [the issue] through discussions and will continue to do so avoiding war. However, if we are attacked, we will respond to it. There is no reason to underestimate us. We are ready.”

Referring to the Rohingya crisis that has overwhelmed Bangladesh, the Awami League leader said, “Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina generously opened the borders for humanitarian reasons. For this, she is called the ‘Mother of Humanity’. Now, countries and organisations around the world praise us for this and provide lip service.

“But the amount of assistance for Rohingyas has decreased significantly. We are worried about the ongoing economic crisis. The additional burden of 10-12 lakh Rohingyas is creating pressure. Although big countries in the world talk about this crisis, we do not need their lip service. We need to lift the burden of the Rohingyas off our shoulders. We are making every effort. Wherever our prime minister goes, she raises the Rohingya issue first,” he said.

Regarding traffic congestion during the Eid journey on the roads, the minister said, although there is traffic congestion in some places, there was no need to wait for hours anywhere.

Asked about the BNP's claim that the government would fall at any moment, the Awami League general secretary said, “In one word, this is their daydream. A government changes either through a popular uprising or an election. The election was held on 7 January 2024. The idea that the government will fall in a popular uprising is laughable.

“The only popular uprising in this country was in 1969. There has been no uprising after that. There was a mass movement in 1990, not an uprising, which led to the fall of dictator Ershad.”

Regarding recent comments made about Bangladesh by US Assistant Secretary of State Donald Lu, Quader said, “We follow our constitution and will continue to do so. We do not think there is any need to worry about what Donald Lu said. They will sometimes criticise and sometimes praise us on various issues – that is up to them. We will move forward following our constitution based on our policies.”