US condemns Bangladesh violence

Saturday's bomb attack left 22 people dead

By South Asia analyst Kamal Ahmed

The United States has condemned the recent bomb attacks and politically motivated violence in Bangladesh.

The State Department spokesman, Richard Boucher, in a statement said that the people of Bangladesh deserved the opportunity to express political opinions without the threat of violence from any quarter.

His statement follows Saturday's bomb attack at a ruling party office near Dhaka that left 22 people dead.

Richard Boucher: Strong condemnation

The latest statement by the State Department condemned the recent bombings terming them as contemptible and an act of senseless violence.

It is one of the strongest condemnations of the worsening political situation in Bangladesh by a western government.

The statement said that political violence has plagued Bangladesh for too long.

Eye on polls

Mr Boucher mentioned attacks on political rallies, cultural celebrations and religious gatherings.

He urged the government to thoroughly investigate all the attacks and prosecute the perpetrators so that people can enjoy their civil and political rights, particularly voting in upcoming elections.

He said that the people of Bangladesh deserve the opportunity to vote freely in elections this autumn.

Most western countries including the United States have for some time been calling for the renouncing of violence and the resumption of dialogue to ensure free and fair elections.

All these countries have also promised help to ensure that elections are run smoothly and expressed their willingness to monitor the campaigning and voting.

Some of them have expressed fears about likely violence as they think that the next election would be one of the most fiercely fought contests in Bangladesh's history.

These concerns have increased as a result of the recent bombings with three such attacks in less than two months killing about 40 people.