A CANDID DIPLOMAT

While a second secretary at the High Commission of Pakistan, Mohiuddin Ahmed was the first Bangladeshi diplomat in Europe to join the Liberation War. During a long, illustrious career he served in different positions at Bangladesh Missions in Delhi, Geneva, Jakarta, Jeddah, and New York, and as a Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Principal, Foreign Service Academy. In 1997, he declined two years' ante-dated seniority given to freedom fighter officers. The former diplomat now reads eight hours a day, and watches current affairs for three more. He has written about 1500 columns in mainstream dailies and weeklies.

What is the focus of the foreign policy of Bangladesh?
The primary responsibility of our foreign policy is to defend the sovereignty and integrity of the country. And the second important objective is to promote economic progress.
 
How effective has our foreign policy been since independence?
(With a chuckle) Certainly we have been able to defend our sovereignty and integrity. The economy is growing at a rate of 6 percent. That's not bad for a developing country considering many developed economies where growth has been stagnant at 1 or 2 percent. However, we still have a large number of people living in poverty.
 
What more can our missions do to mitigate the sufferings of Bangladeshi migrant workers working abroad?
Migrant workers through official channels send home about USD 15 billion as remittance. It is the third pillar of our economy. We have to take better care of these people. The issues our missions deal with are complex and overwhelming. For example, where to send the dead body of a man who had travelled on a fake passport? What is his home address? Hopefully machine readable passports will help resolve this problem. But people are desperate. They often fall prey to traffickers who find other ways. With all their limitations, the missions are doing a fairly good job. There are about two million workers in Saudi Arabia alone. Compare that with the strength of our mission there. If someone has a difficulty, it may take months to resolve it.

So what can be done?
When I was the deputy chief of mission in Jeddah from 1981 to 1985, I advised Bangladeshis to form groups and live in communities where one could look after the other. We are expanding—recently, we have established embassies in more capitals of the world. But I still think the number of people necessary to look after the interest and welfare of the large number of expatriate Bangladeshis is low.

How can we persuade a powerful country like India to cooperate more on issues like water sharing, border killing and so on? To what extent can diplomacy work?
India, in its own interest has to maintain a peaceful environment in the region. It cannot make economic advancements with its borders in tension. Every country has to abide by international rules and regulations and respect international opinion. India wants to become a member of the Security Council. It needs support not only from the permanent members of the UN but also from smaller neighbouring countries. Bangladesh is no more used for training of insurgents of the eastern provinces of India. As we speak right now 5000 tons of rice is being transported by India to Tripura through Bangladesh. India has to appreciate that. It cannot simply throw its weight around and say no to things that are important to the common welfare of the people of the two countries.

What role can the ministry of foreign affairs play to attract more FDI?
Last year a group of foreign buyers went to Narayanganj by road. When it was time to return to Dhaka, they had to arrange a helicopter to beat the traffic congestion. So that's the impression they left  with. What can the foreign ministry do to solve traffic congestion? Create the right conditions and investors will come rushing in. We need good governance and infrastructures.

What was 1971 like for members of the diplomatic service who were abroad?
Our Liberation War was fought on many fronts—military, cultural and diplomatic. We, the members of the diplomatic service, Bangladeshis by birth, had a small role to play. After India, the UK was the most important place for mobilising support for the war. On August 1, 1971, at the Trafalgar square in London, I pledged my allegiance to the Mujibnagar Government in front of a crowd of 30,000, the biggest ever gathering of Bangladeshis in Europe. A few days later my daughter, Oru was born. Diplomats usually do their jobs quietly. So when we came out on the street joining demonstrations, holding press conferences and organising meetings, the world took notice. They knew something terrible must have happened in Bangladesh. We met with leaders in Europe and the US to garner support for the war. On the early morning of January 8, 1972, I had the honour of receiving Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman at Heathrow Airport, London while he was on his way to Bangladesh from Pakistan. Dr Kamal Hossain, his wife Hameeda Hossain and their two daughters were with him.