Dumbfounding fiasco

The planned exhibition of Bangladeshi archeological artefacts at a French museum has been abandoned under circumstances which will definitely invoke lots of queries and questions in the public mind. It is the latest example of an important matter being so awfully mishandled, that even our diplomatic relations with France might come under strain. However, what the French Charge de Affairs said about the protestors has, to our mind, been unthinking and undiplomatic which we wish he had better avoided.
It all began with the government being not open at all about the deal with its French counterpart. Public protests over the priceless artefacts leaving the country, albeit temporarily, were ignored with inexplicable nonchalance and the go-ahead signal was always on. But the theft of two statues before they could be airlifted to France suddenly brought the amateurish handling of the government in full public glare. Nothing can perhaps alter the plain truth that the security aspect, while sending the articles abroad, was completely overlooked. The result is a major embarrassment to the government and an invaluable loss for the nation.
It is not clear why the government agencies were found napping when the security arrangement at the very doorstep of Bangladesh should have been foolproof in view of the uproar and protests from the civil society and people at large over the decision to dispatch our artefacts to France.
Now, the matter is far from over. The first batch of the artefacts sent to France has to be brought back. A vigorous investigation has to be launched into the theft and those behind it have to be brought to justice. We must be alert enough to thwart any attempt at bruising our image as a nation.
Finally, the government should issue a stage-by-stage clarification of how the matter was messed up. It certainly owes an explanation to the people who are anxious to know the details of the incidents taking place in the last few days. They are not asking for too much, for the artefacts are our great assets and we have to tighten our security arrangements to protect our valuable heritage.