“We, the Christians of Bangladesh, and their leaders – the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Bangladesh (CBCB) and the United Forum of Churches (UF-CB) are surprised and worried,” said a joint statement issued on Sunday.
In today’s globalised and secularised world, the idea of a “Christian state” is absurd, said the statement signed by Abp Bejoy D’Cruze of Dhaka, the president of CBCB and UFCB.
The reaction came after Bangladesh’s Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina accused Christians of plotting to carve out a “Christian state” of their own by taking parts of Bangladesh and Myanmar. “Like East Timor …they will carve out a Christian country taking parts of Bangladesh [Chattogram] and Myanmar with a base in the Bay of Bengal,” national English newspaper The Daily Star quoted Ms Hasina as saying on May 23.
She said the government is under pressure to allow a foreign government to use a base in the Bay of Bengal, which she rejected without naming the country. “Many have their eyes on this place. There is no controversy here, no conflict. I won’t let that happen. This is also one of my crimes [in their eyes],” she said, adding that this is why the Awami League Government is always in trouble.
The alleged plot is neither supported nor accepted by Christians, he said.