The South Asia Collective is a group of human rights activists and organisations that envisions a peaceful and progressive South Asia, where the rights of all human beings, particularly those belonging to minority communities, are fully protected and respected.

The SAC stands in solidarity with Ms. Priya Saha as she faces criticism from various quarters over the remarks she made during an interaction with US President Donald Trump on the 17th of July. We are appalled by suggestions from various parties in positions of power that Ms. Saha’s public airing of her personal concerns in an international setting is tantamount to sedition against the Bangladeshi state. We are also dismayed by the vicious nature of the personal attacks that have been made against Ms. Saha, and those that have been extended against the Bangladeshi Hindu community as a whole.

The use of state machinery to muzzle dissent and perpetuate an atmosphere of fear in which human rights defenders are unable or unwilling to speak up has become a disturbingly common phenomenon in countries across South Asia. The threat of sedition charges is becoming a particularly potent weapon in the region to silence critics and dissenters, and has played a significant role in the continued weakening of democratic values in the region. The raids at the offices of senior lawyers Indra Jaising and Anand Grover, the registering of First Information Reports against Muslim ‘Miya’ poets in Assam speaking out against systematic discrimination against the community, and the enhanced muzzling of press and registering of sedition charges against civil society groups in Kashmir, are all recent examples of this disturbing trend in India. These are a continuation of past trends with registering of cases against Teesta Setalvad and Kanhaiya Kumar among other activists. Likewise, in Pakistan, the family of human rights activist Gulalai Ismail has recently been hounded with cases of sedition, defaming state institutions, and terror finance. Gulalai herself has been forced into hiding. This is in addition to several Pashtun Tahaffuz Movement activists who have been booked for sedition. Similar cases have been reported from the rest of the region.

The people of Bangladesh gave to themselves a Constitution that declared democracy and secularism as two of the fundamental principles upon which the republic would be built. The freedom to speak out and hold the state accountable is one of the hallmarks of any functioning democracy, and this should be protected under all circumstances. It is deeply troubling to see Bangladesh potentially travelling further down the path of intolerance and repression.

Ms. Saha is a human rights activist whose concerted efforts to provide support to disempowered minorities in Bangladesh have touched many lives. Her critics are advised to listen to her concerns and engage her in constructive debate, instead of attempting to browbeat her into silence. The merits and demerits of her argument and evidence may be up for questioning, but it is the duty of the Bangladeshi state to ensure her physical and mental well-being in the face of targeted harassment. Her safety – and the safety of other human rights defenders like her across the region – is of paramount importance for the deepening of freedom and democracy in South Asia.

The SAC reiterates that religious persecution remains an everyday reality for minority groups across the region. Attempts to silence civil society actors are completely counterproductive to the efforts to build a fairer and more equitable South Asia, where human rights should be sacrosanct regardless of religion, caste, creed, gender or ethnicity.

On behalf of SAC members, including: