Tensions Rise in NYC Ahead of Yunus' UNGA Visit
Rival Bangladeshi political groups based in the United States are gearing up for opposing programmes in New York ahead of Chief Advisor Muhammad Yunus’ visit to the United Nations General Assembly.
The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and its allies are preparing to welcome Yunus and his delegation, while groups aligned with the Awami League are planning a series of counter-protests during the visit.
Yunus is expected to depart for New York on Sunday night and arrive at JFK Airport on Monday afternoon. Accompanying him are BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, Jamaat-e-Islami deputy chief Abdullah Mohammad Taher, NCP Member Secretary Akhtar Hossain, and Humayun Kabir, foreign affairs advisor to the BNP’s acting chairman.
Ahead of their arrival, the US chapter of the BNP, along with affiliated organisations, held a gathering at Diversity Plaza in Jackson Heights on Saturday. During the event, party leaders confirmed plans to greet the delegation at the airport and pledged to counter any activities planned by Awami League supporters, intensifying political tensions within the Bangladeshi expatriate community in New York.
In response, Awami League leaders and activists have begun arriving in New York from across the United States, including from California, Florida, Georgia, Michigan, Chicago, Boston, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Maryland, New Jersey, and Connecticut.
Protests are being organised under the slogan: “Wherever Yunus goes, resistance follows.”
Several prominent Awami League figures have confirmed their involvement in coordinating and leading the protest programmes. Siddiqur Rahman, president of the US Awami League, and Samad Azad, the party’s general secretary, have both announced their active participation. From the party’s Southern US branch, M Fazlur Rahman, president, and Mohammad Ali Manik, general secretary, have also joined the mobilisation efforts. In New York, Imdad Chowdhury, general secretary of the New York Metropolitan Awami League, is leading local coordination, stating that activists from multiple states will be participating throughout the week.
Planned demonstrations include daily sit-ins and black flag protests outside the hotel where Yunus is expected to stay. On Friday, during his scheduled speech at the United Nations, a rally and black flag protest will be staged outside the UN headquarters. The following day, activists will demonstrate outside the Marriott Marquis Hotel near Times Square, where Yunus is scheduled to attend a public discussion.
According to organisers, permission for the protests has been obtained from the New York City administration.
Meanwhile, a claim by Golam Mortoza, press minister at the Bangladesh Embassy in Washington, has stirred confusion. In a Facebook post, he alleged that several Awami League activists in the US had been arrested in connection with the planned protests.
However, US Awami League leaders strongly rejected the claim, calling it false and misleading, and accusing critics of attempting to disrupt their planned demonstrations. The New York Police Department (NYPD) has not confirmed any such arrests.
As the week unfolds, political tensions within the Bangladeshi-American community are expected to remain high, with both camps preparing for a visible and vocal presence in the streets of New York during Yunus' UN visit.