Delwar Hossain Sayeedi
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Delwar Hossain Sayeedi (often commonly referred to as Allama Saydi), is a very prominent Bangladeshi Islamic personalities and politician as recalled in the life of Prophet Mohammed (SM), a former M.P. of the Bangladeshi Parliament, and one of the most prominent leaders of the Islamist Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh, a primary member of the former ruling coalition Bangladesh Nationalist Party-led government.
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[edit] Background
Sayeedi is one of the most prominent religious telepreachers in Bangladesh[citation needed]. His many critics have alleged that he does not represent Islam (primarily because of his controversial messages, which have included hostile comments against, among others, Christians, Jews and Hindus) and only uses its name to suit the many financial and business enterprises of his political organization Jamaat[citation needed], and they, along with several historians, have alleged that Sayeedi participated in war crimes through assisting and financing the Pakistani military[citation needed], with whom Jamaat's political branch in Pakistan had a link with, in their supression of the liberation movement which later granted Bangladesh its independence. The latter of these charges have been denied by Sayeedi, though there has never been a full-scale investigation of his involvement in the war.
[edit] Allegations of war crimes
Delwar Hossain Sayeedi is at the forefront of alleged war criminals who it is widely believed were active collaborators with the Pakistan Army during the Bangladesh Liberation War in 1971. This included organizing and foudning the vigilante Razakar army which was guilty of widespread torture, murder and rape of Bengali nationalists, as well as preparing lists of prominent Bengalis (primarily Hindus and intellectuals) for subsequent arrest and murder by the Pakistan army. Documented records of Sayeedi's public statements during 1971 certainly provide evidence of his political stance opposing Bangladesh independence and supporting the actions of the occupying Pakistan Army (see, for instance, reference books such as Ekattorer Ghatok Dalalra Ke Ki Bolechen (Speeches and Letters of the 1971 Collaborators published by the Ghatok-Dalal Nirmul Committee in 1996). On August 14, 1971, for instance, at the height of the Bangladesh Liberation War, he is reported by the DAILY SANGRAM newspaper to have stated, "Pakistan is here to stay while humanity survives. Those who oppose the existence of Pakistan (ie, Bangladeshi freedom fighters) will burn in hell along with all the other non-believers (ie, non-Muslims)"
[edit] Career as politician
Delwar Hossain Sayeedi currently functions as a Member of Parliament in the Bangladesh Jatiyo Shangshad representing the fundamentalist Islamist party Jamaat-e-Islami, which is a member of the ruling coalition led by the Bangladesh Nationalist Party of Khaleda Zia, though his status is in legal dispute.
He was found guilty of election fraud in September 2003 as widely reported in the Bangladesh media. The legality of his election was challenged by the Bangladesh High Court on a legal technicality (he was found guilty of having overspent on electioneering) and his membership was overturned. The ruling was however never implemented and it is widely believed the ruling party influenced the legal process to prevent further investigation. He still enjoys the privileges of parliamentary status contradicting the judgement of the highest court in Bangladesh.
[edit] Allegations of extremism
Sayeedi is prominent as one of the most outspoken of Bangladesh's hardline Islamists. While he usually preaches on religious matters (such as the role of women, charity, education and so forth) he also touches on political issues and has been frequently accused of inciting violence and hatred. He is known for having made widely reported statements threatening journalists and writers who he believes to work against Islam and his political party.
For instance, he called for the banning of a book written by Humayun Azad which chronicled a fictional account of the role of Sayeedi's Jamaat party in the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War. Sayeedi's call was followed by a brutal attack on Azad, a few months after which he died. Sayeedi has also been known to issue threats to investigative journalists researching the rise of fanaticism and terrorism in Bangladesh, for instance against the Janakantha journalist Mithu whom he asked to leave his constituency of Pirojpur District, as reported in a prominent human rights website.
The popular Bangladeshi daily newspaper JANAKANTHA reported on February 13th 2002 that Sayeedi had declared in a speech, "So what if Taliban is destroyed. The war against America will continue".
At a public meeting on 23rd March 2003, Sayeedi called for "blood tests for journalists to see if they are Muslims or not", as documented in the Reporters Sans Frontieres 2003 Report.
He is also a prominent and vocal advocate of declaration of the Ahmadi population of Bangladesh as "non-Muslims". In February 2004, he authored a book "Why Qadianis are not Muslims?" (Global Publishing, Dhaka), immediately after which there were widespread attacks on Ahmadi mosques and residential areas.
In a widely discussed analysis of Sayeedi's past, he is alleged to have compared Hindus to excrement.
[edit] International campaign against Sayeedi
There has been a widespread global campaign against Sayeedi by concerned activists, including Bangladeshi Muslims. He was put on a US government no-fly list (see NEW AGE, March 16 2004 given his alleged links to global extremist groups. There were major campaigns to block his visas to enter several countries to preach, including to Canada (2004) and UK (2005, 2006).
