Dhaka: Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Friday came down heavily on some international human rights organisations which are vocal about the rights of criminals but silent on recent violence of anti-government political parties.

‘These organisations are not devoted to protecting human rights. They are absolutely opportunists,’ she said and questioned why these organisations are silent as anti-liberation forces are carrying out atrocities on innocent people since 2013.

The prime minister came up with the remark while addressing a meeting of Awami League Advisory Council (ALAC) at her Ganobhaban residence in the evening.

The premier said BNP and Jamaat in the name of political movement have carried out unprecedented heinous activities in the country since 2013, killing hundreds of people and violating human rights of millions.

But the so-called human rights organisations maintained complete silence about those crimes, and continued propaganda against the government on the minor issues including actual casualties in a violent rally of Hefajat-e-Islam in Dhaka in 2013.  

‘In 2013, we could not bring all criminals to book as we were busy with development programmes and showed restraint to those activities out of political consideration,’ she said.

Sheikh Hasina observed that BNP-Jamaat has now given a pause in their destructive activities, but she apprehends that they may repeat the occurrences when they would find it convenient.   

Criticizing Khaleda Zia for her long stay in party office with 65 personal staff, she said, ‘It's just nastiness. Khaleda Zia achieved nothing from her so-called movement except causing damage to the people and country's economy.’

‘Khaleda Zia vowed not to return home without unseating the government. But she could not do this, rather she had to surrender to the court and go back home disgracefully,’ she said.

Sheikh Hasina said the people never stay with a failed leader. ‘I think Khaleda Zia has got a lesson that a movement cannot be carried out by killing people and making innocents hostage.

Sheikh Hasina expressed utter disappointment over the support of some civil society members to Khaleda Zia despite her obstinate attitude to harm the country's interests.

‘How a person, who have minimum commonsense, can support them?’ she asked and added that any person can feel the heat of fire just even lighting a candle and would be able to understand the intensity of pains of burn victims.

The persons, who can feel the pains of burn victims, cannot support the perpetrators of the heinous acts, the prime minister said.