DHAKA — Ties between Bangladesh and the U.S. are at risk of fraying further after Washington imposed visa restrictions to pressure Dhaka to hold a fair election and America’s top envoy expressed fears for his own safety.

The friction is building ahead of polls due in Bangladesh in January. The U.S., the European Union and their allies insist the voting should be free, fair and inclusive, warning Dhaka and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s Awami League government against a repeat of the alleged manipulation, intimidation and boycotts by major parties that marred previous ballots.

Bangladesh’s main opposition party, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, and its partners have been demanding that Hasina step aside to allow an impartial caretaker administration to oversee the voting this time. The Awami League has rejected that notion outright.

Experts caution that another questionable election could tip the country into a troubling new era, politically and diplomatically.

“As for domestic politics of Bangladesh, it will be crossing the Rubicon and becoming a one-party autocracy like Cambodia,” said Ali Riaz, a distinguished professor of politics and government at Illinois State University in the U.S. “As for its international relations, the country may have to shift its alignment towards undemocratic regimes.”

With concerns mounting and time running short, the U.S. on Sept. 22 enforced visa restrictions on “individuals responsible for, or complicit in, undermining the democratic election process in Bangladesh.” Certain members of law enforcement, the ruling party and the political opposition — and their immediate families — may now be deemed ineligible to enter the U.S., Matthew Miller, a State Department spokesperson, said in a statement.

“The United States is committed to supporting free and fair elections in Bangladesh that are carried out in a peaceful manner,” Miller said.

The policy, which had been flagged earlier this year, has irked Bangladesh’s political elite — especially the ruling party and government officials, many of whom have interests and family ties stateside.

In response, top leaders of the Awami League, party activists and others launched a volley of verbal and social media attacks on the U.S., focusing much of their anger on the ambassador to Dhaka, Peter Haas.

AHM Shamsuddin Chowdhury Manik, a retired Supreme Court judge and supporter of the ruling party, argued on a TV show that Haas should keep quiet on political issues or leave the country. “Our suggestion is to ignore the U.S. administration and expel its envoy who is talking about the [electoral process],” he said, accusing the ambassador of defying diplomatic norms.

Haas said in a subsequent TV interview that he was concerned about the security of the U.S. Embassy. “Yes, I am still worried, not only about my security situation but about the security situation of the entire embassy and everyone who works at the embassy,” he said.

In March of this year, Bangladesh withdrew additional guards that had been assigned to the envoys of six countries — Australia, China, India, Saudi Arabia, the U.S. and the U.K. — claiming that there was a shortage of police personnel and that the security situation was already “very satisfactory.”

But this is not the first time questions have been raised about the safety of U.S. ambassadors.

Haas himself allegedly faced hostile ruling party goons last December, when he visited Dhaka’s Shaheenbagh area to meet with families of victims of enforced disappearances.

In 2018, then-Ambassador Marcia Bernicat’s vehicle was attacked in Dhaka’s Mohammadpur area, allegedly by a local unit of the ruling party.

Contacted by email, a spokesperson for the U.S. State Department told Nikkei Asia that per the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, the host country must uphold its obligations to ensure the protection of all diplomatic premises and to take all appropriate steps to prevent any attack on personnel.

“The United States values its relationship with Bangladesh and expects that the government will take necessary actions to maintain the safety and security of all foreign missions and personnel in the country,” the spokesperson said.

Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina addresses the United Nations General Assembly in New York on Sept. 22. The same day, the U.S. government said it was enforcing new visa restrictions on some Bangladeshi individuals.   © Reuters

On accusations that the U.S. is meddling and favoring the opposition, the spokesperson said Washington does not support any particular party, and that all sides in Bangladesh have expressed their desire for a free and peaceful vote. “The visa restriction policy supports this objective, and the desire of the people of Bangladesh to freely choose their leaders,” the spokesperson said, noting that it “applies equally to any individuals undermining the democratic process in Bangladesh.”

Professor Riaz said the visa policy alone would not be enough to ensure a fair contest, but that the enforcement has made it clear the U.S. is watching closely and is willing to act to preserve democracy.

“The U.S. visa is not needed by everyone in the country, but some of those who matter in shaping the environment towards the election have connections to the U.S. and are impacted by this,” he said.

Retired Brig. Gen. M. Sakhawat Hossain, a former election commissioner, said that if the next election mimics the previous one or two, it could lead to the imposition of Western sanctions akin to those imposed on Myanmar and other countries that have shifted away from democracy.

Still, he expected the authorities would deal with the security fears. “I believe the government will take appropriate measures to lessen any security concerns of envoys working in Bangladesh,” he said.