Bangladesh

Politically Bangladesh has suffered a lot during the past 6 months. Earlier in 2024 a student led uprising resulted in the outlawing of anybody associated with the government that had been in power for over a decade. A number of vital governmental functions, such as the police force, were dismantled. This led to a level of anarchy across the country. An interim government is now installed until there can be elections, which are expected to be a year away. Many have been killed during riots and unrest, and in some parts of the country people live in fear.

The Australian Government has advised its citizens not to visit stating: “We continue to advise reconsider your need to travel to Bangladesh due to ongoing civil unrest, demonstrations and terrorism. The situation remains volatile, with an ongoing risk of protests and demonstrations across Bangladesh and a heightened risk of civil unrest and disorder.” On this advice all visits by fieldworkers have been suspended. The planned Bible School and other activities have been cancelled until things are more stable. The recent Bible School was held virtually using Zoom. This was arranged with a series of talks and two ecclesias gathered in their own meeting places with speakers joining from Australia.

Some members have suffered severely with floods, and this is compounded by the turmoil in the country. Prices of food and opportunity to work have been affected. The Christadelphians in Bangladesh are registered with the government to allow money to be transferred to Bangladesh for support of the ecclesias. This is managed through a Trust, involving 5 brethren (Trustees) chosen by the ACBM. The Trust’s main function is to manage the banking and flow of money and to coordinate combined functions of ecclesias.