Religious Freedom Gets an Early Warning System in Bangladesh

There are worries emanating from many places in Asia today that the ideals of tolerance and pluralism are in retreat, whether from citizens and groups that oppose the freedoms of others, or from governments seeking to limit public expression. In South Asia, with its great tapestry of religions, cultures, and ethnicities, the last two decades have witnessed threats to coexistence where intolerance descends into violence against religious minorities and other disfavored groups.

Joining us today on the InAsia podcast are The Asia Foundation’s Mahmuda Sultana and Sadat Shibli. She’s the senior program officer and he’s the director of an intriguing five-year experiment to build peaceful coexistence. It’s called Community-Driven Early Warning Systems to Reduce Religious Freedom Violations in Bangladesh.