One of the world's most corrupt governments, led by Sheikh Hasina of Bangladesh, has orchestrated the forced retirement of the esteemed leader of one of the most effective anti-poverty organizations on earth, Muhammad Yunus of the Grameen Bank.
And the Government of Canada will do . . . what?
With any luck, we're about to find out as Hasina is reported to now be making a much-postponed visit to this country.
After a series of government-led attacks, Yunus, a 71-year-old Nobel Prize winner who founded the micro-lendilng bank more than 30 years ago, was deemed by a Bangladeshi court earlier this month to be "too old" to continue running it. So he has stepped down from a role that has helped alleviate poverty for millions and millions of impoverished workers, mostly women.
But, as noted by scores of highly placed observers from around the world, he earned the animosity of Hasina and her colleagues with his brief foray into politics four years ago. And many point out how tempting it is for a government, which a few years ago was at the very bottom of Transparency International's corruption index and still remains far down the list, to control such a large and successful operation as Grameen.
Jennifer Slawich of RESULTS Canada, a group that has spoken strongly in support of Yunus, spelled out in a draft of an oped article (accessible here) many reasons why Canada should get involved.
"Bangladesh is a country of focus for the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA)," she wrote. "As such the Canadian Government should be interested in whether or not the Government of Bangladesh supports a climate conducive to development. Despite its weak and unstable government, Bangladesh has realized modest economic progress . . . largely attributed to institutions like the Grameen Bank, which developed with support from donors, including CIDA.
"For that reason alone, it is distressing that the Government of Canada would continue business as usual with the PM of Bangladesh without first addressing her role in the defamation of Yunus, the hostile takeover of Grameen Bank and by extension creating an environment that threatens the vitality of Bangladesh's civil society at large.
"Political, business and civil society leaders from around the world have spoken out in support of Yunus - including 26 members of the United States Congress who petitioned Hasina to find a mutually beneficial resolution to the matter.
"The Government of Canada should also send a clear message of support for the continued independence and strength of the Grameen Bank, as well as the preservation of the civil society sector as a whole."
To link to my earlier column in the Vancouver Sun on this issue, click here. And follow me on Twitter @DonCayo
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