In Bangladesh, the Islamist organisation, Hizb-ut Tahrir has been banned. Home Secretary Abdus Sobhan Sikdar said the government feared Hizb-ut Tahrir posed a threat to peaceful life. It is the first time that an Islamist group which has not been implicated in any terrorist acts has been outlawed. The group has condemned the ban and pledged that it will not be silenced by a government. Hizb-ut Tahrir has been active in Bangladesh for the past eight years.