Wednesday, August 29, 2007
Prospect for Democracy in Bangladesh
(Cross posted in Deshivoice)
You don’t have to be a rocket scientist to understand the agenda of the military government in Bangladesh. It’s becoming crystal clear that Army is running the show and it has no desire to leave it in the coming days. If you don’t believe, watch the TV news that will show you who runs the game plan. If you look at the history of military backed political parties under General Zia and Ershad, the recent political trend in Bangladesh fingers at the same path of dirty history. Now, the military spokesperson Law Advisor Mainul Hosein says that the government may not lift ban on politics due to recent violence. Isn’t it a part of the blue print that the Army wants to stall the return of democracy? Bangladesh Election Commission has repeatedly asked the government to lift ban on in door politics to start grounds for dialogs with political parties. Nothing happened. Now, the Commission has come up with schedules of dialogs as it’s been left with no alternatives. BDnews24 reports today:
General Moeen has already concluded that traditional democracy has failed to yield any good to this poor nation, as he implied to abandon it and replace it with a new form of governance and democracy (i.e. military democracy?). How many times are we going to be fooled to our Goldfish memory? Yes, we’re looking for democracy. We don’t want to fail as we’ve seen failures of military take over. We want to show the world how Bangladesh can and will return to democracy. Has the process started to welcome the return of democracy? No, not yet.
Political ban in Bangladesh has not been lifted, and it appears that will not likely to happen it in the coming days. Corruption charges and legal proceedings have painfully suffered as they’ve been crafted and enforced to serve ill-motivated political interests and hidden agenda. Yes, the mother of all corruption is still left spared and untouched. The Army Generals’ motive is clear as democracy will return as per their term. When the rest of the world is safely assured that the Bangladesh military won’t take over the government, it doesn’t guarantee that democracy will come back here without sponsorships and influences. Can we afford another hand made regime in Bangladesh in the name of democracy? Sadly, the prospect for democracy in Bangladesh is severely distorted when it solely depends on the mercy of the Generals as the free will and hope of people are cordoned off by bans and blames.
You don’t have to be a rocket scientist to understand the agenda of the military government in Bangladesh. It’s becoming crystal clear that Army is running the show and it has no desire to leave it in the coming days. If you don’t believe, watch the TV news that will show you who runs the game plan. If you look at the history of military backed political parties under General Zia and Ershad, the recent political trend in Bangladesh fingers at the same path of dirty history. Now, the military spokesperson Law Advisor Mainul Hosein says that the government may not lift ban on politics due to recent violence. Isn’t it a part of the blue print that the Army wants to stall the return of democracy? Bangladesh Election Commission has repeatedly asked the government to lift ban on in door politics to start grounds for dialogs with political parties. Nothing happened. Now, the Commission has come up with schedules of dialogs as it’s been left with no alternatives. BDnews24 reports today:
Law adviser Mainul Hosein Wednesday said recent street violence had made the government rethink a move to immediately lift a long-standing ban on indoor politics.
His latest concern came a day after the Election Commission announced that it would kick off dialogue with the political parties in the second week of next month.
"We have finalised an outline to lift the ban on indoor politics. But the recent violence in Dhaka University has forced the government to reconsider its implementation," Hosein told bdnews24.com. "The council of advisers will take a (final) decision," he said.
Chief election commissioner ATM Shamsul Huda Tuesday said that they would start the much-expected dialogue on electoral reforms with the political parties on September 12.
The major political parties have said they are not interested to sit with the EC for talks unless the ban goes...”.
General Moeen has already concluded that traditional democracy has failed to yield any good to this poor nation, as he implied to abandon it and replace it with a new form of governance and democracy (i.e. military democracy?). How many times are we going to be fooled to our Goldfish memory? Yes, we’re looking for democracy. We don’t want to fail as we’ve seen failures of military take over. We want to show the world how Bangladesh can and will return to democracy. Has the process started to welcome the return of democracy? No, not yet.
Political ban in Bangladesh has not been lifted, and it appears that will not likely to happen it in the coming days. Corruption charges and legal proceedings have painfully suffered as they’ve been crafted and enforced to serve ill-motivated political interests and hidden agenda. Yes, the mother of all corruption is still left spared and untouched. The Army Generals’ motive is clear as democracy will return as per their term. When the rest of the world is safely assured that the Bangladesh military won’t take over the government, it doesn’t guarantee that democracy will come back here without sponsorships and influences. Can we afford another hand made regime in Bangladesh in the name of democracy? Sadly, the prospect for democracy in Bangladesh is severely distorted when it solely depends on the mercy of the Generals as the free will and hope of people are cordoned off by bans and blames.
Thursday, August 23, 2007
What’s Next?
Bangladesh has faced an unprecedented unrest since the Army backed Caretaker government has taken over power on January 11, 2007. At the beginning, the Caretaker Government has enjoyed over pouring support from the masses as it came into power with popular mandates for ensuring a free and fair election and driving corrupt politicians away permanently. Its popular support started evaporating as the election process slowed down, consumer price hike reached at its peak, political process stalled as political activities remain banned and popular support plummeted as suspicion about the Army’s ultimate motive grew as special interest political figures enjoyed favor to regroup and reappear under a new political platform.
The current volatile situation erupted as a few soldiers got involved into fighting with Dhaka University students and beat them while they’re watching soccer game on August 20th. While students started protesting against this incident of maltreatment by the military personnel, it exploded unexpectedly as the Police force has brutally tortured mass students to quell their protest. The protest turned violent as mass people joined students to condemn the attack on students. This is a first visible sign of massive dissatisfaction with the Army backed Caretaker Government. The Army through its Information Advisor Barrister Moinul Hossain is claiming alleged foreign money and influence behind this uprising which is an old tactic to divert attention from the root cause of this unrest. This alarming sign demands to shift priorities for the Army. It needs to show respect for popular demand to return to democracy as quickly as possible. Bangladesh can not afford an army backed non elected government for a long period as its credibility and legitimacy are in question. International community is seriously paying attention to this worsening political development in Bangladesh as Google news item currently show more than 489 stories about curfew situation in Bangladesh.
Times Online reiterates concern expressed by the international observers as it states,
Some analysts and Western diplomats see the protests as the first clear indication that time is running out for the interim government. “Regrettably, the incumbents decided to take the path of repression,” the English-language New Age daily wrote in an editorial today. “The public discontent will simmer on and will find manifestation in different forms and style, sooner than later.”
The current army backed regime shows huge insensitivity to people’s interest and demand. BBC reports about high stakes in Bangladesh following the massive unrest. It says,
“…adding to the mix is a growing fear among many - particularly students and professional groups, that the military has a long-term plan to depoliticise the country, and cement its control over society. They point out that while politicians are being vilified relentlessly, military men are being appointed to various key institutions. The much-talked about National Security Council with a strong role for the military is close to being formed. The current student demonstrations may have been the opening shots in another long battle - not to get rid of military rule, but perhaps to prevent one”.We cannot speculate what’s next waiting for Bangladesh. While blaming invisible powers behind this trouble could be a nice try, but not a smart one. The Army backed Caretaker Government has lost its credibility as it stalled the election and political process for unknown reasons when the nation is loosing patience. Army may dream for a Pakistani or Burmese military model to replace political institutions which will backfire tremendously as the people of Bangladesh have outgrown military regimes. History knows the end result for an unelected government as the Army needs to relearn this historical lesson once again until it becomes too late.
