EDITORIAL COMMENT: Where is Bangladesh Headed?

Bangladesh’s politics has again entered into turbulent waters with BNP’s 4 point demand for participating in the elections. It seems unlikely that the Government will be able to provide satisfactory answers to the demands that cast dark shadows over the proposed 18^th December elections.

The nature of the demands notwithstanding, this Government just cannot have elections without the BNP. It came to office as it did not want then Caretaker Government to go ahead with the January 22^nd election without the AL as that would have not made the elections credible and used that excuse to extend their tenure now close to 2 years. The same argument should apply now that credible elections cannot be held without the BNP; else by logic it would lose legitimacy and expose itself to legal questions being raised about its tenure once emergency is lifted.

One understands that a group in this government would feel more comfortable with AL forming the next government as under it, the BNP has suffered much more by comparison. It is now up to Dr. Fakhruddin to hold charge and give both the parties a level playing ground for the election by listening to the BNP’s grievances. It is unfortunate that he did not pay much attention to political issues that have come up now for if he had, the problems facing the nation now would have been known to him long ago and he could have spent his time in office more for resolving these and the nation would have not faced its current uncertain predicament. Governance for which he came to office is not just cutting tapes, giving speeches in meetings or touring abroad. He has said many times that he heads a caretaker government and if that be so, his one and only task should have been to see that elections would be held in a manner acceptable to all for which BNP’s participation is a must.

As for our guests, the diplomats in the country, they have made it their affair interfering in our politics as if it is their main occupation. In doing so, it was interesting and unbelievable that both the mainstream parties were visited by a group of Arab Ambassadors to be given their views on our elections given the fact that in most of their countries, democratic election is unknown!

Unfortunate as it is that we keep on being humiliated by these foreign diplomats, it is time to see if they could do something positive for Bangladesh by their interest in our politics. Let them talk to the parties concerned, the caretaker government most of all, and make them see that holding an election without a major political party will only push the country to conflict and confrontation that could be disastrous for Bangladesh at a time when we need to have peace in the political process to save the country from failing.

EDITORIAL COMMENT: Let it be a Tripartite Meeting among Khaleda Zia, Sheikh Hasina and Dr. Fakhruddin Ahmed

In a bleak political scenario, the news that the two former Prime Ministers have agreed to sit together is one piece of good news for everybody. The way the news has come to press suggests that the idea was raised to Sheikh Hasina by Ambassadors of three European nations and she agreed with the idea. When the BNP chairperson was later asked by journalists about her reaction to what Sehikh Hasina told the Ambassadors, the former was positive to the idea of the meeting between her and Sheikh Hasina.

It is not clear still how such a meeting will be held or what role the Government will play in it. The Commerce Adviser, who has the habbit of losing no opportunity to appear before the media, later said before TV camera and journalists that "on the basis of their (Hasina-Khaleda) eagerness, the government is always ready to take any kind of initiative helpful for the progress of the nation.” The Adviser’s comment suggests that the Government has no role still in the proposed meeting and it has to be seen how it will be involved when the talks are held ultimately.

The nation had been expecting that the two former Prime Ministers would have a good and working relationship with each other since they emerged as the leading politicians of the country after leading the democratic movement that ended the decade long dictatorship of General HM Ershad. The lack of it was responsible for many of the country’s political problems.

At this moment though, the problem is not really between the BNP and the AL; nor is it between the two ladies. It is the Caretaker Government’s role that has been responsible for a lot of the current fluidity in the country’s political process. It is because of this, the meeting between the two ladies should in fact be a tripartite meeting between Begum Khaleda Zia, Sheikh Hasina and Dr. Fakhruddin Ahmed if the objective is to untangle the current political impasse and move the country towards a credible election for transition from a military backed government to an elected government. Otherwise, the two former Prime Ministers sitting together will not solve the current political impasse as the solution to it lies in the Caretaker Government.