Recently, the political scenario of Bangladesh has been wee bit similar to that of Pakistan. The general elections, as much as they were awaited by the people of Pakistan are being looked forward by the Bangladeshis as well. Although the elections in Pakistan were to be held in January but due to the sudden demise of Benazir Bhutto, they got postponed till February.Similarly, elections in Bangladesh were also to be held in January 2007 but have been postponed and are expected to be held sometime around December.
Major reasons for their delay are the opposition protests, riots and boycott threats from Bangladesh’s two major parties i.e. Bangladesh National Party and Awami League.
However, unlike Pakistan where the parties were too eager to hold the elections, in Bangladesh the two major party leaders Sheikh Hasina and Khaleda Zia were experiencing conflicts regarding the authenticity of the caretaker government, under which the elections were scheduled to be held. Serious riots erupted and thus a state of emergency was declared in January 2007 and since then the reins of the government have been in Fakhruddin Ahmed’s hands.
To put a hold to these riots, an anti-corruption drive was started and numerous political figures including Khaleda Zia and Sheikh Hasina were arrested and detained.As a protest the members of these two parties declined to participate in the elections and thus the tug war has been going on since then.
Since the elections were being delayed again and again, many became of the view that the caretaker government has no intentions to hold elections. To prove such people wrong, recently, Fakhruddin Ahmed invited the members of the two parties to have talks with the interim government to discuss how to prepare for the parliamentary election.
However, they declined the offer and forced the government to release the detained leaders. To add weight to their demands, riots continued burdening the government.
Whether the government didn’t approve of the denial or it is dedicated to the task of ending the corruption, it is unknown but the interim government launched a fresh campaign and in its wake managed to capture 18,000 people.
The parties are of the view that since they are not giving in to the government’s demands, it is its way of assuring their submission. However, they stood strong on their stance of releasing the prominent leaders or else they’d not participate in the elections which will than lose its credibility.
Perturbed by this fresh crackdown and always the ‘well-wishers’, the US envoy to Bangladesh James F. Moriarty demanded explanation from the government regarding this corruption drive. However, the interim government very subtly asked them to refrain from poking their nose in the ‘internal affairs of Bangladesh.’
Without any intentions of taking sides, this step of the Bangladeshi government deserves praise. In the quagmire of unsolved problems and protests, the interim government still showed guts and introduced the US with their limits.
This is the sort of attitude that is needed in our leaders. Only if they learn to stand strong and forbid foreign intervention in the political scenario of Pakistan, things might not be as messy as they are right now. The leaders, democratic or dictators have to rely on their judgment while keeping in mind the concerns of their people. When we allow super powers to intervene in the internal matters of a country as vulnerable as Pakistan, they try to mould it according to their interests. That is what has happened in Pakistan so far and it may not be wrong to say that this is one of the driving factors that have led to the downfall of democracy over and over again in our country.
Perhaps seeing the turmoil in Pakistan, our neighbours have learnt their lesson and are intent on keeping at bay the obstructions caused by the alien superpowers.
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