Ecstasy and surrealism in Bangladesh

Fazal M. Kamal

“Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man’s character, give him power.” — Abraham Lincoln
The level of surrealism has been lifted to a wondrous degree. After having successfully isolated itself from the people as well as the international community (both of which were dealt with sheer disdain) the government of Bangladesh, led by the always-effervescent Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, is experiencing the joys of self-congratulations — in the midst of one of the worst crises in the country’s history.

Not to be outdone (and lest they incur the displeasure of the high command) ruling party stalwarts — seemingly on steroids — have been indulging in belligerent and provocative rhetoric which in no way can encourage any kind of discussion leading to a resolution of the ongoing political impasse.
The hope has been that having successfully gone through with the deadliest-ever parliamentary voting in the face of the political opposition’s vehement boycott the regime would feel relieved — and should also be able to become at least a tad tolerant. But so far the actions, including the continued arrest of opposition politicians aside from the pugnacious talk, have not given any such indication. Sadly, if this persists then the people of Bangladesh will have to continue to fear for their livelihood and their country.
The government’s failure to reach out to all parties to discuss a return to a credible system of voting acceptable to all will, obviously, merely keep the country in a perpetual state of agitation which in turn will not only impact the citizens’ everyday life but, equally importantly, will drastically affect the economy.
Additionally, these elections have clearly not been accepted by the international community. This factor by itself will also naturally have adverse consequences in economic, diplomatic and financial terms for the nation. No amount of bravado will succeed in eradicating these realities.

Selective amnesia
A digression at this point will not be incongruous. It seems the Awami League and its leaders have jointly decided to experience selective amnesia. However, even if they prefer to forget these facts, the people haven’t: It was not too long ago that Awami League leaders and their topmost lieutenants were, in full view of the entire nation, fawning over the very same persons whom they now want to eliminate via trials for genocide.
(A point of personal clarification: This writer has never supported the Jamaat-e-Islami or its politics. Rather, over the decades he has written extensively — way before it was fashionable to do so —criticizing the obscurantist policies of the Jamaat. The evidence is there for all to see in the pages of this weekend newspaper.)
In the present context, if a peaceful solution is not achieved at the soonest then the incipient civil turmoil, which has already claimed dozens of precious lives, could mushroom into a full-fledged civil conflict with all the vicious ramifications that such confrontations always bring. Till this moment, the administration doesn’t appear to be concerned by this possibility. And that is enormously worrisome for Bangladesh.
Another reprehensible but significant factor that demands public airing is that, because of certain myopic policies and decisions of the Awami League government during its tenure in office, it was always feared that some peripheral but destructive groups might take advantage of the sentiments of the citizens, which can lead to heinous misdeeds against those who are often described as belonging to the minority community. It is of course universally known that neither these elements nor their despicable activities have an iota of support among the huge majority of Bangladeshis. Given the extant circumstances it won’t be irrelevant to quote from a commentary written by deutsche welle expert Grahame Lucas which, mutatis mutandis, efficiently sums up the causes that led to the bleak situation and their present effects:
“The latest crisis has three underlying causes: Firstly, the refusal of the Awami League to resign ahead of the poll and make way for a caretaker government to oversee the elections. The Awami League can argue quite legitimately that such an arrangement is not common practice in a functioning democracy where the government in power ensures the fairness of an election. But Bangladesh, as we have seen in the past few months, is not a functioning democracy because the parties do not trust each other to conduct a free and fair election. A caretaker arrangement would have averted most of the protests.

Truth Commission
“Secondly, the so-called International Crimes Tribunal set up ostensibly to lay to rest the terrible opening chapter of the history of Bangladesh: the war of independence against Pakistan, which saw millions killed and some 300,000 women raped. The government could have followed the Truth Commission model used by Nobel Prize winner Nelson Mandela in South Africa to heal the wounds of apartheid. But it did not. Instead it chose to seek punishment for the accused, including the death penalty. To achieve this goal it amended legal procedures retroactively, steps condemned by western human rights organizations and the UN. The fact that the accused were all senior members of Jamaat-e-Islami, the junior partners in government of the BNP on several occasions, and top BNP officials, meant that there could only be one outcome: Massive street protests and violence by their supporters, who saw evidence in the trial for the partisan stance of the government.
“Thirdly, the decision by the High Court to bar Jamaat-e-Islami, a radical Islamist party, from the poll was a serious mistake. Since the government was seen to be behind the decision to bar Jamaat from the poll and behind the trial of its leadership at the war crimes tribunal, the party, which has never scored more than 10 percent in national elections, has mutated into a movement of self-styled martyrs, who no longer need to win the political argument. This ignores the fact that although 90 percent of Bangladeshis are Muslim, radical Islamism has never taken hold. The state is secular, something guaranteed in the constitution, not an Islamic Republic like Pakistan. For its part, the Awami League argues that Jamaat plans a theocracy based on sharia law. The concern about Jamaat’s goals is without a shadow of doubt justified. But was this fear really behind the decision? In reality, it appears that the Awami League was more interested in depriving the BNP of a potential coalition partner.”

Reckless, mindless path
When the whole world can clearly see what is happening and envisage the probable repercussions it is absolutely incomprehensible why the Sheikh Hasina administration persists with hurtling along a reckless and mindless path. This persistence can only be self-defeating and will do even more disservice to the nation. If that becomes a reality, the woes of the people of Bangladesh will surely multiply.
Further continued utilization of the repressive apparatus of the state will merely nurture the pernicious imbroglio and harden the attitude of more desperate elements. In spite of the shrill squeals of administration leaders they have to realize that this electoral triumph is not only not credible but it is totally hollow besides. Obviously, the road to recovery will inevitably entail a cessation of rampant arrests and providing ample space to political adversaries.
But the very first step, before all the rest can follow, will have to be a curbing, by ruling party big wheels, of their penchant to spew fabrication on a constant and daily basis.
A creepy footnote: It’s indeed weird that Indian policymakers, especially the various segments of the bureaucracy, seem to possess this uncanny ability to land on the side of corrupt, repressive and unpopular governments in Bangladesh whenever that nation is in a crisis. Maybe for a better appreciation of this phenomenon one should refer to Max Fisher’s assessment in The Washington Post of Dec. 19, 2013 (‘India says it wants to be a great power. It didn’t act like one this week.’)
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The writer has been a media professional, in print and online newspapers as editor and commentator, and in public affairs, for over forty years.

Source: Weekly Holiday