Politicians, economists and analysts on Saturday said that the ruling Awami League will be responsible mainly if any Western sanctions or restrictions are imposed on Bangladesh as the government remains largely indifferent to their repeated calls for upholding democracy and human rights.
Speaking to New Age, they also said that blaming the opposition for such a situation in advance is nothing but a political rhetoric.
At the latest, on Friday, making an oblique reference to the main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party, prime minister Sheikh Hasina said that the BNP is plotting to create a famine situation in February–March with the support of some foreign countries.
‘As they realise that the election [January 7 polls] will be held, they will create a famine in Bangladesh. This is their next plan,’ she said in a exchange-of-view meeting with the leaders of Kotalipara Upazila Awami League in Gopalganj, her hometown.
Earlier, in a recent statement AL general secretary Obaidul Qauder said that the BNP is relentlessly conspiring to have sanctions imposed against the people of the country with false and fabricated information.
Former president of Communist Party of Bangladesh Mujahiul Islam Selim told New Age that the AL government has no wish for holding inclusive and credible elections and it will be responsible if any sanctions are imposed for undermining the democratic electoral process and violating human rights as well.
The ruling AL and all other political parties and the people as well know that no free, fair and credible general elections can be held under a partisan government, said Selim.
For this they became eager to hold a false and farcical general election, Selim added.
The government could still hold an inclusive general election by following the special constitutional clause and convening parliamentary sessions to pass the bill of caretaker government, he said.
Referring to the prime minister’s complaint that Bangladesh may face a famine after the general election, Selim said that such a comment from the prime minster can be a foreboding sign for the country and the wrong policies of the government would be responsible for that. BNP standing committee member Abdul Moyeen Khan said, ‘If this were to be true that the BNP is responsible for the Western sanctions imposed on certain Bangladeshis who are undermining a “free and fair election process” then this would pre-suppose that BNP is running the decision making process of the Western Governments ! The absurdity of such Awami allegations is obvious to everyone and doesn’t deserve any consideration whatsoever.’
‘The fact of the matter is, the forthcoming elections have already been rendered into a sham election by way of publicly horse trading the parliament seats not only between their partners but also with their domesticated opposition aspirants well before the actual election has even taken place. Such an election caricature cannot be acceptable to any democracy loving people whether inside or outside the country,’ he observed.
Asked for comments, Workers Party of Bangladesh president Rashed Khan Menon said that he did not see any reason for imposing sanctions on Bangladesh centring the coming general election.
The general election is going to be held and a number of political parties are taking part in it, Menon said.
The BNP isn’t taking part in the elections and the government isn’t responsible for that, Menon added.
If the sanctions are imposed on Bangladesh after the elections it would prove that it was pre-planned and intentional, Menon said.
Former cabinet secretary Ali Imam Majumder told New Age that if any sanctions are imposed on Bangladesh from the Western countries, alongside economic impact it would be shameful for the nation.
‘Instead of playing blame game, the government should address the issues that have already been raised by the Western countries. There is still time to sit with the opposition and ensure the issues of human rights,’ he said.
He said that the Awami League as a ruling party is mainly responsible to address the matters.
About the fear of famine, he said that when the prime minister herself has made such predictions, one cannot take it lightly.
He said that the government should take necessary steps to handle the situation.
Former diplomat Humayun Kabir said that accusing the opposition for possible sanctions is nothing but a political rhetoric.
‘International communities are working on the basis of the mandate on every particular issue. In this case of Bangladesh, they already have made their expectations clear. So, bypassing this, saying anything just out of politics is dangerous,’ he said.
He said that the country would face serious economic and image crises if unfortunately any serious sanctions are imposed on Bangladesh.
‘See, the European Union and United States are major markets for Bangladesh’s garment sector. If any sanctions are to be imposed on this sector, it will be dangerous for us,’ he observed.
Economists said that the country’s foreign exchange reserve and import payments would be badly affected, if any kinds of economic sanctions are imposed on the country in such a struggling economic situation.
Former World Bank Dhaka office chief economist Zahid Hussain said that any kinds of sanctions or trade penalties would create impact on the country as the economy has already been struggling due to shortage of dollars.
‘If any sanctions affect the country’s export-oriented industries, mainly the readymade garment industry, it would create an adverse impact on the country’s foreign exchange reserve and employment as well,’ he added.
Asked about the risk of famine by March 3 and whether the government has taken adequate measures to tackle such a crisis, he said that the government has to disseminate what kind of measures it has taken to overcome the situation.
Dhaka University economics professor MM Akash said that any kind of economic sanctions or penalties would create dollar shortages to lead to a crisis in the imported goods.
‘The chance of famine is little if the government takes adequate early measures as the country’s agricultural sector is quite strong. The poor people will not be affected much. But, the middle and higher income groups will suffer the brunt of crisis as they would not be able to use imported goods due to dollar shortages,’ he added.
On May 24, US secretary of state Antony J. Blinken announced a new visa policy to support Bangladesh’s goal of holding free, fair and peaceful national elections.
Later, on September 22, the US Department of State said that they had started imposing visa restrictions on individuals involved in undermining the democratic election process in Bangladesh.
Under this policy, the US said that it would be able to restrict the issuance of visas for any Bangladeshi individuals believed to be responsible for, or complicit in, undermining the democratic election process in Bangladesh.
