Can peace be restored with elections perceived to be stolen?
At least 29 people have been killed during the polls and post-poll violence, more than 140 in violent encounters since the campaign started. The universal consensus is on the elections being a farce but the warring Begums of Bangladesh have yet to see the light of reason. Khaleda Zia continues to demand immediate resignation of the government and the cancellation of elections. Sheikh Hasina remains satisfied with the abysmal turnout and has ordered security agencies to deal with the post-election violence with an iron hand. She is confident that once there is peace, she would dictate terms to her rival. But can peace be restored in the presence of the perception of a stolen election and hundreds of opponents in jail? Both Hasina and Zia are unconcerned about the unending violence and a nose-diving economy, both caused by a no-holds-barred confrontation.
The world meanwhile is getting increasingly concerned about the situation in Bangladesh. On Tuesday UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called on both sides to resume meaningful dialogue for an inclusive political process. The State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf expressed U.S. disappointment over an election with more than half of the seats uncontested and most of the remainder offering only token opposition. The results, she said, “do not appear to credibly express the will of the Bangladeshi people.” Washington urged the government and opposition parties to hold immediate talks on holding fresh elections.
Low voter turnout on the polling day was the ultimate sign of protest by the common people. Never in the history of Bangladesh have booths been so deserted or so many seats gone uncontested. Many had hoped that the low voter participation would pile new pressure on Sheikh Hasina to find a compromise with the BNP. That has not transpired. Unless both sides realize that democratic system rests on inclusiveness, reconciliation and dialogue, the country would face more violence followed by more repression. The infighting has brought down production in the country’s $22 billion garment industry, which accounts for 80 per cent of exports. There are widespread worries of economic stagnation and further violence in the impoverished South Asian nation of 160 million. The only way out is the formation of an independent interim administration with the sole task of holding the polls.
The crisis in Bangladesh is the outcome of intolerance on the part of the top leadership of the ruling Awami League and the BNP led opposition alliance. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina disdainfully rejected the proposal to hold elections under an independent administration. Khaleda Zia gave a call for agitation knowing full well that it would be violent and destructive. What has happened in Bangladesh should provide a lesson to political parties in the developing democracies in general and Pakistan in particular. The opposition needs to learn to make a better use of parliament to get its demands accepted rather than ignite street agitation. The government has to display tolerance and conciliation which are the hallmarks of the democratic culture instead of pushing the opposition to the wall.
