Bangladesh : Cleaning the house and reestablishing democracy
Wednesday, 26 September 2007
Mahfuz R. Chowdhury
The success of military rule in Bangladesh was made possible again and again by the corrupt politicians who brazenly made themselves available to be bought and sold like commodities. These politicians, who expropriated or otherwise destroyed much of the country's precious wealth, including the international aid money, routinely reappeared in different administrations. One conniving politician managed to secure his ministerial position in three different administrations! By way of kickbacks, corruption and outright stealing, they managed to establish themselves financially in society.
During the 1990 election, when democracy was supposedly re-established, the country was mostly divided into two powerful camps. One was under the Awami League, which provided political leadership in the independence struggle under Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, and the other was under the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, which was established by Gen. Ziaur Rahman, the famous freedom fighter, after he assumed state power. When Sheikh Mujib was assassinated, the feuding party elders of the Awami League inducted his daughter, Sheikh Hasina, as the party's leader, as a compromise. Similarly, when Gen. Zia was assassinated, his wife, Khaleda Zia, became BNP's leader.
These two women rose to leadership positions even though they were considered politically inept. Ironically, the unscrupulous politicians helped these two women gradually assume dictatorial power within their respective parties. No party member ever dared to question their authority; if any did he/she faced intimidation or the sack. The world should be aware of the way the last elected President of the country was thrown out of office in Bangladesh within a few months because he tried to rise above party politics.
By shunning the democratic process within their parties, the two women quickly transformed national elections into a money-making game. Through this game, they would sell the nomination to a parliament seat to the highest bidder. Obviously, the usual bidders were those corrupt politicians who had established themselves financially. In the elections that followed, the winners were determined not by the free will of the people, but by the money and muscle each candidate could muster. So, in order to gain state power, both women would try to manipulate things or jockey for candidates with money and muscle. They both held state power at one time or another and it was during their administrations that the country reached the top position in Transparency International's corruption rankings for five consecutive years.
Before the scheduled election in January 2007, when their maneuvering to grab state power brought the country to the brink of anarchy, the president was obliged to declare an emergency. Emergency rule may be considered bad, but for Bangladesh it has achieved a miracle, though certain actions of the caretaker government have also raised concerns.
The news published in the national newspapers on the extent of corruption that went on in the country has stunned the world. One of the corrupt officials seemingly ran out of space to hide his ill-gotten money, so he reportedly chose his mattress, pillow case, rice container and refrigerator to stash his cash, while his poor mother lived a meager life with only the bare necessities. Learning of her son's corruption case, the mother felt very disgraced and said: "Oh mother earth, please split apart, and let me in!"
The present caretaker government deserves thanks for successfully prosecuting some of the top corrupt officials and for having the courage to initiate the prosecution of the two leading women, whose complicity is beyond doubt. It's heartening to see that foreign powers, such as the George Bush and Gordon Brown administrations, the European Union as well as India, are supporting the caretaker government's current efforts. One important goal for the caretaker government should clearly be to change the political atmosphere in the country so that good people feel enthusiastic about entering politics.
Bangladesh, a country of about 150 million, may have remained poor over the years, but it certainly has great potential. It's blessed with plentiful natural gas and coal reserves, and its people are very competitive. Its corrupt political system has prevented it from reaching its potential. Even under trying circumstances it has achieved 5 per cent annual growth during the past decade. With good governance, it could expect to reach the top.
The tumultuous history of Bangladesh indicates that the country has been at a crossroads many times before. But, instead of choosing the right path, the country fell deeper into trouble and democracy suffered each time. Although expectations are very high this time around, evil forces are still busy derailing the so-called 'yanked national train' as evidenced by the recent incitements of terror acts in the national universities. It's precisely for this reason that every citizen and well-wisher of the country should be on guard to see that the nation stays on the right path.
Times have changed. If Bangladesh fails to clean its house and establish democracy this time, the alternative may be an Iraq-like situation where infighting would ensue and anarchy might reign. In such a situation, the world would be faced with a more serious mess - including the rise of fundamentalism - than it would care to handle. Let's hope the people of Bangladesh will rise up to the challenge, and the world will continue to support their good cause.
Professor Chowdhury teaches Economics at C.W. Post Campus of Long Island University, USA. Courtesy : Amercican Chronicle
The success of military rule in Bangladesh was made possible again and again by the corrupt politicians who brazenly made themselves available to be bought and sold like commodities. These politicians, who expropriated or otherwise destroyed much of the country's precious wealth, including the international aid money, routinely reappeared in different administrations. One conniving politician managed to secure his ministerial position in three different administrations! By way of kickbacks, corruption and outright stealing, they managed to establish themselves financially in society.
During the 1990 election, when democracy was supposedly re-established, the country was mostly divided into two powerful camps. One was under the Awami League, which provided political leadership in the independence struggle under Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, and the other was under the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, which was established by Gen. Ziaur Rahman, the famous freedom fighter, after he assumed state power. When Sheikh Mujib was assassinated, the feuding party elders of the Awami League inducted his daughter, Sheikh Hasina, as the party's leader, as a compromise. Similarly, when Gen. Zia was assassinated, his wife, Khaleda Zia, became BNP's leader.
These two women rose to leadership positions even though they were considered politically inept. Ironically, the unscrupulous politicians helped these two women gradually assume dictatorial power within their respective parties. No party member ever dared to question their authority; if any did he/she faced intimidation or the sack. The world should be aware of the way the last elected President of the country was thrown out of office in Bangladesh within a few months because he tried to rise above party politics.
By shunning the democratic process within their parties, the two women quickly transformed national elections into a money-making game. Through this game, they would sell the nomination to a parliament seat to the highest bidder. Obviously, the usual bidders were those corrupt politicians who had established themselves financially. In the elections that followed, the winners were determined not by the free will of the people, but by the money and muscle each candidate could muster. So, in order to gain state power, both women would try to manipulate things or jockey for candidates with money and muscle. They both held state power at one time or another and it was during their administrations that the country reached the top position in Transparency International's corruption rankings for five consecutive years.
Before the scheduled election in January 2007, when their maneuvering to grab state power brought the country to the brink of anarchy, the president was obliged to declare an emergency. Emergency rule may be considered bad, but for Bangladesh it has achieved a miracle, though certain actions of the caretaker government have also raised concerns.
The news published in the national newspapers on the extent of corruption that went on in the country has stunned the world. One of the corrupt officials seemingly ran out of space to hide his ill-gotten money, so he reportedly chose his mattress, pillow case, rice container and refrigerator to stash his cash, while his poor mother lived a meager life with only the bare necessities. Learning of her son's corruption case, the mother felt very disgraced and said: "Oh mother earth, please split apart, and let me in!"
The present caretaker government deserves thanks for successfully prosecuting some of the top corrupt officials and for having the courage to initiate the prosecution of the two leading women, whose complicity is beyond doubt. It's heartening to see that foreign powers, such as the George Bush and Gordon Brown administrations, the European Union as well as India, are supporting the caretaker government's current efforts. One important goal for the caretaker government should clearly be to change the political atmosphere in the country so that good people feel enthusiastic about entering politics.
Bangladesh, a country of about 150 million, may have remained poor over the years, but it certainly has great potential. It's blessed with plentiful natural gas and coal reserves, and its people are very competitive. Its corrupt political system has prevented it from reaching its potential. Even under trying circumstances it has achieved 5 per cent annual growth during the past decade. With good governance, it could expect to reach the top.
The tumultuous history of Bangladesh indicates that the country has been at a crossroads many times before. But, instead of choosing the right path, the country fell deeper into trouble and democracy suffered each time. Although expectations are very high this time around, evil forces are still busy derailing the so-called 'yanked national train' as evidenced by the recent incitements of terror acts in the national universities. It's precisely for this reason that every citizen and well-wisher of the country should be on guard to see that the nation stays on the right path.
Times have changed. If Bangladesh fails to clean its house and establish democracy this time, the alternative may be an Iraq-like situation where infighting would ensue and anarchy might reign. In such a situation, the world would be faced with a more serious mess - including the rise of fundamentalism - than it would care to handle. Let's hope the people of Bangladesh will rise up to the challenge, and the world will continue to support their good cause.
Professor Chowdhury teaches Economics at C.W. Post Campus of Long Island University, USA. Courtesy : Amercican Chronicle