On the morning of the 22nd January (2015) our offices at Pressenza had just received this note (see The First Note below) from Frank Choudhury, of Fieldwork organisation. Mr Choudhury was then travelling in Bangladesh – when another related item arrived, this time from the office of the Bangladesh Government, via the local consulate, Hong Kong.

The first note: ... the situation is much worse here than we expected. Airport swarming with police.

There has been a blockade all over the country organised by a 20-party coalition organised by the BNP. The blockade started on January 5th with many cases of random arson attacks. People are targeted randomly mainly in buses where a Molotov cocktail causes mayhem. Blockade is a kind of strike but has none of the rules of the hartal which is non-cooperation, civil disobedience in the Gandhian tradition.

It is relatively safe in CNG auto-rickshaws because a person can get away from a bomb. Anyway we are safe and waiting for the arrival of friends

Bangladesh is really suffering again from confrontational politics. One further point is that it appears that the two female leaders are now both acting in dictatorial fashion. There is a lack of political depth in both parties. The decisions come from the top without discussion. Fear to speak out reigns below the very top because of their vendetta. It goes on and on. The garment business is losing orders and foreign investment is declining.

Review of the situation, also by Frank Choudhury…

Looking into the main complaints of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party or BNP against the Awami League, fundamentally it is a lack of trust between the two female leaders who are the only two elected leaders in the history of Bangladesh politics.

The Awami League stresses the importance of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in the struggle for independence. In turn they are accused of ignoring the role of Ziaur Rahman, Khaleda Zia’s husband.

The failure of the BNP to take part in the January 2014 election was itself a failure. And, the Awami League has taken every measure to embarrass the BNP offering no way back. In fact, without opposition, it is effectively a dictatorship with the army at its disposal.

The Awami League changed the name of the airport from Ziaur International Airport to Hazrat Shahjalal Airport, a Moslem prophet, thus removing a part of Zia’s legacy.

The Awami League are branding a number of individuals war criminals and hanging them. Demanding they be hung. This is very provocative. The trials have a place but not the hanging, in many people’s view.

The Awami League confined Khaleda Zia to her office for 17 days from January 3rd as they suspected her of mounting public demonstrations against the Government.

She retaliated by calling for blockade. They have just removed the confinement order.

The politicians are gradually losing support of the public; but old political loyalties die hard and in Bangladesh you can hire people to do your dirty work.

At the same there are probably more murders in the US than in Bangladesh where the newspapers splash lurid headlines and photos of burnt bodies on the front page.

The Government circular:

Position Paper of the Government of Bangladesh on ‘Bangladesh’s Current Political Situation

Factual Overview of the Current Political Situation:
” On the first anniversary of the 10th Parliamentary Elections on 05 January 2015, the Bangladesh Awami League (Al) and its alliance partners as well as the Bangladesh Nationalist Party and its alliance partners convened separate programs around Dhaka city. The law enforcement agencies had prior intimation of possible clashes or confrontation between the two sides as well as possible violent activities from the rallies convened by the opposition, BNP-led alliance. As such, the Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) imposed a ban on public rallies or processions on the date in the interest of ensuring public safety and law and order.

” The BNP-led alliance announced an indefinite blockade all over the country from 06 January 2014. In the midst of the blockade, the BNP had called strikes/hartals in different parts of the country on different dates, including in Dhaka and its surrounding districts on 12 January 2014.

” There have been sporadic incidents of terrorist acts, bomb blasts and arson attacks in different districts. According to reports from the Ministry of Home affairs/Police Headquarters, there have a total of thousands of incidents of arson and attacks on motor vehicles/installations reported from all over the country since 05/01/15 to date. Many people have been reported to have sustained burn injuries due to arson and petrol bomb attacks. Till date, there have been reports of 20 people succumbing to their injuries sustained during the acts of violence perpetrated by the opposition BNP and its alliance partner, Jammat-e-Islami, which propagates religious fanaticism in Bangladesh. Ten police personnel have suffered grievous injuries while another 100 have been injured in one form or other. The news media published photos of the activists of Jammat-e-Islami (BNP’s main alliance partner) and its students wing Shibir, brutally attacking police personnel in Rajshahi and other districts.

” It has been almost a common feature to explode cocktail bombs to create tension and unrest among the people in general. The BNP and its allies have resorted to such explosions around key point installations like Minister’s residence, Bangladesh Television, Private television channel offices, resident Diplomatic Missions in Dhaka, among others. Explosives were also detected inside the Bangladesh Supreme Court complex, which were later recovered by the police. So far, the law enforcement agencies have retrieved cocktails/explosives of different kinds from around the country. Blockade and strikes created immense sufferings to the people. The occasional violent acts have also affected the lives of people in general, with particular impact on business and education.

” The Government remains committed to ensuring law and order and public safety by all means. The people in general have not responded to the BNP-led alliance’s violent activities and political programs, and continue with their efforts to go by their daily lives. The law enforcement and security agencies remain on high alert to prevent and pre-empt any form of terrorist acts. The police have filed cases in connection with every incident of killing, violence and arson, and have rounded up a good number of perpetrators. The law enforcement agencies have considerably enhanced their day and night patrol, have deployed additional forces in strategically important and populous locations, and have beefed up security on the highway with additional mobilization of forces, including the Highway Police. Particular attention is being given to ensure of protection of the religious minorities from any possible attacks by miscreants.

Political Questions:
” The BNP leadership is using the pretext of pressing home their demand for a so-called ‘political dialogue’ with the Government over the schedule and modalities for holding the next general elections, even before the completion of the five-year tenure of the present elected government. To this effect, the BNP Chairperson reportedly made a seven-point proposal during her Press Conference on 31 December 2014, which included a number of controversial issues, including the demand for release of the so-called ‘political prisoners’ meaning those convicted and charged of committing crimes against humanity and genocide in the war of liberation of Bangladesh by the International Crime Tribunals, Bangladesh.

” On the question of dialogue with the BNP-led alliance, the Prime Minister had made it clear that the Government would consider any such initiative provided the BNP had (i) shunned the path of violence, arson and terror to serve their political ends; and (ii) dissociated themselves from the Jammat-e-Islami, a party/political organisation accused of being involved in crimes against humanity and genocide (both demands categorically made by the European Parliament in its Resolutions of 16 January 2014 and 18 September 2014) (enclosed herewith). The recent activities of the BNP make it evident that they have paid no heed to these two logical and legitimate demands largely supported by our people and the international community.

” The European Parliament Resolutions on Bangladesh of 16 January and 18 September 2014 condemned violence and terrorist acts, and called for ban on political parties resorting to such acts. European Parliament resolution on 16 January 2014 states: “whereas the BNP opposition is continuing to cooperate with Jamaat-e-Islami and the splinter group Hafezat-e-Islam, which are regarded as the main instigators of the violence”…”Strongly condemns the killings and widespread violence which erupted throughout the country in the run-up to and during the January 2014 elections, especially attacks on religious and cultural minorities and other vulnerable groups; expresses serious concern at the paralysis of everyday life in Bangladesh on account of strikes and blockades …”…”Believes that in the interest of Bangladesh’s future, parties having a democratic reputation need to develop a culture of mutual respect; urges the BNP to unequivocally distance itself from Jamaat-e-Islami and Hafezat-e-Islam”… “Stresses that parties which turn to terrorist acts should be banned”…”Acknowledges that, despite its considerable shortcomings, the International Crimes tribunal has played an important role in providing redress and closure for victims of and those affected by the Bangladeshi war of independence”. European Parliament resolution on 18 September 2014 states: “Commends the Government of Bangladesh for the progress made towards achieving the Millennium Development goals, which has resulted in significant real-life improvements for millions of its citizens; further acknowledges the fact that these improvements were made under difficult domestic circumstances, including the constant threat of violent attacks by radical groups such as the BNP-affiliated Jamaat-e-Islami party”…”strongly condemns violent attacks by opposition groups against both civilian and government targets; calls on opposition groups to engage only in peaceful protests”.

” Any initiative for dialogue with the BNP would also critically hinge on their due recognition of the elected representation/dispensation of the present Government. The BNP would also have to come to terms with the fact that the present Government had received the mandate from our people for a term of five years to realize the visions and commitments we had made prior to the elections, and also delivered on to their overwhelming support and satisfaction. In fact, some recent media reports and Gallup Poll surveys would indicate that the majority of Bangladesh’s people believed that the present Government had been working in the right earnest to keep our commitments on good governance, law and order and sustainable development, in broad terms (The Dhaka Tribune Opinion Polls, published on 12 January 2015; http://www.dhakatribune.com/epaper/2015/jan/12). In comparison, the BNP-let alliance appears to have fared rather dismally in terms of their performance and ability to match people’s expectations of them.

” Most importantly, the BNP would have to acknowledge its judgment error in staying away from the 10th Parliamentary Elections, and instead resorting to acts of violence and terror to foil the polls. In a similar vein, the BNP would also have to agree to abide by the Constitutional process of peaceful transfer of power from one elected Government to the other without taking recourse to any interim, non-representational measures. The BNP’s continued stand on the question of holding elections under a non-partisan, caretaker Government makes it evident that they had not drawn any lessons from the realities of the 10th Parliamentary elections, and would like to take back the country to an unconstitutional electoral dispensation that has been eschewed by the Government and people of Bangladesh.

” Under these circumstances, it is to be expected that the BNP would further introspect about its political course and future for its own survival, and also take a pragmatic, constructive approach to reconfigure its political agenda and objective in response to the overwhelming demands and expectations of our people. The incidents of the past two weeks have made it clear that the people of Bangladesh would resist anarchy, violence, extremism and terrorism under the garb of political activities by any political entity claiming to be adhering to democratic norms and principles.