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Bangladesh
At stake: National Assembly
Background
Bangladesh was in the news in late 2006 because one of its citizens, Muhammad Yunus, won the Nobel Peace Prize for his work offering micro credits to the poor. Poverty is certainly one of Bangladesh's main problems, with more than 60 per cent of the population depending on low-wage agricultural jobs, mainly in the rice fields.
Not even the size of Iowa, Bangladesh counts with a population of 147 million and a very low literacy rate of 43 per cent. Dhaka, the capital, is one of the fastest growing cities in the world and one of the most densely populated.
The country once belonged to British India. It separated from it mostly for religious reasons—India was mainly Hindu and Bangladesh was predominantly Muslim. In 1947, when India attained its independence, Bangladesh was known as East Pakistan. Its territory was separated by a chunk of India from West Pakistan.
Distance and other major differences caused the two Pakistans to wage a civil war. On March 26, 1971, East Pakistan seceded and became Bangladesh, also known as Bengali Nation. The armed conflict started then and lasted until December, with the Indian army's intervention. It is calculated that about 1 million Bengalis died in the fighting and about 10 million fled to India. It took three years for Pakistan to recognize Bangladesh as a legitimate nation.
Bangladesh's main language is Bengali. Most people are Muslim (Sunni) and a small percentage Hindu and of other tribal descent. Most of its territory is just above sea level and surrounded by rivers that cause major floods every monsoon season. The country is a major importer of food, and exports some goods to Western Europe, China, India and the United States.
Bangladesh is a parliamentary democracy. Its 1972 constitution has been amended several times. The president is chief of state and the prime minister heads the government.
In 1975, president Sheikh Mujibur, founder of the country, was killed. His successor, Zia ur-Rahman was also assassinated. Since then, unrest has been the political trait of the country, with army coups and unfinished premierships following each other. In July 2000, a woman—Sheikh Hasina Wajed—became the first prime minister to successfully complete a five-year term in office since the country was established.
In 2001, Begum Khaleda Zia, a member of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), became prime minister. To this day the BNP, in alliance with other organizations, controls 215 out of the 300 seats in the National Assembly.
In 2004, more than 20 general strikes were held, in an effort to force the government to call an early election. The country's already unstable situation has gotten worse as of lately with the surge of radical Islamism. Bangladesh was the target of terrorist attacks in over 60 cities in 2005. The government made an effort to tackle radical Islam by banning extremist-leaning political parties, but the measure led to a strong backlash form the public.
2007 National Assembly Election
Fourteen political parties have refused to participate in the 2007 election in a bid to push for a radical overhaul of Bangladesh's political system. The year 2006 featured several nasty encounters with the national security forces during street protests calling for a change to the status quo.
As protests rose, Bangladeshi prime minister Begun Khaleda Zia of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) agreed to step aside in October to allow a caretaker government. The measure, which was meant to guarantee free and fair elections, was not enough to appease the people's animosity.
Former head of government Sheikh Hasina Wajed is the leader of the opposition party, the Bangladesh Awami League (BAL). She opposed the appointment of M.A. Aziz as director of the Electoral Commission, claiming he is a government puppet. She also accused interim president Iajuddin Ahmed of doing little to guarantee a flawless democratic process.
The United Nations (UN) agreed to send a group of election observers in December to overlook the situation before, during and after the ballot. UN secretary-general Kofi Annan has expressed concern over Bangladesh's political violence several times, mainly after a UN-commission report published in June called the political situation "extremely preoccupying".
On Nov. 22, Aziz took a three-month leave. Mahfuzur Rahman was placed in charge of the Electoral Commission.
On Nov. 27, the Electoral Commission announced that the election would take place on Jan. 23, 2007. BAL general secretary Abdul Jalil expressed dismay at the decision, saying, "The schedule was announced in haste to stage a farcical vote." The opposition alliance has claimed that the electoral roll includes 1.4 million fake voters.
On Nov. 28, protesters set fire to two offices of the Electoral Commission. BNP secretary-general Mannan Bhuiyan criticized the situation, saying, "No political party has any rights to criticize or oppose schedules announced by the commission."
On Dec. 15, the BAL announced it would participate in the democratic process. Party member Abdul Jalil explained the rationale, saying, "There is no alternative to election for changing the government."
On Dec. 18, the Election Commission announced that the ballot would take place on Jan. 22, to accomodate a Hindu religious festival.
On the same day, Hasina threatened to boycott the ballot, saying, "We cannot participate in an election designed to confirm victory of a particular party through a conspiratorial and farcical vote."
On Dec. 22, Rahman dismissed any further postponements to the legislative ballot, declaring, "Is Bangladesh facing a disaster like tsunami, earthquake or a cyclone, which could have warranted such a delay? Unless there is such an emergency on hand to tackle, I don't see any possibility of pushing the election behind schedule."
On Dec. 27, the Electoral Commission announced that 4,146 candidates had registered to take part in the election. Jatiya Party leader and former military ruler Hossain Mohammad Ershad was ruled ineligible to take part in the ballot, because of a previous conviction for misuse of state funds. The decision led to public protests in northern Bangladesh.
On Jan. 3, 2007, the BAL said it would boycott the election. Hasina announced the decision, saying, "The caretaker government is not neutral. It's biased in favour of our opponents. So we are not going to the polls. We have come to the conclusion that the president must relinquish the office of the chief adviser to make the balloting free and fair."
Jatiya and the Liberal Democratic Party of Badruddoza Chowdhury later joined the boycott. With the decision, both Zia and her son, Tareq Rahman, will be elected unopposed.
On Jan. 7, a three-day transport blockade organized by opposition protesters began. At least 50 people were injured in clashes between activists and police.
On Jan. 11, Ahmed resigned as head of the caretaker administration, declaring, "Political animosity, mistrust and violence have made life miserable for the people and made the future of democracy uncertain. Our main responsibility was to hold a free and fair election so that a duly elected government can run the country and lead it to peace and progress. But that has not been the case."
Ahmed also instituted an indefinite state of emergency. Pre-election violence has claimed 45 lives, and hundreds of people have been injured. The election has officially been suspended.
On Jan. 16, new caretaker chief Fakhruddin Ahmed, a former central bank governor and World Bank official, completed his team of 10 advisors.
On Jan. 17, advisor Mainul Hosein discussed the situation, saying, "Unless we have a dependable, active election commission, it is difficult to say (the election can be held) within three months, within four months, two months. As soon as we can, that is the simplest answer, easiest answer."
The BAL has called for a new electoral roll, and other parties have urged for the introduction of voter cards and transparent ballot boxes.
On Jan. 31, Rahman and four senior electoral officials tendered their resignations. Their departure was one of the main demands from opposition groups, after BAL leader Hasina threatened not to take part in any election organized by Rahman.
On Feb. 5, A.T.M. Shamsul Huda was appointed as Bangladesh's new chief election commissioner. No date for the election has been set.
On Apr. 3, U.S. ambassador Patricia Butenis discussed the current state of affairs in Bangladesh, saying, "I, of course, emphasized the desirability of issuing a timeline for the election. We understand that the timeline depends on when the electoral reforms will be carried out, but again I urged them to have a projection so the government can make it public."
On Apr. 13, BAL general secretary Abdul Jalil welcomed the government's decision to hold the election by the end of 2008, adding, "This is the first time the government announced a specific timeframe for elections. Of course we welcome this timeframe, but now the government should lift the ban on political activities, so that we can discuss with the election commission on the reforms and other poll-related issues."
On Jul. 15, Huda discussed the democratic process, saying, "The cut-off timeframe for the election set by the interim authority is no later than the end of 2008, and the commission is trying to hold the polls definitely within that timeframe. (...) We will not allow any party to participate in the election without registration."
On Sept. 3, the government announced that Ahmed—whose term was supposed to expire on Sept. 5—will remain in office until an election is held.
On Sept. 29, during his speech to the United Nations (UN) General Assembly, Ahmed said the pending election would take place in 2008, adding, “We’ve pledged to put Bangladesh on a higher trajectory of good governance, rule of law and development.”
On Sept. 20, 2008, Ahmed announced the date for the legislative ballot, saying, “We will hold an election to choose a new parliament on December 18.”
On Oct. 13, the Election Commission extended the deadline for the registration of political parties. On Oct. 20, the period of registration ended. The main parties currently represented in the National Assembly—the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BJD), the Bangladesh Awami League (BAL), the Jatiya Party (Ershad) and Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh (JIB)—will all take part in the ballot.
In October, Ahmed called for emergency measures after violent clashes between supporters of the BNP and the BAL killed more than 30 people.
On Nov. 23, the election was re-scheduled for Dec. 29, after the BNP and its allies requested more time to prepare for the ballot. The move was criticized by the BAL, which had already nominated its candidates.
On Nov. 29, senior United Nations (UN) official Francesc Vendress discussed the current state of affairs, saying, “Our perception is positive that steps taken by the government will ensure a level playing field for a credible election. Chances of fair and free elections are much higher than two years ago and we hope Bangladesh will have good elections.”
On Dec. 6, army chief Moeen U. Ahmed discussed the possibility of terrorism affecting the ballot, declaring, “Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen and other ultra extremists [may] act to destroy their nefarious design against the upcoming elections. (...) Troops will be posted at least 200 metres away from the [voting] centres to ensure voters execute their franchise without fear and intimidation.”
Voting took place on Dec. 29. U.S. State Department spokesman Gordon Duguid expressed satisfaction with the process, saying, “All Bangladeshis can take great pride in the success of these elections. The high voter turnout underscores the people’s desire to see democracy restored.”
Preliminary results suggested a large victory for the Grand Alliance led by Sheikh Hasina Wajed of the Bangladesh Awami League (BAL) with 255 of the 300 seats at stake. The coalition commanded by Begun Khaleda Zia of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) would secure 31 mandates.
Final results gave the Grand Alliance a landslide victory with 263 of the 300 seats at stake. The Four Party Alliance assembled by the BNP secured 32 mandates.
On Jan. 6, 2009, Hasina took over as prime minister. She had previously served as head of government from 1996 to 2001.
Political Players
President: Iajuddin Ahmed
The president is elected to a five-year term by the National Assembly, and serves as chief advisor in the event of a caretaker administration.
Legislative Branch: The National Assembly (Jatiyo Sangshad) has 300 members, elected to a five-year term in single-seat constituences.
Results of Last Election:
National Assembly - Dec. 29, 2008
|
Vote% |
Seats |
|
|
Grand Alliance |
57.1% |
263 |
|
Four Party Alliance |
37.9% |
33 |
|
Independents / Others |
4.9% |
4 |