Bangladesh on January 5th and Afterwards

[kalu_miah]

Violent Bangladesh poll 'not credible' - Features - Al Jazeera English

Violent Bangladesh poll 'not credible'

Governments and international agencies have been lining up to condemn the country's recent parliamentary election.

Syed Tashfin Chowdhury Last updated: 07 Jan 2014 18:22

Protesters firebombed the homes of ruling party officials as voters went to the polls in Bangladesh [AFP]
Dhaka, Bangladesh - After the Awami League stormed to victory in the January 5 election, Bangladesh is set to form a parliament by the end of this month. But with at least 24 deaths since polls opened, allegations of widespread fraud and a bitter political standoff, many Western nations have stated the tenth national parliamentary elections were "not credible".

But worse may still be in store for the people of Bangladesh, fear politicians and analysts alike. The impasse between the ruling party and the opposition, which boycotted the polls, shows no sign of abating - and consensus will be needed in order to establish a new election, in which all parties participate.

Turnout was remarkably poor. Up until 2:00pm on polling day, some centres had seen as few as 20 to 30 votes, when their registers held more than 3,000 potential voters.

"The entire day's vote at our centre was at 537 - when the registered number of voters under the centre is 3,930," one election official told Al Jazeera in Dhaka's Gendaria district. He also added that several independent candidates withdrew their nominations with an hour of polling remaining, giving the ruling party an even larger advantage.

"The turnout was low, due to the lack of security faced by voters and the feeling that there was no competition against the ruling party," said Dr Iftekharuzzaman, executive director of Transparency International Bangladesh.

Voting fraud was reported in more than a hundred centres across the country.

"An assistant presiding officer at Banani Bidya Niketan School was stamping ballot papers and handing [them] over to another man so that he could put it in the ballot box," photographer Sanaul Hoque told Al Jazeera. The photograph of the official was carried by several major dailies in Dhaka the day after polling.

It was the most violent election day in the country's history, with 21 people killed as people headed to the polls. A further three have died in political clashes across Bangladesh since polls closed.

Police officers reportedly shot dead 15 people, as opposition activists attacked more than 200 voting centres. Polling agents and law enforcement officials were also among the dead.

"Such violence is unprecedented," said Iftekharuzzaman. In the 1996 election, when the present opposition was in power, 10 people died across the country following similar clashes.

Although voter turnout varied between 20 and 30 percent, according to media reports, the election commission later announced a 40 per cent turnout across 139 constituencies. Polls postponed in eight constituencies will be held on January 16, the commission reported.

Of 300 parliamentary seats up for grabs in the election, 153 were uncontested - after 27 political parties, including the main opposition BNP-led 18-party alliance, boycotted the polls. Their questioning of the neutrality of elections being held without a technocrat government overseeing the poll led to a sweeping victory for ruling party chairperson Sheikh Hasina.

'Elections not credible'

Within a day of the poll, governments and international organisations condemned the way the election was carried out.

In a press statement,US State Department spokesperson Marie Harf said Washington was "disappointed", as the results of the election "did not appear to credibly express the will of the Bangladeshi people". US officials encouraged the government and opposition "to engage in immediate dialogue to find a way to hold, as soon as possible, elections that are free, fair, peaceful, and credible".

Bangladesh holds thousands of activists in prison

Although United Kingdom’s Foreign Office Minister Baroness Warsi noted the polls to be "in accordance with Bangladesh's Constitution", she also said that the UK believes "the true mark of a mature, functioning democracy is peaceful, credible elections that express the genuine will of the voters".

The secretary of the Commonwealth also decried the "limited levels of participation and the low voter turnout", while UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon expressed the UN's sadness that the election was not peaceful and all-inclusive.

While calling the polls a "constitutional requirement", Indian foreign ministry spokesman Syed Akbaruddin said that "the democratic processes must be allowed to take their own course in Bangladesh".

Another election necessary?

Analysts in Bangladesh that spoke to Al Jazeera agreed that officials should follow recommendations of Western nations, and reach a deal between the main parties, so another election may soon be held.

"Although the elections were constitutional and legal, it is questionable on a political and ethical perspective," said Transparency International's Iftekharuzzaman.

"There is an open-ended sense of uncertainty now which is leading to violence and deaths, which is hurting the economy."

He hoped that an agreement would soon be reached between the two sides. "Otherwise, undemocratic forces may take over."

During a similar impasse in 2006, a military-backed caretaker government took control of the country. Elections were eventually re-held towards the end of 2008.

"The [most recent] elections lacked democratic values and practices that includes multi-party participation," said Shantanu Majumdar, associate professor political science of Dhaka University.

"[The] 11th parliamentary elections need to happen soon," he added. "I hope the ruling party will not take advantage of the 10th polls' results and prolong their tenure."

Since October 25, more than 200 people have died due to political violence in Bangladesh.

"The opposition should relax their stance of removing the prime minister from poll-time government," said Majumdar. "Her power can be neutralised by ensuring complete freedom of the election commission, administration, police and state media during polls."

Manjurul Ahsan Khan, president of the Communist Party Bangladesh, which had also boycotted the elections, told Al Jazeera his party had wished the process could have been more inclusive. "We did not take part, as we wanted the polls to be participatory and in a way resolve the present crisis," he said.

"Government should initiate efforts to start dialogue immediately. Otherwise the enemies of Bangladesh will take advantage of the situation," he concluded.

Negotiations?

During a press conference on Monday, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said: "People participated in the poll and other parties participated."

She did not seem fearful of the prospect of foreign sanctions. "What crimes did we commit that they would impose sanction on us?"

Showing she was not brimming with friendly overtures towards the opposition leader Khaleda Zia, Hasina added: "If [opposition parties] come forward to discuss with us, they have to leave all these terrorist activities behind, because what they are doing is absolutely killing people, killing police, killing innocent people."

Zia had called on the government to "cancel the farcical polls, step down and reach an understanding to organise a free, fair and neutral election under a non-party government".

Kazi Nabil Ahmed, now a first-time Awami League MP, hoped that another election could be held - while maintaining that "the term of the tenth parliament is for up to five years. The government to be formed can continue for [its] full term".

He told Al Jazeera: "For any solution to be reached, there are no other alternatives than dialogue. The PM has been sincere in her offer of dialogue repeatedly, but the opposition has not responded."

Source:
Al Jazeera

 

[idune]

Negotiation can not happen with an illegal and illegitimate regime.
Negotiation can not happen while illegal and illegitimate regime own state gun power.
Negotiation can not happen while illegal and illegitimate regime holding gun on opposition and people.

In fact there is nothing to negotiate, people demand is clear - hold election under Neutral caretaker administration which is cleansed from Awami League party cadres.

Unfortunately, none has made these demands yet.

 

[kalu_miah]

Negotiation can not happen with an illegal and illegitimate regime.
Negotiation can not happen while illegal and illegitimate regime own state gun power.
Negotiation can not happen while illegal and illegitimate regime holding gun on opposition and people.

In fact there is nothing to negotiate, people demand is clear - hold election under Neutral caretaker administration which is cleansed from Awami League party cadres.

Unfortunately, none has made these demands yet.

"Dialogue and Negotiation" sounds more fashionable than a unilateral demand, but what people get confused about (thanks to Indian and Awami propaganda) is that in Hasina, we have essentially a liar and a fascist dictator who would not leave power at any cost, in fact she cannot afford to, because she knows that she and her party faces annihilation as a pay back for the misdeeds she did in past 5 years. So Hasina's goal is to avoid a free and fair election at any cost. Thus "Dialogue and negotiation" could be a stalling tactic or to find a loophole to play a trick again to hold another rigged election and thus engineer another win like 2009 election. That is the significance of these two new memes currently in vogue:

1. Dialogue and Negotiation
2. Both AL and BNP are equally bad for Bangladesh

I think this is the latest twisting of fact, a new strategy, if you will, by the AL supporter intellectuals and their Indian partners. Here is a good example of this:

Can Bangladesh survive this election? | Opinion

Afsan Chowdhury
Can Bangladesh survive this election?
January 6, 2014

Photo: bdnews24.com

The 2014 election may well be the most significant elections we have ever had in Bangladesh. It didn’t look or feel much like an election with paltry voter turnouts, violence in several centres and chalking up a respectable death count, army patrolling the streets and people wanting to be safe rather than be a voter no matter what the now discredited EC says. Yet it’s a defining election because the impact caused by it has created a situation which affects the future of everyone. It’s not a question of if democracy will survive but a more dreadful one — asking if we will survive and in what shape. It’s amidst this sombre mood indeed that we hear declarations from the AL that people have expressed their will and the BNP claims that a moral victory has been won through its boycott. Finally, it has reached a point where the two parties have completely isolated themselves from the people and their continuous claim of legitimacy is what makes the situation so scary.
* * *
It seems that the AL has managed to reach the point it did with its roadmap and secured an election which they didn’t have to fight for. If one believes the electoral results and polls, the AL would have lost the elections. But the AL must have known what was coming and ready for it too. They had passed the 15th amendment and anticipated the BNP reaction well which has let them off the hook. But a huge price has been paid for it and miscalculations are obvious. It has become the first one-party election in our history and the attempt to make the Jatiya Party (JP) the opposition didn’t work out well. The refusal to accept the resignation of JP candidates on a technicality and having Rowshan Ershad as the alter-JP looks hardly glorious and confident. As such it looks like a defeat after 42 years of so-called independence to end up with a quasi one-party rule that is much more of a burden than thought of till now. And Ershad may well make them pay much more than they bargained for. It looks like a withered and useless Sangsad, exactly the kind we don’t need. Yes, our parliaments are hardly functional but this is hardly even that. On top of that is the shadow of BKSAL that hangs over them.
* * *
The BNP has shown itself to be a party which doesn’t have it in them to do politics in Bangladesh. Born out of the bowels of an extra constitutional intervention, its linkage with people are tenuous and its commitment to participatory democracy even less so. While Sajeeb Joy may not have it in him to influence Sk. Hasina and by public opinion is a ‘mother’s boy’, the video broadcast by Tariq Zia alone is enough to show who runs the strings of a political puppet called the BNP. But it can never strike the BNP that Tariq Zia is himself a huge baggage for the BNP and his calls for agitation against the polls makes the best argument why they should leave the political scene.
* * *
Both the BNP and the AL run their parties like a business. It’s not just big time corruption that keeps the parties going but the retail level tender and extortion that feeds the cadres are also threatened when a party is out of power. So if the party loses access to such funds, it won’t be easy to keep going after the 5th year. BNP’s disappointment with not winning is intense because the party is now threatened with shrinkage. It’s a simple question of livelihood and if the thugs that run politics in Bangladesh don’t find resources here, they will go where it is. Similarly, the AL will be emboldened and its supporters will be able to put pressure on the party to keep going after electoral victory and so a solution seems rather remote though one sincerely hopes that a miracle happens. Otherwise in a war of attrition, everyone will suffer and instability may kill both the parties.
* * *
The election per se is really not a significant event and was over even before voting began so it’s not a question of power transfer. The essential objective is that of legitimizing the regime and that legally has been done. It was never an electoral issue but a political one. So once the 15th amendment was passed, the rest really didn’t matter. BNP had swallowed the AL bait and somehow believed that the people would turn up in their favour and carry out their revolution. It was in the end, not willing to take the risks for the people by going for an election which alone could have upset the AL plan. Despite overwhelming intent for participation from within the party which may have meant a loss but certainly would have made the BNP stronger and more pro-people, they lived in their mother-son led world refusing to participate. Now they face a huge challenge of survival.
* * *
Two other factors have been thrown in, both dangerous. One is the platform for a possible Islamic militant insurgency headed by the Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) supported by their Pakistani colleagues. As the hangings go on, Bangladesh will continue to be focused and it may well lead to situations beyond control of the government. Containment of violence by the law enforcement agencies has been weak and so the concern is high.

Political negotiations and war crimes trials are separate issues and both need to be dealt with albeit separately both parties have used it to gain power. The AL has turned that into an issue of demonizing the BNP for its alliance with the JI. BNP used the violent JI cadres to push its protest, but the result has been zero gain for them and the lack of public support for the JI has made it look badly anti-people. Now it can neither swallow nor spit JI out. And the blame for future violence that may happen will have to be shared by the BNP too. If the violence goes international, Bangladesh will have to struggle at a level to survive it has never done before.
* * *
The other part that came through was the rise of India and the US as factors in local politics. Since they disagreed, and India seems to have done better on this, we may have now become a part of India’s own security strategy. India’s anxiety over support to the North-Eastern rebels and the Islamists by the BNP has made the AL, the party of choice for India but such calculations are in India’s interest not ours. India’s main enemy is Pakistan and they have routinely played a proxy war in South Asia in several countries but now that war may well become more intense and we are part of their war and on one side. That will make security issues more visible though one is not sure they can cope and how well.
* * *
So as we have faced a non-election which will produce a one-party state which is largely ignored and has caused so much violence, things don’t look good. The three main pillars of the economy — remittance, RMG and agriculture — have already started to feel the strain and should the unrest continue, the proverbial goose may get cooked rather quickly. It will produce instability and consequently security problems that may be beyond our capacity to handle.
Let’s hope it doesn’t.

 

[PlanetSoldier]

Now Hamba League headmaster !

Tue, 07 Jan, 2014 03:40:04 PM
স্কুলে আগুন লাগাতে গিয়ে ধরা খেলেন প্রধান শিক্ষক

ফাইল ছবি
বগুড়া ব্যুরো
নতুন বার্তা ডটকম
বগুড়া: জামায়াত-শিবিরের ওপর দোষ চাপাতে নিজের স্কুলে নিজেই আগুন দিয়ে স্থানীয়দের হাতে ধরা পড়েছেন স্থানীয় আওয়ামী লীগের কর্মী বগুড়ার এক প্রধান শিক্ষক। এ সময় তাকে বিক্ষুব্ধরা গণধোলাই শুরু করলে শাজাহানপুর থানার ওসির নেতৃত্বে পুলিশ এবং মেজর সুফি কামরুদ্দীনের নেতৃত্বে যৌথবাহিনী বিক্ষোভ নিয়ন্ত্রণে আনেন।

পরে এলাকাবাসীর দাবির মুখে ওই স্কুলশিক্ষককে গ্রেফতার করে পুলিশ। এ ঘটনার পর শাজাহানপুর উপজেলা নির্বাহী অফিসার আবদুর রহমান ঘটনাস্থল পরিদর্শন করেছেন।

স্থানীয়রা জানান, মঙ্গলবার সকালে শাজাহানপুর উপজেলার সুজাবাদ সরকারি প্রাথমিক বিদ্যালয়ের প্রধান শিক্ষক আবদুল মান্নান সকালে স্কুলে আসেন। হরতালের কারণে এ সময় অন্যান্য শিক্ষকরা স্কুলে উপস্থিত ছিলেন না। এই সুযোগে আবদুল মান্নান স্কুলের দফতরি বাবুল হোসেনকে সঙ্গে নিয়ে স্কুলের আসবাবপত্রে আগুন লাগিয়ে দিয়ে চিৎকার শুরু করেন।

এ সময় স্থানীয়রা স্কুলের দফতরিকে আটক করলে সে জানায় তার কোনো দোষ নেই। প্রধান শিক্ষক আবদুল মান্নান নিজেই আগুন লাগিয়েছেন। পরে লোকজন প্রধান শিক্ষককে আটক করলে তিনি প্রথমে বিষয়টি এড়িয়ে যাবার চেষ্টা করেন। এতে এলাকাবাসী ক্ষিপ্ত হয়ে উঠলে পরিস্থিতি বেগতিক দেখে আবদুল মান্নান পালিয়ে যাবার চেষ্টা করেন। পরে ক্ষিপ্ত গ্রামবাসী তাকে ধরে স্কুলেই তালাবদ্ধ করে বিক্ষোভ করতে থাকেন।

খবর পেয়ে শাজাহানপুর থানার ওসি পুলশ ফোর্স নিয়ে শিক্ষককে উদ্ধারের চেষ্টা করলে গ্রামবাসী বাধা দেন। পরে সেখানে যৌথবাহিনীর একটি টিম উপস্থিত হয়ে ‘দোষী’ শিক্ষককে শাস্তির আশ্বাস দিলে পরিস্থিতি শান্ত হয়। পরে পুলিশ তাকে গ্রেফতার করে থানায় নিয়ে যায়।

শাজাহানপুর থানার ওসি আবদুল মান্নান জানান, সুজাবাদ স্কুলে আগুন লাগানো এবং প্রধান শিক্ষককে আটকে রাখার খবর পেয়ে আমরা শিক্ষককে উদ্ধার করেছি। তার বিরুদ্ধে প্রয়োজনীয় ব্যবস্থা নেয়ার প্রক্রিয়া চলছে।

শাজাহানপুর উপজেলা নির্বাহী অফিসার আবদুর রহমান জানান, তিনি খবর পেয়ে ঘটনাস্থল পরিদর্শন করেছেন। এখন সেখানকার পরিস্থিতি স্বাভাবিক আছে বলে তিনি জানান।

সুজাবাদ স্কুলের দফতরি বাবুল হোসেন জানান, প্রধান শিক্ষক আবদুল মান্নান বগুড়া সদরের কলোনী এলাকার বাসিন্দা এবং বগুড়া পৌরসভার ১২নং ওয়ার্ড আওয়ামী লীগের কর্মী। মঙ্গলবার সকালে সবার আগে তিনি স্কুলে এসেই আসবাবপত্রে আগুন লাগানো শুরু করেন। আমি কিছু বুঝে ওঠার আগেই এলাকাবাসী এসে আমাকেসহ তাকে ধরে ফেলেন।

নতুন বার্তা/জিহ/জবা

স্কুলে আগুন লাগাতে গিয়ে ধরা খেলেন প্রধান শিক্ষক | outside-dhaka | natunbarta.com | Top Online Newspaper in Bangladesh

 

[kalu_miah]

Saudi Gazette - Pressure mounts on Bangladesh PM after walkover re-election

Pressure mounts on Bangladesh PM after walkover re-election
Last updated: Tuesday, January 07, 2014 8:04 PM

Bangladeshi rickshaw pullers warm themselves near a bonfire early morning during an ongoing strike called by the Bangladesh Nationalist Party in Dhakaon Tuesday. — AP

DHAKA — Bangladesh’s opposition leader Khaleda Zia accused Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina of “murdering democracy” as her arch rival faced growing calls Tuesday to hold fresh polls after a walkover election.

The United States led international pressure for a swift re-run that would include all the major parties, brushing aside Hasina’s insistence that a boycott by Zia’s opposition did not undermine her legitimacy.

Zia, who has been confined to her home for about two weeks, reiterated her calls for Hasina to stand aside and let a neutral caretaker government organise the new election.

“I’m calling on the government to cancel the farcical polls, step down and reach an understanding (with the opposition) to organise a free, fair and neutral election under a non-party government,” she said in a statement released overnight.

“The scandalous election on January 5 not only demonstrated the people’s lack of confidence in the government but also proved that free, fair, credible, peaceful and participatory elections cannot be held without a non-party neutral government and credible election commission.”

At least 26 people were killed during Sunday’s election while hundreds of opposition supporters set fire to or trashed polling stations.

The result was never in doubt, with Hasina’s Awami League and a handful of allies winning all the seats being contested.

The vote’s credibility had been undermined even before polling day as 153 Awami League members or allies were declared elected unopposed to the 300-seat parliament.

The United States also called for a new vote that would “credibly express the will” of the people.

“With more than half of the seats uncontested and most of the remainder offering only token opposition, the results of the just-concluded elections do not appear to credibly express the will of the Bangladeshi people,” said State Department deputy spokeswoman Marie Harf.

“While it remains to be seen what form the new government will take... we encourage the government of Bangladesh and opposition parties to engage in immediate dialogue to find a way to hold as soon as possible elections that are free, fair, peaceful, and credible.”

UN leader Ban Ki-moon was “saddened by the loss of life,” his spokesman said. Ban called for the two parties “to resume meaningful dialogue and to urgently address the expectations of the people of Bangladesh for an inclusive political process.” — AFP

 

[IamBengali]

BNP activists (Chatro Dol) burnt buses of Islamic University.

কুষ্টিয়া ইসলামী বিশ্ববিদ্যালয় ক্যাম্পাসে শিক্ষক, কর্মকর্তা-কর্মচারীদের বহনকারী গাড়িতে আগুন দিয়েছে ছাত্রদলের নেতাকর্মীরা। তবে এ ঘটনায় কেউ হতাহত হয়নি।


প্রত্যক্ষদর্শীরা জানান, বুধবার বেলা পৌনে ১২টার দিকে কুষ্টিয়া থেকে শিক্ষক-কর্মকর্তাদের নিয়ে বাসটি বিশ্ববিদ্যালয়ের ডরমেটরির সামনে পৌঁছালে ছাত্রদল কর্মীরা তাতে হামলা চালায়।

বাসের যাত্রীরা নেমে পড়লে তারা এতে আগুন ধরিয়ে দেয়। এরপর পর দুটি হাতবোমার বিস্ফোরণ ঘটিয়ে ক্যাম্পাস ত্যাগ করে ছাত্রদলী নেতাকর্মীরা।

বিশ্ববিদ্যালয়ের প্রক্টর অধ্যাপক মো. জাহাঙ্গীর আলম বলেন, বাসে আগুন দেয়ায় জড়িতদের বিরুদ্ধে দ্রুত আইনি ব্যবস্থা নেয়া হবে।

বিশ্ববিদ্যালয় শাখা ছাত্রদলের সাধারণ সম্পাদক রাশেদুল ইসলাম রাশেদ দাবি করেন, এ ঘটনায় তার সংগঠনের নেতাকর্মীরা জড়িত নন। প্রশাসন ছাত্রদলকে ফাঁসাতে এই ঘটনা ঘটিয়েছে।

ইসলামী বিশ্ববিদ্যালয় শিক্ষকদের গাড়িতে ছাত্রদলের আগুন -
bdnews24.com

 

[Mattrixx]

Aftermath of 5th January..........

 

[kalu_miah]

Mukti Sangram movement : The grave need to save Democracy. |

Mukti Sangram movement : The grave need to save Democracy.



Nasrullah Khan Jonaid: All power is now vested in one autocrat single ruler within the so call selected and elected government. Bangladesh is now governed by a single lady Hitler with her unlimited power. Sheikh Hasina using Absolute power and exercising unjustly and cruelly. Killer Hasina running and trying managing the country using our holy constitution that was designed, passed, and implemented to serve her own autocratic predispositions.

This is the turmoil our beloved nation now faces, who sacrificed their lives for the democratic promises of Bangladesh. Sheikh Hasina has now near-total control of political, economic, security, and military sectors, despite having international isolation with some of the world’s most influential nations not recognizing so called election and its legitimacy, including the United States, United Kingdom and many other European nations.

Please draw your own conclusions after careful consideration of Possible Consequences.

There are consequences that the Awami league -led government must prepare for if it is serious about its own political potential. However, if the ruling party fails to change its current political attitude and cast off its autocratic tendencies, then the following outcomes may be all but inevitable:

(1) Bangladesh will be deeply divided on religious and cultural lines—this could encourage or incite ethnic or regional rebellions, deepen mistrust between the citizens in the country already divided society, and destabilize the nation.

(2) The ruling party will lose its vital grounds and its politics will ascend—this could cause an uprising against the ruling party.

(3) National parliamentarians will be influenced or guided by Indian or international politics, not national or party politics.

(4) Possibly a new movement will emerge backup by army and international community, and the awamilegue will eventually lose its hold on the political, economic, security and military spheres.

These four outcomes are probable eminent unless Sheikh Hasina autocrats adjust their autocratic propensities.

Everyone must now rise up and make sacrifices. The future of this country can only be build by leaders who think and act like statesmen who, acting in the capacity of fellow countrymen, actively fight for the growth of their country, the future of their youth, the cultivation of the unique talents of their people, the preservation of their country’s environment, the enactment of compassionate laws protecting the poor, elderly, and disabled—this is the future, and much needed and anticipated statesman of Bangladesh.

Most of the leaders of Awamilegue and their supporters fabricating a reason to cover up their misdeeds so as to uphold their party and their own interest, rather than do the right thing for the well-being of our country. This kind of mentality cannot build a prosperous Bangladesh. Building a successful, democratic nation can only be done by political leaders who think and like statesmen, people who think collectively, not by leaders who think and act like autocratic politicians like Sheikh Hasina.

PLACE YOUR AD HERE PLACE YOUR AD HERE
Building a successful democratic nation can only be done by the leaders who respect the laws, and behave like a head of the country. The people of Bangladesh did not fight for an autocratic government or a one-party state; they fought hard to have a nation where opposing views are respected. The Awami Legue deceptive politics should not be used as the policy of the government, and they must not be tolerated. The government must work with all party leaders including main opposition party leaders in order to move the country forward. They should implement policies that match its founding principles, eradicate its autocratic tendencies, and lead as a national political party if it is to regain the peoples’ confidence. Otherwise, it risks ongoing diminishment of its own legacy and legitimacy, and eventual collapse.

What Citizen should do?

Begum Khaleda Zia has said if we want to be successful in the revolution, we need to be totally committed; compromise is failure therefore she is committed to remain uncompromising.
She also reminded us to strict our cause and listen to our heart and think about what is needed most in order to ousted this government.

Citizen of the country as well as expatriate living abroad must motivate people to do what they want for the country, push people towards action by the threat of causing pain in their lives.
We must now need to inspire and motivate the general people and the nationalist followers to take action on their own volition without waiting for any command. In reality, the person at the very bottom of the organizational structure or AAM Janata can be a leader even in absence of any authority. A leader who ever can inspire hope within the followers and it’s that vision of hope that can make a true leader more powerful than any person of authority. Begum Khaleda Zia has proven all the above qualities during the crisis of Bangladesh and she already have sparkled that spirit to public therefore recent uprising become public led. Now she need more real leader to speak up from the grassroots level for the sake of our beloved Bangladesh.

Her strength lies in people numbers and their support. The greater the mass and unity of the movement, the better chance of getting demands met and get rid of Sheikh Hasina.
We must remember to trust our people who we fight for. They are our legacy.
We will benefit no one if we just attempt to consolidate power or gain recognition only for us. So let’s carry on fighting for the sake of our beloved country, its people, democracy, relegion and our freedom.

BNPshould start to bring new faces in their leadership. This is political pragmatism. The old-guard of leadership should go; they are causing more distraction to the movement than really doing any good. Those party leaders who are causing tension and not effective enough should just take an advisory role and let new leaders take the mantle.

BNP should take a lesson from previous 01 eleven and 29 December 2013 crisis otherwise will bear the same fate if it they doesn’t take advanced precaution. There must be a reality check! And need to be tough on decision..

Every front line leader of BNP and its wing including JCD,Jubodall,etc need to show their performance as the situation changes; albeit without compromising, otherwise, they will be written in the history book.
PLS also remind that someone watching everything quietly far from the country and will take his course on time if there is any wrong doing.

BNP just need to follow steps along with Begum Khaleda Zia’s command and try to mobilize nation against this evil illegal as they have occupied country power illegally, in order to overthrow this autocrat government in the political dust bin.

Hasina’s illegitimate government are not happy about a rebellion from the the people and they will do anything to crush resistance but we got to remember our goal is the heart of our operation,our consensus is the mind of the revolution, and action I and you support take are the hands of our-revolution. You also Remember we have no option to look back except to move forward and fight until we see the final victory in order to restore our democracy and its independency…

If Shekh Hasina do not listen to her people and try not to negotiate with all political party in order to hold a free and fair election and restore our democracy, then our movement will swept away HASINA from the power like tsunami and she will not have any other option except to jump to Bay of Bengal along with her dingy Nowka .

Writer: Former Senate Member Dhaka University

বৃহত্তর ঐক্য জরুরী |

বৃহত্তর ঐক্য জরুরী
Greater unity is urgent


ফরহাদ মজহার: ৫ মে রোববার; বাংলাদেশের ইতিহাসের একটি কালো দিন। দিল্লীর সাধের নির্বাচনের দিন। রঙতামাশার মধ্য দিয়ে শেখ হাসিনাকে পুনর্বার ক্ষমতায় বসিয়ে দেওয়া হবে। এ লেখা যখন লিখছি তখন হাসিনার এই রক্তপাতে সিক্ত নির্বাচনে ১৮ জন মানুষ শহিদ হয়েছেন। সংবাদ নিয়ে জেনেছি ভোটকেন্দ্রগুলোতে ভোট দিতে কম ভোটারই হাজির হয়েছেন। মিথ্যুক ও রাষ্ট্রীয় সন্ত্রাসের সহযোগী মিডিয়াগুলোর পক্ষেও ভোটকেন্দ্রগুলোতে মানুষ যাচ্ছে প্রমাণ করা কঠিন হয়ে পড়ছে। তাদের খুব কষ্ট হচ্ছে। সরকারী চাপে থাকা মিডিয়াগুলো তাদের সীমাবদ্ধতার মধ্যে থেকে যে খবর দিচ্ছে তাতে পরিষ্কার, সরকারী দলের অন্ধ সমর্থকদের ক্ষুদ্র একটি অংশ ছাড়া ভোট দিতে যায়নি কেউই। আওয়ামি লীগের সমর্থক, কিন্তু নিজের বিবেক শেখ হাসিনা কিম্বা দিল্লীর কাছে বন্ধক রাখেন নি এমন মানুষরাও ভোট দিতে যাননি।

এর আগে ১৫৩টি আসনে ভোট ছাড়া নির্বাচন হয়ে গিয়েছিল আঠারো দলের নির্বাচন বর্জন ও প্রতিরোধের কারনে। গতকাল বাকি ১৪৭টি আসনের নির্বাচনে অসম্মানজনক ভোট পড়ার মধ্য দিয়ে প্রমাণ হোল দেশবাসী শেখ হাসিনা ও দিল্লীর এই নির্বাচনী প্রকল্প প্রত্যাখান করেছে।

বিবেকবর্জিত এই তুমুল নৈরাজ্য ও তাণ্ডবের নির্বাচনের মধ্যেও রস আছে। খবর হচ্ছে এর মধ্যেও ক্ষমতাসীনরা ব্যালটবাক্স ছিনতাই করছে। পাবনা-১ আসনে (বেড়া-সাঁথিয়া) দুটো জায়গার চারটি কেন্দ্রে আওয়ামী লীগ প্রার্থী স্বরাষ্ট্র প্রতিমন্ত্রী শামসুল হক টুকুর ছেলে ও ব্যক্তিগত সহকারীর নেতৃত্বে ভোট ছিনতাইয়ের অভিযোগ উঠেছে। খারাপ কি? বেশ তো নির্বাচন! খবর হচ্ছে তারা ৪৭৫টি ভোট নিজেরা কেটে ব্যালট বাক্সে ঢুকিয়ে দিয়েছেন। অস্ত্রসহ দুটি মাইক্রোবাসে করে ভোটকেন্দ্রে গিয়েছেন তারা। সংশ্লিষ্ট কেন্দ্রের প্রিসাইডিং ও সহকারী প্রিসাইডিং অফিসারদের লাঞ্ছিত করে ও ভয়ভীতি দেখিয়ে ভোট কেটে নিয়েছেন। অতি উত্তম কর্ম।

সাংবিধানিক বাধ্যবাধকতা বা আইন মানলেই তা বৈধ হয় না। শেখ হাসিনা নিজে তত্ত্বাবধায়ক ব্যবস্থা একক সিদ্ধান্তে বাতিল করেছেন, যে সাংবিধানিকতার দোহাই দিয়ে নির্বাচন হোল সেটা তার একারই সংবিধান। অথচ তত্ত্বাবধায়ক সরকার ব্যবস্থা সকল রাজনৈতিক দলের ঐক্যমতের ভিত্তিতেই (এরশাদ ছাড়া) প্রবর্তিত হয়েছিল। ফলে যে ব্যবাস্থার অধীনে নির্বাচিন হোল সেটা একনায়কতান্ত্রিক বিধানের অধীনে নির্বাচন। আইনী বলে তা বৈধ হতে পারে না।

যদি আইনের কথা তুলি তাহলেও মুশকিল আছে। ত্রয়োদশ সংশোধনী সংক্রান্ত রায় দেবার সময় দশ ও একাদশ জাতীয় সংসদ নির্বাচন তত্ত্বাবধায়ক ব্যবস্থার অধীনে হতে পারে বলে আদালত রায় দিয়েছিল। সে রায়ের পক্ষে শক্তিশালী আইনী যুক্তি ছিল। সে রায়ের তাৎপর্য হচ্ছে বিধিবদ্ধ রাষ্ট্র হিসাবের গঠিত হবার আগে থেকেই জনগণ যে-অধিকার ভোগ করে তা কোন লিখিত সংবিধানে থাকতে হবে এমন কোন কথা নাই। অতএব জাতীয় সংসদেরও সেই সকল প্রাকৃতিক বিধি বা আইন লংঘন করবার কোন এখতিয়ার নাই। যেমন;

(১) রাজনৈতিক বাস্তবতা বা রাজনৈতিক প্রয়োজনীয়তা বিবেচনার করে নেওয়া বিধান। যে বিবেচনায় তত্ত্বাবধায়ক সরকার গঠিত হয়েছিল। রাজনৈতিক প্রয়জনীয়তায় গৃহীত বিধান জাতীয় সংসদ বাতিল করতে পারে না; এই বিবেচনাতেই ত্রয়োদশ সংশোধনী গৃহীত হয়েছিল, সেই বাস্তবতা পুরাপুরি না থাকলেও নবম ও দশম জাতীয় সংসদ নির্বাচনের ক্ষেত্রে বজায় রয়েছে বলেই আদালত মনে করেছে;

(২) জনগণের নিরাপত্তা বিঘ্নিত করে জাতীয় সংসদে কোন সিদ্ধান্ত নেওয়া যাবে না। জনগণের নিরাপত্তা সর্বোচ্চ আইন।

এবং একই ভাবে (৩) রাষ্ট্রের নিরাপত্তাকেও সর্বোচ্চ আইনের মর্যাদা দিতে হবে।

এগুলো ‘সর্বোচ্চ আইন’ কেন? বিধিবদ্ধ রাষ্ট্র গঠিত (juridical state) হবার আগে থেকেই এই ধরণের অধিকার আইনী বিধান হিসাবে সমাজে হাজির থাকে। তারা বিধিবদ্ধ আইনী রূপ নিয়ে হাজির না থাকলেও স্বতঃসিদ্ধ অলংঘনীয় ‘আইন’ হিসাবেই বহাল থাকে। দার্শনিক ও আইনশাস্ত্রবিদরা একেই সাধারণত প্রাকৃতিকতা বা বাস্তবতার স্বাভাবিক নিয়ম (state of nature) কিম্বা অনির্বন্ধিত বিধিবিধান (non juridical state) বলে নানান দিক থেকে বিচার করেছেন (যেমন, দেখুন ইম্মেনুয়েল কান্টের Doctrine of Right বা এ ধরণের যে কোন আলোচনা)। ‘অবৈধ ব্যবস্থায় অবৈধ নির্বাচন’ শিরোনামে এ বিষয়ে আমি অন্যত্র এর আগে আলোচনা করেছি। এখানে পুনরাবৃত্তি করবো না। এতএব শেখ হাসিনার আইনের আধিনে আনুষ্ঠিত এই নির্বাচন শুধু অবৈধই নয় বেআইনিও বটে।

সুশীল সমাজের একাংশের হুঁশ হয়েছে অনেক পরে। এখন তারা কেউ একে ‘অগ্রহণযোগ্য’, কেউ ‘অবৈধ’, কেউ দশমের পরে একাদশ জাতীয় সংসদ নির্বাচন কিভাবে হবে তার জন্য পেরেশান হয়ে যাচ্ছে। নিম্ন শ্রেণির আওয়ামি দালালদের ভাষ্য হচ্ছে নির্বাচন হয়ে যাওয়া উচিত। সাংবিধানিক বাধ্যবাধকতা নিয়ে কথা! নইলে নাকি ‘নৈরাজ্য’ হবে। নৈরাজ্যের কী বাকি আছে আওয়ামি পাণ্ডারাই ভাল জানে।

সুশীলদের মধ্যে দুই ভাগ দেখছি এখন। ক্ষমতাসীনদের তামাশার নির্বাচন যারা নিন্দা করছে তাদের মোকাবিলার জন্য মাঠে নেমে এসেছে আওয়ামী সুশীলেরা। তারা নিন্দা করছে প্রতিপক্ষকে যারা কাতর স্বরে শেখ হাসিনাকে নির্বাচন দয়া করে পিছিয়ে দেবার কথা বলছিলেন; দাবি করছিলেন একটা ‘সমঝোতা হওয়া দরকার, তারপর নির্বাচন। তাদের সকাতর ‘প্লিজ নির্বাচন পিছিয়ে দিন’ বলাটা আওয়ামিদের পছন্দ হয় নি ।আওয়ামী সুশীলদের বক্তব্য হচ্ছে সাংবিধানিক বাধ্যবাধকতা বা নিয়ম আছে বলে এ নির্বাচন হতেই হবে। তারপর একাদশ নির্বাচনের কথা ভাবা যাবে।

সুশীলদের দুই পক্ষকে আরও ভালভাবে বোঝার জন্য তাদের আমরা মার্কিন-ইউরোপীয় বনাম দিল্লীর স্থানীয় স্বার্থ রক্ষক এই দুই ভাগে ভাগ করে ভাবতে পারি। সরলীকরণে অনেক ঝুঁকি থাকে কিন্তু এতে অনেক কিছুই সংক্ষেপে বুঝতে সুবিধা। অসুবিধা হচ্ছে এদের মধ্যে দুই একজন থাকতে পারেন যারা আসলেই মনে করেন নির্বাচন যেভাবে হচ্ছে তাকে বন্ধ করা না গেলে বাংলাদেশ অস্থির ও অস্থিতিশীল হয়ে যাবে। বিএনপি সহ একটি সত্যিকারের নির্বাচন না হলে বাংলাদেশ অর্থনৈতিক, সামাজিক, রাজনৈতিক ও প্রতিরক্ষার দিক থেকে মারাত্মক ঝুঁকির মধ্যে পড়ে যাবে। তাঁদের এই আশংকা মোটেও অমূলক নয়। কিন্তু বাংলাদেশের রাজনৈতিক মেরুকরণ যে জায়গায় পৌঁছেছে তাতে বিবাদমান দুটো পক্ষকে কাছাকাছি আনবার পরিসর সংকুচিত হয়ে গিয়েছে। একে শুধু রাজনৈতিক মেরুকরণ বলা ঠিক না। গোটা সমাজই আসলে দুই ভাগে ভাগ হয়ে গিয়েছে। শেখ হাসিনা এটাই চেয়েছিলেন। তিনি শতভাগ সফলতা পেয়েছেন।

তবুও আলোচ্য সুশীলদের প্রথম পক্ষের সঙ্গে জনগণের তরফে তর্ক করবার সুযোগ আছে। তাদের উপলব্ধির ঘাটতি থাকা সত্ত্বেও। বাংলাদেশের সংকট নিছকই শান্তিপূর্ণ নির্বাচন নয়, গোড়ার সংকট সংবিধানে এবং রাজনীতি ও রাষ্ট্রব্যবস্থায় –বিশেষত নাগরিক ও মানবিক অধিকার রক্ষার প্রশ্নে। সুশীল সমাজের মার্কিন-ইউরোপীয় পক্ষ এখনও এই গোড়ার কথা মেনে নিতে রাজি না। যদি এ কথা আমরা মেনে নেই তাহলে এটাও মানতে হবে বাংলাদেশের সাম্প্রতিক সহিংসতা ও অস্থিতিশীলতার মূল কারণ পঞ্চদশ সংশোধনী। যার মাধ্যমে সবার সমঝোতার মধ্য দিয়ে গৃহীত তত্ত্বাবধায়ক সরকার ব্যবস্থা এক ব্যাক্তির ইচ্ছায় (শেখ হাসিনা) বাতিল করা হয়েছে। তখন থেকে সুশীল সমাজের মার্কিন-ইউরোপীয় পক্ষ বারবার রাজনৈতিক সহিংসতা ও অস্থিতিশীলতার পদধ্বনির কথা বলেছে। তাদের আশংকাই এখন সত্য প্রমাণিত হয়েছে। কিন্তু তারা তাদের নিজেদের কথা নিজেরাই গিলে বসে আছে। কার্যত নিশ্চুপ থেকেছে রাষ্ট্রীয় সন্ত্রাস ও সহিংসতা সম্পর্কে। সন্ত্রাস ও সহিংসতা মূল কারণ সম্পর্কে নীরব থেকে তারা সাম্প্রতিক রাজনৈতিক সহিংসতার জন্য ক্ষমতাসীনদের কোলে বসে বিরোধী দলকেই প্রধানত দায়ী করে এসেছে।

রাজনৈতিক সহিংসতার জন্য আওয়ামি প্রপাগাণ্ডা ক্রমাগত মানবতার বিরুদ্ধে অপরাধের বিচার ও জামাত-শিবিরের রাজনীতিকে দায়ী করছে। মূলত নির্বাচন কেন্দ্র করে রাজনৈতিক সহিংসতার জন্য পঞ্চদশ সংশোধনীই যে মূলত দায়ী তাকে আড়াল করবার জন্যই এই প্রপাগাণ্ডা চালানো হয়। পঞ্চদশ সংশোধনী বাংলাদেশের সংবিধানকে ফ্যাসিস্টদের দলিলে পরিণত করেছে এবং নির্লজ্জ ভাবে নাগরিক ও মানবিক অধিকার হরণ করেছে। সুশীল সমাজের প্রধান সমস্যা হচ্ছে রাষ্ট্র ব্যবস্থার এই ফ্যাসিস্ট রূপান্তর সম্পর্কে নীরবতা এবং বাংলাদেশের রাজনীতির সমস্যাকে ফ্যাসিবাদের সমস্যা হিসাবে চিহ্নিত না করে ফ্যাসিবাদকে আড়াল করে রাখা। আওয়ামি লীগের প্রপাগান্ডার সঙ্গে সুর মিলিয়ে তারাও দাবি করে বিএনপির সঙ্গে জামাতে ইসলামির জোট গঠনই হচ্ছে বাংলাদেশের রাজনীতির মূল সংকট। জামায়াতে ইসলামীর একাত্তরের ভূমিকার কারনে এর বিরুদ্ধে নৈতিক ও মানবিক অবস্থান নেওয়া সুশীলদের জন্য সহজ। এতে আওয়ামী লীগকেও খুশী রাখা যায়।

জামাত-শিবিরের বিরোধিতা আসলে সুশীলদের বাইরের দিক। আদতে সুশীল রাজনীতি ইসলামোফোবিয়া বা ইসলাম আতংকের অসুখে আক্রান্ত। তাদের আপত্তিটা মূলত ইসলামপন্থী রাজনীতির বিরুদ্ধে। এটা স্পষ্ট হয়ে গিয়েছে হেফাজতে ইসলামের বিরুদ্ধে সুশীলদের প্রতিক্রিয়ার মধ্যে। যে দেশে সংখ্যাগরিষ্ঠ মানুষ ইসলাম ধর্মাবলম্বী, কেউ চাক বা না চাক সেই দেশে ইসলামপন্থী রাজনীতি থাকবেই। প্রশ্ন হচ্ছে তাকে কিভাবে উদার, নিয়মতান্ত্রিক ও গণতান্ত্রিক রীতিনীতির অন্তর্ভুক্ত করে নেওয়া যায়। কিন্তু সুশীলরা এই কাজ করতে রাজি নয়; এতে তাদের অর্থদাতারা নারাজ হবে। ইসলামপন্থীদের প্রতি তাদের অসহনশীলতার ভিত্তি মূলত বর্ণবাদ ও সাম্প্রদায়িকতা। বৃহত্তর জনগোষ্ঠি থেকে সুশীলরা এর ফলে শুধু আলাদা হয়ে যায়নি, তাদের দুষমনে পরিণত হয়েছে।

সুশীলদের মার্কিন-ইউরোপীয় পক্ষ যদি ফ্যাসিবাদের বরকন্দাজ না হয়ে গণতান্ত্রিক রাজনীতির পক্ষে থাকতে চায় তাহলে তাদের উচিত পঞ্চদশ সংশোধনী বাতিলের জন্য আন্দোলনে সারা দেশের জনগণকে ঐক্যবধ করা এবং আওয়ামী সুশীলদের বিরুদ্ধে দাঁড়ানো। তাদের এই উপলব্ধি হলে নাগরিক ও মানবিক অধিকার রক্ষার প্রশ্নকে কেন্দ্রে রেখে ফ্যাসিস্ট রাষ্ট্রব্যবস্থার বিরুদ্ধে একটি জাতীয় গণতান্ত্রিক ঐক্যের কথা ভাবা যেতে পারে।

যে উগ্রবাদী রাজনীতি তাঁরা পরিহার করতে চান তা কার্যকর করবার একমাত্র পথ হচ্ছে সমাজের বৃহৎ একটি অংশকে রাজনৈতিক প্রক্রিয়া থেকে বাইরে রাখা নয়, নাগরিক ও মানবিক অধিকারের মানদণ্ড অক্ষুণ্ণ রেখে উদার রাজনৈতিক চর্চার পরিমণ্ডলে তাকে অন্তর্ভূক্ত করে নেওয়া। ইসলামের আতংকে ফ্যসিবাদ ও ফ্যাসিবাদী রাষ্ট্র ব্যবস্থার পক্ষে দাঁড়ানো নয়। সন্ত্রাসের বিরুদ্ধে অনত যুদ্ধের রাজনীতি থেকে এই সুশীলদের বেরিয়ে আসতে হবে। এই ক্ষেত্রে আওয়ামি ফ্যাসিস্টদের ধারণা ইসলামকে আক্রমণ করারএই রাজনীতিই তাদের ক্ষমতায় রাখবে। আসলে বিশ্ব ও আঞ্চলিক পরিস্থিতি যে দ্রুত বদলে যাচ্ছে এটা তারা বুঝছেনা। ফ্যাসিস্টরা দ্রুতই একঘরে হয়ে যাবে; যেতে বাধ্য।

আওয়ামি সুশীল সম্পর্কে জনগণের তরফে এদের প্রতিরোধ করা ছাড়া বিশেষ আর কিছু বলার সুযোগ নাই। সুশীলদের দুই পক্ষের মধ্যে বিরোধটা ততোটাই মৌলিক যতোটা বাংলাদেশ প্রশ্নে সম্প্রতি দিল্লী ও ওয়াশিংটনের পার্থক্য আমরা দেখছি। দিল্লী যেভাবেই হোক শেখ হাসিনা ক্ষমতায় থাকুক এটাই চায়, তাদের অর্থনৈতিক ও প্রতিরক্ষা স্বার্থ ১৮ দল ক্ষমতায় এলে টিকিয়ে রাখা যাবে না, এতে তারা নিশ্চিত। আওয়ামি সুশীলদের অবস্থান দিল্লীর অবস্থান থেকে আলাদা কিছু নয়। ফলে বাংলাদেশের ফ্যাসিবাদের বিরোধিতা মূলত দিল্লীর বিরুদ্ধে বাংলাদেশের সার্বভৌমত্ব রক্ষারই লড়াই। আওয়ামী ফ্যাসিস্টদের বিরুদ্ধে লড়াইটাই বাংলাদেশের সার্ব্বহৌমত্ব ও গণতন্ত্র রক্ষার ভারকেন্দ্র। একে সামনে রেখে বৃহত্তর ঐক্য রচনার ওপরই গণতান্ত্রিক রাজনীতির ভবিষ্যৎ নির্ভর করছে।

গতকাল ৫ জানুয়ারির এই তামাশার নির্বাচনের পর বিএনপি জনগণকে কিভাবে সংগঠিত করবে সেটা নিশ্চিত নয়। খালেদা জিয়া সুস্পষ্ট ভাবে ‘সার্বভৌমত্ব ও গণতন্ত্র রক্ষা কমিটি’ গঠনের কথা বলেছেন। যদি বাংলাদেশের সার্বভৌমত্ব রক্ষা ও গণতন্ত্র প্রতিষ্ঠা তার রাজনীতি হয়ে থাকে তবে সেটা বোঝা যাবে এই কমিটি গঠন করার আন্তরিকতা, দৃঢ়তা ও সাফল্যের ওপর। সময় এখানে গুরুত্বপূর্ণ নির্ধারক। বিএনপি যদি কেন্দ্রীয় ভাবে ও প্রতিটি জেলায় এবং সকল উপজেলায় অবিলম্বে আন্দোলনের এই কাঠামো গড়ে তুলতে ব্যর্থ হয় তাহলে বিক্ষিপ্ত ও বিচ্ছিন্ন সহিংসতা দেশকে কোন যৌক্তিক পরিণতির দিকে নিয়ে যাবে না।

৫ জানুয়ারি ২০১৪।

 

[kalu_miah]

Mahbub-Milon remanded for 2 days, Selima sent to jail: rtnn.net

Mahbub-Milon remanded for 2 days, Selima sent to jail
08 January,2014

RTNN,Newsdesk: A Dhaka court on Wednesday placed BNP leaders Khandaker Mahbub Hossain and Fazlul Haque Milon on a two-day remand while sent Selima Rahman to jail.

Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Amirul Hoque passed the order after hearing the arguments.

The court placed Khandaker Mahbub and Fazlul Haque on a two-day remand and sent Selima Rahman to jail, rejecting both the bail and remand pleas. It also ordered the law enforcers to quiz Selima Rahman at the jail gate within five working days.

Earlier in the day, police sought seven days to grill BNP leaders for their alleged involvement with an explosion.
Investigation Officer of the case, Thakur Das Malo, submitted the remand plea.

The trio was shown arrested in a case of blasting crude bombs near the office of Dhaka Metropolitan Police in Ramna area of the capital on January 4.

BNP Vice Chairperson Selima Rahman was detained from her residence on Tuesday evening after she announced an extension to the party's hartal.

Earlier, BNP chairperson's advisor Khandaker Mahbub Hossain and the party's Organising Secretary Milon were detained on Tuesday afternoon.

Though running MP Nizamuddin Ahmed was also detained on Tuesday, he was later released in the night, detective police Joint Commissioner Monirul Islam said.

 

[idune]

Daily Amardesh -ঢাকা, বৃহস্পতিবার ৯ জানুয়ারি ২০১৪, ২৬ পৌষ ১৪২০, ৭ রবিউল আউয়াল ১৪৩৫ হিজরী

 

[IamBengali]

 

[the just]

Download this pic.print it.laminate it.save it.a Technicolor proof of stupidity of a nation.some day I will show it to my grand kids.
EAKTI GONOTANTRIK DESHER OGONOTANTRIK SHORKAR.

 

[kalu_miah]

What you see in the above picture is plenty of black "Mujib" coats, and here is more about this famous "Black Coat":

Home | Neamat Imam

The book that begins right with its cover




It is the 1970s. After a bloody struggle, Bangladesh is an independent nation. But thousands are pouring into Dhaka from all over the country, looking for food and shelter. Amongst them is Nur Hussain, an uneducated young man from a remote village, who is only good at mimicking a famous speech of the prime minister’s. He turns up at journalist Khaleque Biswas’s doorstep, seeking employment. He is initially a burden for Khaleque, but then Khaleque, who has recently lost his job, has the idea of turning Nur into a fake Sheikh Mujib. With the blessings of the political establishment, he starts cashing in on the nationalist fervour of the city’s poorest. But even as the money rolls in, the tension between the two men increases and reaches a violent climax when, after watching the severity of the famine of 1974, Nur refuses to stick to the script.

Intense yet chilling, this brilliant first novel is a meditation on power, greed and the human cost of politics.



Wanted: Reviewers
Although reviewers in India hailed my novel The Black Coat as “extraordinary… a fine work of fiction,” “…one of the best to come out of the subcontinent in the recent past” and “the gold standard for any book which seeks to engage with South Asian politics or history,” I cannot find anyone in Bangladesh to review it.

Bangladeshi papers do not have official reviewers to review books. They often depend on journalists, university professors, writers and freelance contributors for this. I was a university faculty member myself at one time and I know many of these reviewers. But most of the reviewers I approach to write on my book refuse to do so, citing various excuses. That is why, in the last three months only the Daily Star has reviewed the book although there are over 50 different Bengali and English papers and magazines in the city of Dhaka alone.

Some of the writers, who have not lost their sanity totally, tell me in private conversations that The Black Coat will not be reviewed unless there is a change in the government because it explores the present Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s father Sheikh Mujib’s time in office from 1972 to 1975. That period is politically a taboo subject in Bangladesh and my book presents him as an autocrat instead of what he is publicised as by Sheikh Hasina’s government and her party the Awami League – Father of the Bengali Nation.

Sheikh Mujib banned all opposition newspapers and opposition political parties during his time. Sheikh Hasina has also created a climate of intense fear among the newsmen by arresting an editor and shutting down his newspaper recently. These writers tell me that no paper would like to put their publication at risk by reviewing my book even if it speaks the truth about Sheikh Mujib.

In the meantime, the Fictionists, the only e-zine on Bangladeshi writing in English, removed from their site my book’s excerpt and cover artwork which they published early in July with much enthusiasm. Although they publish the full covers of books written by other Bangladeshi writers, they decided not to show my book’s cover to their readers – not even the thumbnail version of it. They put a disclaimer in this regard saying they decided to do so following dissent from their readership.

They are a new site, and as far as I can surmise from their emails, they are also a group of polite people with a strong sense of personality. Keeping an e-zine is a thankless job but they do it out of their passion for Bangladesh and out of their pride in Bangladeshi writing in English. I do not think they would like to be drawn into a controversy for any reason.

But it is not unprecedented to satirise a public figure’s photograph. Satirical publications do this all the time, as do many serious publications including the Guardian. As my book is also partly satirical, and Sheikh Mujib was a public figure, I do not think any reader of the Fictionists should have made a complaint about it. If there was a complaint, Fictionists editors could stick to their editorial policy of not giving preference to any writer and also of not deceiving any writer of an opportunity to showcase their work on their site. They could also consider the fact that while Sheikh Mujib offended a whole country of Bangladeshi people with his political short-sightedness, I covered his photograph only partly in the cover of my book.

Read here: The Black Coat will Reinstate the Missing History of Bangladesh
Amarblog.com, which is a platform of the new generation Bangladeshis famous for the Shahbagh Uprising in Dhaka, has also shown extreme hostility to my writing. They removed my latest blog on the relations between Sheikh Mujib and fundamentalism in Bangladesh from their site and also restricted me from contributing to it. I wrote that Sheikh Mujib disregarded Bangladesh’s constitution by seeking the membership of the Organisation of Islamic Conference in 1974 for the country. One of the four core principles of Bangladesh’s constitution is secularism. How can a country call itself secular by being and remaining a member of the OIC? Don’t OIC countries introduce themselves as “Islamic” countries?

My latest blog particularly focused on Sheikh Mujib’s use of Khuda Hafiz instead of Joy Bangla at the end of his speeches. Joy Bangla was his signature slogan. He used it in 1971 to motivate Bangladeshis of all walks of life to fight against Pakistan. The result was excellent. Joy Bangla was a secular slogan, to spring from Bengali culture and heritage, whereas Khuda Hafiz was foreign, i.e., completely Islamic. I also cited the research publication’s name and its author’s name in support of my blog. I said that by using Khuda Hafiz Sheikh Mujib proved that towards the end of his rule he was leaning towards the Islamic fundamentalists of the country, who at that time were accused of slaughtering innocent Bangladeshis and collaborating with the occupying military of Pakistan. He leaned towards them, seeking their support for his government because he had proved himself immensely unpopular with the common people of the country with his failure to tackle the ruthless famine of 1974 which claimed hundreds of thousands of lives.

There is no email, telephone or earth address to reach the amarblog editors. I used the only contact form available on their site seeking a clarification from them regarding why I was not allowed to post a blog any more. So far I have not heard back from them.

The latest blow came from the Hay Festival Dhaka. On June 7, I received a mail from a Hay Dhaka co-producer congratulating me on the publication of my book. “Your book is already being talked about and making waves,” the mail said. “…. We would love you to launch your book in Bangladesh at Hay Festival Dhaka, and … would be great if you could participate.”

The Hay Dhaka festival is supposed to take place in November. I live abroad and considering the fact that launching the book in Dhaka would need some preparation, I needed to plan my visit ahead of time. The Fictionists and amarblog gave me a lot of stress. Upon that I already had the stress and the fear of being a debut novelist. I thought Hay Dhaka would be the perfect opportunity for me to speak about my book in Bangladesh. I would have an audience ready to hear why I wrote the novel and why it was so important for our country and its democratic future. The Black Coat too would receive some coverage in the Bangladeshi press which it was not receiving now.

On 16 July, I received another mail from Hay Dhaka. “We are trying to arrange funding for this year’s Hay,” it said. “…. At the moment, we are not able to find funding for you. Also, we are having to change the themes of the festival slightly so am trying to construct the current panels. It looks like our theme of novels based on historical writing (like your book) may be pushed back to next year, as some people that we had expected to come, cannot come till next year. A lot of people that were to be on that panel would prefer to come next year after the elections” (parenthesis original).

They invited me and then un-invited me as they pleased. It was not supposed to happen like this.

Although I thanked them instantly for considering me for their festival, I believe Hay Dhaka has lost its conscience. It is not innocent any longer. It has compromised its mission. Hay Festival of Hay-on-Wye in Wales says it is a “programme of debates and conversations.” But Hay Dhaka has surrendered to the popular political demands of the country instead of serving the cause of literature and culture. It has not stopped a debate; it has not allowed it to begin.

It is highly possible that Hay Dhaka officials were not aware of the content and scope of The Black Coat when they invited me. Then, when they read the novel, they behaved the way any individual in the country who is afraid to critique the legacy of Sheikh Mujib would do. It is the election year this year in Bangladesh. So what? Literature is not in terms of politics of a country. It is because it has to be. I did not expect this kind of behaviour from Hay Dhaka. They were supposed to be on my side but they chose to be on the side of the political establishment.

With this article I want to draw the attention of my country’s intellectuals to my book. I want them to read it and talk about it. I want to tell them that we need to create a culture based on the values of liberalism, transparency and tolerance in our country, without which we cannot create a successful democratic future for it. Gross mistakes were made in the past. Wrongs cannot be considered right only because they were done by a mighty leader like Sheikh Mujib whose leadership was indispensable for the creation of Bangladesh. Our nation will benefit if we can understand what mistakes he made and what prompted him to make them. The Black Coat may open our society to ask questions, to recognise mistakes, to admit limitations. It may begin a debate to make the next forty years of our national life completely different from the last forty years of its passage through misunderstanding and misinterpretation. We will be truly independent only when we all agree to leave behind the cult of the leader.

‘দি ব্ল্যাক কোট’ এর উপজীব্য বাংলায় পড়ার জন্য দেখুন কাহিনী-সংক্ষেপ। নেয়ামত ইমামের কন্ঠে ‘দি ব্ল্যাক কোট’-এর ভূমিকা শোনার জন্য দেখুন ‘প্রথম পৃষ্ঠা: ভূমিকা’।

Praise for The Black Coat
“Extraordinary… a fine work of fiction” – Outlook India

“…one of the best (novels) to come out of the subcontinent in the recent past.” – Financial Express

“A powerful fictional revisiting of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s troubled legacy in Bangladesh” – Mint

“…the book that slays Sheikh Mujib…” – Radio Canada

“The Black Coat will be used — again and again — as the gold standard for any book which seeks to engage with South Asian politics or history.” – The Sunday Guardian

“…a tragic tale of power, pretence, idealism and greed…” – Deccan Herald

“…a poignant political tale… Imam has shown a lot of courage in dealing with one of the most tumultuous and controversial phases of independent Bangladesh’s history.” – The Daily Star

“…pure satire, written with such disarming earnestness that one might neglect to shake it down and dissect its numerous layers.” – Asian Review of Books

Comments:

By Lokiie1984 (Burns, WY) · ★★★★☆ · January 06, 2014
Short Version: I would rate this story between 3 and half to four stars. It is a political story and written in the first person. It may appeal to a lot of people who love politics.

Long Version: I would rate this story between 3 and half to four stars. The writing while overall good has some stra... ...more
By Aurnab (Dhaka, 81, Bangladesh) · October 05, 2013
Obviously, no one can do that for you or make you know what you don't want to know. You must exercise your free will to do so. No one can make you accountable for your thoughts or make you reason through this explanation for you. You've got to think about it on your own, and discern in your own s... ...more
By Arafat (Dhaka, 81, Bangladesh) · ★★★★★ · October 02, 2013
I think it's the 1st time that a writer has taken an anarchist and analytic approach on our history of post 70's. In the present political context of Bangladesh, it is a must read for the ones that think about the future of this country. The style is unique and reflects he has successfully master... ...more
By Shayda (Dhaka, 81, Bangladesh) · ★★★☆☆ · November 13, 2013
The book was a riveting read, but not sure it should necessarily be relied on as a credible source of facts: case in point: it claims that 1.5 million died in the famine, vs less than 300,000 that were killed in the 1971 liberation war. However, the most often fatality count for the war is 3 mill... ...more
By Ravi (Hospet, Karnataka, India) · ★★★★★ · August 15, 2013
Most of us in India, remember 1971 as the year in which we had fought a war with Pakistan. We do not realise the importance of that war, which led to the birth of a new nation, a new neighbour – Bangladesh. This book, set in the nascent period of Bangladeshi independence, is a satire on the Mujib... ...more
By Shameema (Bangladesh) · ★★★☆☆ · October 01, 2013
In the guise of politics , it is one man's personal philosophical battle. While the premise and the starting of this historical fiction was very good, sadly the writing slowly gets sloppier and sloppier up to the point where it becomes excruciating. While in the beginning I was genuinely intrigue... ...more
By আকিব (Bangladesh) · ★★★★★ · September 07, 2013
This is the book which can give a clear idea of the Mujib regime and the atrocities done by his name. A must read for every Bangladeshis. ...more
By Rubaiat (Dhaka, Bangladesh) · ★★★☆☆ · October 06, 2013
Started off strong, and kept that pace and intensity till the middle, with very powerful metaphors that reflect certain aspects of that period of history. Though it ends well too, reading the latter half of the book was tiresome. ...more

 

[jaunty]

So when is the government taking charge for 5 more years?

 

[idune]

This Rajya Sabha of Awami League. DOES NOT represent Bangladesh.