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Journalism of Courage
If the year 2008 has been marked by the return of democratic politics to the subcontinent, Bangladesh caps the trend this week. After two years of military rule, Bangladesh has begun its third experiment with democracy. One of the two 8220;battling begums8221; 8212; Sheikh Hasina of the Awami League and Khaleda Zia of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party 8212; is likely to re-emerge as the prime minister of our very important eastern neighbour. Given the dismal record of these two leaders, who symbolise Dhaka8217;s profound political schizophrenia, the return of democracy may not necessarily suggest that Bangladesh is moving forward. If the begums don8217;t give up their old ways 8212; a refusal to respect the results of elections and a temptation to continually side-step parliament in favour of street politics 8212; formal democracy may not offer much hope to Bangladesh and the region as a whole.
Yet, there is no denying the power of popular democratic sentiments in Bangladesh that compelled the army to give up its expansive political ambitions and restore representative government. The idea that an elite technocratic rule backed by the army could transform governance and politics in Bangladesh never really had much of a chance. The army and its caretaker government, however, deserve credit for cleaning up the electoral rolls and keeping violence down for these important elections.
