7 parties join Jamaat, announce new progs with 5 demands including PR in election

Seven like-minded political parties have joined Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami and announced a new set of programmes to press home their five demands, including introducing the proportional representation (PR) system for parliamentary elections.

The parties also demanded holding of a referendum in November to provide a legal basis to the July Charter.

Their announced programmes include: a protest rally and march in Dhaka on 20 October, protest rallies and marches in all divisional cities on 25 October, and, protest rallies and marches in all district towns on 27 October.

Khelafat Majlis secretary-general Ahmad Abdul Kader announced the programmes at a press conference at the Zahur Hossain Chowdhury Hall of the National Press Club on Sunday.

At the event, Jamaat’s secretary-general Mia Golam Porwar explained why the party was continuing street programmes despite having signed the July Charter.

He said, “The implementation order for the July Charter and organising a referendum to provide it a legal basis are pending yet. The Charter itself does not specify when the order and referendum will take place. For that reason, even after signing it, we have decided to continue our movement.”

Previously, Jamaat and seven like-minded parties had held two rounds of programmes in September and October based on similar demands.

The parties are: Islami Andolan Bangladesh, Khelafat Majlis, Bangladesh Khelafat Majlis, Bangladesh Nizam-e-Islam Party, Bangladesh Khelafat Andolan, and the Jatiya Ganatantrik Party (JAGPA).

Bangladesh Development Party (BDP) joined this coalition at today’s press conference, raising the number of participating parties to eight.

Their five demands are: issuance of the implementation order for the July National Charter and holding a referendum by November to provide it a legal basis; introduction of the proportional representation (PR) system in both chambers of the forthcoming National Parliament election; ensuring a level playing field for all parties to guarantee free, fair, and credible elections; visible prosecution of the atrocities, killings, and corruption committed by the “fascist” government; and, banning the activities of the Jatiya Party and the 14-party alliance, described as “collaborators of autocracy.”

In his written statement, Khelafat Majlis leader Ahmad Abdul Kader said, “From past experience, we know that to prevent the use of black money, muscle power, vote rigging, and other electoral malpractices, and to ensure that every vote counts towards building a quality parliament and skilled lawmakers, the PR system is essential. Most political parties, intellectuals, journalists, columnists, writers, researchers, academics, and people from various professions in Bangladesh support this demand.”

He warned that if their demands were not met by 27 October, they would announce a nationwide intensified movement.

The press conference was moderated by Jamaat’s Assistant Secretary-General Hamidur Rahman Azad.

Other speakers included principal Yunus Ali, secretary-general of Islami Andolan Bangladesh, and Maulana Jalaluddin Ahmad, secretary-general of Bangladesh Khelafat Majlis.

Also present were Maulana Musa bin Izhar, secretary-general of the Bangladesh Nizam-e-Islam Party; Maulana Mujibur Rahman Hamidi, naib-e-ameer of the Bangladesh Khelafat Andolan; Rashed Pradhan, vice-president and spokesperson of JAGPA; Lasker Tasbir, joint secretary of the Bangladesh Development Party; Gazi Ataur Rahman, joint secretary-general and spokesperson of Islami Andolan Bangladesh; and Ashraf Ali Akon, a presidium member.

Jamaat has long been advocating for the introduction of a proportional representation system for the 13th parliamentary election, a proposal opposed by the Bangladesh Nationalist Party.

Meanwhile, Nahid Islam, convenor of the National Citizen Party (NCP), has questioned Jamaat’s motive for raising this demand.

In a Facebook post, Nahid Islam wrote that while his party had called for the establishment of an upper chamber based on proportional representation, Jamaat and its allies had “hijacked the idea to use it as a bargaining tool for narrow partisan gains.”