Awami League's general amnesty and Hefazat's 'valid' demands

Two news items suddenly caught the eye. Both involved Awami League. One was about a general amnesty, the other was about a meeting with Hefazat. The national election is one year away. It is obvious that all activities and discussions now will revolve around Awami League.

When the issue of general amnesty is brought up, one is reminded of the general amnesty declared by Yahya Khan in 1971. The war was on then and the youth were sacrificing their lives without a second thought. Many elected representatives of Awami League were suffering in Kolkata and Agartala and wanted to return home.

The moment Yahya announced the general amnesty, many of them stirred. But they were under sharp watch of the Indian government agents on one hand and Mujib Bahini boys on the other. They were threatened and coerced into staying back.

Awami League's recent 'general amnesty' is nothing new. After the system was introduced for party-based local government elections, the scope to assess the popularity of candidates has shrunk. Many are becoming candidates by virtue of blessings from senior leaders of the party, much to the annoyance of the other aspiring candidates. While some withdraw their candidature, others remain in the fray. And their number is on a steady rise.

They are now known as 'rebel candidates'. The party declared that the rebel candidates will be permanently expelled from the party. That made no difference. Many of these 'rebels' have defeated the party's 'nominated' candidates and won the elections. This has proven that popular candidates do not always get party nomination. Patronage, blessings and transactions play a role in nominations. The voters do not want who the party does.

It has been like that from the start. This happens in the national election too. An example of this is Haji Salim of Lalbagh, Dhaka. He once contested against the Awami League candidate as an 'independent candidate' and won. Replying to a journalist's question during the election campaign, he claimed that Sheikh Hasina had nominated him as an independent candidate. I heard that myself. He still is there, a solid asset of the party. There are many others like him.

Rebel candidates don't merely contest in the union and upazila parishad elections -- the contests are fierce. There are clashes and killings too. Then when the rebel candidate wins, he is welcomed back with open arms into the party for his 'invaluable contribution' to the party and the nation.

This year in the local elections, the number of rebel candidates and the number of people killed in violent clashes has broken all records. Local leaders are the mainstay of the party. It is hard to win an election without them. With many of the rebel candidates being expelled, the party position has become shaky in many areas. That is why steps are taken to bring them back to the fold to strengthen the camp. And that is what the 'general amnesty' is all about. Another thing has also become clear -- Awami League is preparing for the election. And the party president attends various government programmes and seeks votes for the 'boat' (Awami League's election symbol).

On one hand BNP is revving up its movement and on the other hand Awami League is organising itself. That too is a strategy to forge ahead, leaving the opponent unprepared.

In the plans with which Awami League is advancing, another strategy is to make possible 'enemies' into 'friends'. We are aware that there are certain parties within the 14-party alliance that had always been anti-Awami League to the extreme. Awami League has drawn them into its fold, relaxing its stand. Had they not scrambled onto the Awami League boat, many of them would never have seen the insides of the parliament building. Awami League's aim was that these elements must not join the BNP camp. So BNP was isolated and Awami League was reassured, albeit at the price of a couple of parliament seats. Now these parties are 'more Catholic than the Pope', locked in a desperate contest to score against BNP.

A wave of religion-based politics has appeared in the country, and Jamaat-e-Islami had been the epitome. Jamaat is now relatively inert, some of their leaders dead, some behind bars and some in hiding. But there is 'Hefazat-e-Islam' in the field now. They call themselves 'non-political', but they are a very powerful group, which they proved in 2013 at Shapla Chattar. Just as Awami League has made foes into friends and drawn them into its alliance, it has taken up the same strategy with Hefazat. The sole objective is to ensure they do not join the opponent's camp or do not turn against the government. They must either stay with government or remain 'neutral'.

The impact of Hefazat's equation with Awami League has been apparent in politics, social activities and even in art and culture. Many books of the textbook board have been changed to accommodate Hefazat's demands. With the election approaching, it has become essential to refresh ties with Hefazat.

On 17 December, 11 members of Hefazat called upon the prime minister at Ganabhaban with a seven-point demand. The next day while talking to newspersons, the home minister said, "The prime minister will certainly look into the demands which are valid and will fulfill these."

The question is, what are the 'valid' demands of Hefazat? We are well aware that most of the demands of Hefazat are not in keeping with the spirit that Awami League touts. The prime minister had assured them in the past that the country would run on the lines of the Charter of Medina. But all the demands are not fulfilled by these words.

Hefazat wants more. Every time December comes around, we return to 1971. What had we wanted? What was the point of breaking up Pakistan in exchange of so many lives if we are to accept Hefazat's demands as 'valid' and take initiative to fulfill these demands? In a competitive election, anyone can come forward with their ideology and agenda. But if there are transactions, overt or covert, then it is to be assumed that something different is conspiring. There is a common saying about joining hands with anyone for the sake of remaining in power.

When there is no confidence in the election and the voters, there are a lot of manipulations behind the scenes. The recent interaction between Hefazat and Awami League did not create any suspicions. This was expected. With the elections ahead, all sorts of relations and balances are etched out, or are changed, between political and social forces, with various conditions attached.

* Mohiuddin Ahmad is a writer and researcher