Imtiaz Ahmed, professor of international relations at Dhaka University and director of the Centre for Genocide Studies, spoke in a recent interview with Prothom Alo about tackling the coronavirus pandemic and other related issues.
COVID-19 testing must be increased. The more tests there are, the more cases will be detected. Stressing on the need for extensive testing, Imitiaz Ahmed said, “We have not reached the same danger level as some other countries. Around 3000 people live per sq mile in this country and 90 percent of them work in the information sector, including agriculture. They are basically day labourers. All this must be taken into consideration while designing the plans.”
He said that Bangladesh could not be compared to countries like New Zealand or Australia. Over there the population density, respectively, is only 46 persons and 7 persons per sq mile. It is possible to go the people’s homes to carry out the testing there. “Those examples simply create alarm in our context,” he said.
The World Health Organisation (WHO)’s directives are simple and inexpensive to follow, said Imtiaz Ahmed, pointing out that these basically included washing hands, wearing masks and maintaining physical distance. “These are not too costly for Bangladesh to manage,” he said, adding that the country’s vibrant garment manufacturing sector could be a huge supplier of masks and protective equipment.Concerning the decision to open up offices fully and public transport on a limited scale, the Dhaka University teacher said this was a selective relaxation of the lockdown.
He felt it was imperative to increase the number of COVID-19 testing to 20,000 per day, because only then could the actual rate of transmission be determined.
“I mentioned before about certain groups organising the public, about NGOs and others,” Imtiaz Ahmed said, adding, “Sufferings will multiply if the government handles things alone.”
The professor criticised the apex body of readymade garment manufacturers, BGMEA, for its abject failure. “They have amassed huge profits. As the second largest garments exporters in the world, if they cannot provide the people with simple masks for free, they should retire. They should go abroad where most of their children stay. We keep talking about what the government should do, but we have a huge private sector. If BGMEA can’t give the street children masks, who can?”
Will the readymade garment factories be able to provide N-95 masks for the health workers? Imtiaz Ahmed replied that the general people required normal masks. He added, “The country is exporting PPE [personal protective equipment] to developed countries, so surely N-95 masks can be manufactured here too.”
The professor spoke in pragmatic terms about the situation, saying. “Those who are talking about lockdown and curfew, have no idea about how many street children there are. Political parties and student fronts summon hundreds of thousands of people to the streets when they want, but now they are not organising the people. Then again, there are the NGO’s some of the largest in the world, like BRAC, Grameen Bank, ASA and Proshika.”
“They [garment industry owners] have amassed huge profits. As the second largest garments exporters in the world, if they cannot provide the people with simple masks for free, they should retire. They should go abroad where most of their children stay. We keep talking about what the government should do, but we have a huge private sector. If BGMEA can’t give the street children masks, who can?”
He said that these NGOs had done a lot in the past during major natural calamities, but he was taken aback at their stance now. He said, “Maybe it is because Sir Fazle Hasan Abed is no more, Dr Muhammad Yunus is in a politically difficult position and age is a factor too. Rehman Sobhan is getting on in years too. During the 1996 calamity I worked alongside them. They had formed a large NGO forum. Perhaps now the NGOs are under younger leadership, lacking in experience. Or they are not getting funds from the donors.”
Concerning the decision to open up offices fully and public transport on a limited scale, the Dhaka University teacher said this was a selective relaxation of the lockdown.
He felt it was imperative to increase the number of COVID-19 testing to 20,000 per day, because only then could the actual rate of transmission be determined.
“I mentioned before about certain groups organising the public, about NGOs and others,” Imtiaz Ahmed said, adding, “Sufferings will multiply if the government handles things alone.”
“Hippocrates or Florence Nightingale would surely commit suicide if they saw what is going on here. The medical profession is set apart from any other profession. If they are out to make money, they should have taken up business. Unfortunately, the medical treatment has become a business.”
The professor criticised the apex body of readymade garment manufacturers, BGMEA, for its abject failure. “They have amassed huge profits. As the second largest garments exporters in the world, if they cannot provide the people with simple masks for free, they should retire. They should go abroad where most of their children stay. We keep talking about what the government should do, but we have a huge private sector. If BGMEA can’t give the street children masks, who can?”
He also expressed disappointment at the state of the private hospitals in the country. “Hippocrates or Florence Nightingale would surely commit suicide if they saw what is going on here. The medical profession is set apart from any other profession. If they are out to make money, they should have taken up business. Unfortunately, the medical treatment has become a business.”
He said that a government representative should be delegated to monitor how the private hospitals are running. It was the responsibility of the government to do so, but this was not being done because perhaps the owners of the hospitals had powerful political connections, he contended. “That is how a nexus grows between politics and business and bureaucracy,” he said, adding, “and we are seeing a negative role of this nexus during the pandemic. The government bureaucracy doesn’t have to see if people are wearing masks, washing their hands and maintaining distance. It is the people in the various communities and localities that must be mobilised. The police and military cannot do this alone.”
Distinguishing between the role of the members of parliament and the bureaucracy, Imtiaz Ahmed said that it was for the bureaucracy to be in charge of coordination, not to mobilise the people. After all, the people know their leaders, not the secretaries. He questioned, “What are the politicians waiting for? They would get down to work in the past when there were cyclones and storms. Now the mayors and ward commissioners must be organised, the student and youth leaders must organise their activists. It will be difficult to manage things unless the people are activated at the grassroots.”
If fail to control the virus and then we keep everyone silent, that does not solve matters. We have failed to practice a good degree of democracy.
When it was pointed out that the health sector expenditure was less than 1 percent of the GDP and that people paid 64 percent of their medical expenses from their own pockets, the professor said he hoped the matter would be given due consideration in the coming budget.
He also said that public health would have to be included in the curriculum of the education system. It was not just about increasing the budget and infrastructure, but about an extensive planning over the country’s overall public health system.
Some countries of East Asia are doing relatively well because they have been using masks, hand sanitisers from the beginning. Our people must get into such habits, he said.
“This time, unlike before, coronavirus was a factor during relief distribution. If a starving person does not get relief nearby, he will relocate himself and spread the virus. He may even turn up at the home of the man who has stolen his relief. There must be area-wise monitoring to ensure proper relief management,” Imtiaz Ahmed said.
Coming to the issue of freedom of speech in times of coronavirus, as well as the UN’s concern over journalists being abducted and attacked, Imtiaz Ahmed said that in Bangladesh, freedom of the press was a relative matter. There are people who remain silent when the government of their choice is in power, but make a noise when the government they do not favour is at the helm.
He said that monitoring should be stepped to see whether we are being able to reveal the numbers of confirmed coronavirus cases and deaths during the pandemic. If fail to control the virus and then we keep everyone silent, that does not solve matters. We have failed to practice a good degree of democracy.