The International Crisis Group recently described Bangladesh's present predicament as "Dilemmas of a Democratic Transition." The Crisis Group's senior consultant on Myanmar and Bangladesh, Thomas Kean, said the honeymoon period for Bangladesh's interim government is now well and truly over. He said the challenges are likely to grow in the coming year, as political parties and other key players bargain over reforms and jockey for electoral advantage.
The bargaining actually began from 5 August. One section of those in the the mass uprising wanted the constitution to be abolished and a revolutionary government formed. They wanted the president to be removed. The other section opposed this, saying the government must be formed in keeping with the constitution. Finally, the latter opinion was followed and three from the anti-discrimination students movement who were in favour of a revolutionary government, even took oath as advisors of the interim government.
Today is 8 February and the interim government has been at the helm for 6 months. When the government headed by Dr Muhammad Yunus took over responsibility on 8 August, an abnormal situation prevailed in the country. There had been no government in the country for three days. The police were totally inactive. The public administration was in shambles.
It is not as if the police force, which the government had depended upon the most for improving the law and order, is fully functional at the moment. The armed forces have also been deployed along with the police and have been government magistracy powers.
The second challenge of the government was to control the spiralling prices of essentials. The government has taken all sorts of measures to this end, but has failed to bring the market under control. Food inflation is still over 10 per cent. The Crisis Group says the interim government is also under pressure over rising prices - a legacy of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's mismanagement.
However, the people are hardly interested in economic theory or the reason behind the prevailing predicament. They will want to see whether they can run the family with the wages earned after a day's work, whether they can afford their children's education and other expenses. If the price of essentials does not decrease, public dissatisfaction will increase.
The other priorities of the government included investigation into the crime and corruption of the previous government, trials regarding the July-August massacre.
The government has formed several committees to investigate these matters and the International Crimes Tribunal is working on the trials pertaining to the massacres during the mass uprising.
Criminal cases have also been filed against the leaders and activists of Awami League. Thousands of cases have been lodged, but arrests have been made less in that comparison. Due to the mass arrests, there is fear that the trial process will be slowed down somewhat. If there are over a hundred cases against a person (mostly for killing), then it will take a few years to gather evidence in that regard.
The government was encumbered with an economy in shambles, but economists feel it has managed to restore some degree of order to the situation. It has been possible for the banking sector, in particular, to be retrieved from the brink of collapse. The dwindling foreign exchange reserves have also been stabilised. But the problem is that no new investment is coming in. Unemployment is on the rise. And this is one of the reasons behind crime and conflict in the society.
The chief advisor Muhammad Yunus, in an interview with Japanese media outlet NHK, answered the question, "When will the election be held?" He said, "Towards the end of this year."
There is unrest in the industrial sector. Quite a large number of businesspersons close to Awami League have been arrested on corruption charges and many of their factories have been shut down. Many workers have been laid off. The gas and power crisis also poses as a threat to industry, trade and business.
The interim government is being criticised the most for the state of the education and health sectors. The anarchy and manipulations in postings that have prevailed in the education sector, have still not been fully eliminated. Students' demands and demonstration regularly bring public life almost to a halt. The government takes decisions only after the roads are blocked, not before.
The health sector had been in dire straits during the Awami League rule and that has not improved. For example, the health ministry had taken responsibility for the treatment of those injured in the July-August uprising. But six months on since then, they are still having to take to the streets demanding proper medical treatment.
There is no good news visible in the political arena either. The unity among the forces involved in the mass uprising after 5 August, has unravelled to a great extent. The various sides are criticising each other sternly, sometimes crossing the limit.
The people could not vote during the last three elections of the Awami League rule. Sheikh Hasina ran the country in an autocratic manner, politicising various state institutions. The interim government had committed that they would hold a free and fair election alongside reforming the state system. To this end, the government had formed 11 commissions and most of the commissions have submitted their reports. The government is scheduled to hold talks around mid-February with the heads of the commissions, the political parties that took part in the movement and other stakeholders.
There had been debate over the election and reforms from the very outset. Some want the reforms first and then the election. Others want the government to carry out reforms required for a free and fair election and then hold the election as soon as possible. The manner in which the election and the reforms have been pitched one against the other is totally unwarranted.
The interim government is not on any one side. Their job is to get all the sides to sit at one table. These talks will be successful when the political parties, student leadership and other stakeholders discuss matters freely and reach a consensus on reforms and the election. If any side takes up a stubborn stance, the talks will fall through.
The political leaders are responsible for the fact that the country's democratic structure did not become sturdy even over the past 53 years. The problem is not just over a matter of 15 years. Even those who ran the country before, failed to ensure democracy and good governance. And so the demand of the young generation for state reforms cannot be dismissed.
Then again, whatever the decision may be concerning reforms, people's verdict must also be taken into consideration to implement this. Everyone is well aware of the consequences of simply passing the election, then forgetting everything, simply to revert to running the country as one pleases.
As I completed writing this column, I got news that the chief advisor Muhammad Yunus, in an interview with Japanese media outlet NHK, answered the question, "When will the election be held?" He said, "Towards the end of this year."
After this interview, hopefully those who had apprehensions regarding the election timeframe, will overcome their consternation.
* Sohrab Hassan is joint editor of Prothom Alo and a poet
* This column appeared in the print and online edition of Prothom Alo and has been rewritten for the English edition by Ayesha Kabir