No major political party has any programme

No major political party of the country will organise any programme to mark the International Day of Democracy to be observed worldwide today while the opposition parties said that the country now lacked democratic rule, an allegation denied by ruling Awami League.

The theme of the day this year is ‘participation’.

The day came at a time when the Human Rights and Democracy Report 2018 launched by the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office on June 6 observed that Bangladesh continued to be a country where the protection of human rights and democracy was in decline.

The report said, ‘There was an increase in allegations of extrajudicial killings and freedom of expression was further reduced.’

It further said, ‘Enforced disappearances, freedom of religion or belief, and modern slavery remain UK’s human rights priorities in Bangladesh.’

A Commonwealth report titled ‘Evaluation of the Commonwealth Secretariat’s Democracy Programme 2013/14– 2016/17’ published in October 2018 termed Bangladesh democracy a ‘hybrid regime’.

Hybrid regimes combine democratic traits (e.g. frequent and direct elections) with autocratic ones (e.g. political repression).

In 2007, the United Nations General Assembly resolved to observe September 15 as the International Day of Democracy with the purpose of promoting and upholding the principles of democracy.

UN Secretary-General António Guterres in his statement marking the day urged all governments to respect the right to active, substantive and meaningful participation.

Leaders of the Awami League, Bangladesh Nationalist Party, Jatiya Party, Workers’ Party of Bangladesh, Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal, Communist Party of Bangladesh and Bangladesher Samajtantrik Dal said that they had no programme to observe the day.

The BNP, however, will hold a press conference at the party chairperson’s office at capital’s Gulshan this afternoon, said the party chairperson’s press wing member Shamsuddin Didar.

BNP senior joint secretary-general Ruhul Kabir Rizvi alleged that the country lacked democracy and the government had been supressing its political opponents and the dissenting views.

‘The government continues to persecute the opposition using the law enforcement agencies. Now they are trying to control politics using the courts. People cannot organise rallies freely, they have no right to vote or free speech,’ he said.

‘The voters could not exercise their voting right in the December 30, 2019 election… A government formed through such an election cannot be called legal,’ he said.

Ruling AL-led alliance partner Workers Party of Bangladesh president Rashed Khan Menon said that democracy existed in the country literally. ‘But it [democracy] is not functioning properly as the rights of the people have not been established fully so far.’

Awami League joint general secretary Jahangir Kabir Nanak denied all these allegations, affirming that the country had a ‘fully democratic rule and atmosphere’ and ‘each and every political organisation is getting equal opportunity to exercise their political rights’.

But, AL advisory council member Tofail Ahmed, addressing a commemoration in the capital on Saturday, said that politics was not under control of the politicians now.

Left Democratic Alliance coordinator Mosharraf Hossain Nannu, also general secretary of the United Communist League, said that the country had no democratic atmosphere.

‘The basic rights of the country’s common people are yet to be established... People’s right to vote has been snatched… Would you call it a democratic rule?’ he said.

News Courtesy: www.newagebd.net