Violence, Corruption, and Unrest: Bangladesh's Political Arena
Primary Analyst: Hannah Mazzuca
In January 2014, Bangladesh held their most recent general election, reelecting Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina of the Awami League (AL). This election is considered to be one of the most violent in the country’s history. Bangladesh has a tumultuous political history that is characterized by violence, extremism, and political unrest. Political parties boycotting elections and going on strike is also common as the main parties constantly accuse one another of corruption. There have been many different forms of government in Bangladesh over the years, with varying degrees of democracy. The country gained independence from British rule in 1947 as a part of the newly formed state of Pakistan and separated from Pakistan in 1971. After the assassination of the Prime Minister in 1975, the country was subjugated to fifteen years of military rule. Bangladesh officially became a democratic country in 1990 and elected BNP member Kahaleda Zia as Prime Minister one year later. In 2007, they regained a democratic government and the AL won the election of 2008 by an incredibly high number of seats.
The general elections of 2014 in Bangladesh were won by the AL after the BNP boycotted the poll. There has been a long and continuous deadlock between the AL and the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), which began in 1994 when the AL began to boycott parliament in protest of corruption. Both parties continue to refuse to work towards a new political system that respects both the opposition and the house majority. Opposition parties and political critics of the government are often subject to state sanctioned violence and terrorism, like torture, forced disappearances, and extra-judicial killings, in order to discourage them. The recent political climate in Bangladesh is characterized by violent strikes, protests, and a permissive legal environment that gives parties the ability to exert power and authority over others in the form of violence and threats. The legal environment also allows extremists to dissassemble and regroup. This results in the oppression and killing of secular bloggers, religious minorities, and foreigners.
Current Issues
President Trump's administration plans to cut the foreign aid budget and eliminate Development Assistance and Assistance for Europe, Eurasia, and Central Asia. This will have a large impact on Bangladesh as they received $79 million in the 2016 fiscal year. The new administration’s proposed budget will cut this in half. The result of this budget cut will remove funding from Bangladeshi health programs that are working to eliminate pandemics that affect maternal and child mortality, malnutrition, tuberculosis, HIV and AIDs, as well as reproductive health and family planning.
This could be mitigated though international health initiatives and existing Bangladeshi health programs reaching out to foreign NGO’s for support. Furthermore, Bangladesh has a strong relationship with China and India. In addition, new companies moving into Bangladesh may want to consider offering a degree of health coverage as the government does not provide health insurance for Bangladeshi workers.
The government of Bangladesh has a history of restricting trade unions from working to establish minimum wage and safe working conditions. In June of 2010 the government, run by the AL, revoked the operating license of the Bangladesh Centre for Workers Solidarity, which had ties to international trade union and labour rights groups and representatives of foreign clothing brands sourcing from factories in Bangladesh.
Ultimately, the judicial branch of the Bangladeshi government needs greater legitimacy to dissipate the corruption of government and groups in power. Furthermore, the political parties could respect opposing groups and their ideologies as long as they do not promote the harm of others. In terms of strategies that relate to the textile industry, the government of Bangladesh needs to strengthen workers rights to form unions and give them the opportunity to negotiate better working conditions and better wages. This would have a positive effect on both living standards and economic growth in Bangladesh.
