| Bangladesh : The nice side of democracy Nov 6th 2008 | DELHI From The Economist print edition 
Shame about the democrats IN JANUARY 2007 Bangladesh's generals marched into the palace of President Iajuddin Ahmed and forced him to cancel elections, declare a state of emergency and appoint a government of technocrats. On November 3rd Mr Ahmed at last signed an order sending the army back to the barracks. The interim government also lifted restrictions on political campaigning and the press. Bangladesh's state of emergency—the longest any South Asian country has endured—seems to be petering out. So firm are the commitments by the generals to hold parliamentary elections that a return to multiparty democracy appears a certainty. This week the Election Commission confirmed that a general election would be held on December 18th. This followed assurances by the army to the UN secretary-general, Ban Ki-moon, on a two-day visit to Dhaka, that this time it would not interfere. The front-runners in the race to succeed a period of muddled rule by soldiers, spooks and technocrats are the heads of two feuding dynasties whose careers the army tried and failed to end: the former prime ministers Sheikh Hasina Wajed of the Awami League and Khaleda Zia of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP). The two women rotated in power for 15 years from 1991. Their mutual hatred and inability to negotiate played a big part in turning Bangladeshi politics into a prolonged cycle of violent retaliation. Even so, the view of the army, Bangladesh's foreign aid donors and its voters is now that the "two begums" constitute the only offer on the table. The army tried to send them into exile, hoping new political parties would emerge; then it jailed them and their coteries on charges of corruption. In the end, they were freed on bail. It proved impossible both to hold them to account and to hold elections. The League is confident it will win the vote. Greeted by large crowds, Sheikh Hasina came back to Bangladesh on November 6th, five months after being freed to receive medical treatment in America. The rival BNP is split and, much harder-hit by the anti-corruption drive, is in a shambles. As the League started its election campaign this week, the BNP was still debating whether to take part. Mrs Zia alleges that the Election Commission favours the League and should resign... Meanwhile, the army appears to have resigned itself to Sheikh Hasina's becoming the next prime minister or, at least, contesting the elections. For her part, having narrowly escaped an attempt on her life in 2004, she may feel that only the army can protect her from her political rivals. The generals want their state of emergency legitimised, and immunity from prosecution. These are concessions the League is probably willing to make, if not to advertise. The court cases against the two prime ministers have in effect been put on hold until the election. If the past is any guide, the next government will control the judiciary, so convictions will never happen. Observers believe that endless behind-the-scenes talks with the leaders, aimed at bringing their parties to the polls, are likely to have included guarantees by the two ladies not to put the losing rival in prison. Yet, barring upsets, more than 80m Bangladeshis will next month be allowed to choose a government for the first time since 2001. And the election has a better chance of being credible than any since independence in 1971. The Election Commission has purged 12m surplus names from voter lists. The authorities claim the poll will be almost impossible to rig. What Bangladeshis still do not know is whether the army's intervention has shocked the country's squabbling, petty politicians into a new approach. The world's seventh-most populous country needs a government devoted not to a perennial political vendetta, but to tackling poverty, climate change and terrorism.
http://www.economist.com/world/asia/displaystory.cfm?story_id=12566925 | 