A democracy cannot ask citizens to trust the ballot while treating one of their ballots as optional. The government received its mandate from the people. The July Charter received its mandate from the people as well. Both must be honored.
Not only did Mr. Alamgir represent a big obstacle for the right-wing network in their pursuit of power and rent but he was also a prominent face of the liberal democratic elite. He is also an obstacle in the spreading of right-wing influences within the BNP.
The value of a 180-day plan lies precisely in BNP's ability to make the early report card meaningful. If the clock was started by BNP itself, it cannot now complain that citizens are watching it.
The first Doppler poll suggests that the government's political position remains reasonably strong. Two different national surveys, conducted through different methodologies, place government approval at almost the same level. That convergence deserves recognition.
By choosing Mirza Alamgir, the Prime Minister has placed institutional credibility above other considerations, and in doing so has strengthened the constitutional order his government is charged with restoring.
Public confidence in the future is still stronger than satisfaction with current delivery. That “expectation premium” is a political asset -- but a time-limited one.
The Charter belongs to no party. Whoever channels public impatience into pressure for its implementation will own ground nobody else is contesting.
He understood that the success of North South University would serve as a practical demonstration that the newly enacted legislation would help develop Bangladesh. After all, he had been instrumental in helping create the legal framework that made the institution possible.
For decades, Bangladesh placed some of its heaviest moral burdens on Muhammed Zafar Iqbal's shoulders. When students needed someone, we called him. When science needed a champion, we called him. When education failed, we expected him to protest.
The presumption of innocence, one of the oldest principles of modern jurisprudence, loses all practical meaning if an acquittal arrives only after years spent inside a prison cell.
The demand that drove millions into the streets was never abstract. It was the return of democracy and fair elections to Bangladesh, the right of its people to choose their own government, and through that, make the decisions that would govern their destiny.
An enforced disappearance can be prosecuted under the ICT Act only when it forms part of a widespread or systematic attack directed against a civilian population. Standalone cases of enforced disappearance committed by state officials fall outside this framework.
Yes, economists may envy physicists and political scientists may envy economists. But, here, in a place as fluid and unpredictable as Bangladesh, there are moments when even the most elegant model benefits from being challenged by a journalist's imperfect, half-cooked antithesis.
In one simple way, Tarique Rahman stands to be more successful than either of his parents. Neither of them could successfully, peacefully, finish their term and hand over power to the next government. Ziaur Rahman was gunned down by rogue officers. Khaleda Zia faced an implacable foe who made good on her promise of not allowing the former prime minister a moment of peace.
All things considered, Mr. Rahman receives a “meets expectations” grade. The BNP government, as a team, receives a “needs improvement” grade, but not a failing one.
That is how democratic erosion can happen, not only through overt repression, but through laws that centralize power while preserving the appearance of legality.