Posted by: Farzana Yesmin
on Aug 06, 2009
Bangladesh has a consistently poor record in protecting human rights, especially its tolerance of political violence. The former BNP government made little effort to investigate a succession of unsolved murders of members of the opposition Awami League. The notorious Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) set up in 2004 to fight crime is considered by Human Rights Watch to be "a government death squad" responsible for hundreds of cases of torture and extra-judicial killings.
The period under the caretaker government has therefore been tense for human rights observers, concerned about the conditions of the state of emergency and about the unfettered role of the army in police activities. Accusations of arbitrary detention, torture and killings have continued, especially in mid-2008 when the security forces indulged in mass arrests of thousands of local leaders and politicians for no apparent reason other then intimidation.
A more positive initiative was the planned National Women’s Development Policy, a move to legislate for improved property rights for women and quotas for certain decision-making positions. However, strong protests by religious interests claiming that the move would be “anti-Islamic” were sufficient for the government to lose interest in the proposal. Legislation to abolish child labour has also been neglected, even for those in traditional craft industries ranked as hazardous occupations. Estimates suggest that as much as 15% of the entire Bangladesh workforce is comprised of children.
Apart from state-controlled Radio Bangladesh and Bangladesh Television, there is diversity of media sources through satellite TV and privately owned newspapers. But the security of journalists themselves is under threat from the increased criminalisation of Bangladesh politics. The Committee to Protect Journalists has declared Bangladesh to be one of the most dangerous countries in the world for the profession, especially those reporting on corruption or crime.
Posted by: Farzana Yesmin
on Aug 06, 2009
Despite the advantage of a population broadly united by a common Bengali language and dominant Muslim identity, the conduct of government during the short history of Bangladesh has been driven more by dynastic feuding and patronage than policy debate, to the detriment of the poor and to the considerable irritation of the donor community. The country has for years languished at or close to the very bottom of the Corruption Perceptions Index published by Transparency International and life for ordinary citizens is punctuated by demands for bribes, draining the formal economy by an estimated 2% of GDP.
The three main political parties are the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) led by Khaleda Zia, the Awami League (AWL) led by Sheikh Hasina and the largest Islamic party, Jamaat-e-Islami, led by Matiur Rahman Nizami. Disputes between them during the approach to the election due in January 2007 created a state of near anarchy which forced the declaration of a state of emergency. An interim government, headed by Dr. Fakhruddin Ahmed and backed by the military, was asked to establish an impartial electoral process.
A new Election Commission discovered that there were 21 million errors in the electoral register and resolved to tear it up and start again. This formidable task, employing digital biometric identification and taking care to search out more than 80 million prospective voters in every corner of the country, has been completed in sufficient time for the December 2008 poll timetable to proceed. Elements of the state of emergency have been lifted in an attempt to create conditions for a free and fair election. The European Union has agreed to send a team of observers.
Dr. Ahmed also pledged to root out corruption, reviving the moribund Anti-Corruption Commission which has secured prison sentences for about 150 senior political figures. Serious charges have been brought against both former prime ministers, Khaleda Zia and Sheikh Hasina. But this has proved to be the limit of the Dr.Ahmed’s success. The two leaders are on bail, having been neither convicted nor cleared, leaving them free to participate in the election at the head of their parties which have not rejected them, as many had hoped. With the legal system overloaded, a Truth and Accountability Commission was established to offer amnesty to any officials willing to confess to inappropriate conduct, to repay their gains and to keep out of political life for 5 years.As the Commission’s proceedings are conducted in secrecy, it is impossible to gauge the results. Low level corruption continues much as before.
Civil society in general has flourished in a climate of healthy aid flows although the survival of individual organizations has been very sensitive to sudden changes in donor priorities. The sector is led by the monolithic Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee (BRAC) which, with over 100,000 staff, has become the size of a government ministry and may be the world's largest NGO.
Posted by: Farzana Yesmin
on Aug 06, 2009
If climate change proves to be the force that shapes the 21st century, then Bangladesh offers an early vision of our future. Its land is crossed with waterways, defensive dykes and structures; roads and houses are constructed above ground level; early warning systems and emergency shelters have already protected tens of thousands of lives from Cyclone Sidr. The government has published a 10 year action plan which refers to its “pro-poor, climate resilient and low-carbon development strategy”. It plans to establish a “climate change cell” in every ministry and has set up a National Climate Change Fund into which generous bilateral donations have already been made towards the ambitious $5 billion target.
With one of the lowest per capita levels of energy consumption in the world, Bangladesh is a major point of reference for the injustice of climate change. Although alarmist media projections are typically based on a rise in sea level well beyond the worst case 2100 scenario outlined by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), nevertheless there is a real risk that significant land mass will be lost, forcing the migration of large numbers of people. In a climate pincer movement from the north, retreating Himalayan glaciers create great uncertainty in the management of dozens of rivers that flow through Bangladesh into the Bay of Bengal. Shorter but more severe monsoons, longer periods of drought, and more violent tropical storms, complete the roll call of climate predictions for Bangladesh. Cyclone Sidr killed 3,500 people and destroyed over half a million homes in 2007.
The impact on food security, over and above the loss of productive land by sea and river erosion, is the principal concern. The IPCC has predicted a small drop in rice yields by 2050 but over 30% for wheat. New crop varieties will be tested and the challenge of finding new livelihoods is already familiar to many households.
Posted by: Farzana Yesmin
on Aug 06, 2009
A combination of generous international aid since 1990, a dynamic civil society culture and sympathetic government policies has created a generally positive outlook for achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in Bangladesh. In a number of areas, progress is more rapid than in neighbouring India or Pakistan. A wide range of government food and cash safety net schemes reached over 20 million people in 2007.
Nevertheless, with its large population and overcrowded cities, Bangladesh remains one of the poorest countries in the world. Poverty is assessed in a household income and expenditure survey held every five years. The most recent survey in 2005 found 40% of the population to be below the poverty line, measured by the cost of essential food and basic needs, compared with 59% in 1991, the MDG baseline year. Progress has been uneven, with the most severe poverty located in urban slums and in the Chittagong Hill Tracts. Just under 20% of the population falls into the category of extreme poverty, lacking resources to acquire a minimum dietary intake.
Gender equality in primary school enrolment has already been attained and most children take advantage of free primary education. However, poor teaching quality and the pressures of poverty have rocketed the drop-out rate to an alarming 47%.
The former Director of the Millennium Project, Professor Jeffrey Sachs, has suggested an MDG price tag for Bangladesh of $4 billion per annum, far more than current levels of aid. An alternative perspective is the suggestion that the Goals cannot be achieved without universal access to electricity. Current coverage is barely more than 20%. The government's target of access for all by 2020 is a vision that has been priced at $16 billion.
