Bangladesh’s interim government has pledged to hold free, fair and participatory elections, but it will take time for the protest-riddled country to get there. Professor Muhammed Yunus, the interim government chief adviser, told diplomats in Dhaka that the election commission, judiciary, civil administration, and security forces need reform.
Muhammad Yunus About Elections
He highlighted that the Sheikh Hasina dictatorship destroyed every institution, breaking the judiciary and suppressing the people’s democratic rights in a 15-year-long crackdown. Yunus said the interim government has been tasked with stabilizing the country with stability. He said to prepare Bangladesh for elections, they have a ‘to-do list’.
The Nobel laureate said the revolutionary students want the interim government to cleanse Bangladesh through meaningful and deep reforms. He pointed out that they also have the people’s support and the backing of the international community to go ahead with it.
No Other Option For Bangladesh
However, the international community has been urging Bangladesh’s interim government to restore democratic order and the rule of law through an inclusive and participatory election process. Defending the revolutionary students’ demands, Muhammad Yunus highlighted the country’s rigged elections.
He said the young people had been denied fair elections because of the greedy ruling party and its politicians. The economist added that banks were robbed with full political patronization, and state coffers emptied.
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Yunus said they have been allowed to overhaul Bangladesh’s governance and create opportunities for a poverty-free and prosperous new country. Regarding attacks on minorities in the ongoing protests in Bangladesh, the chief adviser said the interim government has called for an impartial and internationally credible investigation (United Nations).
