Hartal into the second day

There has been an avalanche of condemnation, mostly laced with an outright rejection of the government's position on the investigations carried out into the series of bomb blasts in recent times. The distinguished envoys from the EU and other countries have made it known that they are not only extremely shocked by the incident but also unhappy with the government's 'apparent failure' to get to the bottom of previous bomb attacks. In fact, there is an absolute consensus on the point that the unresolved cases have emboldened the killers to launch such attacks on eminent public figures. So, the world is watching Bangladesh and the failure to punish the perpetrators of some of the worst political crimes in our history is sending negative signals about our image overseas. The envoys have appealed to the government for transparent investigation and 'swift action' which could only mean bringing the killers to justice as a matter of utmost priority. The onus is on the government.

We believe that the focus should be on the demand for a time-bound, result-oriented, impartial and transparent investigation into the Habiganj grenade attack. The opposition has to retain the full measure of public sympathy to pressurize the government into conducting effective investigation into the attacks. A long-drawn hartal can stand in the way of a full expression of public outrage as it shuts off everything. Street violence and other ways of giving vent to the anguish and frustration, however high-pitch the sentiments are, might shift the focus away from the primacy of investigations.

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On the other hand, it is highly imperative for the government to ensure that police brutalisation and ham-handed treatment of opposition activists are scrupulously avoided.