Perspectives
BNP blowing in the wind
Still behind bars.
VIEWED purely from a political angle Madam Khaleda Zia's release from detention is a logical sequel to the freeing of Sheikh Hasina a month ago in the name of treatment abroad. After all, the compulsion for doing so, if any, on the part of the ruling dispensation is the same. The prospect that the madam also will be released soon in a similar manner has already been on the cards. The release of Coco, one of her indicted sons, seems to have put the process in motion. Obviously, the mood is celebratory in the BNP-Jamaat fraternity, which has been raising its shrill voice to expedite the release of the madam along with her eldest son. The family reunion, after a hiatus, witnessed fiery speeches and frenzy to the same effect from both the BNP and Jamaat stalwarts. The stage seems to be set for a fitting junket to celebrate the return of the prima donna. The charmed circle of the BNP-Jamaat acolytes would again be beholden to the madam obliging them with her messianic presence. The four party alliance, once again rejuvenated, has seldom been so boisterous after its last hurrah before 1/11. In tandem, the declared mission of an exceptional caretaker government is also tapering to a denouement. In the meantime, the chickens are returning to rule the roost in the BNP. As a result, the monopoly of Khondker Delwar, the chosen secretary-general of the BNP chairperson, faces the challenge of the recently released "reformist" former secretary-general with regards to the partys future. Hannan Shah, the self-styled adviser to the chairperson, doesn't leave Delwar alone to speak for the party. A hydra-headed leadership is pushing the BNP towards utter confusion. This exciting circus doesn't however enthuse the caretaker dispensation which, at long last, seems serious to pass the baton to the people's representatives through a credible election by the end of the year. That's where the BNP comes in. Because any credible election presupposes the participation of all political stakeholders as well as their cooperation in pre-election dialogue to make them come to terms with the government's scheme of things, particularly with regard to the rules of the game in a new polity. Or else, the BNP with its malfeasance and predatory track record, the details of which are still pouring in, could have been ignored or set aside. It seems magnanimous of the government to count the party at all -- although whom to talk to is still a problem in a divided BNP. In the classical sense, the BNP has seldom been a political party with a set of ideals to promote. It cannot, thus, hold its ranks together through trials and tribulations. There are, however, few problems with the Awami League, which is still in one piece, held together by a set of ideals and guiding principles. No wonder the authorities find it easier to deal with the party which understands the norms and nuances of a political transformation. Unfortunately, the BNP, bent upon bargaining the for the immoral demands of letting criminals off the hook, has made the process of a political transformation, awaited by the whole nation, difficult. The ill-intended stance of the BNP cannot ultimately hold good, yet the "uncompromising" madam is unnecessarily making a show of bravado, delaying a democratic step forward. In the process she will alienate an already alienated nation.
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