Test of statesmanship
THE bloody mutiny by a section of BDR soldiers, brutally killing more than 75 people including 58 army officers, put Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to a grim test of statesmanship. She has not failed, but has rather shown wisdom, courage and tolerance, which are needed in tackling such critical situations in very trying times.
Avoiding the military operation, which might have caused a much bigger tragedy, and taking the political option has certainly shown that she is capable of standing up to the test of statesmanship.
The firm and cautious speech of the prime minister, declaring general amnesty, played a pivotal role in the surrendering of arms by the mutineers. It was also an appropriate and timely step on her part to establish calm among the army officers, giving them a patient hearing for three hours, who took the occasion to let off their emotions relating to BDR carnage.
The prime minister's process of tackling the mutiny through holding a series of meetings with her senior cabinet colleagues and also with the armed forces, who responded quickly and decisively to the crisis, was the essence of her statesmanship.
Mutinies by the army, air force and BDR have occurred in the country since its independence in 1971, but the mutiny at BDR headquarters on February 25-26 surpassed them all in terms of its depth and enormity. The whole nation is reeling from shock at the tragic death of many bright and worthy sons of the soil.
Sadly, when a national crisis like the BDR carnage demands a united response from the politicians, transcending partisan differences, some political leaders are trying to discredit the government and giving provocative statements for narrow political gain.
The brutal action by a section of BDR soldiers has been aptly described by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina as a national crisis. Political leaders on either side of the divide should realise that their words and statements with narrow partisan mindsets may create a wrong impression, while a national crisis calls for unity of the political leadership for its resolution.
The nation now needs the highest level of tolerance from all quarters for protecting democracy and dignity in a united way. The way our valiant army has held its grief in check and performed its duties with utmost discipline for greater interest of the country really deserves to be commended.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has hinted that the BDR carnage was not the outcome of blood rushing into hot heads but a pre-planned sinister design against the country from some quarter. The leader of the opposition, Begum Khaleda Zia, was even more straightforward in linking the mutiny to a deep-rooted conspiracy against Bangladesh.
Whether the BDR mutiny was a grave conspiracy against the nation or not, it had the potential to destabilise the AL-led alliance government -- barely two months in office -- if timely steps were not taken by the government and army leaders.
Therefore, the mysteries centering the Pilkhana carnage must be unveiled, however agonising they may be. To get to the bottom of the tragedy, the government must strive to identify its instigators, aiders and abettors and bring them all to book. The government must not hesitate to point fingers at the culprits, even if they belong to its own party. The possibility of external hands in the mutiny must also be explored.
Bridging the knowledge gap between the rank and file and the officers is an imperative for our armed forces, as it is a factor that creates socio-economic discrimination. The inequality should not be considered as the prime cause for this mutiny.
Conspirators must evolve a foolproof mechanism to keep all our security forces free from infiltration. The issue of intelligence failure also needs to be reviewed seriously, as no one will ever want to see the repetition of such a painful event.
The gratifying part of the Pilkhana tragedy is that Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, with great sagacity, wisdom, and rectitude, like a true statesman, avoided a greater tragedy. Now the onus lies on her to also resist the designs of the conspirators by forging a strong unity of all quarters.
The world has seen very few successful statesmen like Winston Churchill, who said: "A politician thinks about the next election, the statesman thinks about the next generation." With all humbleness I wish Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina such statesmanship that will differentiate her from a just politician.
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