Election called, but still hurdles in Bangladesh

Updated September 24, 2008 12:26:24

Sheikh Hasina, the leader of the opposition Awami League, is expected to lead the party's election campaigning despite corruption charges. [AFP]

Bangladesh's political Opposition says the announcement of December elections must be followed by the lifting of the country's state of emergency.

Radio Australia's Connect Asia reports since a military-government take over in January 2007, the interim administration has repeatedly ignored calls for an election, saying it must first clean up endemic political corruption.

Over the weekend Dhaka finally announced elections would be held on December 18 - a major breakthrough that was widely welcomed in Bangladesh.

The next step, say political leaders, is to lift a state of emergency imposed by the interim government so campaigning can get under way.

"The immediate thing should be the lifting of the emergency, because in the emergency it will be very difficult to work for the political parties freely and independently," central committee member of the opposition Awami League party, Asaduzzaman Noor told Radio Australia.

"We need to move freely, we should reach our voters."

The Awami League says it's keen to begin campaigning and expects its' leader Sheikh Hasina to return from medical treatment in the United States in mid-October.

Ms Hasina faces corruption charges at home, as does her rival Khaleda Zia, of the Bangladesh National Party, or BNP.

The BNP is challenging some of the changes to election laws which would make it illegal to have student fronts or foreign branches.

The legal changes also demand internal democracy to be practiced within parties and the submission of election-related expenses.

Asaduzzaman Noor says he hopes the BNP and its ally the Jamaat-e-Islami party will overcome their objections to the new election laws and take part in December's vote.

"All the parties should be involved in the election process otherwise it will not be credible," he said.

"We want a credible election with the participation of all the political parties, but at the moment the BNP and Jamaat, their stance is not very positive and not very encouraging."

The head of law at Dhaka University, Professor Taslima Monsoor, says while some of the legal challenges are legitimate, ultimately they will not derail the elections.

"There will not be any objection to the election because people want elections, people want democracy," Professor Monsoor told Radio Australia.

"This regime has learned them a lesson, that you cannot be corrupted and the law is there that you will go to jail and you will be punished and all this.

"So people will be at fear, which was not there before."

Accused leaders are election drawcards

While corruption was the reason for the meltdown of democracy in 2007, it may not be enough to stop the accused leaders from making a comeback.

Professor Monsoor says the popularity of the two leaders of BNP and the Awami League, means the parties will be banking on them to be involved in the campaign, despite the corruption allegations.

"If they cannot find any evidence against Khaleda Zia and Sheikh Hasina they can also release them from all their criminal activities," she said.

That possibility is indeed the political strategy for the Awami League's Asaduzzaman Noor.

"Most of our leaders are out on bail and the party president is getting her bail and should be free to participate in the election," he said.

"We are actually taking all of the preparations, we had a meeting in the past with the Election Commission several times and with the government also and we have agreed on many issues and we are actually preparing for the elections."

But after waiting 20 months for an election date, it may be a case of too many elections all at once.

The Election Commission has also announced that sub-district elections, an important level of government in Bangladesh, will be held just a week after the national ballot, which observers say isn't enough time to prepare for both.

Meanwhile, a report released Tuesday shows corruption in Bangladesh has increased despite the anti-graft drive launched by the country's army-backed government.

Berlin-based Transparency International says although Bangladesh was now ranked 10th from the bottom in TI's latest index, it had made no real progress.

"Corruption is still endemic in Bangladesh and petty corruption has increased in amount and intensity despite the anti-graft drive," local TI head, Mozaffer Ahmed, told AFP news agency.

He says lack of reforms and inadequate oversight by the judiciary meant that the "anti-graft drive has failed to bring any good for common people".