It has taken far too long to obtain a court verdict of guilty against the assassins of Bangladesh's founding father, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. The bloody events of August 1975 have corrupted politics and retarded the growth of democracy for almost a quarter of a century. Yet even now, it is not certain that the courts will be allowed to have the last word on the brutal killing of the country's first prime minister and 31 others by a posse of military officers. The politicians who protected the killers for 20 years, passing an indemnity law to prevent them being brought to trial and giving them diplomatic assignments abroad, have not given up yet. They have learned nothing from the cycles of coups and vendettas which have kept Bangladesh in a state of political turmoil for the greater part of its independent history. Having proved in the past that they have no respect for the law, they are proving it again.Justice is the last thing on the minds of leaders of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party and otheropposition groups who are out in the streets fanning passions against the verdict of the district and sessions judge who passed the death sentence on 15 assassins. No Bangladeshi can fail to recognise the objective. It is to subvert the legal process once again by causing civil disturbances. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will need great skill and determination to outmanoeuvre her political adversaries.
Fortunately, for the government, most Bang-ladeshis are not blind to the demands of justice. They will be confirmed in their belief that prosecution of the assassins is not a political vendetta when those pronounced guilty are allowed to take legal recourse to appeals in a higher court.
That would mean protracted trials and further opportunity for mischief by the seven-party opposition alliance. Delays can be kept to the minimum. The ruling Awami League can avoid the temptation of exploiting the trials for its own political ends. But while such prudent measures may help limit the turbulence, they will noteliminate it. With a general election due in two years' time, Sheikh Hasina is going to be fully stretched keeping the peace.
There are rumours about links between Taliban-trained terrorists and assassins who are absconding as well as the inflow of large sums of money to fund terrorism. True or not, the fact that such reports are circulating is an indication of the complex challenges facing Sheikh Hasina. She will need first of all to keep her own Awami League supporters calm and off the streets. Tough law and order measures will have to be so designed and carried out as not to invite a backlash from ordinary people. Her political opponents intend to give her no respite. That is very clear. She will have to find ways of containing them inside and outside Parliament. Whatever it takes, Sheikh Hasina should not make the mistake of thinking there are quick solutions. There can be no alternative to completing the full legal process in the assassination cases. It will be a trial of Bangladesh's resilience. Thehope is that its democratic institutions will emerge stronger from it.
Copyright © 1998 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
Printer-friendly page