Bangladesh’s political stalemate appears to be deepening as the country’s two major political forces — the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami – clash over the introduction of a proportional representation (PR) system in the 13th parliamentary elections.
The BNP wants the issue deferred to the next parliament, arguing that people are unfamiliar with the PR system, while Jamaat is pressing the government to introduce it in the upcoming elections, slated for February next year.
BNP reiterates its stance
Addressing an event on Monday, BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said the next parliament should decide whether the proportional representation voting system should be introduced.
“People in Bangladesh are not familiar with the proportional representation system as the country has been following a direct voting process for over 50 years,” he said while meeting a delegation of the Christian community at the BNP chairperson’s office in Dhaka.
The secretary general said as the PR proposal is being discussed by reform commissions, it is the next parliament, not the interim government or the commissions, that should give its opinion on the matter.
“The BNP believes that elected representatives should decide on such major structural changes,” he said.
Fakhrul also emphasised the need to restore the true spirit of the Liberation War, claiming that some recent efforts aim to “distort the Bangladeshi identity” established in 1971.
“We fought the Liberation War to establish an identity of our own. But now, attempts are being made to replace that identity with new concepts,” he said.
Jamaat urges PR system and separate referendum
Meanwhile, Jamaat-e-Islami, in a meeting with Chief Election Commissioner AMM Nasir Uddin on Monday, proposed that the upcoming general election and a referendum be held on separate days, describing the two matters as distinct.
Emerging from the two-and-a-half-hour meeting, Jamaat Nayeb-e-Ameer Syed Abdullah Mohammad Taher told reporters that they proposed the EC hold a referendum in November for the implementation of the July Charter, along with a proportional representation parliamentary election.
“There are two systems — PR and the traditional one. We see that in 54 years of elections, the traditional system has not made the elections fair. If the PR system is adopted, the likelihood of capturing polling stations and voting at night will decrease,” he said, adding that they urged the EC to consider both methods.
Regarding the referendum, Taher said a referendum and a national election are entirely separate matters hence they should be held on two separate dates.
If the national polls take place first, the parties will be more focused on their victory and reforms won’t be a priority, he explained.
The Jamaat leader said if the national elections and the referendum are held on the same day, any postponement of the polls would also delay the referendum, thereby halting the implementation of the July Charter.
“These are two completely different things,” he stressed.
He added: “The EC has informed us that if the government makes a decision, they will execute it. The EC has no issue with that.”
