Soumitra Bose
If things come the BUSH-BLAIR or rather EMPIRE way, we would have all over the earth what we now see in Bangladesh. The country is run now by what is eulogized as a “caretaker government”! Yes, care is what they are taking, of what, however is the question?
Political activities are banned. It is still an “ideal democracy”. No one is allowed to spell ill about the government, no one can and will criticize those handfuls that are running the show, or rather are seen as running the show. Show, however is actually run by the army, and everyone in the street knows it. There are “wise” men – a handful, who decide or decree whatever will be next step and there would not be anyone who can question.
The middle class, who has lived and thrived in Bangladesh for more than 35 years now is happy and even conceited as ever, because they feel and “see” that corruption is not there, political Mafiosi are all behind bars and yet the middle class as it is always throughout the world do not see what they do not want to! Just today, news came out that the Chief of the caretaker government is willy-nilly [as no one is allowed to directly mention even the name of the person for any allegation processing] involved in a huge financial scam. Social laws never go wrong… one has to give some time to prove them! When supreme power is bestowed on some one and the person is not answerable especially in the perspective of the most corrupt economy then obviously power would corrupt and absolute power would corrupt absolutely.
Democracy, of whatever sham form brings out the news some time down the line and makes powerful ones accountable in whatever inadequate way it can, but when democracy is shelved and withheld, it becomes the golf-lawn for political oligarchy.
Every one in the streets knew what happened in Bangladesh was a coup masterminded by US consulate. It all started like the following. The US under the aegis of their war against terrorism found out that Bangladesh housing all different hues of fundamentalists and Islamist terrorist and even some other terrorist whom the US considers dangerous. The US intelligence found additionally that the Bangladesh army is the most corrupt institution and Taliban literature and demagogy and pornography. Bangladesh army and the embedded pro-Taliban functionaries were looking up to a hypothetical situation of attacking India with the help of Pakistan and other Middle Eastern Muslim countries. Things did not turn up as they planned. Musharraf fell to US game plan and turned his guns against Taliban and fundamentalists. So the Bangladesh army functionaries who were polishing their armaments toward an imaginary India-attack lost the steam.
Meanwhile the US sprang into action. The US consulate increased the efforts of negotiating and coaxing and cajoling the political leaders, but could not get very favourable responses despite their bribing and threats. This was because of the incendiary situation created on one hand by the growing labour unrest and other political movements of the people against globalisation and the growing dismay of the people against the anti-Muslim US policies. Faced with this situation, the US slashed the final threat to Bangladesh army. They said all foreign stints for Bangladesh army personnel in peacekeeping missions abroad will be terminated if Bangladesh army does not clear the fundamentalists from within its ranks. Money became more critical factor than baseless dreams of creating Muslim Umma in South Asia. Almost overnight the army decided to take on the chaotic political turmoil. They moved straight to the capital, made the then caretaker government sign on a draft that is now the writ. This draft was written allegedly [as you would get the information from the streets] by Md. Yunus and Justice Debopriyo Bhattacharya. Yunus the Nobel Prize winner always nurtured the dream of becoming the supreme man and yet could not cope with political criticism. Bhattacharya, a Hindu fundamentalist, would champion the cause of the Hindu minority. A new government was formed whose members were nominated by the US consulate. The new government arrested the main political leaders on account of some or the other corruption and criminal charges. The way Bangladesh was running all these charges are actually true. But the ulterior motive was to stop all political activities, which they promulgated and did and every kind of manifestation or organization was banned. People found overnight the local political Mafiosi quelled and they hailed the military. The bite was realized later. The prices soared up, economy dwindled, and administration anarchy shot up and the producing forces found their voices gagged. All came very soon on the heels of the famous and heroic people’s upsurge of Phulbari and Kansat. People took up arms against the imperialist marauders and trans-nationals. TATA’s project was shelved and very interestingly and very co-incidentally those upsurges took place when across the border the other Bengal took up arms with iconic presentation of Singur and Nandigram. The South Asian intellectuals and the conscious people equated Phulbari, Kansat, Singur and Nandigram in the same line against imperialism and globalisation. This was too much. Messages need to be sent and liberalism was inadequate. US sent a message across the border within India and very concomitantly they pressurized Musharraf. When Leftists in Pakistan are jailed the ploy of “war against fundamentalism” fell flat. Peasants’ upsurge in the North West Frontier Province and Punjab in Pakistan, the Anti-SEZ movement in India, the rise of the Maoists in Nepal and the recent setbacks of the Lankan Army sent a counter message to PAX AMERICANA that people are now ready to take up arms at the drop of a hat. Bangladesh is the message of US imperialism. Phulbari, Kansat, Singur and Nandigram is the message of the people. Battle lines are drawn, the struggle will go on!. People of this vivisected sub-continent have lost all hopes on neo-liberal governance of repeated changes in form and essentially the same imperialist extraction. They are taking the path of massive militant upsurge. The future is going to be a totally unforeseen chapter of human history. What started in 1857 may spread like wild fire once again toward a second Freedom struggle.
Radical Notes 
In bangladesh its all about money and power and not about religion. Banladeshi army took que from Pakistahn army– they have army rule and still gets UN job. So why will not bangladshi army? US and western allies are indirectly responsible for dismantaling the growing democratic parctices in bangladesh which was exceptbal to most of the people wholives in the villages but the middle class city people were not happy with democarcy. Decomcracy de-centralized the goverment and power was not concentrated in the capital cities like now. so the educated middle class were unhappy and always complianed about democracy. now they are happy as the army and their civilian cohorts represents the middle class.