Bangladesh - Belgium

Citizens’ Voice and Accountability Evaluation – Bangladesh Country Case Study
Zia Rahman emerged as a leader from a power struggle among the military and a series of coup
attempts following the assassination. He established the Bangladesh National Party (BNP) Zia was
assassinated in 1981.
A review of the brief history (Box C1) reveals a pattern of reprisals and standoffs between the three
major parties (BNP, AL and JP). The BNP is led by the widow of assassinated Zia Rahman and
the AL is led by the daughter of assassinated Sheikh Muhibur Rahman. There is thus enormous
animosity between the two which has precluded co-operation, even when trying to oust the military
rule of Ershad in the eighties. Elections pre 1991 were all regarded as cosmetic exercises to
legitimise the ruling party. Consecutive elections continued to be (even the three post 1991)
regarded by losers as unfair and public protests (sometimes violent), hartals and boycotts of
Parliament and elections have been the main instruments to destabilise the incumbent
governments (e.g. 173 days of hartals were called during the BNP term of office and BNP
retaliated with 85 days of strikes during the AL term (Datta, 2003)). The boycotts of Parliament
have meant that there has rarely been a responsible opposition and stable conditions for operation
of parliamentary democracy. Parliament is treated as a forum for the ruling alliance and the
Constitution amended to meet their needs thus undermining political legitimacy.
In 2006, Bangladesh plunged into political crisis when the coalition government led by the BNP
and AL led 14 party opposition could not reach agreement about the management of elections due
in December (this is discussed further below in section C.4).
Institutional framework and distribution of powers
The People’s Republic of Bangladesh was declared a parliamentary democracy in 1972
following the War of Independence. A Constitution based on the AL’s four principles; nationalism,
secularism, socialism and democracy was instituted. It made provision for a largely ceremonial
President, a Prime Minister and unicameral (single house) legislature (Parliament) and an
independent judiciary. It has undergone 14 amendments since then, many of them of a major
nature. The current Constitution bears the most similarity to the original intentions of the first
Constitution. Thus, the Executive should comprise a President (Chief of State), Prime Minister
(Head of Government) and Cabinet with a 345 member parliament. The most recent Constitutional
amendment (2004) secured 45 reserved seats in Parliament for women (increasing the Parliament
number form 300 to 345). These seats are distributed among political parties in proportion to the
numerical strength in Parliament (although the AL did not take up these in the last Government
arguing against the indirect election /nomination of women in favour of direct election).
The President is elected by Parliament every five years and appoints the Prime Minister supported
by the majority of Members of Parliament (MPs). Most MPs are elected by simple majority in single
member districts through universal suffrage at least every five years (the exception to this is the
nominated women members). All adults over 18 are eligible to vote.
The political administrative units comprise six Divisions (regions), sixty four Districts and 4,451
Unions and approximately 80,000 villages (grams). There is an administrative tier between District
and Union (at various times referred to as Upazila or Thana and numbering about 460) but
although intended to be an electoral unit in the Constitution, elections have yet to be held at this
level. The Divisions are placed under a Divisional Commissioner who plays a supervisory role over
all the Government agencies and departments at this level. However, the District is the focal point
for the administration headed by the Deputy Commissioners. Annual development plans are made
at this level, which include all the proposed construction of infrastructure for the District.
Municipalities (five have been elevated to City Corporations) and Pourashavas replace thana and
unions as the administrative units. Elected mayors run the City Corporations.
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