People celebrate the resignation of Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in Dhaka, Bangladesh, August 5, 2024. REUTERS/Mohammad Ponir Hossain
| Photo Credit: MOHAMMAD PONIR HOSSAIN
The protests against currently deposed Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina – who has been in power since 2009 in Bangladesh – seeking her resignation indicate the level of anger that has grown following a clear erosion of civil liberties and rights in contrast to the notable progress made in various socio-economic parameters during her long tenure.
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Ms Hasina tendered her resignation and fled the country after renewed violence and clashes between government supporters and protestors (led by students) who were opposed to the reservation policy of her government. Last month, students had led protests against quotas in government jobs benefiting those belonging to families of freedom fighters who took part in the Bangladesh War of Liberation. After 150 people were killed during the agitation, the Supreme Court of Bangladesh had done away with most of the quotas in question but protests were renewed with calls for Ms Hasina’s resignation owing to her regime’s use of excessive use of violence, closure of educational institutions and clampdown on the internet to suppress the students’ led agitation.
Ms Hasina’s resignation marks a steep fall for a leader whose regime’s use of measures to curb civil liberties and the opposition is in sharp contrast to its economic policies. Her government deserves credit for various economic measures such as strengthening infrastructure in the country by providing electricity to remote villages, building highways, railway lines and ports. During her tenure, the garment industry also flourished and textile exports surged, pushing the country’s competition behind.
Chart 1 depicts the GDP per capita (current US$) of various countries over the years.
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The country’s GDP per capita (current US$), surpassed India’s in 2023 as shown in chart 1. The rapid increase in the measure post 2003 is visible in the chart. The economic growth also translated to better outcomes in educational and health-related measures. Especially, more girl children got educated and more women joined the workforce. The country’s Human Development Index (HDI) — which measures a nations’ health, knowledge, and standard of living — also surpassed India’s in 2020 and stood just behind that of Sri Lanka’s figure in the region
Chart 2 shows the HDI of various countries over the years.
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Chart 3 shows the Infant Mortality Rates of various countries over the years.
The country’s Infant Mortality Rate also drastically reduced from 151.4 in 1973 (behind India) to 24.1 in 2022 (ahead of India).
In contrast to the rapid progress in socio-economic measures, the nation’s indicators which measure political rights, political pluralism, civil liberties, organisational rights, rule of law, and personal autonomy have all declined in recent years.
Chart 4 shows Bangladesh’s score in such parameters in the last decade based on ratings by Freedom House, a non-profit organisation known for political advocacy. In each category, the maximum score is 4 and the minimum score is 1, or in some cases even 0, if no rights exist at all.
One of the major accusations against Hasina’s government has been that the elections are not free and fair. The 76-year-old leader became the world’s longest-serving female head of the government, when she won a fourth consecutive term in January this year, in an election which was boycotted by the main opposition as they claimed the polls were not free and fair.
As chart 4 shows, all indicators which measure political rights and political pluralism such as “Was the head of government elected free and fairly?”, “Are electoral laws implemented impartially?”, “Is there the right to organise political parties?”, and “Is there an opportunity for the opposition to gain power through polls?”, have recorded a drastic decline in the past decade.
The Freedom of Press index, which was already poor, suffered a further drop in the second half of 2010. That protestors were met with excessive violence recently, was not surprising given that the nation’s score in “freedom of assembly” declined too. Ratings also showed that people were afraid to air opinions on sensitive issues with the independence of the judiciary taking a beating. Indeed the rule by Ms Hasina in Bangladesh can only be termed schizoid.
vignesh.r@thehindu.co.in
With inputs from AP, Reuters
Source: World Bank, the Human Development Reports, Freedom House
Also read: On the student protests in Bangladesh | Explained
