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Download PDF Outgoing British High Commissioner Anwar Choudhury yesterday said Britain will never support military intervention or martial law in Bangladesh.
Anwar, set to end his tenure soon, also said the state of emergency should be lifted to the ‘maximum possible extent’ to allow election preparations.
He was speaking at a farewell discussion with diplomatic correspondents at the Jatiya Press Club.
”We will never support military intervention in this country. We do not take military rule as a good thing. We will not support martial law,” said Anwar, whose voice was choked with emotion while reminiscing his four years here as British envoy.
He expressed confidence that elections would be held by December this year. ‘”Bangladesh has made a commitment to the United Nations and the international community to hold the election,” he said.
Responding to a volley of questions about the uncertainty surrounding the elections, Anwar said the government must create the environment for all parties to take part in polls. “It will be a shame if the two (major) parties do not take part in the election because democracy is about participation,” said the British envoy of Bangladesh origin.
Anwar categorically denied any involvement in the declaration of the state of emergency on January 11 last year, and urged Bangladeshis not to ‘blame foreigners’.
“We cannot and will not interfere in your country,” he said.
The envoy however said the country might have faced a ‘civil-war’ like scenario if the plan for January 22 elections had gone ahead.
“We don’t want a failed democracy in Bangladesh,” he said, adding Bangladesh has to look forward and end an obsession with the past.
Anwar hoped that British aid to Bangladesh would not go to the NGOs or the middleclass, and would reach the poorest people.
Reminiscing his tenure here, the high commissioner recalled that Britain has had to ‘wake’ Bangladesh up from denial about terrorism.
His objective here was to ensure Britain and Bangladesh understand each other, and contribute to Bangladesh’s endeavour to move out of poverty and become an ‘equal friend’ of Britain, he said “These are high and lofty ambitions for a young diplomat.”
Anwar encouraged ‘honest’ and ‘well qualified’ people to join politics, and the government to create an environment for this. “The current reforms of taking away muscle and money from politics is a good start,” he said.
The British envoy also said Bangladesh civil service needs to be overhauled to turn it into a service provider from an administrative institution.
“It’s a 200-year old mentality, where they (bureaucrats) think they are the masters of the people, and not their servants,” said Anwar.
He also said it is important to break the corrupt nexus between politics, bureaucracy and law enforcement in the country.
April 29th, 2008 at 7:34 pm
Is there any other option when two parties start fighting like Mouse & cats & demand the two women
released mitigating their charges.THen only course left open :Military intervention to control the economic ruin.
Its easy to say but very difficult to solve a serious poltical issue!