Monday, June 19 2006 10:58 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Washington: With a general election in Bangladesh around the corner, the US is keeping a close watch on a country where the intelligentsia fears growing Islamic terrorism could cloud the democratic process.

"No one can forecast what may or may not happen in Bangladesh. But I can say in general that whenever democracy comes under threat, the US can opt to use any number of tools, including diplomatic measures at multilateral organisations such as the UN, or in bilateral relations, to express its concern about that threat," he said.

With these words, senior US State Department official Oscar DeSoto gave a reassurance to a group of Bangladeshi journalists during a recent website chat of Washington's keen interest in Bangladesh's political well-being.

What is billed as the most contentious general election is still months away. But strikes and rallies, often turning violent, are the order of the day. Amidst a complete absence of a dialogue among the political contenders, the media and the intelligentsia have turned to international agencies and foreign missions as never before.

A military takeover or even an enhanced role for the men in uniform is a constant apprehension in Bangladesh. It is a reminder of the long phases of martial law in the erstwhile East Pakistan and since 1971 in independent Bangladesh.

Not surprisingly, DeSoto was asked if the US had any role to play in 'protecting' democracy in Bangladesh from any extra-constitutional move in the wake of failure of political leadership' to resolve their election disputes.

His reply, "I trust that the people of Bangladesh will reject that option and work hard to protect its long tradition of democracy."

All this can hardly be taken as an attempt by Bangladeshis to win accolades from the West. But the fact is that there is widespread apprehension about growing activities of Islamist militants. Especially since the present government of Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, having an influential Islamist component, took office immediately after 9/11. The last four years have been a trying time for religious minorities and political opponents.

Taking place after the 9/11 and the 7/7 terror attacks in the US and Britain respectively, the forthcoming elections are critical for all concerned.

To quote DeSoto, "Terrorists are determined to crush democracy, but, ironically, elections are a legitimate means for people to advocate their views peacefully."



"Simply put, the best defence against terrorism is a thriving democracy arrived at through free and fair elections, which give voice to those with grievances against their governments," he said.

In expressing such views, DeSoto is not alone. US envoy in Dhaka Patricia A. Butenis has also been pro-active, meeting the country's leadership, the opposition and captains of trade and industry to urge them all to work together to ensure smooth elections.

Like the envoys of the European Union (EU) and other donor nations, she has been fielding questions on issues that one would consider as being Bangladesh's internal matters but are nevertheless of interest to them.

They have spoken about the need to improve governance, of ridding society of corruption and, above all, to shun strikes and public protests and hold the much-needed political dialogue. However, they have met with little success so far.



This has generated new doubts about the elections being smooth and fair. A close watch by the US, the EU and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is already on the cards.

A UNDP team from its New York headquarters will be studying the 'pre-election environment', talking to all concerned, including the election officials, political parties, academics, civil society and journalists, during a 10-day appraisal mission.



The UNDP is also planning to set up a secretariat before the elections to provide logistic support to UN observers and other organisations like the EU, should they seek it. In the 2001 general election, the UN had sent 40 election observers. This time around, the EU is planning to send around 150 observers.



DeSoto appeared to reflect the sentiments of all when he said, "What we hope for is that the process produces a representative government, which advocates freedom and tolerance and preserves the right of its citizens to continue to choose its leaders. Democracy can take many forms, but only through a truly democratic process can the rights of all individuals be upheld."