Agitation tops AL agenda

The opposition leaders said the party will hold protest rallies in Dhaka and elsewhere in the country to raise public awareness about the 'failure' of the government to run the country.

The government has failed and is persecuting opposition activists and leaders, they alleged.

As the AL prepares for an anti-government movement, it has little interest in joining parliament that goes into its ninth session today.

AL General Secretary Abdul Jalil told The Daily Star that his party would rely on street agitation to expose the 'misdeeds' of the government as parliament has become non-functional due to the way it is run by the ruling alliance.

"What can we do in parliament if we are not allowed to speak? Our only option is to protest the anti-people activities of the government through street agitation," Jalil said.

Deputy Opposition Leader Abdul Hamid said the government forced the opposition to stay away from parliament. "We want to make parliament effective, but there is no justification for us to stay in the House if we are not allowed to speak." However, Hamid said, AL lawmakers would take the decision on joining the parliament session on September 14.

Hamid said he did not get any proposal from the government till yesterday to join the parliament session.

After the 2001 election debacle, the AL refrained from joining several sessions of the eighth parliament till June 24, 2002. The AL staged walkouts on many occasions and also stayed out of the House for days together.

The AL is set to enforce a daylong hartal across the country on September 25 and organise a procession in the city on September 15. The party has also extended its support to another dawn to dusk hartal on September 16 called by workers' groups backed by the leftist parties.

In the run up to the upcoming agitation programmes, AL chief Sheikh Hasina addressed two public meetings at Mirpur and Shyampur in the city on Saturday and Monday last.

Besides, the opposition leader directed her party rank and file to participate in the movements of professional groups like lawyers and workers.

AL sources said the city unit leaders were preparing for a big showdown on September 15 that Hasina said would be a 'no confidence' by people to the present regime.