The dialogue and some questions

We are getting excited over dialogue on wrong issues. The only dialogue & reform that is most urgently needed & should be talked about is the complete overhaul of the two huge corporations i.e. the AL & the BNP so that these two can regain their identities as political parties. Democratic reforms must take place within BNP & AL first that is the only priority for this country at the moment. If democratic practices do not take root at party level, then the parties simply cannot deliver democracy at the state level. Future democracy does not depend on the outcome of the AL-BNP dialogue, but on the genuine democratisation of AL & BNP themselves.

I still believe there is time to turn things around for this country. I urge the daughter of the Father of the Nation and wife of the Great Freedom Fighter to put brakes on their recklessness and initiate genuine democratic reforms within their respective parties first. To them I say: free your party of corruption; let go the dynastic attitude. Both of you have miserably failed to deliver us a secure & corruption free living. If you play with the lives of innocent people, the result cannot be good.

The people of this country will be watching you, closely.

To the people of Bangladesh the start of the dialogue between the BNP and the AL brought immense happiness. When we saw BNP Secretary General Abdul Mannan Bhuiyan and Awami League General Secretary Abdul Jalil shaking hands with smiling faces, we became overwhelmed with joy.

We pray and hope that the dialogue will bring fruitful results, the ground for a free and fair election will be laid, the issues will be settled amicably.

We expect the leaders will not let us down, people are now in a festive mood. If the dialogue fails it will be an unbearable blow to them.

Nur Jahan , Chittagong

After a long time, the people of Bangladesh have discovered a ray of hope again. The government and the opposition have decided to sit for a dialogue which is indeed a good augury. It is a long awaited step bringing an end to the stalemate over the reform of Caretaker Government & Election process. The people of Bangladesh have a lot of expectation from this dialogue and are looking forward to the fulfilment of the following prerequisites of free and fair election through negotiations. Firstly, there should be an effective and reliable Election Commission which is trust worthy. Secondly, removal of the flaws in the voter list. Thirdly, the appointment of an acceptable person as the chief of the caretaker government. However, the government and opposition should bear in mind that this time people do not want to get any leap service. They want to see a positive outcome. It's as simple as that. In this dialogue, the political parties should make their mind up that they will be careful at the time of giving nomination and no criminal or black money holder should receive the ticket. Honesty, integrity and dedication to the country should be the only barometer to gauge their eligibility in getting nomination. If the nomination process is not fair then all initiatives taken for the reform of caretaker government and election process would fail to change the lot of our country. The people will be oppressed as usual and only the identity of the tormenter will be changed. We do not want such nominal change by any free and fair election where we have to choose one oppressor from many. The people of Bangladesh will not tolerate any carrot dangling before their nose as before. The commotions at Kansat and Shanir Akhra have already conveyed the message to our politicians.

So, no more tricks in the name of dialogue!

Naomi & Robida, Dept of Law, DU