Struggling with strategic fallouts of 2/25
Photo: SK Enamul Haq
BDR Mutiny (or 2/25) created strategic implications of unimaginable consequences both within and without the country. Friends and enemies, far and near, are watching our actions and utterances and devising their own strategies to keep the fallout of 2/25 from reaching their own doorsteps. 2/25 has caused multidirectional alarms in regional and concerned capitals. Our government and opposition are further complicating the matter by trying to answer the unanswerable "hypothetically", thus creating insurmountable confusions, which compels all seeking answers to go astray and haywire. Utterances of government ministers, specially the Commerce Minister, strategically put Bangladesh on the map of Nations, with the emerging problem of "jangi" or Terrorism. It is sad because it will have serious consequences for the economy of Bangladesh, especially in the overall manpower export sector and commercial exploitation of our strategic assets. According to the Foreign Minister, trial of war criminals has somehow emerged as an additional factor causing return of exported manpower, which is definitely alarming. The opposition blamed the ministers for divulging information prematurely to influence and divert the investigation towards benefits of the party in power. People inclined towards this school of thought should have realized that divulging findings and progress of the investigation should have been done more candidly so as to avoid negative debate and propaganda. The established culture of our political leaders in the practice of democracy is to follow the principle of bashing and counter-bashing wherever and whenever they get an opportunity. Unity of purpose is the need of the hour between government and the opposition in the parliament on the issues of national interest and national security, because the nation is in no mood to give a second chance to the politicians in the matters of people's security and national cohesion. In democratic practice, if we cannot put our trust and reliance in an elected government, that too when the government is enjoying a vast majority of seats (as is the case now), then we need the angels to tell us whom to rely on! Role and functioning of the government is unquestionably important for the nation to prosper and an elected government is the best and only desired option. We must enjoy the freedom to differ with the government about its means and ways, but we must agree on the end state, i.e. to preserve and protect our national interest and national security. The courses of action to solve a particular problem may be different, but choosing the best course is the ultimate responsibility of the government. Thus, consequences and failings of the adopted course always rest with the government, which makes the ruling party's task extremely difficult and challenging. No matter what, all must have the patience to see the outcome of the government's decisions to enjoy a vibrant democracy. Every decision, course, and action has both positive and negative impact and one must make cost and benefit analysis and allow sufficient tolerance to cope with unexpected failure also. The government must display credible and skillful capacity of governing the country, with its chosen team, in a complex and compound environment of the corridors of power. The party in power should also display their keenness about reading the pulse of the people and maintaining sufficient resilience and flexibility to accommodate ideas and thoughts. Ministers categorically relating terrorism with the vitals of our economy (especially manpower export) might be reason enough for foreign employers of our manpower to seriously ponder getting rid of their Bangladeshi workers, and also take effective measures to stop further hiring from Bangladesh. We strongly feel that it is neither right nor strategic to give birth to hypothetical and imaginary threats without solid evidence, because it will have far-reaching consequences for our country, the government and the economy, both in short and long term. It is expected of the Foreign Minister to keep her concerns to her ministry, especially when it relates to the question of employed Bangladeshi in countries like Malaysia; motivated utterance of enemies within the system (as reportedly happened in Malaysia) should have been handled with low key and silent manoeuvres. Making noise helps, but not when we hurt ourselves doing it. The magnitude and prevalence of terrorist threat worldwide and the propensity of Bangladeshis towards terrorism cannot be equated. The government must take initiatives to ensure employment of Bangladeshi manpower, that the extent of terrorist threat can be brought down to internationally acceptable criterion in a short time with full and credible display of democratic practices. Bangladesh is definitely not a nursing ground for international terrorism. Our diplomatic torchbearers should take on the battle without wasting time to turn the sentiment, before it tilts beyond recovery. Changing government versions on 2/25 will create incalculable concerns with different stakeholders. Internationally it puts Bangladesh in a challenging position to prove that terrorism is under control to allow economic growth to take place and aids to flow in. Development partners of Bangladesh have always taken our people as development hungry and not as suicide bombers. Besides, up to now, it is somewhat established that import and export of terrorism is not a commodity that can be easily traded here. Therefore, the government and opposition must not play partisans by giving birth to issues, which serve their political interests but hurts the country. War crimes and its trial is another issue, which is haunting the country since 1971. Trial of war crimes is a historical necessity and it must be done in such a way that it should heal old wounds and not open new ones. Besides, it should in no way hurt our strategic and economic interest, both within and without the country. Experience of other countries, especially South Africa and the Balkan countries, should be sought in conducting an internationally acceptable war crime trial, without any political motive and victimization. It is high time that the opponents of war crime trial saw the benefits of going through it. Opposing it, just for the sake of opposition, will bring no benefit, rather we all should see that justice is done in the trials. Anger and sentiments visibly expressed by the organized segments of the society should be handled with democratic openness and tolerance. These types of circulatory sentiment and anger normally follow bloodbaths (like that of 2/25) and don't deserve any branding. The government must act with strategic and political sagacity and prudently differentiate between sentimental threats and indoctrinated threats within the organized society and handle those accordingly. One thing is certain, the newly elected government was not ready to handle the BDR mutiny and therefore benefit of doubt should be given to the response of the government and its political foot soldiers to the crisis of 2/25. If any mishandling happened, conscientious efforts should be made to find out if those were innocent or deliberate. All must be aware that the new government hardly emerged from the silhouette of 1/11 when the mutiny somehow initially created the illusionary threat of another 1/11, compelling the decision makers, and as we understand, the Chiefs of the Armed Forces, to go for a negotiated settlement. We cannot but praise the extreme tolerance shown by the Armed Forces of the country after the gruesome murder of their brethrens. 2/25 in no way should drive the newly elected government towards entrenched mentality. It should govern with incorruptible democratic authority without letting the fear of another 1/11 hanging over its head. The government should devise a comprehensive strategy to fight terrorism with the participation of the broader section of the society. Fighting terrorism should not turn out to be the art of mere statement-making by different ministers at different times, which actually amplifies the threat of terrorism. The government must not go astray addressing the current fallout of 2/25 as it has the difficult and arduous task of ensuring that in the longterm the country is successfully steered towards terrorism-free vibrancy and prosperity uniting its supporting and opposing forces and weaving them together into a powerful armada where steering ahead in unison will be the only mode of survival. The fallout of the BDR mutiny has already taken different shape and is impacting vigorously on our socio-econo cohesion and geopolitical security including the security of the leadership of the ruling party. Politico-military tactics of the militants are changing at digital speed and direction; nature and dimension of the threats has become difficult for the law enforcing agencies to identify and pin down under existing laws. Whether the questions those are being raised by the opposition or the government find answers or not, all must first recognize and agree to the perceived threats and its dangerous consequence on national security without any prejudice. It is not the time to argue on the rightness of actions, but to develop national cohesion to allow people to reject the terrorists and its propagated philosophy to root out the threats. The government and the governance should be made transparent and accountable to the people; government and the opposition are both equally liable to make it work. Rumours and propaganda have sprayed with innocent and ulterior motive, and stories have been floated in the air through all technological means. Some of them are so concocted that its objectives raised questions in the mind of the people, causing division and creating a window of opportunity for the militants to either operate or to transfer blame to others. We must stand together and remember that it is our nation, an independent and sovereign country, which was achieved through sacrifice of the hundreds and thousands of our beloved people. It is ruled by people of our choice and we, the people, retain power to change our choice by whom to be ruled. Political, cultural, economic or military subjugation of our country must be made not only difficult but unthinkable. It is the efficacy of our statesmen, whom the people assigned the responsibility with trust. However, the consequences of faltering, unfortunately, are always borne by the nation and not its leaders. The government must do all it can to create a freer and kinder society where political opposition will become a tool towards creating national unity.
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