To contain the dangerously sliding law and order situation the presence of police power has increased manifold. The police at check post have been given bullet proof vests. The capital city and the important airports have the looks of a country under emergency if not under siege. What should be a matter of great concern is that the police themselves are being targeted for deadly attacks. The police have also been asked to give the highest importance to their own self-defence.
When the police need to shoot in self-defence the general public has the legitimate question to ask: Who will then defend the people? The police have to worry about their own safety. The government itself blaming the attacks on police and others politically motivated as a conspiracy against the government. We have no difficulty in accepting conspiracy theory of the government. Politics is not anything but conspiracy, only question is who does against whom.
In such a crisis especially when the government is pointing to BNP and Jamaat by name to be responsible for killings and creating the lawlessness, the government should have been eager to accept the suggestion of calling an all party meeting to expose the dangerous activities of the parties being blamed. This suggestion came not only from BNP but also from some civil society members. The government could also explain the reasons for its dismal failure.
It seems that unless they feel the pressure for holding credible and inclusive elections, the government sees no compulsion to have dialogues with anybody. Because any dialogue to deal with the present crisis of law and order situation in which even police are feeling unsafe, the question of free and inclusive election will be raised. The government cannot willingly face that question when in the government’s view free election issue has been buried down deep.
What the government is not ready to realise is that police power cannot do away with the need of political leadership or political considerations in meeting politically created law and order situation. More so when lives are lost including those of the police.
The awful failure of the government to ensure safety and security in public life should have made any other government conscious of seeking cooperation of political leadership at round table meetings of political parties. In our view the situation calls for open consultation with others, there should be a good public relation exercise.
Instead of inclusive election we have now an inclusive government of yes men. They see neither where things are going wrong nor the need of doing what is right. The government is one-sided all the way. It cannot see the other side of the reality. The political opponents are enemies.
Even we are ready to ignore whether the government is democratic or not, but no government can deny the responsibility of good and safe governance. The good governance cannot be a matter of one-eyed affair and police power is not leadership for dealing with public affairs. One side will be making political enemies and police will be armed and equipped to maintain security is not realistic.
