The Diplomat :
Bangladesh is one of those countries that should receive attention from Washington but typically do not. The general elections late last year that installed Sheikh Hasina, one of the most influential female leaders in the world, into power for a record third straight term went largely unnoticed in Washington. Bangladesh may not be a major destination for U.S. exports and hasn’t caught President Donald Trump’s eye for “stealing” American jobs. But Bangladesh’s success in striding toward economic prosperity, containing the spread of terrorism, and protecting Rohingya refugees from untold atrocities should inspire U.S. policymakers to recalibrate their Bangladesh policy.
Perhaps some changes are underway. Last month, the House Foreign Affairs Committee called upon Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to demonstrate America’s “continued commitment to and respect for democratic institutions [in Asia], beginning with Bangladesh.” Representative Eliot Engel, the committee chairman, penned the letter along with five colleagues in which he expressed dismay at the “negative trajectory of
democracy” in a country that used to be known for its fragile but boisterous democracy.
For context, since its transition to a multiparty democratic system in the early 1990s, two parties have come to dominate Bangladeshi politics: Hasina’s Awami League, and her nemesis Khaleda Zia’s Bangladesh Nationalist Party. The two parties alternated power in successive elections until 2008. Bangladesh managed to qualify as a nominal democracy mostly because the elections were credible, and the handover of power was peaceful by Bangladeshi standards. One bipartisan consensus facilitated this tenuous achievement – a so-called caretaker government system. Since neither party trusts the other, the Bangladeshis improvised a brief interim administration consisting of nonpartisans to oversee the electoral processes.
Bangladesh is one of those countries that should receive attention from Washington but typically do not. The general elections late last year that installed Sheikh Hasina, one of the most influential female leaders in the world, into power for a record third straight term went largely unnoticed in Washington. Bangladesh may not be a major destination for U.S. exports and hasn’t caught President Donald Trump’s eye for “stealing” American jobs. But Bangladesh’s success in striding toward economic prosperity, containing the spread of terrorism, and protecting Rohingya refugees from untold atrocities should inspire U.S. policymakers to recalibrate their Bangladesh policy.
Perhaps some changes are underway. Last month, the House Foreign Affairs Committee called upon Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to demonstrate America’s “continued commitment to and respect for democratic institutions [in Asia], beginning with Bangladesh.” Representative Eliot Engel, the committee chairman, penned the letter along with five colleagues in which he expressed dismay at the “negative trajectory of
democracy” in a country that used to be known for its fragile but boisterous democracy.
For context, since its transition to a multiparty democratic system in the early 1990s, two parties have come to dominate Bangladeshi politics: Hasina’s Awami League, and her nemesis Khaleda Zia’s Bangladesh Nationalist Party. The two parties alternated power in successive elections until 2008. Bangladesh managed to qualify as a nominal democracy mostly because the elections were credible, and the handover of power was peaceful by Bangladeshi standards. One bipartisan consensus facilitated this tenuous achievement – a so-called caretaker government system. Since neither party trusts the other, the Bangladeshis improvised a brief interim administration consisting of nonpartisans to oversee the electoral processes.
