Fundamentalism rides on politics of Bangladesh

| by Swadesh Roy

( April 12, 2013, Dhaka, Sri Lanka Guardian) Bangladesh government has arrested four bloggers accused for insulting religion. The court of Bangladesh awarded them seven days’ remand to the police. The bloggers confess that, they do not believe in God they believe in nature but they do not insult any religion in their blogs.

A group of Islamic fundamentalist, named Hafzjat-E-Islam is continuously demanding the arrest of the bloggers. Their accusation is that, they are atheist and they have insulted religion in their blogs. The bloggers have been writing in their blogs for a long time. Most of the time they write about the real history of the liberation war of the Bangladesh. In Bangladesh, the real history of the liberation war is a big issue. However, Bangladesh liberated in 1971 to fight against Pakistan but a counter-revolution was happened in 15 August 1975. Since then country was ruled in the name of religion by the anti- liberation force and back by the military. The counter revolutionary force tried to establish a fake history of the country for wrapping their guilty. Because, though the counter- revolution was committed by the military but the anti liberation forces were behind of it. That anti liberation forces involved in killing, raping, looting and arson in 1971 with the Pakistan army. They fought against the freedom fighter of Bangladesh in 1971. The second largest party of the opposition ally, Jammat –E-Islami was the main collaborator of Pakistan army. Besides that, other parties of the opposition ally did not believe in the fundamental issues of the freedom spirit of Bangladesh. So, they want to enclose it, and want to run the country on the basis of Islamic religion. They do not believe in religion pluralism in the country.

Entering in the information technology era, the new generation started to study regarding own real history and they came to know the history of their freedom struggle. So before the last election the young generation gave pressure to the progressive political parties to include the trial of the war criminals, who collaborate the Pakistan army. The leading party of freedom struggle, Awami league and its allies 14 party included in their election manifesto that, if they would win the election, they would make trial the war criminals; which is now on going in Bangladesh.
One of the verdicts was not accepted by the young generation, so they came on the road and made a youth uprising in Bangladesh. It was a historical uprising in Bangladesh. It vigorously continues more than one month. In this uprising, three demands came profoundly; first, they demanded that, all war criminals should be given capital punishment. Secondly, the politics of the war criminal party Jammat-E-Islami should be ban. Lastly, the opposition and the government party of Bangladesh must be run on the fundamental principles of the freedom struggle.

Their three demands is a death sentence for the Islamic religion base politics and the Islamic fundamentalist or terrorist party of Bangladesh. Therefore, the main opposition parties who belongs to Islamic religion based politics and Islamic terrorism, they try to condemn them from the very beginning. These forces have ruled Bangladesh for a long time, and they plundering huge money of the government. Besides, in the name of Islam they get help from Middle East and Pakistan, so they have lot of money. By the power of money and help of a group of media they are trying to color the young generation who have made an uprising, they are atheist. A group of the young is blogger; some media publish some fake status in their name that they insult the religion. It makes a confutation in the some illiterate Islamic radical people and it ignorant to some common people. At a stage, the main opposition leader Kaleda Zia, who enjoyed two times as prime minister said that, those young are in the uprising are spoiled young and atheist. Here, it is to mention that, the young, who are involved in the uprising they are educated and the bright generation of the country. On the other hand, Khaleda is not educated and her two sons are not educated one of her son is drug addicted.

However, she plays the card well. By the back of Jammat-E- Islami and Khaleda’s party have managed to organize a fundamentalist group in the name of Hafzat- A- Islam and they are now demanding the trial of the bloggers who organized the uprising and they want the government has to block the blog of them. By their pressure, government has done an absurd job they have arrested four bloggers. Therefore, now it is clear that all the political parties of Bangladesh have ride on the back of a horse of fundamentalism.

However, the government of Bangladesh cannot stay a long time on the back of this horse. Because, it will be their suicidal place. Their supporters are secular forces, young generation and the secular civil society. They have given a red notice to the government in the mean time; besides the government believed in the spirit of freedom struggle and they are trialing the war criminals. So they have no scope to stay on the back of that horse.

Swadesh Roy, Executive Editor, the Daily Janakantha, Dhaka, Bnagladesh. He can be reached at swadeshroy@gmail.com