After the revolution, Bangladesh is hoping to reform

For 16 years Bangladesh has been shuddering from a continuous
 “earthquake”, says Muhammad Yunus. The microcredit pioneer and Nobel  peace laureate is referring to the authoritarian regime of Sheikh Hasina and her Awami League party, which was ousted by a massive uprising in August 2024. Now, as the country’s interim leader, Mr Yunus is trying to “fix everything that has been destroyed”, he says. “We’re moving in the right direction, and the people are with us. We are hopeful,” he adds.

That optimism is needed. Since Sheikh Hasina’s toppling, the seeming extent of her regime’s excesses has emerged. Last year a white paper alleged that around $16bn was siphoned annually during her reign. Cases against Sheikh Hasina, including charges of murder, abduction and genocide, are piling up. (She denies all charges.) Parties across the political spectrum have demanded democratic changes to prevent the return of such abuses. But nine months since the revolution, making big changes is proving tricky.

The process began almost immediately after Sheikh Hasina fled the country to India. In September Mr Yunus began setting up commissions to provide ideas for reform in several areas, including elections, the judiciary and the constitution. These groups are staffed with experts from civil society and academia. And to sift through the papers from these commissions, the government set up another one: the national consensus commission. This group has compiled all the recommendations (there have been 166 so far) and put them on a spreadsheet to which 35 political parties have contributed. The consensus commission will work with political parties to establish a “July Charter” that will allow elections to take place and usher in a “new Bangladesh”, says Mr Yunus.

But finding consensus is tricky. For a start, politicians and the public disagree over what commissions should even exist. Some grumble that there should have been one for textiles, the pillar of Bangladesh’s economy; others complain about the inattention to education. The biggest controversy has been sparked by a commission that was formed belatedly on women’s reform. Its recommendations included changes to Islamic inheritance law that give women greater rights and have sparked mass protests by Islamist parties.

Still, reformers remain optimistic. Ali Riaz, the vice-chairman of the consensus commission, points to some changes that have already been implemented, such as an independent process for appointing judges to the High Court. The second phase of the dialogue will begin soon after May 15th, but Mr Riaz is confident of having a charter finalised by August.

Should that timeline be met, it would mean elections as early as December this year. Mr Yunus insists polls will take place no later than June 2026 (and that he will not take part). But the delay is already coming with some costs. The interim regime has steadied prices and the banks, but growth remains weak. And the political situation is fragile. According to one survey, nearly 60% of those polled believe that law and order have not improved since the regime change. Protests on
 the street have become routine.

The protesters’ most common demand is for retribution against the Awami League. On May 12th the election commission suspended the party’s registration, banning it from contesting any elections. But for all the revulsion for the party, it still enjoys some support. Mohammad Arafat, a senior Awami official, insists that the party had the “mandate of the people”, had been usurped by “jihadists” through violence and that it would “fight to claim their rightful place in Bangladesh”. Even out of power, the Awami League may still be able to cause tremors across the country.

News Courtesy:

The Economist | May 15, 2025