Awami League, Left to join forces

By Haroon Habib

DHAKA, NOV. 19. The protest against export of natural gas through pipeline to India ended its first phase with the start of Ramzan. But the new government is unlikely to overcome the issue which has all the probability to begin afresh at the end of the holy month.

The country-wide 12-hour bandh of the Left Democratic Front (LDF) on November 15 to protest the proposed gas export by the new government following the proposal put forward by the American companies, was a move by a coalition of some smaller parties. But observers are of the opinion that the issue may turn volatile when the main Opposition, Awami League, which is against such export without keeping 50 years reserve for domestic use, decides to oppose it.

It seems that the three major issues - the export of gas to India by the Khaleda Zia Government and the highly publicised post-poll atrocities on minority and Opposition activists - have brought the country's smaller Left secular parties closer to the Awami League. The other issue is terrorism, which has already caught the ruling coalition unawares as the Prime Minister on November 17 had to suspend all activities of the Central Committee of the BNP's Students Wing, the JCD, on charge of rampant terrorism.

The Awami League extended its support to the LDF bandh but not many workers of the party were found active to make the agitation a success. To counter the communal and fundamentalists influence in politics, the Awami League and the Left parties are about to form a coalition, even if it is loose in the present form, to challenge their common enemies.

Recovering from the initial shock of the defeat in the polls, the Awami League led by former Prime Minister, Sheikh Hasina, has announced that it will hold an ``all-party national convention'' in the next two months on the post and pre-election atrocities on its leaders and workers, including the religious minorities.

In the convention, called as ``crimes against humanity'', Sheikh Hasina said, all democratic and progressive parties, professional groups, civil societies, intellectuals and cultural activists will be involved. It is proposed to be held next month or in January.

Narrating her experience after a week-long tour of the country, Ms. Hasina said more than 1,000 women and even young girls were raped and nearly 900 party workers were killed by the BNP and Jamaat-e-Islami, allegedly with the support of the law enforcing agencies. ``Liberal, democratic and secular image of Bangladesh has been lost with such a massacre of humanity'', she said while announcing her party's future programmes.

``With the fundamentalist Jamaat-e-Islami as partner of the new government, the Left parties have no option but to forge a broader coalition with the secular and pro-liberation Awami League, some top Left leaders said.

On the gas export issue, it seems that the AL has changed its mind. Senior party leaders and two former Finance Ministers, Mr. Shah AMS Kibria and Mr. A.M. Abdul Muhit, have recently said that a decision on gas export must come through a national consensus upon assessment of the recoverable reserve. ``We have always been saying that gas can be exported if the proven reserve meets domestic requirements for 50 years'', they said at a news conference.

The news conference was arranged to refute the allegation made by the Finance and Planning Minister, Mr. M. Saifur Rahman, who said his government is considering gas export ``to fulfil contractual obligation created by the past Awami League Government.'' While admitting that the government is under pressure to take a decision, from the United States, Mr. Rahman said a decision on this issue will be taken after ensuring reserve for 30 to 35 years and also 10 per cent contingency reserve.

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