By IANS
Dhaka : Bangladesh’s first attempt this year to resume a dialogue with political parties on electoral reforms is stuck because the government is refusing to relax curbs on their activities.
The Election Commission has said it intends to go ahead with its plans to discuss the reforms and hopes the government will relax the curbs at least for the period of the talks.
The government, however, says that it would have lifted the curbs but for the three-day riots that broke out this month in Dhaka University and quickly spread to other campuses, New Age newspaper reported Friday.
With many of their leaders in jail or being prosecuted for corruption, political parties see a hope in the invitation from the poll body.
They argue that to hold any dialogue with the government and the election panel, they need to hold internal consultations. The blanket ban on political activity now in force does not allow them to do that.
The Election Commission hopes that the government “will open a window and create an atmosphere for the dialogue” by lifting the ban on politics, even if conditionally, New Age said.
“Thirteen days remain before we start the dialogues, and a congenial environment will be created by that time,” Election Commissioner Muhammed Sohul Hussain was quoted as saying Thursday.
Starting Sep 12, the Election Commission wants to conduct a dialogue with political parties, calling them in batches. Its itinerary will extend till end-November.
Political parties are demanding early elections. But Chief Advisor Fakhruddin Ahmed’s government has set a timetable that envisages general elections, postponed from January this year amidst political turmoil, only for end-2008.