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Originally
published 09:21 p.m., February 17, 2006, updated 12:00 a.m.,
February 18, 2006
Cry
for me, Bangladesh
The
world's second-largest Muslim state -- at 150 million, co-equal
with Pakistan, and behind Indonesia -- Bangladesh was well
on its way to falling victim to a coalition of pro-al Qaeda
politico-religious extremists. Almost unnoticed, they have
been gnawing away at Bangladesh's fragile democratic institutions.
Prime
Minister Khaleda Zia's husband was former president and
military strongman Ziaur Rahman. He was assassinated in
1981. Her rival and head of the Awami League is another
woman, Sheikh Hasina Wajed. Her father was the country's
first prime minister, assassinated in 1975.
Under
Mrs. Zia's leadership, the Bangladesh National Party (BNP)
has appeased Islamist fundamentalists by including Osama
bin Laden's local fan club in her government. To wit: Jamaat-e-Islami
stands for an Islamic republic. BNP coalition partner Islami
Okiyya Jote is linked to the pro-al Qaeda Harkat-ul-Jihad-Al
Islami (HuJI), which in turn is linked to Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen
Bangladesh (JMB), which wants to impose Sharia law by force.
It is widely believed responsible for a countrywide wave
of some 500 bombings last Aug. 17.
HuJI,
or Movement of Islamic Holy War, is in league with some
of Pakistan's officially banned but still tolerated extremist
groups. The Indian army liberated Bangladesh, formerly East
Pakistan, in 1971 after a bloody civil war.
JMB
leader Bangla Bhai favors a Taliban-style medieval theocracy,
yet another reason opposition Awami League leader Sheikh
Hasina accused the government coalition of "letting
loose criminal extremist forces."
Radical Islamist organizations proliferate in the cities,
funded by at least 10 Middle Eastern charities, while terrorist
training camps have been reported in dense jungle areas
to the north. Indian intelligence, which closely watches
its former ward, believes it has tracked more than 170 concentrations
of pro-al Qaeda militants, including members of Jemaah Islamiyah
(JI), the Indonesia terrorist group responsible for the
Bali bombing and other terrorist attacks.
A
former senior Bangladeshi intelligence executive said Jemaah
Islamiya leader Hambali, arrested in Thailand in August
2003, had already decided to shift JI elements to Bangladesh
to shield them from counterterrorist operations in Southeast
Asia.
U.S.
Assistant Secretary of State for South Asian Affairs Christina
Rocca flew to Dakha at the end of January to convey U.S.
alarm to government leaders coupled with a stern warning:
either they curb Islamist militancy and terror financing
or face sanctions under the U.S. "Terrorist Financing
Act." Mrs. Rocca also made clear the U.S. expected
free and fair elections in 2006, as required by a frayed
constitution.
Mrs.
Rocca expressed surprise militant JMB leaders were allowed
to operate freely even though they were known responsible
for numerous terrorism acts. The foreign secretary was presumably
hard of hearing because after meeting with Mrs. Rocca he
quoted her as having told him, "Bangladesh is not only
a functioning democracy but also a role model for Muslim
countries." Then he added, "Rocca was very appreciative
of the government's anti-militant crackdown and hoped that
this effort would continue."
The U.S. agreed to an exchange of intelligence on matters
of mutual concern and to train Bangladeshi operatives in
the U.S. on how intelligence is shared in practice. The
country's intelligence service knows only too well what
the U.S. wants to know. Islamist sympathizers in the service
make sure nothing of value is given to the Americans.
Mrs.
Rocca called on the family of slain former Finance Minister
Shah AMS Kibria who accused the government of "a farcical
investigation to cover the masterminds" and demanded
a U.N. investigation as happened after the assassination
of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. "The
culture of killing will not end in Bangladesh unless the
people are active against those who give directions for
political assassinations from behind," said Kibria's
widow.
Mrs.
Rocca also wanted to know why JMB chief Shaikh Abdur Rahman
and sidekick Bangla Bhai had not been arrested. "Because
we haven't caught them," came the lame reply.
In
a well-planned demonstration of trans-Atlantic solidarity,
a high-level European Union delegation timed its visit to
coincide with Mrs. Rocca's -- and gave Bangladeshi leaders
the same message: Stick to fair elections in October of
this year or face some unpleasant though unspecified music.
The opposition Awami League said the Election Commission
and provisions for a caretaker government have already been
gerrymandered to favor the ruling BNP and its Islamist props.
Suicide
bombings and grenade assassinations are more common in Bangladesh
than in Israel, Gaza or the West Bank. But they seldom are
reported. Time magazine's South Asian bureau chief was banned
from the country after a 2002 article exposed the government's
lackadaisical response to a buildup of Islamist terrorists
with links to al Qaeda.
In
1998, Bangladesh suffered the worst floods of the 20th century,
leaving 25 million people marooned while countless thousands
drowned. Huge, cyclone-driven natural disasters have been
the country's sad fate for centuries. Bangladesh's 700 rivers
funnel down to a delta of five major waterways that are
so many potential Katrinas without levees. Opposition leader
Sheikh Hasina sees a political system without levees against
the tide of Islamist extremism.
But
following Mrs. Rocca's departure, she rallied her supporters
from all over the country and began a "Long March"
protest Feb. 2. Opposition activists enlisted an ever-larger
following as they moved through towns and villages on their
way to Dhaka. Within three days, 100,000 opposition supporters
had moved to the capital's Paltan Square where Sheikh Hasina
addressed what began to look like a peaceful counterrevolution
against the Islamists. Not for long. Thousands were arrested
-- Sheikh Hasina said 10,000, the government 5,000 -- but
she had made her point. Sheikh Hasina also said she was
ending the Awami League's yearlong boycott of the Islamist-dominated
parliament. Her only purpose was to hold the other woman
leader's feet to the fire of free elections.
Score
one for Mrs. Rocca and the Bush administration. For the
next move by Mrs. Zia and her Islamist bedfellows, stay
tuned.
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