Resurgence of Fundamentalism in Bangladesh
May 2, 2005
*Adjunct Professor of Economics, C W Post Campus, Long Island University, New
York, USA; author of "Economic Exploitation of Bangladesh" available
from Amazon.com.
In recent times, there seems to be a big surge in fundamentalist activities
everywhere. This phenomenon is not however confined to underdeveloped countries.
The resurgence of religious fundamentalism appears to be creeping up in
developed countries as well. It is widely believed that religious
fundamentalists in the United States manipulated the last presidential election.
However, this kind of fundamentalism is not setting off any alarm bell yet
because it's being done subtly and it's not perceived to be threatening the
world order. But the nature of fundamentalism in Bangladesh is quite different.
There, the fundamentalists have taken up terror and violence to impose their
ideas. The investigative report that appeared in the New York Times' magazine
section on January 23, 2005, gave the world a glimpse of the extent of
fundamentalist activities in Bangladesh. It being the 8th largest country in
population, what occurs in Bangladesh is likely to have worldwide repercussions.
Fundamentalism essentially refers to a social order that is structured based
on religious wisdom. But religious fundamentalism is nothing new as it has been
in existence since the birth of religion itself. Why then there is such a surge
in fundamentalism now? The main theme of every religion was to guide people to
lead a noble life. But this message started to lose its appeal as deep divisions
within each religion began to set in with different interpretations of
fundamental values. While economics played a key role in human lives, religious
ideas fell short of fulfilling their economic expectations. Besides, instead of
achieving peace and harmony, people were being victimized in the name of
religion. Great thinkers and philosophers then came up with new ideas of social
and political reform. These ideas may have been manifested in the so-called
democratic, capitalist or socialist system that we live in today.
But as evidence clearly points out none of these systems have succeeded in
bringing prosperity to mankind nor have they prevented the exploitation of the
masses by the privileged few. The disparity that exists between the poor and
rich nations is both huge and widening. Many citizens of poor countries still
cannot feed themselves, while the rich live in abundance of almost everything.
In developing countries, the accumulation of wealth by the privileged few
continues at the expense of the masses. Bangladesh is a poor country and its
situation bears full testimony to this fact. The country's economy is in such
precarious situation that it mostly relies on outside help for survival. But
instead of utilizing foreign aid to uplift the poor, it's clear that the aid is
helping the rich get richer. The world would be amazed to learn how many
thousands of billionaires this poverty stricken country has produced over the
years! To share misery and grief with others is one thing, but to witness others
getting rich while one continues to starve is something else. Economic
depression always compels people to desperation, especially when they see that
the existing system is both repressive and corrupt. The world is aware of the
extent of corruption in Bangladesh through Transparency International. With an
unemployment rate of over 35 percent in the country, it's no wonder then that
the fundamentalists are attracting increasing number of people to their cause,
especially when they are armed with financial help.
In a broad sense, the concept of fundamentalism never disappeared from
society. It was only put on the back burner as the society experimented with
different political systems. However, the circumstances concerning Islamic
fundamentalism must be viewed differently. The Moslem community always felt that
they were being treated indifferently by the affluent west. The Arab Israeli
conflict has kept that feeling alive and very intense. The Islamic
fundamentalists are quick to interpret every wrong move by the west in respect
to a Moslem country as hostile towards the Moslems. Although Bangladesh is a
predominantly Moslem state, its people were considered quite moderate compare to
others. But this situation changed after the fundamentalists gained political
power there and began to use that power to achieve their far-reaching goal.
After Bangladesh gained independence from Pakistan in 1971, the first ruling
Awami League (AL) government preaching secularism banned all political
activities of Jamaat e Islami Party, a fundamentalist organization, on the
ground that it had conspired with Pakistan. However, in a power struggle, AL
soon lost power to an army ruler who responded by establishing the Bangladesh
Nationalist Party (BNP). In an effort to establish itself as a viable political
organization, the BNP then gave amnesty to the Jamaat e Islami and permitted
them to revive their political activities. But in a subsequent upheaval the BNP
itself lost power to a military dictator. The Jamaatist nevertheless continued
to flourish during the 9 years of dictatorial rule that followed. When democracy
in the country was supposedly restored in 1990, the BNP narrowly won the
election and ruled for one term. But in the next term AL captured power by
successfully aligning with Jamaat e Islami. The current BNP then recaptured
power in 2001 by luring the Islamist group to its camp. During all this
haggling, not only did Jamaat e Islami Party regroup and establish itself
politically, but also a number of other ultra Islamist groups (such as Islamic
Oikya Jote and Jamiat Qurania Arabia mentioned in the New York Times article)
began to emerge. These and other Islamist groups in Bangladesh flourished with
vast financial help from outside. They set up hundreds of madrassas (religious
schools) in the country, which they have been using as recruitment centers for
fundamentalist ideas. It may be true that Al Qaeda and other international
groups have since established links with these Islamist groups, but their main
benefactor still remains Saudi Arabia. Although a few other organizations also
provide financial help, the bulk of the aid money to the fundamentalists in
Bangladesh come from Saudi Arabia itself.
In Bangladesh, the fundamentalists seem to have already started their proxy
fight. They reign in many areas of Chittagong, Sylhet and Rajshahi where they
can terrorize the community at will with complete impunity. In Banskhali (Chittagong)
the incidence of burning one minority family of eleven alive made international
headlines. Today they are pretty much capable of striking other parts of the
country including the capital city of Dhaka. The moderates in the country are
losing their voice. Those who dare to speak out against communalism or
fundamentalist ideas are being subjected to targeted killings. The
fundamentalists have already succeeded in killing a number of them. The murder
of the country's former Finance Minister in January 2005 is the latest example
of such killings. Earlier, grenades were hurled at other moderate politicians -
some were killed and others were injured. They targeted even the leader of the
opposition and the British High Commissioner. Two well-known journalists Manik
Saha and Humayun Kabir Balu were recently murdered in Khulna. Even the moderate
teachers and writers are being targeted. The likes of Taslima Nasrin (a
physician and a writer), G. Chandra Muhuri (Nazir Hat College Principal,
Chittagong) Humaun Azad (a prominent writer), M. Yunus (Professor Rajshahi
University) as well as Samsur Rahman (national poet) were targeted. Of them one
was forced to leave the country, three had to pay with their lives and the
latter now lives under constant police protection. The present government has so
far failed to bring anyone to justice for these terrorist acts. In fact, the way
the fundamentalists are using their muscle in Bangladesh one would wonder if the
government has by now lost its power to suppress them.
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