Bangladesh Revokes Registration of Sheikh Hasina's Awami League Party, Halting Its Operations
Keepin' it Real and Unfiltered:
The freakin' Election Commission in Bangladesh has pulled the plug on Sheikh Hasina's Awami League, barring the party from participating in upcoming national elections. This move comes after the government of Nobel laureate Muhammed Yunus imposed a ban on all league activities under the Anti-Terrorism Act.
The government claimed that the drastic action was necessary due to national security threats and ongoing war crimes investigations against the party's top leaders over the deaths of hundreds of protesters. The Election Commission Secretary, Akhtar Ahmed, announced this decree late on Monday.
Under Bangladesh's electoral laws, a political party got to be registered with the Election Commission to enter the ring in national polls. With the suspension of the Awami League's registration, the party, which ruled the country for over 20 years, is now stripped of the chance to compete in future elections unless the ban is lifted, and its registration is reinstated.
To top it off, the Election Commission ordered a shutdown of all political activities, including publications, media appearances, online and social media campaigns, processions, rallies, or conferences, until the International Crimes Tribunal wraps up its proceedings.
Hasina, who received credit for turning the economy around but slammed for human rights violations and the silencing of dissent, secured a fourth straight term in 2024, but the poll was ignored by the main opposition, whose top leaders were either behind bars or in exile.
The country has been witnessing rising tensions and protests in recent months, following deadly protests that forced Hasina to make a run for the border in August 2024, and an interim government led by Yunus took over. Yunus, who isn't attached to any party, has promised reforms and suggested delaying elections until 2026, insisting he isn't keen on running.
Political parties, including former prime minister Khaleda Zia's Bangladesh Nationalist Party, are advocating for an early election and the return of a democratic government. The newly formed National Citizen Party, born from last year's uprising that ousted Hasina, wants polls only after reforms are implemented.
The unrest began in July with student protests against public sector job quotas, but it soon morphed into one of the deadliest periods of political violence since Bangladesh's independence in 1971.
The Awami League, founded in 1949 and once cherished for its victory in Bangladesh's 1971 Liberation War, has faced mounting criticism in recent years over its alleged authoritarianism, corruption, and human rights violations under Hasina's reign.
(Source: Ruma Paul, Reuters)
(Except for the title, this report has not been reviewed by our editorial team and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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- The ban on Sheikh Hasina's Awami League and the subsequent suspension of its registration by the Election Commission in Bangladesh raises questions about the state of democracy and policy-and-legislation in the country, as it hinders the party's participation in upcoming national elections due to war-and-conflicts investigations against its top leaders.
- The decision to impose a ban on the Awami League, a political party that has been in power for over 20 years, has sparked criticism from various political parties, including the Bangladesh Nationalist Party and the National Citizen Party, who advocate for early elections and the return of a democratic government in the midst of general-news and crime-and-justice uncertainties.
- The current political turmoil in Bangladesh, characterized by rising tensions, protests, and war-and-conflicts, sheds light on the complex dynamics of its politics and the ongoing impact of policies and legislation on its economy and human rights situation.
