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A Plea for Consensus
The nation observes the Democracy Day today in a sombre mood. Some kind of a celebration is certainly in order, for no matter how we have managed our affairs, at political, economic and social levels, we must rejoice over the fall of the authoritarian regime and the restoration of democracy in the country. The triumph over a corrupt dictatorship was not an easy one. It called for a broad-based unity of democratic forces, sacrifices by individuals and the revival of the ideals and values which had once guided the people in the War of Liberation some 20 years earlier. In this sense, the Democracy Day serves not only as a milestone in our history but also as a symbol of renewal of our national spirit.
This is part of our national rhetoric which, up to a point, is perfectly valid. But it does not explain why the mood among a cross section of people, virtually throughout the entire population, is sombre. It is a mood that reflects disappointments and unfulfilled expectations, sadness and anger, doubts and uncertainties. To deny the existence of this mood would be a mistake, perhaps a blunder. But to assume that we are unable to move forward and find a new sense of direction would be a folly. Our task today — the task of the media In particular — Is to promote a sense of realism about problems and prospects facing the nation, not to spread pessimism among our people.
It is this sense of realism that should prompt us all to take a stock of our successes and failures. The fact that a popular system, based on widely-accepted parliamentary democracy, is alive and well is no mean achievement. A process has also been set in motion to Introduce overdue reforms In our economy, to revitalise our relations with other countries, especially with our immediate neighbour. India, and to put in more substance in our collective efforts to strengthen regional co-operation under SAARC which enters its second cycle next week, under the leadership of Bangladesh.
Yet. sadly enough, these achievements are obscured by a number of almost monumental failures. Here, the biggest and the devastating one is the inability of our political parties to promote national unity and to work towards some kind of a broad-based consensus on major issues facing the country. With almost total cynical indifference to the repeated pleas by the educated elite, the academic community, the business sector and the independent media for building national cohesion, the ruling party and the opposition continue to harp on one divisive issue alter another, even creating new ones, scoring points against one another, in senseless political gambits. In the process, the restoration of a democratic system which is being observed today has become an end in itself, instead of being a means of creating a better life for our impoverished millions.
We must call a halt to the dangerous drift. Here, the responsibility lies with both Begum Khaleda Zia and Sheikh Hasina to take a new look at the scenario and see for themselves where they have gone wrong In the challenging task of giving our people a new hope, a new vision. It should be a shared responsibility of the two leaders. but if anyone should make the first move, it should be the Prime Minister. This is because Begum Zia is the head of the government, with power and the means at her disposal to influence the course of events, indeed of our history, if she so wishes. Perhaps the beginning can be made this afternoon when she addresses a rally. We urge her to speak on this auspicious occasion as a national leaaer, not as a politician heading the ruling party, thus reviving the role she had played during the anti-autocracy movement, side by side with Sheikh Hasina. Let her strident harsh denunciation of her political opposition turn into a Sentle spirited call for national unity. Let her irow a challenge to the Awaml League leader to rise above political recriminations and begin a new Journey out of the present impasse.