IT started with a boycott and so did it end. Boycott was also in the middle

One can easily say. Opposition boycotts marked last year's Parliament proceedings that spread over a total of four separate sessions.

The first Opposition boycott of the year came minutes before President Abdur Rahman Biswas stood to address the House at the opening session of Parliament on January 4.

The Awaml League (Al.)-led Opposition boycotted the presidential speech on the ground that the government was bypassing Parliament through promulgating ordinances one after another. Incidentally, the President promulgates ordtna nccs.

The AL-led Opposition's boycott of the presidential speech in Parliament was followed by the Jatlya Party's.

The JP protested promulgation of a specific ordinance that abolished the upazila system, the body of the JP chief and former President Ershad.

The first Parliament session of 1992 witnessed, except the first opposition boycott of the year, the first ever defeat of the Treasury bench — in terms of voting taking place In the Housc-to the combined Opposition parties in Parliament.

The defeat came on January 9 when a private members resolution seeking setting up of a marine police forces was adopted in Parliament by 62 to 57 votes. In the division vote on the issue, the Treasury bench opposed the resolution while all in the opposition voted for it.

Despite the opposition boycott at the beginning and bitter accusations and counter-accusations against each other, the Treasury bench smoothly

secured Opposition support in passing a bill on February 16.

The bill passed unanimously was the Members of Parliament (Remuneration and Allowances) Amendment Bill that doubled their allowances.

The second opposition boycott of Parliament in 1992 came April 18 after parliament got into its second session of the year an April 12.

Parliament's second session of the year began with a general discussion on the Jamaat's election of Golam Azam as its chief in the last week of December 1991 and the consequent formation of the People's Court to try Golam Azam for his active involvement in the genocide conducted against our people by the Pakistan occupation forces in 1971.

The People's Court pronounced capital punishment to Golam Azam on Independence Day March 26.

The AL-lcd Opposition while arguing for the trial of Golam Azam as a war criminal maintained in the House that there could be no doubt that the Razakars under the leadership of Golam Azam was an auxiliary force of the occupation army and that he should be tried under the International War Crimes (Tribunal) Act. 1973.

The leader of the Opposition Sheikh Hasfna moved a resolution in the House and demanded that a special tribunal under the law be immediately formed to try Golam Azam as a war criminal.

The Deputy Leader of the Treasury bench, Prof. Badru-ddoza Chowdhury argued that the BNP had no confusion that Golam Azam was a foreigner and that he along with the Razakars was an auxiliary force

of the Pakistan army that indulged in the 1971 genocide.

Prof. Chowdhury also moved a resolution, countering the one moved by Hasina. that sought constitutionally acceptable legal action against noncitizen Golam Azam and speedy disposal of the actions'.

Shaikh Razzak Alt. Speaker of Parliament, who was expected to give a ruling on the issue or put it to a vote asked the MPs to switch their discussions to the Rohingya Issue before concluding the Golam Azam one.

The Opposition refused to move to any other agenda before settling the Golam Azam controversy, and. in the face of the Speakers insistence on changing the agenda, the Opposition announced Its second boycott of Parliament April 18.

A seven-hour backstage parley between the Treasury bench and the Opposition barring the Jamaat on the day failed to bring back the Opposition to the House.

During the parley the AL-lcd Opposition put forward a four-point demand to the ruling party that Included trial of Golam Azam as a war criminal, withdrawal of charges against the 24 people involved in the People's Court, assurance of democratic behaviour to the opposition parties and due honour to the Leader of the Opposition in Parliament.

Following a fruitless negotiation between the contending parties, the House passed the

Treasury bench resolution on Golam Azam with the AL-led Opposition along with Jattya Party, which demanded Immediate release of Ershad at that moment, boycotting the proceedings and the Jamaat staging a walk out protesting the resolution.

The boycott announced in the year's second session of Parliament affected the smooth sailing of the third session as the boycotting Opposition did not join Its proceedings until the contending parties reached a four-point accord eight days after parliament went into Its budget session June 18.

The four-point accord signed between the AL-lcd Opposition and the ruling party accepted, along with three demand of the four-point charter put forward by the Opposition at the previous session, 'trial of Golam Azam as aware criminal under the law of the land.'

The Jamaat walked out protesting the accord and the JP continued its abstention as Its demand for the release of Ershad was Ignored in ihe accord. The JP however, went back to the House the next day July 2.

The third session of the year, the budget session, witnessed with the debate on the proposed budget, a general discussion on the law and order in the country.

And on top of all, the budget session witnessed the first ever no confidence motion moved against the cabinet In

the parliamentary annals of the country.

Seven out of ten opposition parties In Parliament submitted Identical but separate notices of no-confidence against the Cabinet headed by Prime Minister Khaleda Zia and accused the Cabinet of nine separate failures.

The charges against the Cabinet Included failure to Improve law and order, curb campus violence, free the industrial units and enterprises from the grip of hoodlums, ensure freedom of press and protection to the working Journalists, suppress anti-ln-dependcnce activities, resolve the Chittagong Hill Tracts problems and ensure human rights to the people living in the area, resolve Rohingya problem, ensure security to the foreign embassies and diplomatic missions.

The no-confidence motion was moved August 5 and the House voted on it August 12.

The ruling party survived the no-confidence by 168 to 122 votes.

The fourth boycott by the Opposition came in the fourth session of Parliament last year fallowing the Treasury bench bid to pass the controversial Anti-terrorism Act.

Prom-ulgated as an Ordinance earlier, the bill was placed in the House on the opening day of the fourth and last session of the year. It was Introduced in the House for consideration on October 28 amidst the Opposition boycott.

The Opposition termed the Bill seeking capital punishment for certain crimes worse than the Special Powers Act and urged the Treasury bench to withdraw the proposed law.

The Opposition walkout later turned In to the boycott of he proceeding and the Treasury bench got the bill passed November 6 with the AL-led opposition, along with the JP, boycotting the House and the Jamaat and others staging a walkout. The bill was virtually passed by the Parliamentary Party of the ruling BNP.

The AL and the JP, along with their allies in Parliament later announced that they would continue boycotting the remaining days of the Fourth Session of Parliament protesting the passage of the Anti-terrorism Act and demand Implementation of the four-point accord signed earlier.

The year's final session however witnessed a unanimity of parties protesting India's push back programme under which 'Indian citizens were being sent into Bangladesh'. In the face of coercion by ths Indian law enforcing agencies. The parties however failed to unanimously adopt a resolution against India's behaviour.

The Treasury bench resolution was adopted by 161 votes while two other resolutions — one moved by the AL chief Hasina and the other by the JP leader Mizanur Rahman Chowdhury — secured 67 and 20 votes respectively.

The last parliament session of 1992 that began October 11 was prorogued November 6 with the main Opposition parties still on a boycott.

More reviews and interpretative pieces appear in the supplement on pages 811.

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