Democracy is not just about election. Until the democratic institutions are counterbalanced by each other, it would not be able to deliver its fruits to the people.
Eminent journalist Mark Tully said this at a discussion at the Liberation War Museum in the city yesterday.
He said corruption is the outcome of the failure of democratic institutions. "Stop corruption and everything will be all right."
The Liberation War Museum organised the discussion titled 'Liberation War and its Aftermath' on the occasion of its 10th anniversary.
The veteran BBC journalist, who covered the South Asian region in 1971, urged the Bangladeshis to establish the spirit of the War of Liberation to win the fight against poverty.
The Liberation War was only the beginning, he said, adding that the people of this region are yet to achieve their victory over poverty.
Regarding the people's potentiality to overcome all the obstacles to development, he said, "They have the ability to be super
fast, but they are now only going slow."
He also said that the national progress should not be measured in terms of GDP growth rate, rather it should be measured by the level of human happiness.
Refuting the popular perception that BBC broadcast news in favour of the Bangladeshis during 1971, he said they were just trying to inform the people of what actually happened and let the people have their judgement. And it helped mobilise international support for them, he added.
About the relationship among the South Asian states, the veteran journalist said that while the people across the globe stressed the importance of regional grouping, Saarc remains a pathetic institution.
No state of the region should regard other state as its enemy, he added.
Underscoring the need for a 'matured Bangladesh-India relationship' for their development, he said that the two countries should not take decisions based upon narrow political or economic perspective.
Trustee and Member Secretary of the Museum Dr Sarwar Ali moderated the discussion followed by a cultural programme.