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Bangladesh: Developing, not modernising

Habibul Haque Khondker
ONE way to understand Bangladesh today after 37 years of her independence is to look at it as an interesting paradox. Bangladesh has made some headway in economic development. Today's sky-high prices of basic necessities combined with a sluggish economy with low purchasing power of the t average people should not negate the tangible achievements in the economic development of the country’. The economic difficulties which are results of unfavorable global economy combined with bad planning aggravated by some bad weather situations are not intractable. Bangladesh has experienced increase in red per capita income however measured -- in purchasing power parity or by conventional methods.
Even in social and cultural conelates of development one will find some evidence of progress such as rise in literacy (47.5%), increase in life expectancy at birth (63.1), emancipation of women as measured in gender-related development index by the UNDP (which in its 2007-08 Report gives Bangladesh the rank of 108 out of 156 countries) or by sheer presence of more women in public life. Social developments in fertility decline and ratio of students going for higher education can also be found.
Yet, at the same time Bangladesh has failed to modernise. Why I am saying that the society has failed to modernise is not because these conelates of economic development are missing but what is palpably missing is the public life and the shrinking of the public space. One can be tempted
to ask: what about the innumerable shopping centres in Dhaka where modern looking young people in modern dresses are seen shopping and drinking coffee in the coffee shops? These are aspects of a new global culture of consumerism that helps erode public life. Coffee shops and salons in the 19th century Paris — as in Kolkata in the 20th century — were parts of a public culture. The expensive, sanitised coffee shops in Dhaka are merely copies of a globalised Starbucks culture.
The stalled modernity in Bangladesh is a result of criminalisation of political life and an erosion of public life. A combination of greed and hyper consumerism that has fuelled some semblance of economic development has produced a high level of privatism and selfish individuals while public spirit has retreated.
This brand of impatient capitalism has played a role in criminalising politics which became a short-cut to private wealth, not public welfare. The difference between criminals and custodians of law on the one hand and between purloin and business became thinner.
What happened during the BNP regime (2001-2006) was the culmination of a long-drawn process of regression. Simply, consider the character of two young politicians Mr. Mosaddek Ali Falu and Mr. Lutfozzaman Babar, who enjoyed the confidence of Prime Minister Begum Khaleda Zia with those of Dr. Kamal Hossain and Barrister Amirul Islam who were also young politicians (in their 30s) in the 1970s and enjoyed similar confidence of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. This comparison will vindicate the erosion of the public life in Bangladesh.
If a yardstick can be made to measure the moral quality of the professionals Bangladesh has definitely regressed. What is most palpable is that when a thuggish politician stole a by-election by
fraud and muscle power during the immediate past regime, an organisation of the medical doctors in Dhaka gave him a gala reception. The complicity of the professionals in lending legitimacy to the criminal politicians marked a new low.
Compare the shameless behavior of the justices chosen by the last government to officiate as chief election commissioner with the moral stand taken by Justice B. A. Siddiky, who refused to officiate the oath of Gen Tikka Khan as governor of the then East Pakistan in 1971.
A civilised society makes a difference between shameless, dishonorable acts and honorable acts. Enlightenment is not just a sign of maturity but also an uplift -ment of moral standard. The standards of behaviour of the past ministers (with few exceptions), the language they used, and the activities they were indulged in were not only corrupt and devoid of propriety and integrity, They had no sense of self-respect or respect for the public. A public official is nothing without a sense of public or collective well-being.
But is there any silver lining? Only a thin one. The presence of a small number of public intellectuals, and a pool of highly talented artistic people. Some of these men and women of high intellectual caliber will be seen in talk shows and seminars; they are seen but not listened to. The tragedy of a dysfunctional society is that honorable people with imagination and integrity are marginalised, and the ones who are opportunistic, use their intelligence to amass ill-begotten wealth or assist corrupt politicians for kickoffs are often at the centre stage.
The real challenge of Bangladesh is not just to yank a derailed politics on the tracks or lifting a sinking economy on the ground but to reinvigorate the public life where people can think freely, honestly and boldly. A developed and modern society must have a public sphere that is free, cultivated and public-minded. The real challenge is to reinstate a public life and public-spirited professionals, and politicians.
The author is a professor of sociology at Zayed University. Abu Dhabi.