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Let not Grameen's tale be a tragedy

S.M. Rashed Ahmed
The amendment to the Grameen Bank ordinance has for all practical purposes robbed the Bank of its unique characteristic as a bank overwhelmingly owned by poor women. A bank for the poor and by the poor has been obliterated by a government ordinance; and that too by a democratically elected government. There was no compelling reason to do so as the record of Grameen Bank's performance is much superior by any standard to the government owned banks. Grameen's collective savings is around $1.4 billion and its interest rate is the lowest amongst microfinance lenders around the world.
Financially, Grameen is self-reliant and has not taken donor's money since 1995. Most importantly, according to Grameen Bank's internal survey, 64% of the borrowers who have stayed with the bank for five years or more have crossed the poverty line. Significantly, changing the original character of the Grameen Bank, hailed for its solid achievements at home and abroad in transforming the lives of the rural poor women, was not in the election manifesto of the party in power when it sought people's mandate during the last election.
The essence of democracy is that it is a "government by discussion." In the context of modern democratic dispensation this includes, among others, parliament, political parties, members of civil society and crucially those affected by any decision of the government, particularly involving reputed institutions which have stood the test of time such as Grameen.
A democratic government elected by massive majority of the people is expected to take into account the wishes of the people and to make a genuine effort to reach consensus on issues where the nation is clearly divided. International opinion and those of our partners in development need also to be taken into account.
After all, an LDC like Bangladesh cannot live in splendid isolation! Nothing of this sort was done in the case of Grameen. It was a long battle for Grameen, Yunus and friends after the legal case was lost. Dr. Kamal Hossain, one of our most eminent jurists, and others expressed disappointment and dismay at the outcome.
This was followed by series of steps by the government leading to the final decision involving approval of the amended ordinance. It has given the government, which has a mere 3% ownership of the Bank, practically full control of the Bank and rendered it into another "cookie cutter public organisation" as Yunus calls it, strip-
ing the women members of their control and voice.
It is the unique characteristics of the bank of the poor and its solid achievements in alleviation of poverty and empowerment of women which brought international recognition to Grameen, its founder and Bangladesh — the Nobel Peace Prize. That was our treasured moment and an ineffaceable achievement in our history. Yes, it is Yunus and our poor mothers, sisters and daughters who brought this glory to Bangladesh. A country prone to natural and man-made disasters, chronic instability and intermittent failures of democratic political process has a positive story to tell the world.
I had written earlier about my personal experience when their Imperial Majesties in Japan showed great admiration for Grameen and its founder;
the acceptability I got in the militant municipalities of Kosovo as the UN Representative because Grameen was there to assist the poor women find employment, which was scarce following the conflict. Grameen's women directors played an active role in important policy decisions including, among others, introduction of pension fund for borrowers, life insurance, scholarships and higher education loans for children and healthcare etc. "Without the input by the women members," as Yunus noted, "such decisions may not have been taken." To say that poor women borrowers are not qualified to run Grameen is an affront to democracy and its cherished principles. After all, we seek the
votes of the overwhelmingly poor men and women of Bangladesh to get elected and form the government!
Grameen has made outstanding contributions in the process of changing the stereotype image of the role of women in development in a predominantly Muslim society. The sight of the poor women representatives of 8.3 million women on the dais in Oslo, Norway, receiving the Nobel Prize for peace in the full glare of world media is an unprecedented achievement for Bangladesh, which years of our diplomacy may not have been able to achieve.
The image of Bangladesh has become synonymous with the image of Grameen and Yunus; and it is not only in just one superpower country as some naively believe, it is around the globe. There are now Grameen type programmes in almost every
country in the world; its support and popularity are not confined to foreign governments alone but include members of the parliaments, political parties, influential members of the civil society and the people at large — particularly the women. This uncalled for and undemocratic decision of the government on Grameen may do irreparable damage to the image of Bangladesh and cause a serious setback to the realisation of the goals of our foreign policy, diplomacy and development. It is a tragedy for Bangladesh and Grameen; history will pronounce its verdict on it.
There are formidable challenges ahead of Bangladesh — achieving consensus for holding a free and fair election; poverty alleviation; democracy and development; looming food, energy and water crisis, among others. We need international support and national consensus to collectively face and overcome what clearly will be a critical testing time for the nation.
We need leadership now to rise to the occasion and the demands of time and history. We cannot fitter away our precious energy on non-issues and divide the people and the nation along partisan lines. In democracy, governments will come and go but the state is sacred, and no government is mandated by its people to inflict irreversible damage to the national image and interest of the country. I call upon the government to see reason, repeal this undemocratic ordinance and restore Grameen Bank's independence and its original character. If this is not acceptable, let the government seek mandate from the people through its manifesto in the next election on this issue and meanwhile maintain the status quo of Grameen. Wisdom lies in accommodation and amicable settlement; conflict will help neither the government nor the nation.
The writer is a former UN Regional Administrator, Kosovo.
E-mail: rashed_ahmed2001@yahoo.com