STAR REPORT

As Bangladesh’s interim government approaches the end of its tenure, the International Crisis Group has taken stock of its record since the ouster of Sheikh Hasina in August 2024.

In a report published yesterday, the Brussels-based think tank mentions that the interim administration led by Nobel laureate Prof Muhammad Yunus has drawn praise for pulling the economy back from the brink, reviving the International Crimes Tribunal to address past human rights abuses, and drafting the July charter -- a set of 84 reform proposals aimed at curbing prime ministerial powers, strengthening parliamentary oversight, and reducing partisan influence over judicial appointments.

“Together with the central bank, the government introduced banking reforms and awarded port contracts to foreign operators to ease logistical bottlenecks.”

Yet its record is uneven, notes Crisis Group, stating that “security sector reform has largely stalled, with a distrust of police after years of politicisation; mob violence has risen; while agencies such as the Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) and Directorate General of Forces Intelligence (DGFI) remain unreformed.”

Recommendations from the women’s affairs and media reform commissions were sidelined, the report also says, citing possible reasons as “either due to resistance from conservative groups or a lack of political will.”

Referencing critics, Crisis Group points to arguments that the interim government has failed to live up to its lofty ambitions and that it pursued vendettas against the Awami League while being “To overcome divisions,

SEE PAGE 10 COL 2