Concerns over election result
Sheikh Hasina Wazed was elected prime minister of Bangladesh for the fourth time in a row on 8 January. The 76-year-old has been in power since 2009, and was also prime minister from 1996 to 2001. She is the world’s longest-serving female leader but her opponents say her victory was not fair.
What happened?
People voted on 7 January but the main opposition party, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), did not take part in the election because they did not think it was fair. In the weeks beforehand there was rioting and violence around the country. Officials say 40% of people who were allowed to vote did so, but other estimates claim it was as low as 28%. Hasina’s party, the Awami League, won 223 out of 300 places in parliament.
Who is Sheikh Hasina Wazed?
Sheikh Hasina Wazed is the daughter of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, who led Bangladesh to become an independent country from Pakistan in 1971. It had been East Pakistan since 1947. In 1975, the military took power and Hasina’s father was killed. In the 1990s, she worked to force the military out of power and became the country’s prime minister in 1996.
Since she was elected again in 2009, Bangladesh has got richer. The World Bank, an organisation that offers loans to less wealthy countries, estimates that 25 million people have risen out of poverty (when people can’t afford the basic goods and services they need). However, Hasina’s critics say she has done things that are bad for democracy (a political system in which leaders are chosen by the public) and human rights. The leader of the BNP said more than 20,000 of its supporters were arrested on made-up charges before the election.
What has she promised?
Hasina has promised “development, peace and prosperity” for Bangladesh. The country is struggling because prices are going up and lots of people can’t find a job. Last December, Hasina promised that her party would create 15 million new jobs for young people by 2030. She also wants to improve healthcare and create a “Smart Bangladesh” through better technology. Much of the country is very low-lying (see panel above), which means it is at risk of flooding. Hasina has promised to improve protection against climate change and floods.
What was the response?
Tarique Rahman, chairman of the BNP, said it did not count as a real election. Meenakshi Ganguly, from the international organisation Human Rights Watch, said Hasina had not convinced people that the elections were fair. Ganguly said lots of people had not voted for this reason. Businessman Sakibul Hasan Chowdhury told Time magazine, “There is no opposition and no candidate of my choice. So how would I benefit from voting?” However, Hasina called her win “a victory of the people”, and said, “I have been fighting throughout my life to ensure people’s democratic rights.”