The year that was Looking back at 2016
2016 was one of the most eventful ones in the recent memory. Like the rest of the world it was a turbulent one for Bangladesh too. There were some incredible achievements in the fields of economy,
industry, foreign
relations, sports, etc. The political atmosphere was also relatively stable
Syed Mehdi Momin
Today heralds the New Year of 2017. As usual this is a time for festivities and celebrations. However politicians and decision makers and indeed those who are truly concerned about the well-being of the country should also take time out to ponder on the course of the country in the weeks and months ahead.
As we know 2016 was one of the most eventful ones in the recent memory. Like the rest of the world it was a turbulent one for Bangladesh too. There were some incredible achievements in the fields of economy, industry, foreign relations, sports, etc. The political atmosphere was relatively stable and local government elections were held in most free and fair manner. The council of the biggest political party Awami League set an example of intra party democracy. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina turned out to be a study in inspiring leadership and statesmanlike qualities.2016 marked the 45th year of Bangladeshs independence. Today Bangladesh is not only a lower middle income country it is forging ahead in almost every human development indicator, be it child mortality or womens emancipation, besting several nations of the region in many areas.
In the past, Bangladesh has been un-fairly satirised by many and decades back Henry Kissinger dubbed Bangladesh as an international basket case. The naysayers have been forced to eat their words. In fact Wall Street Journal
suggested that many nations could learn about economic growth and confronting terrorism from this country. Unfortunately Bangladesh is probably one of the best-kept secrets. The perception around the globe in many areas is due to the international media. Whenever they used to talk about Bangladesh they talked about the challenges, the floods, the cyclones and boats capsizing, as well as over population and climate change. But they rarely talked about the other, more positive realities. However in the previous year Bangladesh has managed to brand itself much better and a number of internationally acclaimed newspapers have paid glowing tributes to the country. Bangladeshs economy has continued to grow over several years at nearly six per cent, despite the global downturn and high food prices.
2016 is the year that this overwhelmingly Muslim country proved that it is also constitutionally and increasingly in practice politically secular is also a lesson for other Muslim majoritarian countries to emulate. The Supreme Court struck down a 31-year-old constitutional amendment and restored the country to its founding status as a secular republic.
Bangladesh national cricket team has become a symbol of the vibrant and positive Bangladesh. The Tigers continue to win hearts all over the world through their attacking and dynamic brand of cricket. Though the performance at the fag end of the year was below par, their superb performance in the rest of the year impressed all and sundry. 2016 can be termed as year when Bangladesh came of age in the Test match formatconsidered by the experts as the highest form of cricket by their showing against a full strength England team.
However all was certainly not hunky dory in 2016. Several incidents of terrorism haunted the nation and Bangladesh reeled under some horrific and tragic incidents. The intelligence failure preceding the Gulshan cafe terror attack was glaring. Planning an attack like this would mean recce of multiple sites, selection of the assault team, coordination between multiple modules of the terror group, meaning a lot of extremist chatter on mobile and cyber space, unless the terrorists are using physical couriers for communication. Failure to pick up a lead in the run-up to such an attack is disappointing. It points to lack of intelligence penetration into jihadi network. However Bangladeshis being as resilient as ever bounced back from the setbacks. Bangladesh responded brilliantly to the crisis. After a quick review, the Bangladesh government decided on a full scale assault. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina proved herself to a decisive leader and authorised the para-commando assault without wasting time. And the great news is that the law enforcers being brave and vigilant ensured that the latter part of the year was free from the nefarious activities of extremist outfits.
Absolutely unfortunate were some communal incidents that took place allegedly under the patronage of local influential quarters. The attacks on dozens of Hindu temples and destruction of hundreds of Hindu houses in Nasirnagar alone were based on wild rumours about one local Hindu youths offensive Facebook posting against Islam. However, these are false flag operations to justify the attacks on local Hindus. The main motive of the attacks, as the National Human Rights Commission observes, was to grab Hindu property. While Hindu victims were licking their wounds in Brahmanbaria, Chittagong, Gopalganj, and Sunamganj villages, on November 6 some rowdy elementss allegedly with police and local ruling party MPs support attacked and killed two Santal Christians at Gobindapur in Gaibandha district in northern Bangladesh. Thousands of Santals lost movables, forced to flee the villages, and local police had arrest warrants for 300 Santals (who fled to avoid arrest) for resorting to violence. Thankfully though, the authorities took stern actions-albeit not promptly enough to alleviate the grievances of the victims.
According to most studies Bangladeshs progress has continued in 2016. The country has met the goals for poverty alleviation, increasing the rate of universal primary education, decreasing infant mortality and improving maternal health care. It is certainly noteworthy that a country beset with a burgeoning population has managed to meet the poverty alleviation goal years early. However vigilance must be maintained. Poverty in remote and char areas, income imbalance and less participation of women in economic activities, are the main challenges. These areas must be seriously addressed to tackle the challenge of overall economic development in the country.
2016 was also the year in Bangladesh, when everyone witnessed the power of the social media. Just toi give one example social media users came together after Sohagi Jahan Tonu, a second year student of History Department of Comilla Victoria College was found dead in a bush beside a culvert inside Comilla cantonment on March 20, 2016. The first autopsy report revealed she was not raped, however, subsequently; the body was exhumed again and sent for fresh autopsy. This mysterious death has given rise to wide spread criticism, and questions in social media by the netizens.
We hope that in the New Year we will see a consensus is reached among the political parties regarding the core issues of avoiding violence and fighting communalism. It is the economy that has to perform excellently to ensure the progress and prosperity we want our future generations to have. The year 2017 must be another powerful step towards that direction. Bangladesh is moving ahead surely and steadily. This year will be a testing time to see how long we can come near achieving what should be our major goal: the establishment of short, medium and long term political and economic stability that would ensure sustainable developments. Let us further strengthen our resolve on the first day of the New Year to build the nation and uphold what Bangladesh stands for.
The indestructible Bangladeshi spirit of optimism at the possibility of new beginnings will prove to be the antidote to any drawbacks in future. Surveys say that whatever their station in life, people are always most hopeful at this time of year. That eternal aspiration for betterment seems more acute now than ever.
The writer is an Assistant Editor of The Independent
