[ad_1]
Sheikh Hasina’s son Sajib Wazed Joy on August 5 announced that his mother, the former Bangladeshi prime minister, will not return to politics. Joy’s remarks came hours after Hasina, Bangladesh’s longest-serving prime minister, resigned following massive protests and fled the country.
Hasina is the daughter of Bangladesh’s ‘Father of the Nation’ Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, who is credited with leading the country to independence from Pakistan in 1971. Rahman was Bangladesh’s first president.
Hasina’s 15-year rule ended after weeks of violent protests against her government. Twenty-four years ago, Hasina was part of a similar uprising on the streets of Bangladesh, demanding the return of democracy to the country.
1990s uprising
In March 1982, Bangladesh’s then Army Chief, Lieutenant General Hussain Muhammad Ershad, seized power in a bloodless coup by ousting President Abdus Sattar of the Bangladesh National Party (BNP).
Ershad founded the Jatiya Party in 1986. Bangladesh held elections for the first time since the 1982 coup. But the Jatiya Party won a majority and General Ershad remained president until 1990, when a massive pro-democracy uprising took place in the country.
The 1990 People’s Uprising, also known as the Anti-establishment Movement of 1990, was a protest movement that eventually led to the downfall of General Ershad. The protests began in October 1990 and lasted until December 1990. About a hundred people died during the protests.
Future Prime Ministers of Bangladesh, Khaleda Zia and Sheikh Hasina, were also part of the rebellion.
multi party alliance
On 19 November 1990 the BNP-led coalition, the Awami League-led coalition and the Left-led coalition prepared a joint manifesto of the three political party alliances.
The manifesto outlines the process for handing over the presidency from General Ershad to a civilian government. The political parties have demanded that a caretaker government take power before holding free and fair elections within 90 days of coming to power.
On 6 December 1980, General Ershad accepted the demands of the parties and submitted his resignation. General Ershad was eventually arrested on charges of corruption.
1991 Bangladesh election
The uprising paved the way for the 1991 general elections in Bangladesh. The BNP emerged as the largest party in Parliament, winning 140 of the 300 directly elected seats.
The BNP formed the government with the support of Jamaat-e-Islami and Khaleda Zia was sworn in as the first woman Prime Minister of Bangladesh.
In the following years, Zia and Hasina became political rivals. Hours after Hasina’s ouster, Bangladesh President Mohammad Shahabuddin ordered the release of jailed former prime minister and prominent opposition leader Khaleda Zia.
As it turns out, after Hasina resigned and fled the country on August 5, several reports, including one by the BBC, referred to her as a ‘pro-democracy icon turned dictator’.
[ad_2]
