Whither Bangladesh

The present government and their supporters are so blinded by their hatred and suspicion of the Awami League and its motives that they see AL hand in every blast, including those directed against its own leaders. The leaflets found near the latest bombsites, the numerous reports of police arrests, the many eyewitness accounts are not enough to derail them from their line of thinking. They are so caught up in their zeal of protecting Bangladesh's image abroad that they are not willing to face any reality that may suggest otherwise.

In the Awami League way of thinking, the government must be involved in perpetrating every violent event, even though an average citizen is left to ponder how a party in power gains anything by destabilising its own government. While they themselves have been victims of violence, the knee-jerk anti-government reaction from the AL after each event makes it more unlikely that the real culprits will be pursued. By failing to recognise any distinction between different forces that comprise the present government and inflicting mindless hartals on the common people, the AL leadership has essentially ruled out a broader coalition against those who threaten the very fabric of our society.

The forces the society confronts today should alarm virtually every group.

With law enforcement capability of our government in tatters, it only takes a small group of fanatics like JMB, Bangla Bhai and their cadres to completely destabilise the society and make room for a violent revolution.

Today's targets are the NGOs, cinema halls, cultural institutions, journalists, Sufi shrines, Ahmadiyas and religious minorities. If these forces are unchecked, tomorrow's targets will also include mainstream Muslims who merely disagree with them.

With the memories of 1971 indelible in the mind of the older generation in

Bangladesh, there should be no illusion about those who are willing to murder and maim in the name of upholding religion.