Wishing everyone a peaceful and prosperous New Year

We are welcoming 2022 at a time when Bangladesh, along with the rest of the world, is still in the grip of the Covid-19 pandemic. Just as things were looking promising and we started to believe that the end of the pandemic was near there was the arrival of the potentially deadly Omicron variant of coronavirus. The pandemic has ravaged economies all around the globe and Bangladesh has been no exception. However Bangladeshis are a resilient lot and the country– braving all odds– is on the right track of development. While the last year was a tough one on several fronts there were signs of recovery in business, investment and livelihood from the economic turmoil resulted by the pandemic.

2021 was a special year for Bangladesh. The country celebrated the golden jubilee of its independence. It was also the birth centenary of the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. In spite of challenging circumstances it was a year when we celebrated our achievements in the last 50 years. This was also an occasion to reflect on the constraints and commit ourselves to expedite efforts to fulfil the unmet dreams. And in 2022 the nation should prepare itself for ensuring the establishment of the values that the nation fought for in 1971.

Democracy and freedom of expression are the ethos of this republic. Unfortunately democracy had a bumpy ride in this country. The powers that be must realise that democracy and development are not mutually exclusive concepts. As a matter of fact that the countries with most experience of democracy also experience the most stability. And as is widely known stability is one of the prerequisites of development. Unfortunately it is quite apparent that there is a lack of democratic space in this country. Bangladeshis, as a freedom loving people aspire for universal democratic practices. The government needs to create and sustain a wide enough space for people to raise their voices, having the ability to dissent and engage as equals with power holders.

Freedom of expression is a fundamental human right. And evidences galore that this most basic of rights–which reinforces all other human rights– has been stifled time and again. Many observers believe that that the Digital Security Act or DSA is a deeply flawed, if not an outright black law – with its lack of clarity overly broad definitions. There are allegations that DSA is being used indiscriminately to suppress dissenting voices. There must be room for dissent in a republic. Any elected government should be transparent about its actions and make them publicly available. The media must, without fear, be able to criticise the authorities and scrutinise their actions. The time has come for the government to make amendments to the Digital Security Act and ensure that it is in line with international human rights standards.

We want Bangladesh’s development to be equitable. Unfortunately inequality persists in this country and the gap between the rich and the poor is widening. Bangladesh is cited as a country producing a large number of billionaires. This obviously means that the country is achieving high economic growth but it also indicates that the growth is becoming increasingly unequal. Corruption is still endemic in Bangladesh. This is a governance issue and a key obstacle to sustainable and equitable development. To root out corruption and ensure sustainable development good governance is a must.

One of the government’s immediate concerns should be about meeting the challenges in the post-LDC era. Most of our trade competitors have already become part of one or more regional free trade arrangements. We need to follow suit.

We don’t want to be too critical of the government as the incumbents have achieved a lot. The country is now well placed to strive for a poverty free and advanced economy by 2041. The challenges are tough but not insurmountable. And Bangladesh is widely acclaimed for its ability to face tough challenges and emerging triumphant.

We take this opportunity to wish our readers, advertisers and patrons a very happy 2022.