AP News, January 11th, 2007
The president Thursday declared a state of emergency, stepped down as interim leader of Bangladesh's caretaker government and postponed this month's elections following violent protests by a key political alliance that has said it would boycott the vote.
President Iajuddin Ahmed said in a televised speech that the balloting, which had been scheduled for Jan. 22, would be delayed, and he did not give a new date.
"It's not possible to hold the elections on schedule. We need a flawless voter list to ensure that the elections are free, fair and credible," Ahmed said.
A new voter list had been among the key demands of a major political alliance that has orchestrated paralyzing protests and strikes in recent months, alleging Ahmed's administration favored its rivals and saying it would boycott the vote. Ahmed's removal as head of the caretaker government was the alliance's other main demand.
"I've decided to step down as the chief adviser of the caretaker government and I will, in a couple of days, appoint a new interim leader to hold an election in which all parties will be able to participate," Ahmed said in a televised speech.
In the meantime, one of his advisers, Fazlul Haque, would serve as the head of the caretaker government, he said.
Ahmed said he would remain Bangladesh's president, a largely ceremonial role.
The state of emergency raised concern in a country with a history of military rule. Two presidents had been slain and 19 other coup attempts failed in Bangladesh since it gained independence from Pakistan in 1971.
Under the constitution, the state of emergency suspends the fundamental rights of citizens.
The country's eight private television stations were told by the information ministry to suspend news programming and relay bulletins from state-run television, according to the stations' broadcasts.
"The restriction will be effective until further order from the ministry," Khairul Alam Mukul, a news editor at the private NTV television center told The Associated Press.
Indefinite night curfew was imposed for the capital, Dhaka, and more than 60 other cities and towns, state-run TV reported. The curfew will remain in force each night from 11 p.m. until dawn, the station reported, quoting an announcement from the president's office.
Troops had already been deployed for election duties.
The South Asian nation has been crippled by strikes and blockades orchestrated by former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her 19-party alliance that opposes the election. The alliance plans a series of strikes and blockades starting Sunday.
Hasina's alliance alleged that Ahmed's interim government, charged with holding the polls, favors her arch rival, former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia. The alliance demands Ahmed's resignation and a delay in the election to allow for reforms.
It has claimed that the voters' list for the election has flaws, including fake names. Other demands include the use of transparent ballot boxes and the removal of about 345 field-level election officials allegedly biased toward Zia.
Last month, the U.S.-based National Democratic Institute's Dhaka office said in a report that 10 million names on the current voting list were "errors" or duplications _ representing 13 percent of the country's 93 million voters.
The United Nations and the European Union election observation mission in Bangladesh have suspended election-related activities and support for the South Asian nation, citing lack of legitimacy of the balloting.
The European Union on Thursday recalled election observers from Bangladesh while the U.N. suspended all technical support for Bangladesh's polls, including its International Coordination Office in Dhaka.
"The political crisis in Bangladesh has severely jeopardized the legitimacy of the electoral process," U.N. spokeswoman Michele Montas said Wednesday in New York.
