Afsan Chowdhury, October 25, 2019
Bangladesh is going through a truly exciting time as thrilling news hits the headlines every day. It’s like watching a TV serial where criminals with high political connections are caught daily. Those caught of course are those who have, for reasons unknown, had fallen foul of the powers-that-be and are now paying a steep price.
Rightly or wrongly, most people think that most powerful people in politics are into criminal activity. The big discovery was the string of illegal casinos run by ruling party bigwigs. Of course, many knew about them, but few said anything because it was known that those who ran it were the muscle providers who helped the ruling party control Dhaka city.
The collateral damage wrought by this criminal catching is the confirmation that power and corruption co-exist in Bangladesh. Some may have been caught but most have not been. The concept of the “honest politician” has been officially killed by these events though many politicians are kicking in protest. It was always there as an idea, which if expressed publicly before the crackdown, might have resulted in serious violence.
Public opinion
Even today, people are just spectators knowing that they control nothing. If the powers that be chose to crackdown on criminals even the privileged ones, that’s not a matter of the people’s will. They had been allowed to do what they had been doing for the last so many years. Actually, everything is up to the powers-that-be to decide.
Interest in politics is therefore not popular. People are, of course, keen to read about criminals getting caught and remanded. For the helpless denizens, there is vicarious pleasure here.
But people are smart enough to know from experience that what has not changed in 50 years will not change with a few fishes hooked. It’s the system that has got trapped.
Cricketers’ rebellion
Which is why the news of the rebellion by the national cricket players is interesting from many angles.
The great cricket rebellion
Bangladesh’s cricket players- literally all of them- have banded together and issued a 13 point charter of demands. They have said that till the demands are met, they will not play. This is a major crisis as in Bangladesh, cricket is far more important than national politics in which there is little interest except as a subject of gossip.
But cricket provides all the missing elements of hope, pride, angst, sense of ownership and of participation. Cricket also provides role models. No one in his or her right mind will think of a politician as a role model, but cricketers are the new Gods in a country short of deities. They fill the gap which politics and governance have created. So the cricketers’ strike is much more serious than catching a few thugs in politics.
The mother organization of cricket in Bangladesh is the Bangladesh Cricket Board and it is led by Nazmul Hasan Papon, a person very close to the Prime Minister. He also works for the Beximco Group which is also close to the PM as her advisors. Papon is generally considered the most powerful businessman in the country. Much of the ire is against Papon’s crony management system as well.
Various sports commentators and activists have said that Papon runs BCB along with his cronies like a private empire. Many are coming out with allegations. Papon is a bit weak at the moment because one of his closest BCB comrades is inside the jail as a result of the thug catching campaign.
Papon has denied any knowledge of the gambling business he is allegedly involved. However, from his initial bravado when he refused to talk to the players and threatened them, he has called for negotiations.
Weak impunity, happy people
Of course, the reason why the cricket crowd decided to strike was because of the current crackdown. Many of the powerful cronies are missing, many have been expelled from the ruling party, and most are disheartened. The loss of impunity has created a public space where many are being criticized and many feel they will be listened to much more than before.
So what is happening in cricket is a reflection of the loss of impunity enjoyed by some powerful people. Politics in Bangladesh is based on impunity. If it is weakened, it may threaten the political system that had emerged in Bangladesh over the last few decades