Democracy in Bangladesh for strong foundation: former US diplomat

Dhaka, May 27 (UNI) Former US Ambassador William B Milam said the US relationship with Bangladesh stood even in a critical period of time and the ties would be better off if democratic system here was built upon a strong foundation.

''We want a stable Bangladesh, a stable democracy progressing socially, hopefully politically and economically,'' he said yesterday while delivering a talk on the US relationship with Bangladesh and South Asia.

Mr Milam said there were of course always concerns from Washington, particularly from the think-tanks, about the present situation in Bangladesh as to whether this is a 'disguised military takeover and disguised military rule', about human-right problems and civil-right abuses.

Mr Milam, a scholar at Woodrow Wilson Center in Washington, however, said he visualised from the mindset of general think-thank society in the US and elsewhere that there was a mood of wait and see to give this thing a chance to work it out.

Referring to his recent column, Mr Milam, who was Ambassador both in Bangladesh and Pakistan, said there was a choice here in Bangladesh between Turkish-model military intervention and a Pakistani model.

''But what I really mean is that a choice between a limited hierarchy in the democratic process while a more a stronger foundation and a better structure is built for democracy,'' he said.

He said if Bangladesh took the Pakistani model, then it would be a beginning of a military intervention that would last long. ''And if that becomes the case, then, I think, our relation will not be better off forth,'' he added.

Mr Milam observed that an attempt was being made to build up a solid foundation of democratic society on the ruins of a collapsed structure. ''If the experiment succeeds and a better democracy is built here, it will be certainly unique in a developing world and the world itself as it almost never happened before,'' he mentioned.

Because, he said, history of military intervention was always the end of military governments--and Bangladesh also had an experience about that, which had never been happy.

''So, in my view, we are at real critical period in the US relationship with Bangladesh, period when either there will be a revert into democratic system and relationship will go on as before or whether it doesn't work and the relationship turns somewhat less good,'' the US diplomat said.

He, however, hastened to add that at this point of time, the US is prepared for and hoping for a better relationship.

On the US concern about terrorism, the former Ambassador referred to the bombings by the Islamic JMB militants in 2005 to make them known loudly and said that Washington wanted to see a Bangladesh not going to be a haven for terrorists.

''We were worried for a while over the incident (blasts),'' he said, adding, ''we are worried now because we are aware of the growth of Islamism because there are some links between Islamism and religious terrorism.'' On Dhaka-Washington economic relations, he said Washington had pretty stable relationship on economic side and encouraged better economic policy and development which had been developing ever since 1975.

''I think our concerns about poverty and development have underlined whole time of our relationship.'' Mr Milan said.

UNI