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- #CARD:Bangladesh:Background Notes
- US DEPARTMENT OF STATE BACKGROUND NOTES: BANGLADESH
-
- October 1990
- Official Name: People's Republic of Bangladesh
-
- PROFILE
- Geography
- Area: 143,998 sq. km. (55,813 sq. mi., about the size of Wisconsin).
- Cities: Capital-Dhaka (pop. 5 million). Other cities-Chittagong (1.8
- million), Khulna (1.2 million), Rajshahi (700,000). Terrain: Mainly
- flat alluvial plain, with hills in the north. Climate: Semitropical,
- monsoon.
- People
-
- Nationality: Noun and adjective-Bangladeshi(s). Population (1990):
- 112 million. Annual growth rate: 2.4%. Ethnic groups: Bengali 98%,
- tribals, non-Bengali Muslims. Religions: Muslim 85%; Hindu 14%;
- Christian, Buddhist, others 1%. Languages: Bangla (official, also
- known as Bengali), English. Education (1985): Attendance-60% (primary
- school), 20% (secondary school). Literacy-29% for males; 18% for
- females. Health: Infant mortality rate (1987)-11.3%. Life
- expectancy-55 yrs. Work force (1987-88, 33.3 million).
- Agriculture-59%. Industry-11%. Services-30%.
- Government
- Type: Presidential/parliamentary. Independence (in present form):
- 1971. Constitution: 1972 (as amended).
- Branches: Executive-president, elected by popular vote; (future vice
- presidents also will be elected by popular vote according to recent
- constitutional amendment) prime minister appointed by president.
- Legislative-unicameral parliament (300 members). Judicial-civil court
- system on British model.
- Administrative subdivisions: Divisions, districts subdistricts, unions,
- upazilas, villages.
- Political parties: 30-40 active political parties; 4 represented in
- current parliament.
- Suffrage: Universal over 18.
- Flag: Red circle on dark green field.
- Economy GDP (Bangladesh FY 1988-89): $20.2 billion. Real annual growth
- rate (1988-89): 2.3%. Per capita GDP (BFY 1988-89): $180.
- Natural resources: Natural gas, inexpensive labor.
- Agriculture (43% of BFY 1988-89 GDP): Products-rice, jute, tea, sugar,
- wheat. Land-cultivable area cropped at rate of 153%; largely
- subsistence farming heavily dependent on monsoonal rainfall.
- Industry* (14% of BFY 1988-89 GDP): Types-jute goods, garments, frozen
- shrimp and frog legs, textiles, fertilizer, sugar, tea, leather, metal
- reprocessing, pharmaceuticals, newsprint.
- Trade: Merchandise exports (BFY 1988-89)-$1.23 billion: ready-made
- garments, jute goods, leather, frozen fish, shrimp, raw jute, tea.
- Exports to US (1988)-$325 million. Merchandise imports (BFY
- 1988-89)-$3.37 billion: capital goods, foodgrains, petroleum, consumer
- goods, fertilizer, chemicals, vegetable oils, textiles. Imports from US
- (1988)-$325 million. Net private transfers (BFY 1988-89)-$836 million
- (est.), primarily from Bangladeshi workers in the Middle East.
- Fiscal year: July 1 through June 30.
- Official exchange rate: Taka 35= US$1.
-
- Membership in International Organizations
- UN and many of its specialized related agencies, including the World
- Bank, International Monetary Fund (IMF), General Agreement on Tariffs
- and Trade (GATT), International Labor Organization (ILO), Universal
- Postal Union (UPU), International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA),
- International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), International
- Development Association (IDA), World Health Organization (WHO); Asian
- Development Bank (ADB), Afro-Asia Peoples Solidarity Organization;
- Colombo Plan; Commonwealth; ESCAP, Group of 77; International Jute
- Organization (IJO), INTELSAT; Nonaligned Movement (NAM); Organization of
- the Islamic Conference (OIC); South Asia Association for Regional
- Cooperation (SAARC).
-
- GEOGRAPHY
- Bangladesh is a low-lying, riverine country located in South Asia with
- a marshy jungle coastline of 600 kilometers (370 mi.) on the northern
- littoral of the Bay of Bengal. Formed by a deltaic plain at the
- confluence of the Ganges (Padma), Brahmaputra (Jamuna), and Meghna
- Rivers, as well as their tributaries, Bangladesh's alluvial soil is
- extremely fertile but vulnerable to flood and drought. The land is
- devoted largely to rice and jute cultivation, although other crops such
- as wheat and tea are becoming increasingly important. Hills rise above
- the plain only in the Chittagong Hill Tracts in the extreme southeast
- and the Sylhet District in the northeast.
- Bordered on three sides by India, and on the east by about 193
- kilometers (120 mi.) of Burma, Bangladesh's irregular border, some 2,400
- kilometers long, is not based on any natural feature. Instead, it
- represents a demarcation according to the political and communal
- considerations of the 1947 partition of British India.
- Located on the Tropic of Cancer, Bangladesh has a semitropical
- monsoonal climate, with one of the world's highest annual rainfalls,
- averaging as much as 215 centimeters (85 in.) in the northeast. The
- average temperature is 29 C (84 F), with some mild seasonal variation.
- East-west travel is impeded by river courses, and since much of the
- country is partially submerged or subject to flooding during the rainy
- season, travel can be difficult, often requiring boats.
-
- PEOPLE
- Bangladesh, or "Bengal Nation," is the most densely populated
- agricultural country in the world. With a per capita gross domestic
- product of $180 (1987-88), it also is one of the poorest. Bangladesh's
- 112 million people are concentrated in an area about the size of
- Wisconsin. Its population growth rate currently is estimated at 2.4%
- annually; a conservative estimate projects a population of 141 million
- by the year 2000. At present, 40% of the population is under 15 years
- of age. Although urbanization is proceeding rapidly, some 85% of the
- people still live in rural areas, and most are farmers. Estimates show
- that only 30% of the population entering the labor force in the future
- will be absorbed into agriculture, although many will likely find other
- kinds of work in rural areas. The areas around the capital city, Dhaka,
- and around Comilla are the most densely settled. The Sundarbans, an
- area of thick tropical jungle inland from the coastline on the Bay of
- Bengal, and the Chittagong Hill Tracts on the southeastern border with
- Burma and India are the least densely populated.
- Residents of Bangladesh, about 98% of whom are ethnic Bengali and speak
- Bangla, are called Bangladeshis.
- Urdu-speaking, non-Bengali Muslims of Indian origin-Assamese, those
- often referred to as "Biharis", (or stranded Pakistanis) and various
- tribal groups, mostly in the Chittagong Hill Tract, comprise the
- remainder. Most Bangladeshis (about 85%) are Muslims, but Hindus
- constitute a sizable (14%) minority, including those who work on tea
- estates. There also are a small number of Buddhists, Christians, and
- animists. English is spoken in urban areas and among the educated.
-
- HISTORY
- The area that now is Bangladesh has a rich historical and cultural
- past, the product of the repeated influx of varied peoples, bringing
- with them the Dravidian, Indo-Aryan, Mongol/Mughul Arab, Persian,
- Turkic, and West European cultures. About A.D. 1200, Muslim invaders,
- under Sufi influence, supplanted previously existing Hindu and Buddhist
- dynasties, resulting in the conversion of most of the population of the
- eastern areas of Bengal to Islam and leaving a strong Muslim minority in
- the areas of Bengal that currently are part of India. Since then, Islam
- has played a crucial role in the region's history and politics. In the
- 16th century, Bengal was absorbed into the Mughul Empire, and Dhaka, the
- seat of a Nawab, or the representative of the emperor, gained some
- importance as a provincial center. Bengal, however, especially the
- section east of the Brahmaputra, remained a remote, difficult-to-govern
- region, outside the mainstream of Mughul politics.
- Portuguese traders and missionaries were the first Europeans to reach
- Bengal, in the latter part of the 15th century. They were followed by
- representatives of the Dutch, the French, and the British East India
- Companies. By the end of the 17th century, the British presence was
- centered on the trading "factories" along the Hooghly River in Calcutta,
- but during the 18th and 19th centuries, especially after the defeat of
- the French in 1757, the British gradually extended commercial contacts
- and administrative control beyond Calcutta, into the remainder of Bengal
- and northwesterly up the Ganges River valley. In 1859, the British
- Crown replaced the East India Company, and the British raj, still
- centered in the Writers Building in Calcutta, extended all the way to
- the Indus River in the west.
- The late 19th century witnessed the rise of the nationalist movement
- throughout British India, but this quickly gave birth to mounting
- antagonisms between the vast Hindu and Muslim communities, as each
- community gained confidence and sought a solution to its nationalist
- aspirations most compatible with its own vision of the future. In 1885,
- the All-India National Congress was founded with mixed Indian and
- British membership, but by 1906, Muslims sought an organization of
- their own not dominated by the Hindu majority, founding the All-India
- Muslim League in Dhaka. In 1909, at league urging, the British
- authorities provided for separate electorates for the Hindu and Muslim
- communities throughout British India. This period also saw the
- short-lived division of Bengal into eastern and western sectors, a move
- welcomed by many Muslims but opposed by many in the Hindu community.
- This dispute and the 1911 reintegration of Bengal contributed greatly to
- Bengali and Muslim political awareness.
- The subsequent history of the nationalist movement was characterized by
- periods of Hindu-Muslim cooperation as well as communal antagonism and
- bloodshed, but communal tensions hardened in the post-World War I
- period, following the introduction of provincial-style governments under
- the Government of India Act of 1919 and the adoption by the congress of
- its demand for self-government in 1929. By the late 1930s the congress
- and the League had become strong opposing political forces, even more so
- after the abortive elections of 1937, which underscored to the Muslims
- that self-government in a post-British India would relegate most Muslims
- to Hindu domination. Philosophically, this led to the development of
- the so-called "two-nation" theory, which held that the Muslims of the
- subcontinent constituted another "nation" and must have a homeland
- separate from that of the Hindus.
- The formal political embodiment of this theory took place in Lahore in
- 1940 when the All-India Muslim League passed a resolution declaring that
- "the areas in which the Muslims are numerically in the majority, as in
- the northwestern and eastern zones of India, should be grouped to
- constitute 'independent states' in which the constituent units should be
- autonomous and sovereign." The Muslin League, campaigning on a Pakistan
- platform, won the majority of the Muslim seats contested in Bengal in
- the 1946 provincial elections. Widespread communal violence followed,
- especially in Calcutta, and when British India was partitioned and the
- independent dominions of India and Pakistan were created in 1947, Bengal
- was again divided. East Pakistan was carved from the preponderantly
- Muslim east Bengal and the Sylhet District of Assam, while predominantly
- Hindu western Bengal became the Indian state of West Bengal. Extensive
- demographic and economic dislocation followed.
-
- Movement for Autonomy
- Almost from the advent of independent Pakistan in 1947, frictions
- developed between its two halves, east and west Pakistan, which were
- separated by more than 1,600 kilometers (1,000 mi.) of India territory.
- The economic dislocation brought on by partition accentuated economic
- grievances-real and apparent-and over time these became a major cause of
- dissatisfaction in East Pakistan, whose citizens felt exploited by the
- West Pakistan-dominated central government in Karachi. East Pakistan
- was poorer than West Pakistan, and a slower rate of economic development
- increased the gap. Many East Pakistanis felt they had merely shifted
- colonial rulers, contributing their jute earnings-Pakistan's primary
- hard-currency earner-to the national exchequer but receiving little in
- return. Government policies favored the west wing; the concentration of
- the elite of the Pakistan Movement in West Pakistan and the west wing's
- burgeoning economic opportunities, moreover, focused the bulk of
- investment there.
- Linguistic, cultural, and ethnic differences also were important in the
- estrangement of East from West Pakistan. Bengalis strongly resisted
- attempts to impose Urdu as the sole official language of Pakistan.
- (Urdu, the language of Muslims of the Gangetic heartland, was brought to
- West Pakistan by the leaders of the Pakistan movement when they migrated
- from India after partition in 1947; Urdu was not native to any region in
- what became Pakistan.) Pro-Bengali sentiment, supported by a rich
- cultural and literary heritage in Bengali and fanned into violence in
- pro-Bengali/anti-Urdu demonstrations by university students in 1952,
- played a key role in the growth of a new Bengali nationalism and ensured
- Bengali co-equal status with Urdu as an official language of the united
- country.
- The failure of constitutional rule in East Pakistan in 1954, the
- subsequent impositions of presidential rule there and later of martial
- law in both wings, coupled with the subsequent decision to transform the
- West Pakistan polity into one province-i.e., "one unit," so as to
- balance out East Pakistan's provincial plurality (and latent majority),
- added a political dimension to the growing sense of estrangement in the
- east and of impatience in the west.
- Even with national political leadership shared between East and West
- Pakistanis, disparities between the two wings' shares of representation
- in the military and civil services also caused growing resentment and
- gave further impetus in the east to the movement for provincial
- autonomy. As early as 1949, this movement was reflected politically by
- the formation of the Awami League, a party designed mainly to promote
- Bengali interests. After Gen. Ayub Khan took control of the country in
- 1958, resentment grew, as the nation's political leadership increasingly
- became dominated not by the Urdu-speaking "muhajirs," who had led the
- Pakistan movement and migrated to West Pakistan from India, but rather
- by those who were Punjabi speakers and called West Pakistan their
- traditional home.
- In 1966, the president of the Awami League, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, who
- was known widely as "Mujib" and had emerged as leader of the autonomy
- movement, was arrested for his political activities. His six-point
- program providing for political and economic autonomy for East Pakistan
- gained wide appeal in the east but was rejected by most elements of West
- Pakistani opinion. However, Bengali opinion coalesced around Mujib and
- his program in the campaign against the policies of Ayub Khan's central
- government.
- As the campaign grew, violence mounted in East Pakistan, and in 1969,
- faced with student unrest in West Pakistan as well, Ayub Khan stepped
-
- down after 11 years in office. He was replaced by Gen. Yahya Khan,
- former commander of East Pakistan's military garrison, who vowed to
- return the nation to democratic civilian rule and to draft a new
- constitution granting considerable autonomy to both the east and west
- wings. In the 1970-71 elections, Mujib's Awami League won more than 70%
- of the Bengali popular vote and 167 of 169 seats allotted to East
- Pakistan in the proposed 313-seat National Assembly, which would sit
- alternately in the east and west wings. It also won 288 of 300 seats in
- the planned East Pakistan Assembly.
- The unexpectedly strong showing of the Awami League jolted the national
- leadership and was followed by negotiations among political leaders in
- East and West Pakistan. However, the talks were unable to bridge
- differences over fundamental constitutional questions relating to the
- division of power between the central government and the provinces, and
- on March 1, 1971, Yahya Khan indefinitely postponed the pending National
- Assembly session. This precipitated massive civil disobedience in East
- Pakistan, and when efforts at negotiation failed anew, the army was
- called out to suppress Bengali dissidence by force. Mujib was again
- arrested in March; his party was banned, and most of his aides fled to
- India, where they organized a provisional government. On March 26,
- 1971, following the Pakistan army crackdown, Bengali nationalist
- declared an independent People's Republic of Bangladesh. As open
- fighting grew between the army and the Bengali Mukti Bahini (freedom
- fighters), an estimated 10 million Bengalis, mainly Hindus, sought
- refuge in the Indian states of Assam and West Bengal; within East
- Pakistan itself, countless thousands more were displaced.
- The evolving crisis in East Pakistan, moreover, produced new strains in
- Pakistan's troubled relations with India. The two nations had fought a
- war in 1965, concentrated mainly in the west, but the refugee pressure
- in India in the fall of 1971 produced new tensions in the east, with
- Indian sympathies on the side of East Pakistan. Despite appeals from
- third parties for restraint, open hostilities erupted between Pakistani
- and Indian forces in November, and India intervened on the side of the
- Bangladeshis. The battle was over in less than a month, when, on
- December 16, 1971, Pakistani forces surrendered and the new nation of
- Bangladesh was born.
-
- GOVERNMENT AND POLITICAL CONDITIONS
- The provisional government of the new nation was formed in Dhaka, and
- when Mujib was released from detention in Pakistan in early January
- 1972, it was reconstituted with Justice Abu Sayeed Choudhury as
- president and Sheikh Mujibur Rahman as prime minister.
- Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Mujib came to office with immense personal
- popularity but had difficulty quickly transforming this popular support
- into the political strength necessary to function effectively as head of
- government. The new constitution, which came into force in December
- 1972, created a strong executive prime ministership, an independent
- judiciary, and a unicameral legislature on a modified Westminster model;
- more importantly, it enunciated as state policy the Awami League's four
- basic principles-nationalism, secularism, socialism, and democracy.
- Parliamentary elections under the new constitution were first held in
- March 1973, with the Awami League winning a massive majority. The
- League continued as a mass movement, espousing the cause that brought
- Bangladesh into being and representing disparate and often incoherent
- elements under the banner of Bangla nationalism. No other political
- party in Bangladesh's early years was able to duplicate or challenge its
- broad-based appeal, membership, or organizational strength.
- Relying heavily on experienced civil servants and members of the Awami
- League, the new Bangladesh Government focused on relief, rehabilitation,
- and reconstruction of the country's war-ravaged economy and society.
- Economic conditions remained tenuous, however, and food and health
- difficulties continued to be endemic. In December 1974, Mujib
- determined that continuing economic deterioration and mounting civil
- disorder required strong measures; he proclaimed a state of emergency
- and, a month later, used his parliamentary majority to amend the
- constitution to limit the powers of the legislative and judicial
- branches, to establish an executive presidency, and to institute a
- one-party system. Calling these changes the "Second Revolution," Mujib
- assumed the presidency, and all political parties were dissolved except
- a single new party, the Bangladesh Krishak Sramik Awami League (BAKSAL),
- which all members of parliament were obliged to join.
- Despite some improvement in the economic situation during the first
- half of 1975, implementation of promised political reforms was slow, and
- criticism of government policies became increasingly centered on Mujib.
- In August 1975, Mujib was assassinated by mid-level army officers, and a
- new government, headed by former Mujib associate Khandakar Moshtaque,
- was formed. Successive military coups occurred on November 3 and 7,
- resulting in the emergence of Gen. Ziaur Rahman, Chief of Army Staff,
- as strongman. He pledged the army's support to the civilian government
- headed by the president, Chief Justice Sayem. Acting at Zia's behest,
- Sayem then promulgated martial law, naming himself Chief Martial Law
- Administrator (CMLA), instituting a council of advisers to replace of
- the cabinet, dissolving parliament, and promising new elections in 1977.
- Ziaur Rahman Acting behind the scenes of the Martial Law
- Administration, (MLA), Ziaur Rahman sought to invigorate government
- policy and administration. While continuing the ban on political
- parties, he sought to revitalize the demoralized bureaucracy, to begin
- new economic development programs, and to emphasize family planning. In
- July 1976, the MLA permitted the reorganization of political parties
- under strict government guidance, but before active campaigning for the
- parliamentary elections scheduled for February 1977 could begin,
- elections were again postponed, purportedly because of border troubles
- with India and the proliferation of political parties.
- In November 1976, Zia assumed the post of CMLA, and in April 1977 he
- further consolidated his authority by assuming the presidency upon the
- retirement of President Sayem. He promised national elections by
- December 1978. As president, Zia announced a 19-point program of
- economic reform, which subsequently received an overwhelmingly favorable
- vote in a nationwide referendum. Later that year, he began dismantling
- the MLA and, in early 1978, met with various political leaders to form a
- broad-based political front. In the June presidential elections, Zia
- was supported by a coalition of centrist parties, with some support on
- the left as well. His main opponent, retired Gen. Osmani, a former
- cabinet member and commander of the Mukti Bahini in 1971, drew support
- from a rival political front consisting of the Awami League and several
- small leftist parties.
- Benefiting from his reputation for vigorous leadership and from public
- satisfaction with domestic stability and stable food prices, Zia won a
- 5-year term in the June 1978 elections with 76% of the vote. In
- November 1978, his government removed the remaining restrictions on
- political parties activities and encouraged opposition parties to
- participate in the pending parliamentary elections. More than 30
- parties vied in the parliamentary elections of February 1979, but only
- four won a significant number of seats. Zia's Bangladesh Nationalist
- Party (BNP) won 207 of the 300 elected seats.
- This election marked the end of Zia's transformation of the MLA to a
- democratically elected, constitutional government. The constitution was
- again amended to provide for an executive prime minister appointed by
- the president and responsible to a parliamentary majority. The
- presidency retained considerable emergency powers and continued to head
- the cabinet but was no longer able to veto any bill passed by the
- parliament.
- The Zia period came to a sudden end in Chittagong in May 1981 when he
- was assassinated by dissident elements of the military. The attempted
- coup, which never spread beyond that city, failed, and the major
- conspirators were either taken into custody or killed. In accordance
- with the constitution, Vice President Justice Abdus Sattar was sworn in
- as acting president. He declared a new national emergency and called
- for election of a new president within 6 months. In those election,
- held in November, Justice Sattar, running as the BNP's candidate, was
- elected president, defeating Awami League contender Kamal Hossain and
- several others. President Sattar sought to follow the policies of his
- predecessor and retained essentially the same cabinet; his
- administration was ineffective, however, and the army resumed its former
- role as arbiter of the nation's fortunes. After considerable
- hesitation, the Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. H.M. Ershad, assumed power
- in a bloodless coup in March 1982.
- Hussain Mohammed Ershad Like his predecessors, Ershad dissolved
- parliament, declared martial law, assumed the position of CMLA,
- suspended the constitution, and banned political activity. As reasons
- for the army takeover, he cited pervasive corruption, ineffectual
- government, and economic mismanagement. Ershad reaffirmed Bangladesh's
- moderate, nonaligned foreign policy and said he aimed to cleanse the
- country of corruption, revitalize the economy through increased private
- sector activity, decentralize and streamline the bureaucracy, reform the
- legal system, and lay the foundation for a return to democratic
- institutions.
- In December 1983, Ershad assumed the presidency, while retaining his
- positions as army chief and CMLA. During most of 1984, Ershad sought
- the opposition parties' agreement to participate in a series of local
- elections leading up to national polls. Because the opposition refused
- to participate in any election while martial law remained in place,
- Ershad set aside previously announced elections plans. Throughout the
- period, there was an ebb and flow in the application of martial law
- regulations, as Ershad sought a formula for elections while dealing with
- potential threats to public order.
- Unwilling to relax martial law until a new constitutional system would
- be in place, Ershad attempted to move the electoral process forward by
- seeking public support for his regime in a national referendum on his
- leadership on March 21, 1985. He won overwhelmingly, although the
- turnout was small. Two months later, Ershad persevered in the face of
- opposition to hold elections for upazila (country-like administrative
- units) council chairmen. Progovernment candidates won a majority of the
- posts, setting in motion the president's ambitious decentralization
- program.
- Political life was further liberalized in late 1985 as Ershad pursued
- his plan to hold national elections; and on January 1, 1986, full
- political rights, including the right to hold large public rallies, were
- restored. At the same time, the Jatiyo (People's) Party, designed as
- Ershad's political vehicle for the transition from martial law, was
- established.
- New negotiations with opposition parties bore fruit when the Awami
- League-led by Sheikh Hasina Wajed, daughter of the slain Sheikh Mujibur
- Rahman-agreed to take part in parliamentary elections rescheduled for
- May. Although the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), led by President
- Zia's widow, Begum Khaleda Zia, declined to participate, the agreement
- by the AL and a number of other parties to campaign gave the process the
- credibility Ershad had long sought. Elections were held on schedule.
- The 300 elected seats of the National Assembly were filled, with the
- Jatiyo and its allies winning a modest majority and the opposition
- electing 122 members-the most in Bangladesh's history-despite widespread
- charges of voting irregularities, according to opposition leaders and
- the foreign press.
- The new National Assembly held a short session in July. The Awami
- League and its allies boycotted the session in protest against the
- alleged election irregularities and because martial law was still then
- in effect. Following by-elections in August, and in preparation for the
- scheduled presidential elections in October, Ershad resigned as Chief of
- Army Staff and retired from military service. Neither the BNP nor the
- AL put up an opposing candidate in the October election-again because of
- the continuation of martial law. Ershad easily outdistanced the
- remaining field of 11 candidates, taking 84% of the vote. Controversy
- again dogged the event, with Ershad's government claiming a turnout of
- more than 50% and opposition leaders and much of the foreign press
- estimating a far lower percentage and alleging new irregularities.
- Ershad, however, continued his commitment to lift martial law. On
- November 10, 1986, with the support of 30 appointive seats reserved for
- women and a number of independents who joined his ruling party, his
- government mustered the necessary two-thirds majority in the National
- Assembly to amend the constitution and confirm the previous actions of
- the martial law regime. The amendment also held the leaders of that
- regime legally blameless for their actions. Later the same day, the
- president lifted martial law, after which the opposition parties took
- their elected seats in the National Assembly.
- In July 1987, however, after the government hastily pushed through a
- controversial legislative bill to include military representation on
- local administrative councils, the opposition walked out of parliament
- in protest. Passage of this bill helped spark an opposition movement
- that quickly gathered momentum and that united Bangladesh's opposition
- parties for the first time. The movement was aimed at forcing Ershad
- from office through popular demonstrations and widespread street
- agitation. In October 1987, the government began to arrest scores of
- opposition activists under the Special Powers Act of 1974 after
- opposition plans to paralyze the government with massive crowds became
- known. Despite these arrests, the opposition parties continued to
- organize protest marches, processions, rallies, and nationwide strikes.
- On November 27, 1987, Ershad declared a state of emergency. On December
- 6, he dissolved Parliament following the resignation of one opposition
- party and a vote by the Awami League Presidium to follow suit. Citing
- constitutional imperative, Ershad scheduled new parliamentary elections
- for March 3, 1988.
- All major opposition parties refused government overtures to
- participate in these elections and maintained that the government was
- incapable of holding free and fair elections. Throughout this
- politically tumultuous period, the most serious challenge to his
- leadership of Bangladesh since assuming power, Ershad steadfastly
- refused to accede to opposition demands that he resign. The military
- backed him, and its continued support was critical to Ershad's ability
- to withstand opposition pressures. Despite the opposition boycott, the
-
- government proceeded with the March 3 polls. The ruling Jatiyo Party
- won 251 of the 300 seats; three other political parties which did
- participate, as well as a number of independent candidates, shared the
- remaining seats. On April 25, 1988, shortly after Ershad lifted the
- state of emergency, Bangladesh's fourth parliament opened for its first
- session.
- In the face of its failure to unseat Ershad, the opposition's fragile
- unity showed increasing signs of strain. Political rivalries and
- suspicions, never far from the surface, came increasingly to the fore.
- In addition, the severity and unprecedented scope of the floods that
- struck Bangladesh in the fall of 1988 served to distract national
- attention away from political concerns. The floods probably effectively
- quelled any opposition hopes to revive the anti-Ershad movement during
- Bangladesh's traditional "political season", i.e., the dry winter
- months. The government's well-managed flood relief efforts and its
- ability to prevent mass starvation through its food security system
- earned it, at least short-term political benefits.
- By early 1989, although there were no signs of a government-opposition
- accommodation, the domestic political situation in the country had
- quietened considerably. The parliament, while still regarded by the
- opposition as an illegitimate body, held its sessions as scheduled and
- passed a large number of legislative bills, including, in June 1988, a
- controversial amendment making Islam Bangladesh's state religion.
- Upazila elections held in March 1990 were observed by domestic and
- international observers and generally considered to have been less
- violent and more free and fair than previous elections. Presidential
- elections are due between April and October 1991, and parliamentary
- elections are due before March 1993.
-
- Principal Government Officials
- President (head of state) and Defense Minister-Hussain Mohammad Ershad
- Vice President-Moudud Ahmed
- Prime Minister-Kazi Zafar Ahmed
- Foreign Minister-Anisul Islam Mahmud
- Chief Justice of the Supreme Court-Shahabuddin Ahmed
- Ambassador to the United States-A.H.S. Ataul Karim
- Ambassador to the United Nations-A.H.G. Mohiudin
-
- Bangladesh maintains an embassy in the United States at 2201 Wisconsin
- Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20007 (tel. 202-342-8372) and a consulate
- general at the Bangladesh Mission to the United Nations, 821 UN Plaza,
- New York, NY 10017 (tel. 212-867-3434).
-
- ECONOMY
- As one of the world's poorest and most densely populated countries,
- Bangladesh must struggle constantly to produce domestically and import
- from abroad enough food to feed its rapidly increasing population. Its
- predominantly agricultural economy depends heavily on an erratic
- monsoonal cycle, which leads to periodic flooding and drought. Although
- improving, Bangladesh's transportation, communications, and power
- infrastructure is poorly developed. Except for an estimated 17 trillion
- cubic feet of proven natural gas reserves (which meets two-thirds of
- Bangladesh's commercial energy needs), coal reserves estimated at 250
- million metric tons in the northwest, and the possibility of oil
- reserves, Bangladesh has virtually no mineral resources. Its industrial
- base is weak, but unskilled labor is inexpensive and plentiful.
- Following the climactic events of 1971, Bangladesh, with the help of
- massive infusions of donor relief and development aid, slowly began to
- turn its attention again to developing new industrial capacity and
- rehabilitating its economy. The statist economic model adopted by its
- early (Pakistani and Bangladeshi) leadership, however, including the
- nationalization of the key jute industry, had resulted in inefficiency
- and economic stagnation. Beginning in 1975, the government gradually
- gave greater scope to private sector participation in the economy, a
- pattern that has continued. Included was the privatization of 32 state
- enterprises. Rapid population growth, inefficiency in the public
- sector, and restricted natural resources and capital, however, have
- continued to dampen the economy.
- Nonetheless, in the mid-1980s there were encouraging, if halting, signs
- of progress. Economic policies aimed at encouraging private enterprise
- and investment, denationalizing public industries (including jute,
- textiles, and banking), reinstating budgetary discipline, and
- liberalizing the import regime were accelerated. In 1985, the
- government also began a economic structural adjustment program with the
- International Monetary Fund.
- Currently, 650 public sector enterprises have been denationalized, and
- only 40% of all industrial assets is still publicly owned. Macroeconomic
- indicators began to respond positively; in the last several years, real
- growth in gross domestic product has been consistently more than 3.5%
- (except for years of severe flooding); export oriented industries
- (garments, shrimp,) developed in the private sector have become
- impressive success stories; agricultural and industrial production has
- risen. Larger donors, led by the World Bank, have supported the
- government's policies to encourage these trends.
-
- Agriculture
- Most Bangladeshis earn their living directly or indirectly from
- agriculture. Rice and jute are the primary crops, wheat is assuming
- greater importance, and tea is grown in hilly regions of the northeast.
- Because of Bangladesh's fertile soil and normally ample water supply,
- rice can be grown and harvested three times a year in many areas.
- Through better flood control and irrigation measures, more intensive use
- of fertilizers and high-yielding seed varieties, increased price
- incentives, and improved distribution and rural credit networks,
- Bangladesh's labor-intensive agricultural sector has achieved a pattern
- of steady increases in foodgrain production, despite often unfavorable
- weather conditions. Foodgrain output reached a record level of (16.5)
- million tons in (1986), and almost that high again in 1987, despite a
- very serious flood. Production for 1988-89 is expected to be about the
- same despite another even more extensive flood. Even so, rice yields
- per hectare are among the lowest in Asia.
- Population pressure continues to put an immense burden on productive
- capacity, confronting the government with a small but seemingly chronic
- food deficit, especially of wheat, which must be overcome through
- foreign assistance and commercial imports. Slight variations in
- rainfall can mean the difference between severe shortage and relative
- sufficiency. Moreover, jute, which historically has accounted for the
- bulk of Bangladesh's export receipts, faces an uncertain future due to
- competition from synthetic substitutes. Fisheries, particularly shrimp,
- have become increasingly more important sources of export earnings.
- Underemployment remains a serious problem, and a growing concern for
- Bangladesh's agricultural sector will be its ability to absorb
- additional manpower. Finding alternative sources of employment is a
- continuing challenge, particularly for the increasing numbers of
- landless peasants who already account for about half the rural labor
- force.
-
- Industry
- Industrial development has been a priority for successive Bangladesh
- governments. Although small, the industrial sector contributes
- significantly to export receipts; it also provides employment and a
- market for cash crops. Jute products-mainly burlap sacking and carpet
- backing for export-and cotton textiles for domestic consumption
- predominate. Production of ready-made garments for export to the US
- market, begun in the early 1980's in response to the imposition of
- quotas on major East and Southeast Asian producers, has grown rapidly.
- Bangladesh is the fourth largest supplier of cotton apparel to the
- United States and has begun to diversify its garment exports away from
- the North American market to the West European market. Shipbreaking,
- using methods that are highly labor-intensive, has developed to the
- point where it now meets most of Bangladesh's domestic steel needs.
- Other industries include sugar, tea, leather goods, newsprint,
- pharmaceuticals, and fertilizer production, which uses Bangladesh's
- natural gas. The industrial (and foreign exchange) impact of the
- discovery of modest reserves of oil in late 1986 remains to be assessed;
- drilling has just recently begun.
- The Ershad government has sought to increase industrial growth by
- removing barriers to private sector participation in economic
- development, providing incentives to domestic and foreign private
- investors, and denationalizing public sector industrial units and banks.
- Key to this change in policy was the denationalization of about half of
- the public sector's jute looms, one-third of its cotton textile looms, a
- number of other industrial units, and several banks. In addition,
- several new private sector banks have been established.
- The government continues to court foreign investment assiduously. To
- this end, the United States and Bangladesh signed a bilateral investment
- treaty in March 1986 that took effect July 25, 1989. Bangladesh also
- has established an export processing zone (EPZ) in Chittagong and plans
- to create additional zones elsewhere in the country. The Bangladesh
- Government has initiated a new, more liberal overall investment policy,
- offering special incentives to potential investors. In January 1989,
- the government inaugurated a new Board of Investment to simplify
- approval and start up procedures for Foreign Investors.
-
- Aid and Trade
- Since independence in 1971, Bangladesh has received more that $22.5
- billion in grant aid and loan commitments from foreign donors, about $15
- billion of which has actually been disbursed. Major donors include the
- World Bank, the Asian Development Bank, the UN Development Program, the
- United States, Japan, Saudi Arabia, and a number of West European
- countries. Aid from communist countries is only about 4% of total aid
- pledged. As of 1990, the United States has provided more than $3.97
- billion in food and development assistance to Bangladesh. Food aid
- under Titles I, II, and III of PL-480 (Food for Peace) has been designed
- to help Bangladesh meet minimum food requirements, promote food
- production, and moderate fluctuation in consumer prices. Other US
- development assistance emphasizes family planning and health,
- agricultural development, and rural employment. The United States works
- with other donors and the Bangladesh Government to avoid duplication and
- ensure that resources are used to maximum benefit.
- Bangladesh historically has run a large trade deficit, approximately
- $1.5 billion in the past several years. This has been financed largely
- through aid receipts. In fiscal year (FY) 1987-88, the amount remitted
- back to Bangladesh from expatriates working abroad, mainly in the Middle
- East, became Bangladesh's largest source of foreign exchange earnings
- for the first time.
- With the exception of 1988-89 when aircraft purchase made the trade
- balance even, the US trade balance with Bangladesh has been negative
- since 1986, due largely to mushrooming imports of ready-made garments.
- Jute carpet backing is the other major US import from Bangladesh. US
- exports to Bangladesh include wheat, fertilizer, cotton, rice,
- communications equipment, aircraft, and medical supplies, much of which
- is financed by the US Agency for International Development.
-
- DEFENSE
- Bangladesh's 100,000-member army, composed of six light infantry
- divisions, is modeled and organized along British regimental
- lines-similar to other military forces on the subcontinent-and supported
- by artillery and armored regiments. In addition to defense, the army is
- an important backstop to civil authority. The bulk of the weaponry in
- use-including tanks, fixed-wing aircraft, and naval craft-originated in
- China. Officer training is conducted in Bangladesh, with some advanced
- training in other countries, including grant aid training in the United
- States. The senior officer corps is composed of Bengali officers from
- the pre-1971 Pakistan Army and of "freedom fighters" active in the
- struggle for independence from Pakistan. The army forces are
- supplemented by the Bangladesh Rifles, a lightly armed border security
- force led by army officers, but falling under the authority of the
- Interior Ministry. Bangladesh maintains a small air force with two
- fighter squadrons, one attack squadron, and transport aircraft and
- helicopters. The navy has four frigates, including a new Chinese-built
- guided missile frigate, about 10 coastal patrol boats, and several
- squadrons of torpedo and missile boats.
-
- FOREIGN RELATIONS
- Bangladesh pursues a moderate, nonaligned foreign policy, similar to
- many former colonial areas of the Third World. This places heavy
- reliance on multinational diplomacy, especially at the United Nations.
- The government's initial post-independence foreign policy objectives
- have been realized:
- -- To secure recognition of the new state and government;
- -- To obtain membership in important international organizations; and
- -- To enlist international support for relief, rehabilitation, and
- economic development.
- Bangladesh was admitted to the United Nations in 1974 and was elected
- to the Security Council in 1978. Foreign Minister Choudhury served as
- president of the 41st UN General Assembly in fall 1986. Dhaka maintains
- an active round of participation in international conferences,
- especially those dealing with population, food, and development issues.
- In 1982-83, Bangladesh played a constructive role as chairman of the
- "Group of 77," an informal association encompassing most of the world's
- developing nations. In 1983, Dhaka hosted the foreign ministers meeting
- of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC). Bangladesh has
- taken a leading role in the group of 42 least developed countries.
- Since 1975, Bangladesh has sought close relations with other Islamic
- states, taking a leading role among moderate members of the OIC. Dhaka
- also has sought friendly relations with the like-minded nations of the
- Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN). The government also
- pursued with vigor and skill the expansion of cooperation among the
- nations of South Asia, bringing the process-originally an initiative of
- former President Ziaur Rahman- through its earliest, most tentative
- stages to the formal inauguration of the South Asia Association for
- Regional Cooperation (SAARC) at a summit gathering of South Asian
- leaders in Dhaka in December 1985.
-
- Relations With Neighbors and Other South Asian Nations
- India. India is Bangladesh's most important neighbor; geographic,
- cultural, historic, and commercial ties are strong, and both countries
- recognize the importance of good relations. During and immediately
- after the Bangladesh independence struggle in 1971, India supported the
- East Bengali nationalists, assisted refugees from East Pakistan,
- intervened militarily to help bring about the independence of
- Bangladesh, and furnished relief and reconstruction aid.
- Indo-Bangladesh relations have not been without strains. The problem
- of record flooding in Bangladesh in 1987-88, a phenomenon popularly
-
- believed by many Bangladeshis to originate largely in India, has
- aggravated bilateral tensions. Other long-standing contentious issues
- also remain to be resolved. Of importance has been the equitable
- division of dry-season water on which both countries' economies depend,
- as well as equally equitable resolution of several thorny border
- demarcation issues. An earlier bilateral water-sharing agreement for
- the Ganges River lapsed in 1988 and has not been renewed. Both nations
- have, however, begun to cooperate on the issue of flood warning and
- flood preparedness. Discussions on the return to Bangladesh of tribal
- refugees who fled into India beginning in 1986 to escape violence caused
- by an insurgency in their homeland in the Chittagong Hill Tracts,
- continue as well.
- Pakistan. Bangladesh enjoys the warmest of relations with Pakistan,
- despite the inauspicious early days of their relationship. Landmarks in
- their reconciliation are:
- -- An August 1973 agreement between India and Pakistan on the
- repatriation of numerous individuals, including 90,000 Pakistani
- prisoners of war stranded as a result of the 1971 conflict;
- -- A February 1974 accord by Dhaka and Islamabad on mutual recognition
- (followed more than 2 years later by establishment of formal diplomatic
- relations);
- -- The organization by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees of an
- airlift that moved almost a quarter of a million Bengalis from Pakistan
- to Bangladesh and non-Bengalis from Bangladesh to Pakistan; and
- -- Exchanges of high-level visits including a visit by Prime Minister
- Bhutto to Bangladesh in 1989.
- Still to be resolved are the division of assets from the pre-1971
- period and the status of more than 250,000 non-Bengali Muslims (know as
- "Biharis") or "Stranded Pakistanis" remaining in Bangladesh but seeking
- resettlement in Pakistan.
- Other South Asian Countries. Bangladesh maintains close friendly
- relations with Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal, and Sri Lanka, and strongly
- opposed the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. Dhaka played an
- instrumental role in the establishment of SAARC, and at the Bangalore
- summit in November 1986, a Bangladesh diplomat, Abul Ahsan, was chosen
- the organization's first Secretary General. Bilateral ties also are
- good with Burma, despite border strains near the Chittagong Hill Tracts.
-
- Relations With Communist Countries USSR.
- The Soviet Union supported India's actions during the 1971
- Indo-Pakistan war, and Moscow was among the first to recognize
- Bangladesh. The USSR initially contributed considerable relief and
- rehabilitation aid to the new nation, especially assistance to clear the
- Port of Chittagong. After Sheikh Mujib was assassinated and replaced by
- military regimes, however, Soviet-Bangladesh relations cooled; today,
- they are correct and friendly. As of May 1989, the USSR ranked 14th
- among total aid donors to Bangladesh. The Soviets have focused on the
- development of electrical power, natural gas, and oil, and maintained
- active cultural relations with Bangladesh. A showcase project financed
- by the Soviets is the Ghorasal thermal power station, which if completed
- on schedule in 1995, will become Bangladesh's largest electric power
- station. In recent years, Bangladesh and the Soviet Union have
- concluded several barter trade agreements.
- China. China traditionally has been more important than the USSR to
- Bangladesh, even though China-as a loyal ally of Pakistan-had supported
- Pakistan in 1971 and provides only one-third the aid levels committed by
- the Soviet Union. But as Dhaka's relations with Moscow (and Delhi)
- cooled following 1975, and as Dhaka and Islamabad became reconciled,
- Beijing's relations with Dhaka grew warmer. An exchange of diplomatic
- missions in February 1976 followed an accord on recognition in late
- 1975. And since that time, relations have grown stronger, centering
- upon trade, cultural activities, military and civilian aid, and
- exchanges of high-level visits, beginning in January 1977 with President
- Zia's trip to Beijing. The largest and most visible symbol of bilateral
- amity is the Bangladesh-China "Friendship Bridge" completed in 1989,
- near Dhaka.
-
- US-BANGLADESH RELATIONS
- Although the US relationship with Bangladesh was initially troubled
- because of strong US ties with Pakistan, US-Bangladesh friendship and
- support developed quickly. Currently, US-Bangladesh relations are
- excellent, as demonstrated by the visits to Washington in August 1980 by
- President Zia and in 1983, 1988, and 1990 by President Ershad and the
- June 1986 visit to Bangladesh of US Ambassador to the UN Vernon Walters.
- US policies have focused primarily on efforts to promote Bangladesh's
- economic development and political progress.
- The centerpiece of the bilateral relationship is a large US economic
- aid program totaling about $135 million in 1989 (and which from 1971
- through 1989 provided more than $3 billion in assistance). In addition
- to symbolizing longstanding American humanitarian concern for the people
- of Bangladesh, US economic and food aid programs, begun as emergency
- relief following the 1971 war, now concentrate on long- term
- development. These include increasing agricultural production,
- providing new employment opportunities, and helping to reduce population
- growth.
- The US Embassy and a USAID Mission are in Dhaka. Frequent official
- visitors to both capitals augment the work of their diplomats in
- fostering more cooperative economic, commercial, political, and cultural
- ties.
-
- Principal US Officials Ambassador-William B. Milam
- Deputy Chief of Mission-Lee O. Coldren
- Political Counselor-Stephen R. Snow
- Economic/Commercial Counselor-Michael McNaull
- Administrative Counselor-Kenneth Parent
- Consular Officer-Ruth Bright
- AID Director-Mary Kilgour
- Public Affairs Officer-Ray Peppers
- Defense Attache-LTC James A. Dunn
- Agricultural Attache-Daniel Conable (Resident in New Delhi)
-
- The Embassy and the USAID Mission, which moved in October 1988 from a
- downtown site, are now located in the Diplomatic Enclave, Madani Avenue,
- Baridhara, G.P.O. Box 323, Dhaka (tel. 011-880-2-884700, telex 642319
- AEDKA BJ, telefax 880-2-883648). The official workweek is Sunday
- through Thursday.
-
- Travel Notes
- Customs and immigration: US citizens traveling as tourists do not need
- visas for stays of 14 days if they have an onward ticket. Visas are
- required for longer visits and for business travelers.
- Climate and clothing: Wear lightweight clothing for most of the hot,
- wet period; medium weight clothing for the short winter (Dec.-Feb.)
- Health: Health and visa requirements change; check latest information
- before traveling. Basic medical facilities are available in Dhaka.
- Pharmacies can fill simple prescriptions. Tetanus, typhoid, gamma
- globulin, and polio immunizations are recommended; malaria supressants
- for travel outside of Dhaka also are recommended.
- Telecommunications: Internal and external telephone, telegraph, telex,
- and mail services are available. Direct dialing is possible to Western
- Europe and the United States. Bangladesh is 11 hours ahead of eastern
- standard time. Transportation: International and domestic airline
- service is adequate; railroad service is limited; road transport is
- crowded but adequate to most major cities; river transport is extensive.
- National holidays: Martyrs' Day, February 21; Independence Day, March
- 26; Bengali New Year's Day, April 15; May Day, May 1; National Integrity
- Day, November 7; Victory Day, December 16; Christmas Day, December 25;
- Eid-ul-Fitr, Eid-ul-Azha, Muharram, Eid-i-Milad-un-Nabi, and other
- religious holidays, varying in accordance with the lunar calendar.
-
- Further Information
- These titles are provided as a general indication of the material
- published on this country. The Department of State does not endorse
- unofficial publications.
- Ahmad, Nafis. A New Economic Geography of Bangladesh. New Delhi:
- Vikas Publishing House, 1976.
- Baxter, Craig. Bangladesh: A New Nation in an Old Setting. Boulder:
- Westview Press, 1984.
- Blanchet, Therese. Women, Pollution, and Marginality: Meaning and
- Rituals of Birth in Rural Bangladesh. Dhaka: University Press, 1984.
- Faaland, Just. Aid and Influence: The Case of Bangladesh. New York:
- St. Martin's Press, 1981.
- Franda, Marcus. Bangladesh: The First Decade. Hanover: Universities
- Field Service International, 1982.
- O'Donnell, Charles. Bangladesh: Biography of a Muslim Nation.
- Boulder: Westview Press, 1984.
- Sobhan, Rehman. From AID Dependence to Self-Reliance. Dhaka
- University Press, 1990.
- Webbergren, Boyd and Charles Antholt. Agricultural Development in
- Bangladesh: Prospects for the Future. Boulder: Westview Press, 1984.
- Available from the Superintendent of Documents, US Government Printing
- Office, Washington, DC 20402: Department of the Army. Bangladesh: A
- Country Study, 1989.
- US Department of Commerce. Overseas Business Reports and Foreign
- Economic Trends.
-
- Published by the United States Department of State -- Bureau of Public
- Affairs -- Office of Public Communication -- Washington, DC -- October
- 1990 -- Editor: Juanita Adams Department of State Publication 8698
- Background Notes Series -- This material is in the public domain and
- may be reprinted without permission; citation of this source is
- appreciated. For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, US Government
- Printing Office, Washington, DC 20402. (###)
-
-
- #ENDCARD
-