Editorial
Yes to dialogue
No to hartals, no to repression of opposition
The business community has called upon the government and the opposition to iron out their differences through dialogue. We fully support the views expressed by the country's businessmen and women and agree that the time is long overdue for the government and opposition to sit down with one another to come to some kind of a workable political arrangement. It is clear that the current state of affairs is having a disastrous effect on the nation's governance and economy, and that steps must be taken soon to rectify the situation before it gets out of control.The business community has told the leader of the opposition that they cannot any longer absorb the shock of hartals. The message is not new, but one hoped that the stature of those who met with the leader of the opposition to plead with her to eschew hartals would have encouraged her to rethink her strategy. Unfortunately, this does not appear to have happened. However, the government also bears responsibility for the sorry state of affairs. As destructive as hartals are to the country, the government's repression of the opposition is equally destructive and equally to be condemned. The violence against the opposition and the shrinking of the democratic space in which to express dissent is also unacceptable. We share the opposition's skepticism as to whether the government is truly committed to democratic debate and dissent. The government's actions in parliament and their continued harassment, often violent, of political opponents seem to support the opposition's claim that there is no space for them to dissent democratically. The government is in power. It is the representative of the people. Its responsibility to the people must therefore be foremost. It is up to the government to take the concrete measures to demonstrate to the opposition and the rest of us that it will provide them with the space to express dissent and that it is committed to democracy. Ultimately, both sides are at fault, and it is time for both the government and the opposition to put aside their own narrow agendas and put that of the people on top for once.
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