Presenting the keynote paper at a talk, he said democracy is now at 'adolescent level' in Bangladesh and it has to walk a long way to get maturity.

General Stackpole, former president of Honolulu-based Asia Pacific Centre for Security Studies (APCSS), was speaking at the talk on 'Challenges to democracy in South Asia' organised by Bangladesh Institute of International and Strategic Studies (BIISS) at its auditorium in the city.

The US general is now on a visit to Bangladesh on the occasion of the 15th anniversary of 'Operation Sea Angel'.

He was the commander of the rescue mission which was launched within 24 hours of the devastating cyclone that hit the country's long coastal belt stretching from Bhola to Cox's Bazar on April 29, 1991.

General Stackpole said active participation of both the government and the opposition in parliament is a must to strengthening democracy.

He said for a democratic county the rule of law has to be established and the judiciary has to be the 'guardian of truth.'

The US general said the whole world is now waiting to see whether the people of Bangladesh would be able to establish a secular government in the next general election.

He however said corruption and bureaucratic tangle are the two major problems for the democracy of a country.

Referring to Grameen Bank and Brac, General Stackpole said the country has achieved much in micro-credit, information technology and other sectors.

Judith A Chammas, deputy head of the US Embassy in Dhaka, hoped that the next election will be free and fair to help strengthening democracy.

She said there is a long history of co-operation between the civilian and military people in the field of humanitarian and other development activities in the country.

Judith said it is a good sign for democracy that many military officials after their retirement have joined the politics and business to push the country ahead.

BIISS Director General Major General (Retd) Muhammad Abdul Matin, Prof Ataur Rahman of Dhaka University, and Columnist Zaglul Ahmed Chowdhry also took part in the talk.