Goodbye, welcome

As we say goodbye to 2015 and ring in 2016, the last thing we want to see this year is poisonous politics taking lives and wrecking welfare of people.  

The year 2015 passed with all its happenings -- the good, the bad and the ugly. But the beginning could not have been any uglier. Bangladesh experienced the grisliest and the longest ever spell of horror starting five days into the New Year.

After hibernating for a year over literally an Awami League-ally election, the BNP-led coalition started an extremely destructive oust-government agitation since January 6: Blockade every day and hartal on weekdays.

There was hardly a single day till April 4 when innocent people were not burnt to death or injured in arson attacks on public or private transport. At least 95 people were killed and close to 1,500 maimed for life. Ironically, they were mostly ordinary citizens, who lived from hand to mouth and had no link with politics whatsoever.

And the economic loss in 91 days' shutdown is estimated at around Tk 3,00,000 crore, with which Bangladesh could have built at least seven Padma bridges.  

The AL government then failed to protect people's life and the country's economy but gradually gained success in controlling the situation through a short-cut formula: around 45 alleged arsonists were killed in “shootouts” with law enforcers.

We neither want death in mindless politics nor in extra-judicial measures. We want an end to this cancerous culture right away. And politicians must initiate a reform in politics, which should work only for people's welfare.

The most shocking event that unfolded in the year was discoveries of mass graves of trafficking victims from Bangladesh and Myanmar in bordering areas of Thailand and Malaysia.

A nine-part investigative series, Slave Trade Booms In Dark Triangle, of The Daily Star revealed how transnational traffickers lured some 2.5 lakh Bangladeshi fortune-seekers through sea route in the last eight years, held them in Thai jungles for ransom and used them as slaves.

That numbing disclosure prompted the government to capture some culprits and the world to hold many regional conferences. But trafficking masterminds eluded arrests, and the root cause -- the Rohingya crisis -- remained out of focus. We want the government to keep the focus on the issue. 

A photo of a blood-smeared Rafida Ahmed Bonya, with her husband's (writer Avijit Roy) brutally-hacked body lying face-down in front for her, described well how bloody the year was for free-thinkers and campaigners for freedom of expression. She cried for help from a crowd that included policemen, but none of them came forward.

Religious radicals later hacked to death three more online activists and a secular publisher, and threatened to kill many more. Publisher Ahmedur Rashid Tutul, who survived with severe injuries, became the latest of gypsies from Bangladesh in the West.

We want our policymakers and law enforcers to distinguish radicalism from religion and shake off whatever confusion they might have in fighting these modern-day killers of intellectuals. Let's not let someone else repeat the heart-wrenching quote of Prof Abul Quasem Fazlul Huq, father of slain Jagriti Prokashani owner  Faisal Arefin Dipan: "I don't want justice."

With the Islamic State making horrific headlines across the world, some unprecedented and unnerving incidents started to take place in Bangladesh later in the year 2015. What was attack on free-thinker, so-called atheist to be precise, suddenly became attack on everybody. Improvised grenades went off at an Ashura gathering, mosques of Shias and Ahmadiyyas, and Hindu temples.

Never before in this country of moderate Muslims were such attacks carried out on mosques, let alone on people in prayers. Two foreigners were killed in targeted attacks, a priest and a Baha'i leader were shot, and nearly three dozen Christian religious leaders, including a Bishop, received death threats.   

Law enforcers left people to live on their nerves with ever-changing claims about terror suspects: once it was the IS, then Ansarullah Bangla Team, next Western intelligence conspiracy, then BNP-Jamaat clique, and now a regrouped JMB (Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh). This year, we demand only the facts from law enforcers, not confusion. We must prevent the country from becoming a Pakistan or Iraq, where terrors of this nature strike.

The year that went by was not always that gloomy. Our cricketers gave us an occasion to be over the moon with some scintillating wins in their first-ever qualification into the quarterfinals of World Cup. And the three one-day series victories, including a 3-0 whitewash of Pakistan, later on are something we will look back on with pride.

After years in ignominy, Tigers forced the giants of world cricket to have a change of hearts through convincing drubbings of India and South Africa. We hope our sports ambassadors will continue the winning streak in the forthcoming Asia Cup at home and T20 World Cup in India.   

The visit of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the subsequent exchange of enclaves with India highlighted the government's major successes in bilateral diplomacy. Acute power outage or load-shedding is now problem of the past, some of the credit for which should go to the government's regional energy diplomacy.

The government is now importing about 500MW from India at a competitive rate. Another 1,500MW should be added to the national power grid shortly. Besides, four-nation hydro-power projects with Nepal, Bhutan and India looks very promising. It is about time the government turned Teesta tears into cheers.  

The dream of Padma Bridge is finally coming true. Big kudos goes to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina for her determination to build the bridge after years of controversy and delay. We want to see reflection of this strong will in ensuring that the bridge project is corruption-free.     

The war crimes trial and execution of verdicts went on despite conspiracy at home and pressure from abroad. The simultaneous hanging of two top convicts -- Salauddin Quader Chowdhury and Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mojaheed -- came as a huge relief for families of their victims and the nation. Three cheers for the PM for her unfazed conviction to punish the war criminals.

The robust remittance and RMG earnings helped the economy maintain a steady growth of 6.51pc and record forex reserve of $27b. But the investment indicator is blinking red, highlighting a dismal business climate. In 2016, we expect the government to take the alarm seriously and remove investment hurdles.      

Tragic deaths on roads, especially during the two Eid vacations, dominated the headlines throughout the year 2015. What we don't want to do is bid a tearful farewell to a friend or a loved one killed in an accident caused by a reckless driver. So, let's rally to help ensure safe roads for all.

We saw little progress in the efforts to conserve the environment. We have always had laws to protect rivers, canals and water bodies from grabbers and polluters. Ironically though, the laws exist and so do the encroachers and polluters. In 2016, we expect the government to turn things around.

With the government developing a knee-jerk syndrome at any hint of criticism, people embrace the New Year with a lot of worries. Its growing intolerance against dissenting voices, be it from an individual, rights body or free media, threatens to jeopardise a basic human right -- the freedom of expression.

Freedom of expression is the essence of any democracy. And an intelligent government always takes benefit from critical voices, views and free flow of information. Restriction on that freedom, in fact, weakens the government and empowers its enemies.

We hope this simple wisdom will dawn on the government this year.