Towards hope, with the vote in sight

We step into the new year with hope and optimism as new beginnings are wont to be, the national election on the horizon is all the more reason to look ahead to 2026. The very possibility of being able to practise one's franchise, that prized entitlement of the sovereign citizen, feels all the more precious since many had been robbed of it for long.

Following in the wake of a tumultuous uprising the previous year, 2025 had started with high expectations. The year that had begun with possibilities and potential also turned out to be one of frustration and disappointment. It was a year of quite resilience for households but also a year of recalibration for the economy. Overall, the year has been one where Bangladesh was in transit. Having freed itself from the clutches of an increasingly despotic regime, the nation prepared -- sometimes with apprehension and sometimes with affirmation -- for the transition to democracy in 2026.

Not quite comparable to the July uprising and its aftermath, 2025 had its own ups and downs. Even as we bid farewell to 2025 and usher in a new year, it coincides with the beginning of a new chapter in the political landscape. We welcome the new year having bid farewell to Khaleda Zia, who had been a fixture of Bangladesh's politics, a force for democracy. Her son, Tarique Rahman, had returned to Bangladesh only a few days before, after 17 years in exile.

It was also the year when Khaleda's arch rival who had tormented her for much of the 16 years that Awami League was at the helm, former prime minister Sheikh Hasina was sentenced to death for crimes against humanity in Dhaka. And although Awami League's activities have been prohibited, the outfit has become a pariah in a land it ruled with absolute authority for three terms.

With dissent no longer throttled and certain political factions no longer hounded, this year saw huge rallies that was also a means to show their strength if only to give more weight to their demands. Hefazat-e-Islam, Jamaat-e-Islami and more recently, the BNP, among others staged their "showdowns" in a bid to outnumber the other. But it must have been Khaleda's funeral that witnessed a genuine outpouring of love and affection as mourners clogged almost the entire Dhaka city for hours.

This was supposed to be the year when Bangladesh adopted reforms and accordingly, negotiations and discussions went on for months under the auspices of a consensus commission. The resulting July charter, which is going to be put up in the referendum in the coming elections, understandably fell short of the lofty expectations that the young July rebels had in mind. So much so, that the party born out of the July uprising, the National Citizen Party, refused to sign it. While the reform commissions came forward with their reports, genuine reforms are still to be instituted save for one or two instances. We have to wait till after the election.

Perhaps the most outwardly visible characteristic of this year has been the mob, stemming from ever increasing intolerance and dogmatism. Faced with an equally timid administration that has been keen not to be tough, angry crowds often got out of hand. This only ended up in costing lives and property as we have seen across the country, but most recently in Mymensingh where a man was lynched and then in Dhaka where this newspaper, along with Prothom Alo, survived a violent bout of arson attack and vandalism that halted the publication of both newspapers for a day. The same night two other cultural organisations -- Chhayanaut and Udichi -- known for their involvement in theatre and music were attacked and vandalised as well. Law enforcement agencies or the government showed little resolve to address the worsening law and order.

Yet it is only with strong resolve that we can turn the page and turn around. It is with that resolve that we usher in the new year and wish every one a peaceful, healthy, prosperous and happy new year.