I neither endorsed most of Khaleda Zia’s past politics nor do I many of her present moves, but I will endorse if she is bold and courageous enough to decide not to legitimise this illegitimate regime. This regime is craving for legitimacy and is trying every trick to cut a deal with Khaleda Zia and BNP in order to take BNP’s “selected” Six to the Parliament in exchange of Khaleda’s release. While SIX is only a fraction of “selected” 300 and won’t add much value to that “undemocratic accountability” club, it may ‘stabilise’ the regime at least for a time being.
Now despite knowing what has happened in December 29-30, 2018, if Khaleda Zia characteristically acts on her personal interest and gives in to the pressure of the regime, then together with AL which is accused by the people of the betrayal of public trust, BNP would simply add salt to people’s wounds (endorsing their disenfranchisement). Her party’s politics would become irrelevant much earlier than I anticipated. Many are sympathetic to Khaleda Zia’s jail suffering and think that the AL is an immovable object here to stay, so we better give in, trust me, the AL regime is in coma, that’s why they are so desperate for a breathing space. Now whether BNP or Khaleda Zia wants to offer them a lifeline, it’s their choice.
Epilogue: if BNP wants to live a little longer, not doing anything, as their current tactics, won’t help. They have to return to the basics, Politics 101—grassroots mobilisation and rebuild organisation. They have lost much of this capacity in the face of the regime’s brutal and unprecedented crackdown and oppression. But all dictators’ playbooks are same. The despot regime won’t allow any attempt of BNP or any opposition to organise and challenge its domination. Turning the country into a totalitarian police state and using massive surveillance together with its hallmark brutality (enforced disappearances), the regime has developed and deployed a massive repressive system to disallow any attempt of grassroots mobilisation against it.
Here comes the resilience part: BNP has to adapt, has to innovate and learn to weather these difficult times. Some smart people have to sit across the table, spend some time on the drawing board, and develop a strategic framework and maneuvering tactics with options A, B, C.
Finally, the only mantra to defeat an undemocratic regime is to democratise your rank and file and embed and embrace democratic principles and practices in your party mobilisation and organisation.
Together with Khaleda Zia’s refusal to give in to this regime demand, moving into that intra-party democratic direction can save BNP’s politics. Otherwise Khaled’s decision in either direction won’t matter much for her party’s political future. The only difference is, being in power the AL is blind to see its impending demise, whereas BNP can feel it now.
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