Every generation of Bangladeshis gets one election that defines it. For our parents, it was 1970. For the nineties generation, 1991. For the children of July — those who faced bullets in Uttara and Rangpur with nothing but flags — it is the election now approaching.
The stakes are not, as partisans claim, about which alliance captures state power. They are about whether the extraordinary sacrifice of over a thousand martyrs produces an ordinary, functioning, boring-in-the-best-way democracy — where losers concede, winners restrain themselves, and citizens need not fear midnight knocks.
Three tests will judge this election. First, participation: will every party, including those we despise, contest freely? A one-sided coronation heals nothing. Second, neutrality: will the administration, police and Election Commission behave as referees rather than players? Third, acceptance: will the defeated shake the victor's hand on camera, as rivals did in 1991?
We have reasons for hope. The voter roll is the cleanest in history. The new law mandates live-streamed counting. Young first-time voters — 18 lakh strong — care more about jobs and justice than slogans. But hope is not a plan. The Election Commission must publish its full deployment map. Parties must sign a code of conduct with teeth. And the media — including this newspaper — must resist becoming cheerleaders.
Democracy is not the destination; it is the daily practice of listening to those who disagree with you. Let this election be the one where Bangladesh finally grows up — not by silencing dissent, but by counting it.
— Daily Best News Desk • Fearless in the search for truth
Reported by Editorial Board • Edited by the Daily Best News desk. Send corrections to [email protected].
