Announces six-point demand

Bangladesh Awami League Monday (May 26) called for an intensified mass movement to secure unconditional release of its detained president Sheikh Hasina to enable her to attend the dialogue and contest elections as a free person. pelling out a six-point demand at the party’s crucial extended meeting, acting Awami League president Zillur Rahman called on the people to free Sheikh Hasina through movement – ‘the way Bangabandhu was brought back from the gallows in 1969.’

‘On behalf of Awami League I would like to declare in unequivocal terms that Awami League will contest the elections with Sheikh Hasina taking part and under her leadership’, he told the meeting at the Engineers Institution in the capital.

On the question of attending the dialogue, he said Awami League working committee will finalise the decision on the basis of the opinions of the delegates attending the extended meeting that began at 10:10am.

Zillur Rahman said if the government wants to make the dialogues successful and overcome the crisis by holding a free, fair and credible election, it must accept the six-point demand that calls for, among other things, immediate and unconditional release of Sheikh Hasina.

He said the only aim of this government was to give Sheikh Hasina prison sentence by hook or by crook in false and fabricated cases to disqualify her from contesting polls and banish her from politics.

‘There is no alternative to movement to resist this wrong and injustice. So long we held patience. But we have our backs to the wall. Under such circumstances, it is impossible for us to hold patience any longer. The government is pushing us towards movement’, he said.

The veteran Awami League leader said, ‘We want success of the dialogue…We are prepared to make any sacrifice for free and credible elections to parliament to restore democracy.’

He expressed the hope that good sense would prevail and the government would implement the party’s six-point demand and free Sheikh Hasina without any condition.

‘But if the government fails to do that, people of this country will not stand watching as passive onlookers’, Zillur warned. ‘I declare from this podium that we will make the government bow to people power and concede the demands’.

The six-point demand includes complete lifting of the state of emergency, withdrawal of all undemocratic conditions on indoor politics, restoration of democratic and fundamental rights to create condition for free and fair elections, lifting of false cases against party leaders and activists, release of all political leaders and halting undeclared interference in and intimidation of the mass media.

The demands also include immediate announcement of election schedule, holding of parliamentary polls prior to all other elections and suspension of complicated matter of demarcation of electoral constituencies and removal of restrictions on trade union activities.

The Awami League demanded effective steps to contain price hike, ease sufferings of the people caused by scarcity of gas, water and electricity and crash programme to ensure industrial and agricultural growth.

The six-point demand includes trial of war criminals and disqualifying them from elections and state recognition of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman as father of the nation.

Some 870 delegates from across the country are attending the extended meeting. Zillur presided over the meeting sitting beside a chair kept empty for Sheikh Hasina.

Acting Awami League general secretary Syed Ashraful Islam in his brief report urged the party leaders to complete immediately district conferences, launch a member collection campaign and remain united to ensure Sheikh Hasina’s release and the party’s victory in the next elections.
Syed Ashraful Islam said only a vigorous movement could foil the farce being staged in the name of trial of Sheikh Hasina. ‘Without her, dialogue and elections will not be fruitful; without her, the present crisis cannot be overcome’, he told the Awami League delegates.
Earlier at 10 am, Zillur Rahman hoisted the national flag at the Engineers Institute compound. Thousands of Awami League and front wings activists assembled at the venue braving rains.

Syed Ashraful Islam moved a motion condemning the arrest of Sheikh Hasina and other leaders and false cases against them. Publicity secretary Asaduzzaman Noor conducted the meeting while an obituary reference was read out by office secretary Abdul Mannan Khan.