The New Nation - Internet Edition

Staff Reporter

Awami League Presidium Member Abdur Razzak yesterday said politicians would have to seek mercy from the people for the mistakes they have done before the 1/11 (January 11, 2007) changeover.

"We (politicians) will have to go to the people and seek mercy for our mistakes. If they accept us then we will be elected their representatives again," he said while addressing a seminar on Human Rights and Democratic Development at a local hotel in the city.

The Awami League leader hoped that the people would take the right decision and said the people never did any mistake in the past and they would not do mistake in future also.

The seminar, organised by South Asia Watch, an international human rights organisation, was organised with Prof Dr Shaheed Uddin Ahmed, former Dhaka University Vice Chancellor, in the chair.

The seminar was also addressed, among others, by JSD President ASM Abdur Rab, General Secretary of Sammoyabadi Dal Dilip Barua, Col (Retd) Sheikh Akram Ali, Mirza Rezaul Hossain and Ali Akhter Nadim, Monir Hossain. Shahidul Islam Talukder, Secretary General of South Asia Watch, presented the keynote paper.

Emphasising the need for making people conscious about their rights, Abdur Razzak said the politicians have failed to make people conscious about their rights after the independence as they did before the war of liberation.

"We reached the current position with politics of quarrels, killings and conspiracies. Even we have met the desires of foreign powers being depended on them," he said.

Abdur Razzak said politicians would have to restore the confidence of the people to overcome the present situation.

He, however, cautioned that no attempt would be successful to deal with the situation; other then taking proper measures following the hopes and desires of the people.

The former minister also emphasised the need for holding the elections by December this year as per the roadmap announced by the Election Commission.

Terming human rights supplementary of democracy he said democracy cannot be flourished without implementation of human rights.

ASM Abdur Rab said people want to see bringing change in the political system that were practiced during the last 36 years.

"Democracy and human rights cannot be ensured if system to run the state is not changed," he said.

In his keynote paper, Shahidul Islam Talukder said reform should be carried out in the political and Parliament systems, but it should be done by the politicians.

"The reform cannot be pressed from outside or carried out with the prescriptions of foreign agencies,' he added.