The New Nation - Internet Edition

UNB, Dhaka

Chief Advisor Dr Fakhruddin Ahmed has said detained former Prime Ministers Khaleda Zia and Sheikh Hasina would not be eligible to appear before the proposed Truth Commission for pardon as they are already arraigned on corruption charges and facing trial in courts.

Dr Ahmed, however, said his caretaker government would accept whatever verdict is given against them by the judiciary which he said is now independent.

The Chief Advisor made the remarks during an interview with Al Jazeera television in London last week. Renowned journalist David Frost took the interview during the CA's tour and was aired Friday at 1 am in a special programme styled "Frost".

On the question of lifting the state of emergency, he said some curbs imposed under the state of emergency on some political activities would be withdrawn to create congenial atmosphere for electioneering. Asked whether the proposed Truth Commission will be constituted in South African model, Dr Ahmed said the government has looked at similar models set up in different countries.

Explaining the logic behind instituting Truth Commission, he said some people who have already been accused of corruption have been going through normal judicial process and there are others who may be willing to say that they had been involved in some of irregular corrupt practices.

If the Commission is set up, those people will go through that process. They will know and the people will know about their corrupt practices through a legal process, if not the judicial process, he added.

Asked whether those corrupt would be forgiven by the Truth Commission, the Chief Advisor said, " Yes, the idea is that they will be forgiven if they admit to having indulged in some kind of irregular corrupt practices of certain amount of money. But, as part of that process, there may be some kind of restrictions on their participation in political activities for a limited time." Asked if the two 'Begums' (Khaleda and Hasina) will also be pardoned if they go through the Truth Commission, Dr Ahmed said the way thinking is going on is that if somebody is already arraigned and charge-sheeted and the judicial process has begun, they should go through the judicial process.

It is not only the two ex-premiers, he said, those who have crossed that some sort of threshold, they will not be eligible for appearing before the Truth Commission. "That's the thinking now, but it is not yet finalized."

Asked when the emergency will be lifted, Dr Ahmed said, "We've not yet fixed the time. We will be looking at all options when and how the state of emergency will be lifted."

He said the state of emergency was declared to improve the law-and-order situation and bring the country back into normalcy. Now the law and order has improved a lot, and even though there is the emergency, it is not being enforced in that sense in many fields. Citing an example, the head of caretaker government said press is free ever since his government came to power. "We told the press that they can criticize the government and they have been doing that-and we benefit from those criticisms."

He said as normal activities have been going on and they will be going on, they would, in any case, make it possible for the election to take place. To ensure congenial atmosphere for election campaign, he said, there would be need to lift "some of the curbs on some of the activities up to the elections".

Asked whether the general election will be held by December this year, as promised, Dr Ahmed said, "Absolutely, that is some kind of deadline. I have said this more than once and the elections will be held at the latest by December 2008."

He said the Election Commission has also announced a roadmap detailing all priority activities and "I am absolutely committed and confident that the elections will be held according to the roadmap". Asked whether Khaleda and Hasina would be able to lead active politics, Dr Ahmed said it would depend on several factors. "At this point in time they have been arrested and facing trial in courts. So, judicial process will go on."

In this context, the CA noted that the judiciary is an independent institution and they would accept whatever decision comes from the judicial process. "It will depend on judicial process and outcome of the judicial process."

Asked whether the number of detained persons in Bangladesh is 250,000 as published in some British press, Dr Ahmed straightaway denied, saying that the number is much lower. The total number of convicts and under-trial prisoners is around 75,000 to 80,000, and a handful of them have been detained under the Special Powers Act. Asked about whereabouts of the two former premiers-Awami League chief Hasina and BNP chairperson Khaleda-the Chief Advisor said they were not under house arrest. They were arrested and put in two special houses declared sub-jails by the government for under-trial prisoners. Asked whether the level of corruption has gone down due to the ongoing anti-graft drive, Dr Ahmed said corruption has started going down significantly, but it is very difficult to estimate what the current level of corruption is.

But, he said, a general impression is it has a positive impact not because of the people being brought to trial for corruption but the government is working on rules and regulations, making them simpler, clearer and transparent and a strategy to prevent the corruption. Asked whether he has any intention to float a political party and run for a political office, Dr Ahmed outright dismissed the idea. He said that since he is heading a caretaker government, his first duty is to hold free, fair and credible elections first and carry out institutional reforms to ensure sustainable democracy in Bangladesh. Asked what he will be doing after the elections, the Chief Advisor, a former governor of Bangladesh Bank, said he has not yet thought about that but added that he would make himself available to serve the country.