The New Nation - Internet Edition

Curbing campus violence

FOLLOWING the national election there has been a surge of campus violence across the country. This violence is characterised mainly by clashes among students of rival groups over establishing control over dormitories and campuses. Khulna Medical College was closed for an indefinite period following clashes between two student organisations Friday night. Rajshahi University of Engineering and Technology has also been closed following a similar incident. Several hundred students of the Government Titumir College Saturday vandalised more than 100 vehicles. Factional feuds of the student wing of a major ruling party created unrest in Dhaka University. Some groups took control of some student halls of Dhaka University and a medical college in the city when the Jatiya Sangsad election results were just in progress.

Election is a democratic process where decisions are made through popular votes based on which some come out victorious while others are defeated. Election results have nothing to do with establishment of control on campuses, which is based on naked use of force and goes against democratic values of peaceful co-existence and respect for each other's views. Rule of muscle power negates democracy and reflects intolerance. The student wings of major parties are thus behaving not as associate organisations of political parties but as their front bodies contradicting the points made in the constitution of the parties before their registration with the Election Commission. Campus violence leads to session jam. The students suffer directly from session jam for which the whole nation pays ultimately. Intolerance and use of force in the past did not bring positive results. It is expected that good sense will prevail against such undemocratic trends.

US black farmers' suits

THE US government's 'discrimination settlement' with black farmers was reopened as more than 70,000 potential claimants, the liability could exceed $3 billion - three times what was paid out under the original 1999 agreement - though the Congress approved $100 million in the budget for damages. The settlement was reopened to legislation that added to the farm bill passed late last year. The supporters acknowledge that the $100 million was an arbitrary amount that will not come close to covering the actual cost.

The decision to allow new claims came almost 10 years after the Department of Agriculture settled 'a class-action lawsuit' brought on behalf of thousands of black farmers. The farmers, mostly from rural areas in the South, alleged that local offices of the USDA routinely denied them loans, disaster assistance and other aid frequently given to whites - practices that often drove them out of business. At that time, 22,500 farmers filed claims and nearly two-thirds were awarded a total of $981 million in damages including one Virginia farmer who was awarded $6.6 million alone. An estimated 73,000 other farmers 'missed the October 1999 deadline for seeking claims'.

Democrat Representative Arthur Davis is the lead sponsor of the proposal in the US Congress to fix some amount of dollars to meet the provision because that's what the House rules require. Many were of the view that the six-month filing period was 'too short'. The farm bill provision gives another chance to anyone who filed late claims. Just days after it passed, more than 800 people sued in US District Court in Washington and lawyers working on the case expect the figure will go up by tens of thousands more.

Introduce proportional popular voting system

Tayeb Husain

Democracy, like anything else, has many faces and most unfortunately most of the people in Bangladesh do not understand it. Recent election in Bangladesh is an example of rotten democratic system that prevails in most of the 3rd world countries that makes many members of Bangladesh Jatya Parisad (JP) NOT really representative of the people. You may not understand what I am talking about but please don't get puzzled, hold your tongue and let me talk. I say clearly and loudly again and again that the present JP members of Bangladesh DON'T, at large, represent the people of Bangladesh truly and correctly. Many of them would NOT have been JP members or legislators of the country if our election system were civilized, up-to-date and based on right principles. Let our Election commission and political leaders note this comment carefully.

Our present election system is called majority-voting system. Anybody who gets majority of the votes wins the election where sometimes even the wishes of 80% voters may be completely ignored.

This is a very primitive, rotten and utterly an unfair system. No civilised country in the world, except USA and UK, follows this system. If our leadership and the election commission were wise they would have abandoned the majority voting system long time ago by introducing what is called 'Proportional Voting' system. Democracy is better respected in proportional voting system (or proportional representation) where one votes to a party rather than an individual. Among advanced western democracies it is also the predominant voting system.

The basic approach of proportional voting system is simple: legislators are elected in multimember districts instead of single-member districts, and the number of seats that a party wins in an election is proportional to the amount of its support among voters. So if you have a 10-member district and a party wins 51% of the vote, they receive 51% seats.

If another party wins 30% of the vote, they get 30% seats; and if a third party gets 20% of the vote, they win 20% seats and so on. This system also eliminates 'mushroom' growth of political parties by fixing it obligatory of obtaining a minimum percentage of popular votes in the election or to disappear from taking seat in the parliament.

Proportional voting system was devised to solve the many problems caused by majority voting system. As a rule, proportional-voting system provides and guarantees more accurate representation of parties, better representation for political and racial minorities, fewer wasted votes, a higher levels of voter turnout, better representation of women, greater likelihood of majority rule, and little opportunity for vote buying and using muscle power.

Decent people are attracted in politics by this system because they need not spend money or run after voters to be elected. A party that nominates thieves and thugs are generally rejected by the decent voters and thus, possibility of nicer people winning the election prevails.

By this system, the government of the ignorant, fanatics and politically ill motivated people can be eliminated to some extend.

Let us now consider some points carefully from Bangladesh's recent election. In Dec. 29, 2008 election result, due to majority voting system, we find the result as follows:

Bangladesh Awami League : 230 seats

Jatiya Party: 27 Seats

Jatiyo Samajtantrik Dal: 3 seats

Workers Party of Bangladesh: 2 seats

Liberal Democratic Party: 1 seat

Bangladesh Nationalist Party: 29 seats

Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh: 2 seats

Independents: 4 seats

Vacant: 1 seat

Total: 299 Seats

Now, let us again get into a little deeper and consider the popular votes the different political parties got:

Bangladesh Awami League : 49%

Jatiya Party: 6.65%

Bangladesh Nationalist Party: 32.75%

Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh: 4.55%

Others: 7.04%

If the election system was on the basis of Proportion voting system the result would have been as follows:

Bangladesh Awami League : 49% votes, i.e. 147 seats only

Jatiya Party: 6.65% votes, i.e. 19 seats only

Bangladesh Nationalist Party: 32.75% votes, i.e. 99 seats only

Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh: 4.55% votes, i.e. 13 seats only

Others: 7.04% votes, i.e. 21 seats only

Proportional voting systems eliminates 'mushroom' growth of political parties by fixing it obligatory of obtaining a minimum percentage of popular votes in the election or to disappear from taking seat in the parliament. If that 'minimum percentage of popular votes' was 10, then Jatiya Party and Jamaat would have not qualified to continue as parties. There was also possibility that they could gain higher percentage of vote and obtain peoples' mandate and greater legitimacy to get involved in Bangladesh politics.

Thus, the following numbers of members in different political parties are not true representative of the people as per Proportional voting system:

Bangladesh Awami League : 230-147 = 88 seats

Jatiya Party: 27- 19 = 8 Seats

Jatiyo Samajtantrik Dal: 3 seats / most probably all

Workers Party of Bangladesh: 2 seats/ most probably all

Liberal Democratic Party: 1 seat/ most probably all

Bangladesh Nationalist Party: 99-29 = 70 seats lost

Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh: 13-2 = 11 seats lost.

Independents: 4 seats / most probably all

Similarly, in 2001 election, if the election system was proportional voting system the Bangladesh Awami League (AL) would have formed the government and NOT Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP). AL got more popular votes than BNP in 2001 election.

In Dec. 29, 2008 election AL has won majority popular votes and the party has absolute majority.

The new government can take this opportunity to pass a legislation by which the next election could be on Proportional voting system making our future JP members more representative of our people.

A new democratic culture in Bangladesh

Nirmal L. Gomes

In Bangladesh, for the last two years there were so much news reports, editorials, and articles published about the general election. The nation was full of confused whether the nation will be leading by the military power or there is going to be any general election for the democratic leadership! It was very challenging for the Chief Adviser Fakhruddin Ahmed, Election Commissioner (EC), and the Army Chief General Moin Ahmed to make believe and prove the politicians, individuals, and many other groups that the interim government positively will hold the general election polls as the government promised. Finally, in December 29, 2008 a fair, neutral, and peaceful general election polls waived up all the doubts of the election and future democratic government that the interim government did not have any interest to hold or lingering the power or hand over the power to the military. The various national and international election observers and individuals reported that the election was fair and peaceful with little and considerable errors. The election could be called a "Model Election" in Bangladesh since the nation got its independent in 1971. The hard work of the military backed caretaker government, reformed election regulations by the EC, military active supports, and political party's cooperation made the ninth general election success and made a milestone democratic process in the South Asia.

In the December 29 national election the Awami League-led Grand Alliance won the highest majority as of 263 seats, the opposition party the BNP-four party alliances won only 31 seats, and independent won 4 seats.

The entire population wanted a change as never before. The total population were awakening, a mass upsurge in favor of the change promised by Awami League and grand alliance leader Sheikh Hasina. Her election slogan "Charter for Change- Vision 2021" attracted the entire young, men and women voters. The new vision brought an extraordinary hope and victory for Awami League Grand Alliance. However, BNP Chairperson Begum Khaleda Zia claimed an unfair election polls and primarily she has rejected the election. If fair polls held, BNP must win the election, as Khaleda Zia said. She is disappointed over law enforcers and administration role during the election polls.

However, in the beginning of the elected party leader Sheikh Hasina formed her cabinet with the new faces that is notable for the absence of most of the old guard and anyone whose name is linked to corruption. The new cabinet is to be very optimistic. People were thinking that the new cabinet could be mixed with the fresh, honest, educated, experienced politicians, and technocrats that may form a balanced-cabinet to bring in coalition partners, and to blood a new generation of untainted leaders.

Sheikh Hasina must be credited for her willingness to select such new faces for her cabinet. She introduced a dynamic leadership culture in the parliament that encourages youngsters to be the leader in the future. She honored honesty and educated candidates for her cabinet and she fully rejected corrupted or controversial MPs and/or any family members to be team members in her new cabinet. More interesting is that 15 women elected in the ninth general election and most notable that three women took the very important positions includes the Prime Minister, Foreign Minister, and Home Minister in the new government.

More positive sign in the democratic political culture is that BNP members attended in the oath-taking ceremony of the new Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her new cabinet.

Indeed, BNP lawmakers-elect MPs decided to take oath and join the first session of the parliament. The party sources said the BNP lawmakers-elect might attend the first day's proceedings of the ninth parliament. "We shall join the first session of the parliament for the sake of democracy, the country's interest, and to continue the democratic process," Salahuddin Quader Chowdhury, a senior party leader and an MP-elect, told reporters after a two-hour meeting of the BNP's parliamentary party.

"We hope that our Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will continue to express the same kind of tolerance that she did in her post-election media conference," he said. In addition, the BNP leader expressed "We are pledging that we will do whatever necessary to keep the government accountable to the parliament."

It seems that BNP brings a positive political culture and besides this, the party tries to keep pressure the new government to fulfill the commitments what they promised before the election. Indeed, voters and general public also would have high demands to the new government. All these issues and mentoring the high number of inexperienced ministers in the cabinet could be a big challenge for Sheikh Hasina. But if the new cabinet members would be more accountable and careful of their individual responsibility and know their mandates, of course, they can make a big difference. Only we have to wait and see how they administer their power in their respective position.

Indeed, how the government and the opposition party perform their political behavior and attitude in order to create an effective parliament and democratic society in the nation. The voters believed that they selected the right persons to lead the nation to bring a positive change in the nation who can think good, talk good, and do good things.

It believes that the new government will enable to create an effective democratic environment through their every activity and actions; and the government will continue its reform process to improve the democracy in the nation.

Israel also waging 'media war' over Gaza

Ramzy Baroud

We are all Hamas," screamed a scrawny Mauritanian, repeatedly, as he determinedly drew his face closer to a TV camera. Behind him, thousands more tunefully chanted similar words, chants that were heard in different Arabic dialects, in fact in many different languages all across the globe.

Yet, Israel, somehow is claiming victory in the media war, which it calculatedly unleashed weeks before its most violent attack on Gaza yet. Thousands have been reportedly killed and wounded in the first two weeks, starting Dec. 27, in the tiny stretch of land (roughly 140 square miles), yet densely populated Gaza Strip of 1.5 million people.

"Whenever Israel is bombing, it is hard to explain our position to the world," said Avi Pazner, former Israeli ambassador to Italy and France, and "one of the officials drafted in to present Israel's case to the world media," according to the Jewish Chronicle. "But at least this time everything was ready and in place."

"Fewer military officers; more women; tightly controlled messages; and ministers kept on a short leash. This was Israel's new media game plan in Operation Cast Lead," the newspaper reported.

It's always difficult to fathom Israel's giddiness and sense of triumph as defenseless civilians are pulverized by mostly U.S.-supplied warplanes and bombs. Even if one chooses to empathize with Israel's dodgy claim, parroted endlessly by the George W. Bush administration, that the Israeli army is in a state of self-defense, one can never fully grasp the wisdom of its military tactics.

"Fatalities in Gaza are already over 400 and injuries close to 2,000 so far as is known. Total Palestinian civilian casualties are 400 times greater than the casualties incurred by Israelis," wrote three-time presidential candidate Ralph Nader in an open letter to Bush, five days into the Israeli onslaught. Nearly one week after the devastating airstrikes, Israel unleashed a ground offensive which is pushing the causality figures to unprecedented heights, made mostly of civilian victims, which by January 9, reached 795 dead and over 3,000 wounded.

Much of Israel's war machine is financed, manufactured and supplied by the United States. U.S. financial and military generosity has served as the backbone of all of Israel's wars against its neighbors, including the Palestinians. In Israel's war against Lebanon in the summer of 2006, lest it runs out, the U.S. rushed 'emergency' military supplies, including cluster bombs to the Israeli army, allowing the latter to ensure the demise of its arch enemy: thousands of dead and wounded Lebanese civilians.

In the ongoing war against Gaza, neither the U.S.' "dedication to the security of Israel," nor Israel's dedication to inflicting maximum harm on civilians have been in any way altered. While Bush brazenly chastised Hamas and the Palestinians for the death wrought on them by Israel, U.S. President-elect Barack Obama had nothing to say.

"The scale of bloodshed in Gaza over five days is the same as if almost 2,000 Israelis had been killed and 9,000 wounded in the same period. Imagine the consequences for Israel in such an event," wrote author and former BBC correspondent Deepak Tripathi. Would Obama find the staggering number worthy of cutting short his Hawaii vacation, even for a brief comment, if the tables were turned? Candidate of change, he said.

But Israel is winning the media war, reports Israel; a peculiar claim by any standards. If the reference is made to a "victory' that helped win over mainstream U.S. media, one has to wonder if the corporate media has ever expressed any sympathy for Hamas, or any resisting Palestinian faction, be it secular, socialist or Islamist?

The opposite has always been true. Any violent Palestinian response to the Israeli occupation and its inherit violence has been dubbed "terrorist" for decades, even if Palestinians were targeting Israeli soldiers or paramilitary settlers. Aside from allowing a 'moderate' Palestinian commentator an occasional limited space to write a watered down op-ed, now and then - which serves as a feel-good moment that demonstrates the 'objectivity' of U.S. media - the pro-Israel mantra has defined every major American newspaper in every city in every state. That requires a separate discussion, but the persistent question remains: what is Israel winning exactly?

More Israeli women are stating Israel's case to the media, according to reports. The strategy is both sexist and underhanded. Following the Lebanon war, Israeli bikini models flooded U.S. men magazines exhibiting their barely covered bodies. Former Miss Israel, model Gal Gadot defended her nude photos, promoted partly by the Israeli consulate in New York as her attempt to help "improve Israel's war-torn image," reported the New York Post in June, 2007. Now as Israeli bombs are lightening the sky of Gaza, similar tactics are underway, in Maxim and other magazines.

Kadima leader and Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni took its message to YouTube, conveying the same redundant but "tightly controlled" misinformation, that attempts to explain why imprisoning, starving, then senselessly bombing 1.5 million Palestinian Muslims and Christians is good for world peace, for democracy, for security, for the future of the region and the world.

But the fact is, Israel never won the media war in the United States for, frankly, there was never one to begin with. Yet somehow, millions of people around the world managed to read through the filters, the propaganda, the perplexing logic, the Maxim cover pages, and took to the streets in a collective act of passion and dismay, without billion-dollar media crafters "tightly controlling" their every move, scripting their chants or directing their hoarse voices: We are all Palestinians and "with our souls, with our blood, we will die for you Gaza."