DHAKA
\nBangladeshi politicians held election rallies across the country on Friday, as campaigning began for the hugely anticipated polls in February, the first since the 2024 uprising that ousted longtime Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
\nBangladesh will hold general elections on Feb. 12, and the two main parties contesting it, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party and Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, kicked off campaigning with tens of thousands of supporters on Thursday in the northern city of Sylhet and the capital Dhaka, respectively.
\nNearly 128 million of Bangladesh\u2019s 170 million population are eligible to vote in polls that will decide on proposed political reforms and bring in new leadership after prolonged political turmoil that followed Hasina\u2019s ouster, reshaping domestic and regional dynamics.
\n\u201cWe want to build a Bangladesh that is free from corruption, terrorism and extortion. Our dream is to build a Bangladesh where the grassroot-level working class people also can live with their rights, the women can move freely, (and) the youths will get enough employment opportunities,\u201d Jamaat\u2019s spokesperson Ahsanul Mahboob Zubair told Arab News on Friday.
\n\u201cWe are expecting a beautiful and safe Bangladesh following the election next month. We want a free and fair election environment where people would be able to exercise their voting rights without any fear.\u201d
\nAfter it was crushed during Hasina\u2019s 15 years in power, Jamaat-e-Islami is leading a 10-party alliance that includes the National Citizen Party, formed by student leaders who spearheaded the uprising.
\nNCP\u2019s Nahid Islam launched their campaign urging voters to \u201ccarry forward the progress of reform.\u201d
\nTarique Rahman, BNP chairman and son of the late former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, is widely seen as a leading contender for prime minister. He has vowed to create jobs for \u201cmillions of unemployed youth\u201d and support women\u2019s economic independence.
\nMore than 1,800 candidates are contesting for around 300 seats in the Bangladeshi parliament in the upcoming polls, which the country\u2019s interim leader Muhammad Yunus said will be a benchmark for future votes.
\n\u201cIt will be a festive election. It will set the standard for good elections in the future. Let\u2019s keep our fingers crossed,\u201d Yunus said during a meeting with US Ambassador to Bangladesh Brent Christensen, his office said on Friday.
\nYunus, the 85-year-old Nobel Peace Prize laureate who has led Bangladesh\u2019s caretaker government since August 2024, will step down after the polls.
\nThe 2024 mass uprising that forced Hasina to resign from office and flee to India began in early July as peaceful student demonstrations, triggered by the reinstatement of a quota system for the allocation of civil service positions.
\nTwo weeks later, they were met with a communications blackout and a violent crackdown by security forces.
\nA special tribunal in Dhaka found Hasina guilty of allowing lethal force to be used against the protesters, at least 1,400 people of whom died, according to estimates from the UN\u2019s Human Rights Office.
\nAfter a months-long trial, she was sentenced to death in absentia in November for crimes against humanity.
\nThe Yunus-led administration has banned all activities of Hasina\u2019s Awami League, meaning the former ruling party is prohibited from joining the race.
\nBangladesh last held elections in January 2024, which saw Hasina return to office for a fourth consecutive term.
\nThat vote was boycotted by the country\u2019s main opposition parties, which accused her administration of rigging the polls.
\nThis time around, the start of election campaigns has brought an air of festivity across Bangladesh, as people find themselves brimming with hope for the future.
\n\u201cVoters couldn\u2019t exercise their voting rights for the last 17 years,\u201d said Iqbal Hasan Mahmud Tuku, a seasoned BNP politician who is running to represent Sirajganj district.
\n\u201cNaturally, people are very excited about voting in the next election. As the times have changed, people want to see change.\u201d
\nOmor Fayaz Tamim, an anthropology student in Dhaka, is hoping to see a \u201csustainable and citizen-friendly\u201d development in Bangladesh after the upcoming election.
\n\u201cFrom witnessing systematic alienation from politics to being propelled into the fight for our rights in July, a (new) hope brews within (us) to be a part of a better Bangladesh,\u201d he told Arab News.
\nThis year marks a first for festivities surrounding the election for many Bangladeshis, especially the youth.
\n\u201cI have never seen the festivities of the Bangladeshi election before because of the dummy elections arranged before. So, it\u2019s definitely something new to our generation \u2026 I am optimistic about voting this year,\u201d 24-year-old Ashraful Alam Khan told Arab News.
\nMalaika Nur, another student in the Bangladeshi capital, is hoping to see the festive energy continue until voting day.
\n\u201cI hope the next government will restore peace and security for the people,\u201d she said.
\n\u201cIt will ensure democracy and integrity in all sectors. It will make plans that benefit the nation. It will not oppress people who are just demanding rights.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
DHAKA Bangladeshi politicians held election rallies across the country on Friday, as campaigning began for the hugely anticipated polls in February, the first since the 2024 uprising that ousted longtime Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. Bangladesh will hold general elections on Feb. 12, and the two main parties contesting it, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party and Bangladesh […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":527384,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-527364","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n