In a scathing critique, a top US expert has branded Bangladesh’s impending national elections as fundamentally flawed, predicting they will fail to meet basic standards of fairness. Michael Rubin, a senior fellow at the influential American Enterprise Institute, warns that barring major parties like the Awami League dooms the process from the start.
Speaking to IANS, Rubin minced no words: ‘Bangladesh will have no free and fair election whatsoever.’ He insisted true democracy demands rivalry among parties that represent the people’s will, not engineered exclusions driven by fear of defeat.
Rubin highlighted the push by chief adviser Muhammad Yunus and Jamaat-e-Islami to outlaw the Awami League – the party in power until recent upheaval – as proof of their insecurity. Yunus took office on August 8, 2024, amid waves of violence that Washington has done little to rein in.
At a conference hosted by the Institute for Strategic Dialogue, Rubin likened Bangladesh’s turmoil to a ‘slow-motion train wreck.’ He debunked claims of spontaneous 2024 protests, revealing orchestrated elements, and compared the polls to rigged exercises in Soviet-era states or modern Iran.
External meddling adds another layer of peril. Rubin cited irrefutable proof of Pakistani funding to a Jamaat-affiliated student group aiming to reclaim Bangladesh as ‘East Pakistan.’ He rebuked US diplomats for bubble-wrapped reporting, urging broader engagement to grasp ground realities.
With elections looming, Rubin’s prognosis paints a grim picture. Bangladesh teeters between potential reform and deepened authoritarianism, where sidelining rivals ensures short-term control but long-term chaos. The international community must heed these red flags to avert a full-blown crisis.