Islamist resurgence threatens Bangladesh’s fragile democratic transition

Islamist resurgence threatens Bangladesh’s fragile democratic transition

While Bangladesh labours to rebuild democracy after the forced removal of longtime leader Sheikh Hasina, an Islamist extremism trend is emerging that poses to reshape the secular nature of the nation. Religious fundamentalists have begun asserting control over public and private life, particularly targeting women’s freedoms and minority rights. In rural areas, young women have been banned from playing soccer, and those who do not cover their hair face harassment from emboldened religious vigilantes. In Dhaka, extremists have staged protests for capital punishment against perpetrators of "insulting Islam" and for the creation of an Islamic caliphate, the New York Times reported.

A political void taken advantage of by fundamentalists

With the military unwilling to intervene, an demoralised police force, and an interim government headed by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus with a agenda of reconciliation and reforms, Islamist groups—most of whom had been banned at one time—are openly mobilising and advocating an even more theocratic system. They are taking advantage of the fall of Hasina's repression, under which Islamist forces were repressed and placated by mosque-building and easing supervision of religious seminaries. These forces now come together, with small extremist groups and larger mainstream parties such as Jamaat-e-Islami pushing a combined conservative vision for the nation.

Women, minorities under renewed pressure

The backlash has hit hardest for the women who spearheaded the pro-democracy demonstrations against Hasina's government. Female students who once spearheaded the movement now sit on the sidelines, harassed and ostracized under the surge of religious populism. In one instance, a scheduled women's soccer match in Taraganj was cancelled after a local cleric issued threats of violence, and the region was put under curfew. Although the game was subsequently conducted under strict security, organizers indicated that future events were in doubt owing to continued threats.

Minority religious groups, particularly the Ahmadiyya Muslims, are beleaguered. Their mosque was stormed on the evening Hasina's administration collapsed, and they were prohibited from airing calls to prayer or reconstructing signs. Local chapter leaders of the Ahmadiyyas allege they live in terror as clerics such as Ashraf Ali, the same imam who led the protests against the soccer game, continue to openly call for the group's destruction.

Unsure road ahead for democracy

Interim officials such as former student leader Nahid Islam admit the danger of increasing extremism but are optimistic that Bangladesh's cultural heritage and extensive female workforce participation—some of the highest in South Asia—are likely to stem a hardline trend. Critics, though, claim the current government's inability to resist extremists more strongly, combined with the void left by Hasina's absence, has the potential to quicken Bangladesh's lurch toward theocratic politics.

The case in Bangladesh is now starting to resonate with the broader regional trend: from the Taliban regime in Afghanistan to Hindu nationalism in India and Islamist extremist violence in Pakistan. As Bangladesh readies for national elections later this year, the result could well decide whether or not the country continues to hold on to its pluralist ambitions—or sinks further into religious authoritarianism.