"All we want is our daily rice andlentils," said a Dacca shopkeeper. "If we get enough at a price we canafford, we don't care what system is used to govern us." That was awidely shared feeling throughout Bangladesh last week as Sheik MujiburRahman, who led the country to independence from Pakistan in 1971,assumed sweeping presidential powers. Under a new constitutionalamendment the parliamentary system was abolished and Bangladeshembarked on what Mujib grandly described as "a second revolution."
It was less a revolution than a desperate effort by Mujib to end thecorruption, bureaucratic malfeasance and political violence that plaguehis country. A parliamentary committee began drafting the amendmentlast July. Late last month, after the amendment had been debatedexhaustively—and secretly—in committee, Mujib decided to put thechanges into effect. An obedient Parliament—305 of whose 312 membersbelong to Mujib's Awami League party —swiftly and unanimously approvedthe switch to presidential rule.
Under the new system, executive powers are vested in the President, whowill be elected directly every five years, and in a Council ofMinisters appointed by him. Although an elected Parliament can passlegislation, the President has veto power and can dissolve Parliamentindefinitely. Parliament may remove the President, however, by athree-fourths vote "for violating the constitution or grave misconduct"as well as for physical or mental Incapacity. The amendment alsoempowers Mujib to set up a single "national party," thus shutting offany political opposition.
In seeking greater power, Mujib was plainly concerned that foreign aid,on which Bangladesh is heavily dependent, would be sharply cut if whathe described as the "chaotic situation" continued to prevail. "How longwill friends continue to give us food and assistance?" he asked in anemotional address explaining the change. "We must have populationcontrol. We must discipline ourselves. I do not want to lead a nationof beggars."
For the time being, Mujib has retained his entire Cabinet. Mostobservers believe that he did so primarily for the sake of continuityand that major changes will come later. His toughest action is expectedto be aimed at profiteers and hoarders, who have interfered with theflow of relief supplies from abroad. An estimated 30,000 people died ofstarvation after floods destroyed much of last year's rice and jutecrops. The death toll could go much higher if this year's crops shouldalso be ruined. Inflation is virtually out of control; rice has morethan doubled in price in the past year (from 200 per Ib. to 500).Law-and-order is also a serious problem. Since independence, there havebeen at least 6,000 political murders.
Obviously, with so much power vested in a single man, the country coulddrift into dictatorship. Mujib pledged last week that he would preservedemocratic rights, and not many can imagine him in the role of atyrannical despot. Still, more than a few people in Bangladesh may wellfeel that a small dose of authoritarianism would be preferable to thecomplete collapse of their young country.
