Bangladeshi PM launches campaign for fifth term in power

DHAKA: Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina launched her campaign for a fifth term on Wednesday, as opposition parties called for civil disobedience and said the January 7 polls would not be fair.

“If I can form government again, we will turn the entire of Bangladesh into a prosperous and developed country,” Hasina told reporters in the northeastern city of Sylhet, kickstarting two weeks of campaigning ahead of the general elections.

“There will be no homeless and landless people,” she added, accompanied by ministers and top members of her ruling Awami League. The 76-year-old is all but assured of winning the polls, with the opposition decrying what they condemn as a “farcical” vote. Hasina has overseen impressive economic growth since she took over the country of 170 million people in 2009, but activists say her iron-fisted rule has been marked by widespread human rights abuses, including thousands of extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances.

The opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) as well as Jamaat-e-Islami -- the largest Islamist group -- and dozens of smaller parties, say no election will be free and fair with Hasina in power.

“We urge the country people to stick to the demands for restoring democracy and boycott the farcical vote,” the BNP said in a statement. The BNP has also called for civil disobedience across the country, asking people not to pay taxes and requesting election officials not to carry out their duties.