Is Khaleda Hasina talks at all possible?

The express resolve at the BEA-FBCCI seminar to bring Begum Zia and Sheikh Hasina across the table and the thunderous applause from the audience greeting it on Thursday brought to the fore a simple truth: people want an end to the confrontational politics the country has been subjected to for all these years. They expect Prime Minister Khaleda Zia and Leader of the Opposition in Parliament Sheikh Hasina to come to terms on the urgent need to make their politics productive and constructive in the greater interest of the country. People want them both to engage in constructive dialogues and reach a consensus on issues of vital national interest. Another highlight of the seminar was the promise of the BNP secretary-general and the deputy leader of the opposition to work to this end. The organisers, the Bangladesh Economic Association and the Federation of Bangladesh Chamber of Commerce and Industry, certainly deserve credit for striking the right chord.

It is easier said than done, though. We have seen many such initiatives crash on the rocks of obduracy of the two leaders. In the end, while the bitterness has increased, the two ladies have grown further apart. Increasing hostilities between the ruling BNP and the main opposition Awami League have told on national politics and, more importantly, the country's socio-economic development prospects. At this juncture, Prime Minister Khaleda and Leader of the Opposition Hasina must be drawn across the table for constructive dialogue. The initiative has to be genuine and should stem from within the parties they are at the helm of. Encouragingly, the BNP secretary-general and the deputy leader of the opposition have both acknowledged the significance of such a dialogue and hopefully, they will set the process in motion.

Once it crystallises, the civil society and the media can pave the platform for the two ladies to get together and work things out across the negotiation table. We don't expect them to resolve their differences to the last bit; however, what we do hope for is that they open the channel of communication so as to reach a point where the momentum for a continual dialogue will have been automatically built.

In this direction, the government has to go more than half the way. It must acknowledge that parliamentary system of governance entitles the opposition to a space both within and outside the Jatiya Sangsad to enable them to air their views on the performance and policies of the government and sometimes go public with those in the form of rallies and meetings. One the other hand, the opposition should not oppose the government for the opposition's sake but try to cooperate with the government in matters of common stake and interest which need no elaboration. They must keep the nation above party at any cost and thereby compete positively in winning the hearts of the people.