Mon 16 Jun 2008
Should expatriate Bangladeshis have a right to vote? Having championed this for a long time, I was, however, torn when BBC Bangla asked me to discuss this for a show tomorrow. Yes, certainly voting for a country is every citizen’s birth right. But a citizen who has left the country years ago and hardly has any connection with the local issues, how can he vote on the matters of local importance? I am instantly reminded of some of the horrendous out of touch comments that I read in this blog. “Corruption is the main problem”, “Let’s clean the streets and get those slum dwellers out”, “Just get rid of the two leaders and all will be fine” etc etc. Will they know what is the most pressing item in their locality in Rustampur in Pabna? They won’t. But the good news is that they are in the minority. The fact of the matter is for a majority of our citizens who have emigrated outside the country, the local issues are very much relevant and they are very much connected. Yes, think about the migrant worker in middle east who has been suppressed without a voice for years, having the power to change government who does not work for their benefit but reap the benefit of their hard work. May be a voting right will make the embassies in those countries more accountable to them. Think about the young student who had to move outside Bangladesh because the government could not manage to provide dissent research facility in his/her university. This will be their chance for getting back to those leaders and letting them know that they matter too. However, the biggest benefit of having expat voting rights is that it will give the expatriates a sense of ownership which will translate into many bigger and better things in future. It will mean that they are equal stakeholders in the process.
Ever wonder how so many newspapers in London and New York can do such good business at the same time? Because probashis dig them. They read them from beginning to end - at one breath. Not because they are bored. Its because they care. For many expatriate Bangladeshis, leaving Bangladesh happened out of necessity. It was purely and simply an economic decision. The young graduate unemployed from Narail who could not break the glass ceiling in the society, going abroad and returning with a few lakh taka was his way of working around the system breaking that ceiling. The middle class bank officer who took advantage of the High skill visa program in London did not want to suffer the insecurity of a depleted savings and foggy future for his 7 year old. So they move abroad leaving their hearts behind. They struggle, they fall down and they get back up again. Eventually they get stability in their lives. But at a high premium. A stability hard earned after a lot of tears and sweats and sometimes after living a life of indignity. Yet, they want to feel connected. They read the Bangla newspapers everyday. They buy $5 calling cards in bulk talking to the families. They pay premium money in Bangla TV call in shows to get their voices heard. They sit around in cafes discussing Bangla politics. The elites discuss in the blogs. No matter how much they fight here in this blog or other places, the common element that binds them together here is the fact that — they care. They care enough to actually spend time thinking about the country that they left behind long long time ago — a country that they still want to be connected to somehow. Because deep down they feel that one day they will return. Also that is where they have left their extended families and for them who wins in the local elections matters big.
Give these expatriates voting rights and this urge of belonging will be converted into something more tangible. They will feel empowered and connected. For Bangladesh, Diaspora Bangladeshis are a resource that is still extremely untapped. Whether it is knowledge transfer, business ventures or simply philanthropy, Diaspora Bangladeshis can and is willing to make a huge difference. Giving them voting rights is the first step towards that journey.
So what’s your thought?
Should the expats have a voice? I say yes and an emphatic yes. Below was the guideline questions given by BBC and perhaps you can comment too on it and I can take a few from here to read out in the show.
– why does this voting right matter to Brit-Bangladeshis ? Should it matter?
– does this right increase the expats’ ties to BD, and consequently reduces their commitment to UK?
– how can voters in London choose issues on which to vote? Issues in BD do not affect them, so how can they vote on those?
– should expat Bangladeshis continue to participate in BD politics?
June 16th, 2008 at 6:09 pm
Asif bhai,
Why shouldn’t expats vote? That’s the more important question.
Apnar keno monehoi je jara dhaka shohor e vote dei, they all know what’s the best choice for their locality? You think the entire gulshan-banani constituency is concerned about who is the better candidate for improving local env? During the last elections I doubt half the people in Gul-Banani even knew that Rahamatullah and Maj Kamrul were friends and that their sons were getting into business together. I’m sorry, but my experience has been different. If Dhaka people can vote simply to bring their priyo party to power or vote out the opriyo party, other BD nationals deserve to have the same right.
In fact, with respect to Brit-Bangladeshis, given the huge Sylheti population, I daresay that the 22 year old boy who moved to London at the age of 5 knows more about Habiganj, his home district than my Chacha who was perhaps born there. They keep in touch and they know whats going on in their villages. They may not know how things in Dhaka are, but I’ve found them to be well-versed in Sylheti affairs.
They can also vote for NRBs who have returned to Bangladesh and set up home again. The Brit Bangladeshis who have come back and invested in here in desh.These returned-NRBs can promote reverse brain drain and the British Bangladeshis can vote these people to power. We need such people to encourage investment by NRBs in BD and help reverse brain drain. Once elected, these ex-Expats can help set up research facilities so that the next Shahjalal Student doesnt have to migrate.
Just my 2 cents
June 16th, 2008 at 11:06 pm
Non-residents are alien-insiders. This is a problematic category as there will always be a conflict of interest between those that are neither truly alien nor truly insiders. The “alien” part of their existence will always dominate the “insider” part and in order to have a rational balance between the two, the alien-insider will try to have the best of both worlds but could inadvertently end up with a largely diminished commitment, thereby becoming a double agent — i.e. selling inside information to outsiders to enhance his well-being. Many non-residents make a living by spying for the country of their origin and vice versa. United States has expelled many Chinese Americans over the years for spying for China. How many Bangladeshi-Americans or Bangladeshi-British or Bangladeshi-Hindus have been expelled from Bangladesh for spying against Bangladesh in the name of investigating human rights abuse and minority abuse?
Why do you think George Bush was looking out for expatriate Iraqis soon after Gulf War II to install in place of Saddam Hussain? It is because these Non-resident Iraqis had exactly what George Bush needed to transform and shape Iraq in the image of the United States. This is called diffused imperialism. I am sure no truly patriotic and conservative Bangladeshi wants to see that happen to our country. Go back a decade to remember Taslima Nasrin. What motivated the Bharatiya Janata Party and India to shelter Taslima Nasrin? Was it purely humanitarian? Are Taslima’s well-wishers just passionate advocates of human rights and women’s rights or did they have an agenda? If so, why did Taslima charge her her benefactors in lurid tales of her “Meye-bela” long after these benefactors were done with their hospitality? Why should Bangladesh extend voting rights to non-resident daughters like Taslima who are in a habitual incest with the social values of the republic in which they are born?
Secondly, there are convicted criminals living overseas for many years as non-residents. The killers of Sheikh Mujib who are living in the United States fall in this category. Many crminals fled after 1/11 to India, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia and elsewhere in the world and these people have homes and businesses in these countries and are using these countries as sanctuaries. Criminals do have a right to vote but not in a sanctuary off-shore and not before they have fulfilled their commitment and obligation to the state. Bangladesh is not a free-for-all banana republic for alien-insiders to lodge their double-agency just because of the coincidence of their or their parent’s birth. It is simply a country of origin for these NRBs to which the no longer officially belong (as far as nationality is concerned) and where they have little or no stake. In the very best interest of Bangladesh, there should be no voting rights extended to Non-resident Bangladeshis unless and until extradition treaties are signed with countries that host individuals of Bangladeshi birth. The same principle should be followed for dual nationality. No dual nationality without extradition treaties. Dual nationalities are licenses to double agency.
The right to vote comes with the obligation to uphold sovereignty of the republic. I recently met a Syllheti on board my flight from London who told me that his forefathers fought for Sylhet to be part of Assam and he still regrets that this did not happen. There are many such individuals suffering from a crisis of identity whose sense of identities need to be rehabilitated through counselling before there is any consideration of their voting rights. There is a bigger issue of separatism concerning the Sylheti NRBs in the United Kingdom but this should be discussed in a separate thread.
June 16th, 2008 at 11:41 pm
The 22 year old Habiganj boy might not only know about Habiganj but also a thing or two about Dhaka, but….
June 17th, 2008 at 2:46 am
If the Bengali community in Britain, with British passports, have been given the right to vote and be card carrying citizens, that principle and right should be extended to all other such Bangladeshi communities in other countries. The government has not provided a rational for such s preferential policy. It could be that the Bangladesh British lobby is an old and organized one, with sympathizers in the government, while the lobbies from other Bangladeshi communities are asleep at the wheel.
June 17th, 2008 at 7:35 am
The question was, Voting rights for NRBs - yeay or nay?
My answer is NO.
Why? Already all Bangladeshi people have right to vote, if any Bangladeshi who lives an abroad, nobody forbid him to come in BD to participate the election or politics. Its a bad culture to leave BD and stay at abroad illegally for certain time, then getting the citizen ship, after then his family,relatives, etc ….This bad practice must be stopped.
We like to introduce ourselves as a Bangladeshi with a very positive image at abroad, not as an illegal Bangladeshi.
June 17th, 2008 at 10:54 am
#4
If NRBs are allowed to vote, I’m sure that all NRBs will be allowed, not just Brit-Bangladeshis.
I don’t think that was what the author had meant. Just that BBC is more interested in the Brit-Bangladeshi perspective.
As a matter of principle, all Bangladeshi nationals, regardless of their geographical location, should have a say in who is going to run the country. Regardless of where they are, national policies affect them. The conditions of the migrant workers of Saudi Arabia and Malaysia are a testament of the failure of successive governments’ policies and diplomatic efforts.
ref #2
” I recently met a Syllheti on board my flight from London who told me that his forefathers fought for Sylhet to be part of Assam and he still regrets that this did not happen.”
and my family fought for Sylhet to be made a part of Bangladesh. My Barishaillah nana went all the way to Sylhet to lobby and vote. So, are you saying that if I my nana had migrated to Sweden later on he shouldn’t have been allowed to vote?
How about you backtrack and let voting rights be the stepping stone to reinstating national identities? All these NRB youths can get in touch with their roots by taking an interest in local issues and exercising opinions by voting. How about you give them a chance first and reserve your judgement for later?
June 17th, 2008 at 11:22 am
Why does this voting right matter to Brit-Bangladeshis ? Should it matter?
It matters to all migrants or settlers anywhere. The majority are economic migrants and want to maintain links ‘back home’. The enduring myth has to be about being ‘temporary’. The half million Brits, owning a home and living in Spain, retain their links to blighty as do Non-resident Indians.
The vote is symbolic (numerically insignificant nationwide, though it may swing a couple of seats in Sylhet) and allows the migrant/settler a political role, as a ‘thank you’ for the critical economic role of shoring up Bangladesh’s foreign reserves.
– does this right increase the expats’ ties to BD, and consequently reduces their commitment to UK?
It’s not a zero sum game. E.g. people in Tower Hamlets could vote against Gordon Brown for UK domestic issues (housing, war, 42 days,) and still vote for a Bangladeshi party on different grounds altogether.
– how can voters in London choose issues on which to vote? Issues in BD do not affect them, so how can they vote on those?
A generation ago, the conversation in restaurants started off …. “taka rate koto?” and other such basic bits of data.
Now, with the proliferation of news media (print/TV/web), Londonis can easily find out what’s happening. Watch ATN/Channel I for one week and you can be up to date.
So they can work it out.
Also, the restaurant workers/bosses esp. are still sending money ‘home’. So land prices, inflation, roads, economic mismanagement do matter very much. Many may see it as good money being wasted because Dhaka (whichever regime to date) does so badly. Then again, voting is about being hopeful that things can change for the better.
– should expat Bangladeshis continue to participate in BD politics?
In the wider sense of the word, yes.
June 17th, 2008 at 2:54 pm
#2 You start your paragraph saying “Non-residents are alien-insiders.”
Later you say in the same paragraph “Many non-residents make a living by spying for the country of their origin and vice versa. ”
Then you ask: “How many Bangladeshi-Americans or Bangladeshi-British or Bangladeshi-Hindus have been expelled from Bangladesh for spying against Bangladesh in the name of investigating human rights abuse and minority abuse?”
Do you mean, just as the Bangladeshi-Americans and Bangladeshi-British have foreign citizenship and have at one time lived overseas, that all Bangladeshi HIndus fall into the same category, and are “alien insiders”? Should Bangladeshi Hindus be mentioned in the same breath as Bangladeshi-Americans and Bangladeshi-British?
June 17th, 2008 at 9:18 pm
Ref #8:
Bangladeshi Hindus might not have foreign citizenships but they do have questionable foreign economic ties (in terms of assets and investments in neighbouring countries), foreign political affiliation, and ethnic and religious loyalties beyond our political bordres. Even if I ignore ethnic and religious loyalties as a matter of one’s personal domain that is only natural for one to have specially in a country like Bangladesh that was only the other day a part of undivided India, one’s questionable foreign economic ties and questionable foreign political ties can indeed be a grave source for concern about our national economic insecurity and our national political insecurity. If enough of these economically alien insiders (a significant percentage)and politically alien insiders (a significant percentage) are motivated by their sense of religious insecurity and ethnic loyalties to have questionable foreign economic and political ties outside the boundaries of Bangladesh and if those ties undermine the national interests of Bangladesh, I am afraid these people who fall in a different category of alien-insiders are able to cause grave insecurity for our country with a potential for disaster.
There can be no substitute of the separation between the mosque and the state to create an environment where all religious and ethnic groups feel that they can do business in harmony in Bangladesh without any kind of provocation or insecurity and without having to habitually manifest those insecurities in terms of investments to India as economically alien insiders of Bangladesh. Please note that religious alienation of the minorities can lead to their economic alienation, triggering a loss of contribution to the economy of Bangladesh by these religious-alien-insiders among us. Please do not feel alienated by my analysis of various kinds of “alien-insiders” as I truly believe that our national strength lies in our diversity.
I was recently invited to a sweet-maker’s wedding in my ancestral village in rural Bangladesh. When I inquired about the state of his sweet-making business in the village and whether I could offer him any assistance to improve his business, the sweet-maker told me that he has been making sweets for the village for last 50 years and has recently bought a house in Siliguri in West Bengal, India. He invited me quite innocently to his house in Siliguri and he was extremely warm about taking me to this place to show his Great financial success of sweetmaking in our Bangladeshi village for the last 50 years.
Unfortunately, my fellow-villager-sweetmaker did not quite realize that I love my country and I did not like the fact that I ate his sweets with my money for him to invest in a home in Siliguri. He also did not realize that if enough of people like him continue to feed Bangladesh sweets to buy homes in Siliguri or do similar things, then people like me, out of their patriotism, might start eating something else to stop Bangladesh from building up Siliguri.
There can be absolutely no compromise or concessions to any category of alien-insiders as far as the national interest of Bangladesh is concerned. As truly patriotic Bangladeshis, we stand guard to protect our country from any kind of sell-out by any kind of alien-insiders.
June 17th, 2008 at 9:47 pm
If a NRB holds/maintains/acquires Bangladeshi Citizenship, then s/he ALWAYS has the voting right irrespective of his/her place of residence. And it is the legal responsibility of the government to make sure that s/he can cast his/vote for her/his candidate of choice. This is the norm of the world. I really don’t understand why we make so simple issue so much complex.
A kid born in America to Bangladeshi parents is NOT a NRB - s/he is an American citizen, so voting right for that American citizen does NOT arise. — its that simple.
If an American born kid acquired Bangladesh Citiziship via the law of dual citizenship, then, of course s/he has voting right.
Its all about someone’s unalienable rights of citizenship. NO one has authority to take away that right because someone chose to live outside of the contry.
Again I don’t understand why the question of whether NRB has voting rights or not arises again and again among the NRB circle.
June 17th, 2008 at 9:47 pm
#2
“How many Bangladeshi-Americans or Bangladeshi-British or Bangladeshi-Hindus have been expelled from Bangladesh for spying against Bangladesh in the name of investigating human rights abuse and minority abuse?”
This is what I understand from the comment above.Like expatriate Bangladeshis,Bangladeshi Hindus can be considered as alien insiders, even though he/she may never leave Bangladesh, never goes abroad and never have foreign citizenship.Why the allegiance of minorities are being questioned?
I would be happy if someone tells me that my understanding or interpretation is wrong.
June 18th, 2008 at 2:55 am
#10
“Bangladeshi Hindus might not have foreign citizenships but they do have questionable foreign economic ties (in terms of assets and investments in neighbouring countries), foreign political affiliation, and ethnic and religious loyalties beyond our political bordres”
How about Muslim Bangladeshis who reside in bangladeshu, but have bought homes in Malaysia, set up businesses in Singapore, bought an apartment in Canada or have spent thousands of dollars on US/UK education for themselves and their children.
Who alienated these guys?
Are their national loyalties also questionable?
June 18th, 2008 at 3:31 am
#9 Cholishnu shaheb,
On your website, the link from which I got from your post on this blog, you state in your bio:
“However, I soon moved to the foothills of the Himalayas in Darjeeling, and it was mainly in St. Paul’s school that my educational attitudes were formed.”
Rather ironic that your village friend’s new home in Shiliguri is a stones throw away from the school you attended. Tell me, during the course of your education in Darjeeling and your stay in West Bengal, in the interest of patriotism, did you refuse to spend a single Taka earned in Bangladesh in India for fear that would contribute to that country’s economy as opposed to Bangladesh?
June 18th, 2008 at 3:58 am
Ref # 12:
“How about Muslim Bangladeshis who reside in Bangladesh, but have bought homes in Malaysia, set up businesses in Singapore, bought an apartment in Canada or have spent thousands of dollars on US/UK education for themselves and their children. Who alienated these guys?
Are their national loyalties also questionable?”
Reply:
You are absolutely correct and I mention them in the third paragraph of my post # 2 in this thread where I wrote the following, FYI:
“Secondly, there are convicted criminals living overseas for many years as non-residents. The killers of Sheikh Mujib who are living in the United States fall in this category. Many crminals fled after 1/11 to India, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia and elsewhere in the world and these people have homes and businesses in these countries and are using these countries as sanctuaries. Criminals do have a right to vote but not in a sanctuary off-shore and not before they have fulfilled their commitment and obligation to the state. Bangladesh is not a free-for-all banana republic for alien-insiders to lodge their double-agency just because of the coincidence of their or their parent�s birth. It is simply a country of origin for these NRBs to which the no longer officially belong (as far as nationality is concerned) and where they have little or no stake. In the very best interest of Bangladesh, there should be no voting rights extended to Non-resident Bangladeshis unless and until extradition treaties are signed with countries that host individuals of Bangladeshi birth. The same principle should be followed for dual nationality. No dual nationality without extradition treaties. Dual nationalities are licenses to double agency.”
Ref: #11:
“Like expatriate Bangladeshis,Bangladeshi Hindus can be considered as alien insiders, even though he/she may never leave Bangladesh, never goes abroad and never have foreign citizenship.Why the allegiance of minorities are being questioned? I would be happy if someone tells me that my understanding or interpretation is wrong.”
Reply:
I answered your question in my post #9 in this thread. Your understanding is neither right nor wrong, but, with all due respect, it is incomplete.
The issue is not one of exclusion of religious minorities by political alienation as you perhaps understand it; but it is about their sense of religious insecurity and ethnic loyalty as the most important motivating factor behind questionable transfer of their wealth outside Bangladesh contributing to a loss in Bangladesh’s economy. It is also about the lack of willingness of the vast majority to create a religious-value-neutral and purely transactional business environment without dismembering or disrespecting the Islamic belief system of the people of Bangladesh. I understand such a delicate balance is hard to achieve but that should not prevent us from trying our best to practice it.
The bottom-line is that the alien-insiders are expected to be purely transactional so long they are “inside” our country, and once they are “inside” they are not expected to be transformational agents of any kind of imperial change whether it is American, British, Australian, Hindu, Jewish, Pakistani, you name it…. So long they respect our social values, they are fine to do business with us. If they try to impose their alien social values on us, then they must leave our country or they will be asked to leave. I hope I have answered your questions.
June 18th, 2008 at 5:59 am
#14
I am NOT talking about criminals or NRBs in that statement, but law-abiding, Bangladeshi residents who have invested abroad.
If we follow your theory and reference to the misti-ala, then these guys also have questionable loyalties. So should they be allowed to vote?
June 18th, 2008 at 6:24 am
#14 - It gets better and better
You say, referring to the “alien insiders” who you have already identified as the ethnic/religious minorities:
“So long they respect our social values, they are fine to do business with us. If they try to impose their alien social values on us, then they must leave our country or they will be asked to leave.”
Would be interested to know how, say, the Chakmas of CHT who represent less than 1% of Bangladesh’s population, and who by your definition are clearly ethnically and religiously having “alien social values” from “us”, woudl be imposing their ways on 85% (if by religious identity) or 99% (if by ethnic identity) of Bangladesh’s population?
June 18th, 2008 at 6:29 am
Ref # 15:
Reply: Yes.
Ref # 13:
Reply:
Thank you for raising this interesting point. There is no conflict between my personal commitment to my country and either my education in India or the money that my family contributed to buy me an education in India. I did not generate any balance of payments deficit by drawing foreign exchange from Bangladesh’s foreign exchange reserve. Neither did I indoctrinate myself through an education in India. The school that I attended was the oldest British Colonial School at the highest elevation of the world and it is known worldwide as the Eaton of the East. Neither did I allow this Eaton of the East to colonize my mind.
Rather, quite contrarily, my British colonial elite Indian education contributed to my enlightened citizenship and prepared me for future public stewardship. You can visit the following link for details:
http://sustainable-dhaka.blogspot.com/
June 18th, 2008 at 3:46 pm
@Cholishnu Bidda Kalpadroom: are you for real? If I’m reading your posts correctly (a damnably difficult task, by the way, given your affinity for words with high syllable counts), you propose a “democracy” in which individuals are excluded on voting on racial or ethnic grounds.
You say that your high school education didn’t colonize your thinking. I think everyone here thinks otherwise, because you seem to have adopted the same kind of systemic (and rightly decried) discrimination the Brits undertook in their supposedly democratic empire.
Finally, like many others on this forum, I am interested to know how you payed for your foreign education without a net outflow of funds from Bangladesh*. Does the classic BoP equation (X-M)/(K_o-K_i)=1 not apply to you?
* Forgive the silly questions: I only attended an “Ivy League” university… which, of course, is nothing compared to the renowned Eton of the East
June 18th, 2008 at 3:47 pm
@Cholishnu Bidda Kalpadroom: are you for real? If I’m reading your posts correctly (a damnably difficult task by the way, given your affinity for words with high syllable counts), you propose a “democracy” in which individuals are excluded from voting on racial or ethnic grounds.
You say that your high school education didn’t colonize your thinking. I think everyone here thinks otherwise, because you seem to have adopted the same kind of systemic (and rightly decried) discrimination the Brits undertook in their supposedly democratic empire.
Finally, like many others on this forum, I am interested to know how you paid for your foreign education without a net outflow of funds from Bangladesh*. Does the classic BoP equation (X-M)/(K_o-K_i)=1 not apply to you?
* Forgive the silly questions: I only attended an “Ivy League” university… which, of course, is nothing compared to the renowned Eton of the East
June 19th, 2008 at 2:09 pm
I think insecurity is one of the keywords in Cholishnu Bidda Kalpadroom’s mind-boggling “logic”. Even if one were to ignore the intolerance of his words, there is the issue that we may be feeding religious insecurity and ethnic loyalty by making such insulting stereotypes as the ones he put forth. A lot of our Bangladeshi politicians have questionable foreign economic ties (in terms of assets and investments in neighbouring countries), and ethnic and religious loyalties beyond our political borders. They get to vote, don’t they?
As far as dual nationality goes, good luck to any of you born to Bangladeshi parents outside Bangladesh. In the “days of my youth”, I decided that I loved the country of my ancestors enough to want a certificate of dual nationality (I was told that having two passports wasn’t the right way to go about matters). After finding someone who could get me into the Home Ministry (you can’t get in without help!), I was sent from one floor to another repeatedly to obtain signatures that for various ridiculous reasons (read: not doing it without incentive) seemed hard to come by. If I had just been told then that such a certificate was considered a license for double agency, I would have been enlightened. Instead, eventually, my neither truly alien nor truly insider self decided that it wasn’t love so much as infatuation, so I joined forces with some Bangladeshi Hindu folk (because you KNOW that they ALL want to be part of India, really) and we started a lucrative business selling information on the nuances of obtaining dual nationality to enhance the well-being of hapless UK/US-bashis who just couldn’t cut it in the West and wanted to make a living for themselves by spying on Bangladesh’s Home Ministry and exposing its systematic abuse of us alien-types.
Sheesh.
July 14th, 2008 at 4:07 pm
Being a young Brit-born Sylheti I would not vote in Bangladeshi elections if given the opportunity to do so because I’m British and it would be unfair to participate in the politics of a country (or Sylhet region) to which I only occasionally visited. In any case Bangladeshi democracy leaves much to be desired.
On the other hand some older Brit Sylhetis might chose to do so and many of those with investments in land and businesses in Greater Sylhet certainly would. On average a Brit Sylheti pays more in taxes to the govt than an average Bangladeshi citizen. So accountability is good. As I understand it a Brit Sylheti was nominated for a seat by the AL at the last election. There is some interests amongst some Sylhetis.
Brit Sylheti connection to Bangladesh is not political. For our parents it was ‘love of the land’ and for those of the younger generation it is love for relatives over there. Regarding #2 my family voted to go with Assam and not East Pakistan as well, but we must face reality and work to ensure Sylheti language and economic rights within Bangladesh. We have the economic strength to demand our rights.