01/07/2024 6:47 pm (current 01/07/2024 6:47 pm)
Another victory after a disputed election ©APA/AFP
In Bangladesh, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's party clearly won the parliamentary elections, according to initial results. As the election commission announced on Sunday, citing partial results, Hasina's ruling Awami League party won more than 50 percent of seats in parliament. Counting was still ongoing, but according to media reports, the Awami League was already undeniably ahead.
Since the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and other opposition parties boycotted the elections, the Awami League's victory was all but assured – and with it a fifth term for 76-year-old Hasina.
The election took place on Sunday amid a massive security presence. According to authorities, around 800,000 police officers and soldiers were deployed to maintain order during the controversial vote.
In the months leading up to the elections, authorities in the South Asian country took massive measures against the opposition. According to the BNP, the entire leadership of its party and around 25,000 other politicians were arrested. Tens of thousands more went into hiding. The government stated that the number of opposition activists arrested was 11,000. Earlier, there were huge demonstrations against Hasina.
BNP leader Tarique Rahman, who has led the party from exile in London, spoke to the AFP news agency about a “fake election”. For this reason, his party, along with other opposition parties, decided not to run in the elections.