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| In 2008, millions of Bangladeshis were eagerly queued to vote on the country's first election in seven years. Photo: Abir Abdullah/EPA |
Peaceful,
credible and transparent elections. These ideals have eluded Bangladeshi voters who for decades have been
resigned to poll fraud and the attendant violence. Last year, however, two cities have had a
taste of a possible breakthrough.
For the
first time, voters of Chittagong and Narayanganj elected their new leaders
using electronic voting machines (EVMs). Many voters regarded their first experience with automated elections very
positively.
According to the article
entitled “EVM
passes with flying colours” (Rizanuzzaman Laskar, Daily Star, October
31, 2011),
voters praised the machines as “quick”, “convenient” and “easy-to-use.”
The
article further reports about a 105-old man named Jahedul Haque Bhuiyan who
exclaimed that voting using the EVM was the most fun he has ever had in any election. A
19-year old first-time voter, Suraiya Islam enthused that voting was fun “like
playing a video game!”
Aside
from the high degree of voter satisfaction, the results of the automated
elections in the two cities were widely accepted. This was in stark contrast
with the unrest that marred fraud-ridden elections in the past years. These positive developments have led observers
to hail the exercise a huge success.
Given
the impressive results of the pilot implementations, EVM's seem to be a logical
choice for the country’s next general elections. However, it is not smooth sailing for
automated elections as the Elections Commission has seemed to have had second
thoughts about using the EVM's countrywide.
The
reason? Dominant opposition party BMP, citing reliability issues, has
manifested its strong objection against the use of EVM's for the general
elections.
There
might be valid reasons for the BMP to oppose the nationwide use of EVM's. After all, ensuring a level playing field is
always of paramount concern among political parties. But every stakeholder in Bangladesh would be
well advised to keep in mind that electronic voting is in its infancy in their
country. Most likely, the issues being
raised are nothing that cannot be remedied in time for the next elections.
The elections in Chittagong
and Narayanganj have shown that automation works in Bangladesh. Before shutting
the door completely on EVM’s the Election Commission should consider that the
benefits of automated
elections far outweigh the costs that might be incurred to make sure that a
reliable and secure system is in place.
