Bangladesh’s Muhammad Yunus was set to float a political party of his own in 2007 but he did not follow through. Seventeen years later the Nobel laureate recognised for his work in micro-finance, especially the Grameen Bank in Bangladesh, now heads the interim government in his country after Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina stepped down and ignominiously fled the strife-torn nation. Yunus has his tasks cut out for him, from quelling the violence in the short term to bringing back a sense of stability in the following weeks to ensuring that free and fair elections are held in the long term.
Yunus was the choice of the students’ groups which have led the agitation in the country for months now against what they allege were stage-managed elections in January, which returned Hasina to power, and her autocratic ways and structures. Her shoot-at-sight orders to defence and police forces leading to hundreds to deaths of protestors have opened deep wounds for many in a nation that had seen violent uprisings and similar deaths in 1970-71, when it was still East Pakistan, immediately before it was liberated with help from India. Yunus termed this time as “second independence” when he touched down at Dhaka from Paris. The Hasina government had filed more than 100 criminal cases against him and he was out on bail after being sentenced to six months in jail; he termed the charges as politically motivated. He was cleared of them today.
Yunus commands great respect and regard among academicians and social sector advocacy activists around the world. His pioneering work has helped him form international connections too. Yunus faces a tough task but is in the best position to influence his country’s trajectory. As the face of Bangladesh’s interim government, he will be called upon to leverage his best qualities such as academic wisdom, patience and ability to work through challenges. He will look to his friends and supporters outside Bangladesh to boost his efforts. Whether that includes India, known for its friendliness with Hasina, is left to be seen.
