There is uncertainty surrounding the signing of the July National Charter. This uncertainty is reportedly due to political differences over how to implement the charter.
In this situation, the National Consensus Commission has called an ‘urgent’ meeting with political parties at 6 pm today, Wednesday. Earlier, the commission members met with Professor Muhammad Yunus, the chief advisor to the interim government.
The July National Charter is being prepared with 84 reform proposals from 6 reform commissions. The charter is scheduled to be signed next Friday. The final copy of the charter was sent to the parties on Tuesday night. But there is still no consensus on the way to implement the charter. The commission is supposed to give a separate recommendation on this issue. But that has not been finalized yet. Although there is agreement on holding a referendum to implement the charter, there are differences of opinion among the parties on the date and method of voting. Some parties want assurances on the implementation method before signing the charter.
According to relevant sources, the National Citizens Party (NCP) held a meeting with the National Consensus Commission on Tuesday night. There, the party presented a strong position. It was announced at that meeting that the NCP would not sign the charter unless the reform process was advanced through the issuance of a ‘constitutional order’.
Sources said that the NCP is saying that they feel that they made concessions earlier when they formulated the July manifesto. There is no scope for concessions this time. They are in favour of starting a fresh discussion on reforms, especially on constitutional reform.
On the other hand, there is uncertainty about whether Jamaat-e-Islami will sign the charter as the implementation mechanism is not clear in the final draft. The party has said that it may sign if the charter accurately reflects the political consensus.
Some leftist parties have also indicated that they will not sign the charter. BNP proposed to add a clause to the pledge section of the charter, but the commission did not accept that proposal.
The political parties concluded their discussions on the reform proposals on July 31. Later, the commission consulted again with the parties and experts on ways to implement the charter. The discussions continued until October 9.
Although there is consensus on implementation through a referendum, differences of opinion remain among the BNP, Jamaat-e-Islami, and NCP on the timing and basis of the vote.
The Consensus Commission said that the meeting this evening will review the parties’ signatures and, if necessary, the means of implementation. The meeting will be broadcast live on Bangladesh Television (BTV).
Source: Click Here