Dhaka faces dilemma over opposition move to defy order

The government is weighing several options in the face of the main opposition Awami League's decision to defy the official ban on hoisting the national flag at half-mast on August 15, the death anniversary of independence leader Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.

The Awami League, as in the past, will observe the day as national mourning day.

The opposition party plans to lower the national flag at its central office, the Bangabandhu Memorial Museum and the residence of party president, Sheikh Hasina Wajed, in the capital.

Ministries concerned said they are taking into account the political implications should the government act against the planned Awami League defiance.

"Action against the planned defiance of the government order will be decided in the next few days," a cabinet member close to the prime minister said.

The minister said they are still looking into suggestions as to what should be done once the opposition party flouts the official ban.

"But we should not let the planned opposition action go unchallenged," the minister said, asking not to be named.

Two other ministers, also preferring anonymity, said the issue was politically sensitive. "If they (Awami League men) do it (defy the ban), we'll ignore it," said one minister who suggested the government should not opt for confrontation.

"What will they gain out of lowering the national flag on the so-called national mourning day, which has already been scrapped?" he asked.

The other minister said they would simply go by the relevant law. However, he hinted that the government might at best initiate legal action against the Awami League.

Explaining the flag rules, a senior official at the law ministry said the government could file a criminal lawsuit against the opposition party for violating the flag ban. But, he added, there is ambiguity about the provisions of punishment in the 1972 presidential order.

The previous Awami League government amended the flag rules in 1996 and added August 15 to the list of days when the national flag would be lowered. It also declared August 15 as National Mourning Day, which was also a public holiday.

But the present government cancelled the public holiday. On July 22, the cabinet cancelled all official programmes of August 15 and dropped the day from the list of days when the national flag would be flown at half-mast.