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PARLIAMENT WATCH – BANGLADESH 2009 1 A Report on the Proceedings of the Ninth Parliament of Bangladesh (First, Second and Third Session) January 2009 – November 2009 Irfath Ara Iva SAHR Bangladesh 2 Background & Objective: Following national elections in Bangladesh held on 28 th December 2008, the first session of the Ninth Parliament was convened on 25 th January 2009. The objectives of SAHR’s Parliament Watch are to examine the legislations enacted for the implications for human rights of citizens, transparency and accountability of government, the parliamentary system and responsibilities of the executive in ensuring the rule of law and human rights. Legislative process in the First session of the Ninth Parliament: Between the dissolution of the Eighth Parliament and the commencement of the Ninth Parliament, the President promulgated 122 Ordinances in accordance with Article 93 of the Constitution. The Parliament constituted an expert group to examine the Ordinances and to recommend their ratification and enactment within 30 days of the formation of the new parliament, which was a constitutional obligation. Notable among the Acts passed during the session were the following: the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2009; Money-laundering Prevention Act, 2009; Anti-Terrorism Act, 2009; Right to Information Act, 2009; Consumer Protection Act, 2009; and the Code of Criminal Procedure (Amendment) Act, 2009 . On the other hand, a number of ordinances which would have a vital effect on ensuring transparency, good governance and protecting human rights were kept pending, including the Anti-Corruption Commission (Second Amendment) Ordinance, 2007; National Human Rights Commission Ordinance, 2007; Public Procurement Act (Amendment), 2007 and the Mobile Court Ordinance, 2007 . The major opposition party, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), which had only 12% representation in Parliament remained absent for much of the session. Also, there was little participation by the public and not much information on legislation was made available through the media. In many countries the draft laws are published in the websites of the Parliament or Law Ministry and newspapers; people are informed through e-mails or electronic and print media; public opinion is sought at seminars, consultations and workshops; and on the basis of such constructive critiques, necessary amendments or revisions are made to the Bills in Parliament. Legislative process in the Second session of the Ninth Parliament: A total of 21 notices on the Government Bills were received and among them 20 Bills were placed in Parliament and one was pending. Three Money Bills were not sent to the Standing Committee. Besides, out of 28 Bills, including eight from the earlier session, a total 23 bills were passed in the Second session and were approved by the President. The remaining five Bills were examined by the Standing Committees and two reports on the relevant Bills were submitted and one was expected to be tabled in Parliament. 3 In the second session, a total of 47 hours and 43 minutes were spent on the discussion of the Budget, out of which 6 hours and 24 minutes were spent on the supplementary budget and 41 hours and 19 minutes on the general budget discussion. A total of 189 members from the Awami League, 23 from the BNP, two from the Workers Party, one from the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and one Independent member participated in the discussion. The budget of Tk 1,14,000 crore was passed on 30 th June after 47 hours of discussion, mainly by the treasury bench lawmakers in the absence of the main opposition BNP and its allies – Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami and Bangladesh Jatiya Party. The opposition skipped the entire session over protests against discrimination in seating arrangements and the denial of entry of the opposition leader’s car inside her cantonment home. The participation of women lawmakers was significant throughout the session. They took part in the budget discussion, came up with a number of notices and submitted questions to the ministers on different issues. No discussion, however, took place on the proposal by the Indian Government for the Tipaimukh dam. Although the opposition parties protested on the streets, they did not participate in the discussions in Parliament. The Government acknowledged that it was planning to send a delegation to India to assess possible ecological and environmental effects on Bangladesh. The Human Rights Commission Act was passed on 14 th July 2009. It enlarged the Commission to seven members and widened its mandate to consider violations of human rights by security forces. The Parliament also passed the International Crimes Tribunal (Amendment) Act, 2009 to prosecute individuals and groups who had committed crimes against humanity and war crimes during Bangladesh’s 1971 war of liberation. Notable among other Acts passed during the session are: The Public Procurement (Amendment) Act, 2009; The Law and Order Disruption Offence (Speedy Trial) (Amendment) Act, 2009; The Public Servants (Marriage with Foreign Nationals) (Amendment) Act, 2009; The Public Servants (Dismissal on Conviction) (Amendment) Act, 2009; The National Human Rights Commission Act, 2009; The International Crimes (Tribunals) (Amendment) Act, 2009 . The submission of an investigation report on alleged corruption by the speaker of the Eighth Parliament, Jamiruddin Sircar, is also mentionable. It was the first ever parliamentary investigation against a speaker of the Jatiya Sangsad. The report showed that the former speaker had used public money for personal purposes during his seven-year term. It also pointed to corrupt practices by the top legislators of the Eighth Parliament, including the former deputy speaker Akhter Hamid Siddiqui and former chief whip Khandaker Delwar Hossain. 4 The session also witnessed the enhancement of perks and privileges for the lawmakers. For the first time they were given office rooms in the Parliament complex to facilitate their legislative responsibilities. They were also pledged support staff and offices in their respective constituencies. The Chairmen of the Parliamentary Standing Committees were given some facilities for enhancement of their status, including armed escorts for security and support staff. The Parliamentary Standing Committees, constituted in the very first session of the current Parliament, were reconstituted to include lawmakers from the women reserved seats. The slot for the women Members of Parliament (MPs) were kept vacant when the committees were formed earlier. The Government also introduced a number of other bills, including the Insurance Monitoring Authority Bill, 2009 and the Insurance (Amendment) Bill, 2009. Legislative process in the Third session of the Ninth Parliament: In the third session a total of eleven Acts were passed and eleven Bills awaited approval. The BNP joined in this session. It was stated that 236 participants took part in the discussion on the address of the President. Among them 204 were from the Awami League and 32 were from the BNP. Notable among the Acts passed during the session were the following: Local Government (Pouroshava) Act, 2009; Mobile Court Act, 2009; Local Government (City Corporation) Act, 2009; Local Government (Union Parishad) Act, 2009; The Representation of the People (Second Amendment) Act, 2009; Public Procurement (Second Amendment) Act, 2009; Bangladesh Labour (Amendment) Act, 2009. Bills Passed in the Ninth Parliament Promoting Human Rights (January, 2009 - November 2009) Name of the Session Total No of Acts No of Bills No of Other number promoting Human relating to Finance of Bills Rights Privileges and /Tax benefits of the related Bills President and MPs 1st Session 32 14 1 9 8 25 January 2009 – 7 April 2009 2nd Session 23 6 - 6 11 (budget session) 4 June 2009 - 9 July 2009 3 rd Session 11 6 - - 5 7 September 2009 - 5 November 2009 **The list of Bills Passed in the 1 st , 2 nd and 3 rd session are attached as Annex A and the list of significant Bills, especially related to Human Rights of 1 st ,2 nd and 3 rd session, are attached as Annex B 5 Ninth Parliament at a Glance (January 2009 – November 2009) Name of Duration Total Time Number Remarks the working Spent on of Bills Session days of the passed the discussio session n of the President ’s Speech First 25 January 39 days 28 hours 32 • This was the first time in the Session 1 2009 – 7 (145 hours and 21 history of Bangladesh where April 2009 and 20 minutes 48 Parliamentary Standing minutes) Committees were formed. • Among the 48, 11 Committees were Parliament related and 37 were Ministry related. • The Standing Committees were to be chaired by a MP instead of the Ministers Second 4 June 2009 25 days 47 hours Among • The International Crimes Session – 9 July 2009 (90 hours and 43 the 28 Tribunal Act (Amendment), (budget and 41 minute Governm 2009 & The National Human session) 2 minutes) discussion ent Bills Rights Commission Act, 2009 on the 19 Bills are the important bills among Budget were the 19 bills passed in the 2 nd passed session. • Total 189 from Awami League, 23 from the Nationalist Party, 2 from the Workers’ Party, 1 from the Liberal Democratic Party and 1 independent member participated in the debate. • Two notices of Private Bills were submitted. Third 7 September, 22 days 11 • The Principal opposition party, Session 3 2009 - 5 the BNP, joined the parliament. November • 236 members participated in 2009 the discussion on the President’s address. • Among them 204 were from the Ruling party and 32 were from the main opposition party. 1 Parliament Library Bulletin, Jan- April,2009, issue #57-60 2 Parliament Library Bulletin, July- September,2009, issue #62 3 Parliament Library Bulletin, October- December,2009, issue #63 6 Updates on First, Second and Third Session, 2009 People’s Right to Vote The right to vote is a fundamental democratic right of citizens but the confrontational nature of politics in Bangladesh has made election management quite difficult.
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