The United States Institute of Peace (USIP) is an American federal institution tasked with promoting conflict resolution and prevention worldwide in a recent report has admitted popularity of Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
The United States Institute of Peace is a national, nonpartisan, independent institute, founded by Congress and dedicated to the proposition that a world without violent conflict is possible, practical and essential for US and global security. In conflict zones abroad, the Institute works with local partners to prevent, mitigate, and resolve violent conflict. To reduce future crises and the need for costly interventions, USIP works with governments and civil societies to build local capacities to manage conflict peacefully. The Institute pursues its mission by linking research, policy, training, analysis and direct action to support those who are working to build a more peaceful, inclusive world.
Amid escalating disorder and a rapidly evolving strategic landscape, USIP is focusing on the rising complexity of violent upheavals in fragile states, particularly those stemming from the destabilizing roles of competing powers and rising competition for scarce resources. The Institute continues to focus on conflict areas that are of the greatest concern to US national security interests and values, and in which USIP has built expertise and partnerships for more than three decades.
The Institute prioritizes:
- Continuing its fieldwork to help fragile states and their citizens develop capacities to reduce and resolve violent conflicts.
- Based on their importance to US national securityand implications for regional and international peace and security, current priority countries include Afghanistan, Burma, Iraq, Nigeria, Pakistan, and Tunisia.
- Sharpening its focus on the destabilizing impact of regional and major
power competition in fragile states, with a renewed emphasis on Russia and China.
- Sustaining USIP’s field operations to reduce violence in fragile
states while augmenting its unofficial dialogues and analysis work on areas of rising danger.
Commenting of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and ruling Awami League, USIP said: “The Bangladeshi public’s pervasive pessimism appears to be boosting the opposition’s popularity but has not yet substantially weakened the Sheikh Hasina government. About 70 percent of Bangladeshis say the prime minister is doing a good job, and majorities approve of the government’s performance on various policy issues from access to drinking water to improving education”.
Meanwhile, the International Republican Institute (IRI) in a recent survey said, 92 percent of voters in Bangladesh are looking for voting in the upcoming general election while most Bangladeshis approve of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and the government’s performance on a range of issues.
Despite this eagerness to vote, many participants said both the AL and BNP make disingenuous promises during campaigns and doubted the prospects for change regardless of who is in power.
The participants told IRI, “Political parties do not change their policies, regardless of who is in power. Even if the opposition party comes into power, it may not necessarily mean that things will improve. Ultimately, what matters is the people who are behind the brand. We need to vote for individuals who will work for everyone and with integrity, regardless of their party affiliation”.
Majority of the participants of the survey said, they do not consider Jatiya Party (JP) as an opposition force. It may be mentioned here that, JP was founded by military dictator General Hussein Muhammad Ershad while this party was in the government during 2013-2018 as a coalition partner of Awami League. Currently JP is divided into two fractions – one led by Ershad’s widow Rowshan Ershad and another by his younger brother GM Quader.
It further said, seventy percent of Bangladeshis approve of Hasina’s performance, but approval of the opposition has risen from 36 percent in September 2019 to 63 percent in this poll.
Meanwhile, Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) has also published an article on popularity of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. According to information, CFR, founded in 1921 is an independent, nonpartisan membership organization, think tank, and publisher dedicated to being a resource for its members, government officials, business executives, journalists, educators and students, civic and religious leaders, and other interested citizens.
