The practice of installing a non-party caretaker government for organising a free, fair and credible general election was introduced in Bangladesh in 1991, and so far three parliamentary elections have been conducted under this new arrangement. This new system, originally initiated for ensuring a free and fair election, although got initial approval of all of the political parties, members of the civil society and other professional groups has now become a little controversial specially after the BNP made constitutional amendment enhancing the retirement age of the Judges. And that is why the demand for electoral reform has of late become so strong and wide.

During the periods of military leaders from 1975 to1990, a number of abusive and fraudulent elections were held in Bangladesh where people did not have the right to choose their rulers/government and "vote piracy", "vote hijacking" and "media coups" (media manipulation of election results) had become a part of the country's election culture. As a of this, the new experiment of installing a non-party caretaker government, headed by the immediate past chief justice of the Supreme Court was introduced unanimously by the leaders of all political parties in 1991 in order to conduct a generally acceptable free, fair and credible parliamentary election.

Generally speaking, holding, free and fair elections is a standard by which the legitimacy of governments is judged. The choice of electoral system varies depending on the prevailing circumstances .At present, there is a serious global commitment to elections and international practice has established criteria against which the validity of elections may be judged.

Basically elections are means to ensuring that a nation chooses its representatives on clearly defined pro-democratic rules. In this process, political parties, government institutions, members of civil society and the media - all play vital roles. The voter is equally important. After all these are the people that at the end of the day determine the persons eligible to occupy a political office. In so doing, a certain standard of behaviour, as well as conformity to the established procedure is expected of them. Therefore, the level of a voter's perception of what is right and what is wrong will depend on a number of factors.

Some political scientists and election professionals have tried to classify under the headings "free" and "fair" the minimum features, rights and procedural arrangements expected to be in place during the critical phases of a credible democratic election process: pre polling day, polling day and post polling day.

In some cases, even if elections were conducted in a spotlessly clean and scrupulous manner, many would still be concerned about the way in which the average citizen views his or her role in elections or the electoral process .No matter how meaningful the elections might be, if they do not convey to the typical villagers, peasants or workers a sense of efficacy, then these elections do not serve the purpose of mobilising traditional folk into a modern political process.

And that is why in the present day context the notions of democracy, free and fair elections and good governance have become established as global norms. Although there exists no legal definition of democracy acceptable to all and no global consensus over the political meaning of the concept, it is understood to be a universal value, open to different legitimate interpretations and deriving from the various historical, cultural and political experiences of peoples around the world.

An election can be termed as "free" if freedom of movement, freedom of speech (for candidates, the media, voters and others), freedom of assembly, freedom of association, freedom from fear in connection with the election and the electoral campaign, absence of impediments to standing for election (for both political parties and independent candidates) and equal and universal suffrage are in place before polling day. At the same time it can be termed "fair" if a transparent electoral process, an election act and an electoral system that grant no special privileges to any political party or social group, absence of impediments to inclusion in the electoral register, establishment of an independent and impartial election commission, impartial treatment of candidates by the police, the army and the courts of law, impartial voter education programmers, an orderly election campaign, equal access to publicly controlled media and no misuse of government facilities for campaign purpose are present before polling day.

It can be termed as "free" if opportunities to participate in the election are available on polling day. It is "fair" if access to all polling stations for representatives of the political parties, accredited local and foreign observers and the media, secrecy of the ballot, absence of intimidation of voters, effective design of ballot papers, impartial assistance to voters, proper counting procedures, proper treatment of void ballot papers, proper precautionary measures when transporting election materials and impartial protection of polling stations are in place on polling day.

It can be termed "free" if legal avenues of complaint are available after polling day. It is "fair" if the official and expeditious announcement of election results, impartial treatment of any election complaints, impartial reports on the election results by the media and acceptance of the election results by everyone involved are in place after polling day.

Generally speaking all citizens of voting age, irrespective of race, ethnicity, class, religion, status or gender have the unhindered right to register as voters. They have also the right to freely participate in election campaigns and to make voluntary choices when casting their votes. Free and fair elections are necessary as pre-requisite for a democratic system of government. Democracy is generally defined as a political system in which citizens enjoy fundamental rights, such as freedom of speech, expression, association, assembly and movement, and choose their representative through regular free, fair and transparent multiparty elections. The rule of law and respect for basic human rights also characterise a democracy.

Free and fair elections are vital for the growth and sustenance of democracy in any country. The electoral law, rules, procedures, as well as the institutions which regulate and administer them, provide the essential framework for these elections. Elections are essentially a political process in which the political parties and contesting candidates are the key players. It is their designated nominees who constitute the overwhelming number of contestants in any election. Consequently, the attitude, behaviour and activities of the political parties and the contesting candidates and their representatives essentially determine the environment within which elections are held. If the situation before and during the elections are charged with activities that are acrimonious and confrontational in nature or marked by incidents of violation of electoral rules, regulations and guidelines, then the elections are unlikely to be free, fair or credible. The loosing party and its candidates will have reservations about the election results and the winning candidates may not enjoy the trust and confidence of the electorate so vitally necessary for democratic governance.

The other vital player of the game of the entire electoral processes is the Election Commission. The two fundamental jobs of the Election Commission are to fully prepare the ground and to conduct the real show that is the election. While preparing the ground the Election Commission must ensure that proper boundary delimitation, voter registration, voter awareness activities and other preparations are equally acceptable to all the participating players. The primary duty of the Election Commission is to ensure the transparency of the polling in order to achieve the confidence of all the electoral players, especially the candidates and the voters.

For a developing country like Bangladesh where democratic institutions have not yet been firmly rooted and people are yet to be made fully prepared for democratic norms and practices, free, fair and credible elections are essential for continuance of democratic system of governance. Elections are the only means available to the people to express their will and opinions through the ballot. Credible elections are a must for ensuring the trust and confidence of all in order to earn the authority to govern.

As for the ensuing Bangladesh Parliamentary Election scheduled to be held in January 2007, the whole world is looking for a peaceful and transparent environment so that this important election can enjoy the full confidence of the people as has recently been expressed by UN Secretary General Kofi Annan.

Zahid Hossain is a retired govt. official and a political analyst.