Tuesday, Dec. 26, 2006
Can the Web Poll Prevent a Rigged Election?
By Simon Robinson

Elections in Bangladesh can be unruly affairs: The run-up to the national poll of January 22 has already seen demonstrations, riots, soldiers on the street and the threat of a boycott by one of the two main political parties. It doesn't help that the leaders of those two parties haven't spoken to each other in years. Or that Bangladesh is one of the most corrupt countries in the world according to Transparency International. Still, last week while reporting on the elections in Bangaldesh's capital Dhaka, I came across an interesting use of technology that should help keep the politicians honest.

First, the background: As usual, the elections pits Bangladesh Nationalist Party led by Khaleda Zia, widow of assassinated President Ziaur Rahman, against the Awami League, led by Sheikh Hasina, daughter of Bangladesh's first president, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. These have alternated in government every five years since military rule ended in 1991, with the BNP forming the most recent government. Bangladesh's constitution, however, requires that the incumbent party steps down a few months before an election and hands the reins to a neutral caretaker government to run the country and oversee the electoral commission, until the next government is chosen. This time, though, the Awami League has accused the BNP of stacking the caretaker government and the electoral commission with partisans