Even in an overall analysis of this
fact, it is possible to locate the
complex
relationship
between
literacy rates and the quality of
democracy that persists in these
countries.
We cannot always say that a
developed state has a better
democracy.
However,
human
development, literacy rates and
participation in the democratic
process are clearly interlinked. The
However, when people‘s awareness
of public policy-making and their
participation in this process is low,
development suffers. In these
societies, political leaders are the
‗gods‘ of the people in every aspect,
including their rights and security.
Within this framework, the leaders
are always right towards the people
and wrong towards the opposition.
Even under these circumstances it
might take hundreds of years to
shape a stable form of democracy in
the current process.
Bangladesh: Participation,
Development and Democracy
If we come to a simple analysis
about the development of the
democratic process in Bangladesh,
we can see that after a nine-month
war,
the
country
achieved
independence in 1971. This
independence brought about both
ideological and methodological
change. But it did not facilitate
economic capability and political
stability. For a volatile new-born
nation state, politicians are
supposed to get more involved in
the process of progress. However,
in this case, they were involved in a
conflict among themselves, which
affected the development process.
18
After India‘s and Pakistan‘s
independence in 1947 the political
culture developed from the previous
ruling system. This implies that the
democratically elected ministers and
government are always concerned
with their legitimacy and policies
rather than focusing and developing
the true base of power, which is
people. This has left a void in many
areas of developing people on the
subcontinent, including literacy. The
rate of literacy on the subcontinent
and the so-called nation states is
below that of Western states. This is
clearly reflected in graphs such as
those below.
more active and aware the
participation in the democratic
process is, the stronger the
development factors.
Page
individual civil rights, the Indian
sub-continent and the states under
its geographical boundary is ruled
by monarchs with an autocratic
posture. Under the British East
Indian Company and following
independence, democracy was
limited to voting rights and the
fulfillment of citizens‘ basic needs.