A speeding government staff bus hit and killed a man in Dhaka last weekend. His colleagues were so incensed at yet another death caused by reckless driving, they took to the street in protest.
This sparked immediate action. The driver, who was apparently unlicensed, was promptly arrested and now awaits trial. The government has already agreed to offer compensation to the dead man’s family and even find employment for his wife.
In a country like Bangladesh, where road accidents are commonplace, a reaction like this is almost unheard of. The difference is, this man was a journalist and journalists are among the strongest professional groups in the country. No one wants to make them angry.
In virtually every other instance, indifference, ineffective laws and legal loopholes are the order of the day.
Last month a truck driver was sentenced by for his negligence that caused a one of the worst road accidents in country’s history. A horrific total of 44 children were in the truck that he was driving. He was talking on his mobile when he lost control of it. It turns out that he wasn’t even the nominated driver, he was only the assistant.
The incident made international headlines when it happened. Yet there were few headlines – just gasps of local outrage – when he received a sentence of five years, which seemed remarkably lenient.
Fatal road accidents are everyday reality in Bangladesh. Often road accidents are reported in media and make much talk over road safety and strict laws for negligence while driving. The deaths spark protest, call for action and change.
In another tragedy last year, a prominent film maker and journalist were killed when they were hit head-on by a bus. The driver of the bus was arrested but then given bail when his union threatened to strike.
Transport workers unions are very influential and often blamed for the government’s failure to pass stricter road laws. One minister, who is also the president of the largest transport union, even said his union members should be given a driving license without having to take a test.
It’s a farce, but no more farcical than the fact that anyone can get a no-test license through an agency for 10,000 taka (US$ 150). It’s said there are more than 500,000 vehicles plying across the country whose driver has either a phony license or no license at all.
Perhaps the greatest tragedy is that we live with this every day and the never ending fatal accidents don’t even make us sad any more. Until they happen to our loved ones.
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