Bangladesh: Islamist surge in elections

There is much uncertainty among Christians in Bangladesh after Islamic parties secured the highest number of seats in the nation’s history at recent national elections.

Many believers were relieved that violence aimed at minorities was not as prevalent as expected before the election. However, their feeling of “stability” is “fading” less than a month on from the nationwide vote, as anxiety grows over what the future holds.

The centre-right-leaning Bangladesh National Party (BNP) won a landslide victory, defeating a more extreme Islamist coalition of 11 parties. Robi (name changed for security reasons), an Open Doors partner in Bangladesh, told en that the result marks a “major shift” in the political landscape, with 289 of the 300 parliamentary seats up for election (out of a total of 350) won by the two main Muslim factions showing “how visible and accepted Islamic politics have become” in Bangladesh.