A front page report in this newspaper on Friday has very clearly brought out the trauma that the country has suffered in the last two months as a consequence of the political programmes called by the BNP. Our fears are compounded by BNP's threat of even tougher programmes should the government not accede to their demands by 8 March. 

We wonder what tougher programmes the BNP can conjure up in the future. As of now 83 people have died due to violence of which 66 were general people not directly connected with politics or political parties. Can we really claim to be civilised when 53 of us die in arson attacks carried out during the so called oborodh and hartals. And what impression are we creating in the minds of the students whose first and most important exam in their life has been put in a shambles? And how are we going to recoup the loss that the economy has suffered in the last two months, an amount that is more than fifty percent of the total budget outlay for the current year? 

The government's effort, on the other hand, to curb the violence has displayed misjudgment of the situation, apparent by the number of so called shootouts which, between Jan 5 and March 5, stands at 41. 

The country cannot take it anymore. The BNP must immediately call a halt to its programmes and the government must realise that the situation demands more than just tackling current violence. It can ill-afford to soft-pedal on the underlying political issue.