backed interim government will lift emergency rule before the Dec. 29 election, a government adviser (minister) said on Tuesday, but he gave no specific date. “The emergency will be lifted in phases before the election,” Hossain Zillur Rahman told reporters. The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) of former prime minister Begum Khaleda Zia has threatened to boycott the election if the emergency is not lifted by Dec. 11. It has already forced the commission to delay the polls by 11 days from Dec. 18. Army chief General Moeen U. Ahmed said on Tuesday he would also ask the government to lift the emergency. The army helped the interim authority take power in January 2007 and has supported all its actions, including a crackdown on corrupt politicians. “They have to do it (lift the emergency)” Moeen said at a reception for him held by the country's business leaders.
