Emergency rule lifted in Bangladesh

DHAKA, Bangladesh, Dec. 16 (UPI) -- Bangladesh's military-backed interim government reinstated people's fundamental rights Tuesday, ending nearly two years of emergency rule ahead of elections.

The government, preparing for the Dec. 29 elections, also repealed the laws that helped impose the emergency on Jan. 11 of last year to end months of politics violence, the Bangladesh Daily Star reported.

The restoration of the fundamental rights would allow political parties and their candidates to carry on their election campaign without restrictions, the report said.

The main contending parties in the elections are the Awami League and its bitter rival Bangladesh Nationalist Party. Their leaders, Sheikh Hasina and Khaleda Zia respectively, are both former prime ministers and both had been jailed on various charges by the interim government before being freed on bail.

The Daily Star report quoted analysts as saying it would now be up to the two women to ensure their parties act responsibly in the run-up to the elections.

Before it became a separate nation in 1971, Bangladesh was the eastern wing of Pakistan.

The interim government has promised to make the elections the fairest and most peaceful election in the country's history.