US President Bill Clinton has been invited to be an observer at Bangladesh's crucial general elections next year, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina Wajed said in Dakar Sunday.
"I have invited President Clinton to visit Bangladesh to observe our elections next year as he will complete his tenure this month," she told reporters after her landmark visit to the US last week.
Asked about Clinton's reply, Sheikh Hasina said it was "positive," but of course depended on his schedule.
Since 1991, all general elections in Bangladesh have been monitored by local and international observers.
The premier again evaded questions about the election date, reiterating "you will come to know when the time comes."
Her five-year term ends in July, 2001.
But political commentators have said it was likely to be held between March and June next year.
The opposition has long been campaigning to oust Sheikh Hasina and force early elections, but the Bangladeshi leader has brushed aside their demands or the threat of major action against her government.
The opposition has previously staged a number of general strikes and other actions and has boycotted the parliament for over a year as part of their campaign.
Sheikh Hasina returned home late Friday from her landmark trip to the United States, claiming Washington would become an "active development partner."
She was the first Bangladeshi leader to undertake an official visit to the United States since the country's independence from Pakistan in 1971 – (AFP)
© 2000 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
