Bangladesh lifts restrictions on former PMs

DHAKA: Bangladesh's emergency government on Wednesday said it had lifted restrictions on two former prime ministers whom it had been trying to exile.             

In a U-turn, the government said it would drop a ban on Sheikh Hasina Wajed returning to the country and stated there would be no restriction on the movements of Khaleda Zia.           

"The government says clearly that there is no pressure on Khaleda Zia to go abroad and there have been no restrictions on her movements," the government said in a statement, read out by information officer Makhan Lal Hira. Zia has been under virtual house arrest in recent weeks.        

The government had also withdrawn a press note issued on April 18, the statement said, referring to a ban imposed on Sheikh Hasina returning to the country.    

The military-backed interim government had been trying to exile both women as part of its campaign to clean up the country's notoriously corrupt politics.       

On Sunday, it blocked Sheikh Hasina from returning from London after declaring her a threat to national security. The Awami League held power between 1996 and 2001.      

Zia had reportedly agreed to go into exile in return for leniency for her two sons, who face corruption allegations.             

But attempts to send her to Saudi Arabia hit a stumbling block early this week after the authorities there became reluctant to accept an unwilling guest.            

A minister earlier on Wednesday denied that the government had been trying to compel the two women to leave Bangladesh, but said Zia could face corruption charges if she remained.           

Sheikh Hasina has already had murder and extortion accusations filed against her, although she has vowed to return and fight them in person.   

The two women have held power alternately since 1991 and stand accused of misrule that led to widespread violence and a political crisis in January.             

The government has pledged to hold elections by the end of 2008 after implementing far-reaching reforms to get democracy back on track.