Khaleda Zia postpones trip to Singapore

DHAKA: Former Bangladesh prime minister Khaleda Zia has postponed plans to travel to Singapore for medical treatment after an extortion case was filed against her younger son, an official said on Thursday.      

It was not immediately clear whether the decision meant a deal between Zia and the military-backed government, which has been trying to force her into exile, had fallen through.       

Zia last month reportedly agreed to go into exile in return for leniency for her two sons, who face corruption allegations as part of the emergency government's anti-graft drive.         

Zia and her younger son, Arafat Rahman, were scheduled to leave for Singapore late Wednesday, but the former premier postponed the trip after hearing of the case filed against her son, said a spokesman for her Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP).   

Zia's elder son, Tareque Rahman, is in custody on corruption charges as part of the government's graft crackdown.          

"She is very sick and needs treatment for arthritis and a heart problem. Her son, (Arafat) also complained of heart problems in recent days and doctors have advised both of them to seek better treatment abroad," said spokesman Nazrul Islam Khan.              

Party officials declined to comment on whether the Singapore trip was part of any deal between Zia and the government.              

The government has denied trying to exile Zia and her bitter rival, Sheikh Hasina Wajed, who leads the country's other main political party, the Awami League.           

Murder and extortion charges were filed against Sheikh Hasina in April while she was in the US visiting relatives. The government also issued a ban on her returning to the country, although this was later lifted.            

Sheikh Hasina on Thursday repeated her calls for democracy to be restored through early elections.         

"If the people cannot vote, there is no transparency or accountability of the government," she told reporters.         

"No-one in the country has any political rights today. People cannot speak their minds. It is a suffocating environment," she added.    

Zia and Sheikh Hasina have alternated in power since 1991 and are accused of misrule that led to a political crisis in January, when emergency rule was imposed.         

The new interim government has promised to hold elections by the end of 2008 after cleaning up Bangladesh's corruption-riddled political system.