Political Communication in Bangladesh: The Use of Vile Language

Politicians often use emotional appeals to the people as a weapon to gain political objectives, either personal, or for the party they represent, or both. This paper takes a look at the quality of, and civility in, political communication in Bangladesh between 1991 and 2014, a period during which the country has experienced parliamentary democracy as its system of government. Using specific examples of such communication by elected legislators, as well as by prime ministers, both inside the parliament during legislative proceedings, and outside of it, this paper examines whether the use of such language indeed has any impact, positive or negative, on the electorate. Evidence suggests a stark deterioration in the quality of, and civility in, political communication in the country since 1991. Such decline is at least a reflection of the manifestation of the deteriorating political culture, which, unless checked, and rolled back, could adversely affect the development of Bangladesh towards political maturity.