Bangladesh update.

When Market: Asia Pacific reported last month (May 2007, 16:5) on developments in Bangladesh, it appeared as though the country's political chaos might be at an end. The two matriarchs of the bitterly warring families who have dominated Bangladesh since independence-both former prime ministers-were said to be headed for exile. The military and the interim civilian government were promising new elections.

But now comes a May 24, 2007 file from the New Delhi based Indo-Asian News Service (IANS) reporting from Dhaka saying that one of the matriarchs who was out of the country and was briefly prevented from returning, is now back. And the other matriarch who was reportedly headed for Saudi Arabia never left Bangladesh.

Violent clashes among supporters of the two former prime ministers forced the cancellation of the January 22, 2007 elections. A Reuters story, also filed on May 24, 2007, says the army was intent on maintaining order and improving the economy, said to be harmed in the short term by the chaos, but no military takeover is in sight.