Bangladesh elections bring political deja vu

Imagine not being able to vote in elections for seven years because the last time polls were due to be held, violence between rival supporters became so bad that 35 people were killed and the army stepped in and cancelled voting.
The powerful military stops short of a full-scale coup by appointing a dozen businessmen and former diplomats to front the administration so it doesn't lose its precious UN peacekeeping postings, which account for an enormous percentage of money coming in to your grindingly poor country.
After two years in power, the army-backed regime prepares to deliver on its promise of putting an elected government in charge by the end of 2008 -- once it has cleaned up the political mess it stepped into in a bid to sort out a political system considered among the most corrupt in the world.
But after failing to exile the two leaders who have jointly created the country's current predicament over a 17-year period, the regime has very little choice but to release them from the "VIP jail" it has been holding them for a year, so they can run in elections.
Just to remind them who's in charge, the army-backed regime keeps some corruption charges in place.
This is the situation Bangladesh faced on Monday when it held elections for the first time in seven years, electing the left-leaning party of ex-prime minister Sheikh Hasina. Her Awami League won more than three-quarters of seats in parliament. She is accused of the murder of some of those who died in 2001 election violence, as well as counts of extortion and graft, which will most likely be dropped some months after she is sworn in as Bangladesh's prime minister.. for the second time.
But with such a landslide victory, people are already worried that the power will go to her head and the country will be back where it was in 2001.
Despite the massive win, there is no celebrating in the streets. In fact, in the normally congested capital Dhaka it is eerily calm and quiet, partly due to a request from Sheikh Hasina to her supporters to "stay calm" while a ban on political activities is in place until Wednesday night.
For Bangladeshis, I suspect the situation is not necessarily a cause for celebration and perhaps a little bit like deja vu. The question is now: will the country have to call on the army to sort out the mess a bit further down the line