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Leading
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CA visits BDR markets
Says Govt will increase supply of rice
to markets
Staff Correspondent
Chief Adviser Fakhruddin Ahmed on Wednesday said the main
aim of his government is to increase supply of food grains
in a bid to bring down the latest skyrocketing price hike
of essentials including rice.
"It is our prime target to reduce the price of food grain
specially rice and other essentials. On the one hand,
harvesting of boro crop have started, on the other hand,
we are increasing supply from our stock to bring down the
price of most essentials specially rice. On the basis of
priority allocation, will be enhanced for agriculture
sector and employment generation in the next national
budget," the Chief Adviser told journalists after a
surprise visit to city’s different BDR-operated fair price
shops yesterday.
To bring the present abnormal price hike of essential
under control he said apart from the food ministry,
communication and LGED ministry have taken special
initiatives.
"The food ministry has announced a programme at Taka 100
crore. Communication ministry has given approval to launch
similar programme. Simultaneously, LGED ministry will soon
launch its programme for the same reason. As a result
employment opportunity will be also created where people
don’t have any work," Fakhruddin said.
"As part of the short-and long-term measures a bigger food
stock and food security than last year’s would be built up
by the government through import and local procurement of
rice to keep the prices of foodstuffs, particularly rice,
at tolerable levels," the Chief Adviser said
"The main objective of Open Market Sale is to increase
supply and provide income support to the low-income
groups," he said adding 1.20 lakh tones of rice has been
allocated for OMS for the month of April compared to
42,000 tones of rice last month so that prices of rice
come down gradually.
He said allocation would further be increased to
agriculture and agriculture-related sectors in the next
budget. "The government is also thinking about cultivation
of two major crops in a short term in a year, like
potato," he added.
The Chief Adviser first visited BDR shop at Taltola,
Agargaon, Sher-e-Bangla Nagar adjacent to Government Music
College at 10:30 am and then at Mirpur- 2 near Bangladesh
Bank Training Academy and finally at Kalyanpur BRTC bus
depot.
It may be pointed out that many people were returning home
without getting rice. As a result, common people urged the
government to set up more outlets in the different
locations in the capital as well as across the country to
make sure of availability of rice for the low and middle
income people.
Everyday hundreds of people are returning home failing to
buy rice from the OMS centers after waiting for hours in a
long queue despite opening of 189 more OMS shops in the
city to mitigate the sufferings of the middle income
groups due to abnormal rice price hike.
British Minister in Dhaka
Wants to see "full functioning of
democracy"
Staff Correspondent
British Government wants to
see full functioning of democracy in Bangladesh, holding
of general election within the stipulated time frame and
lifting of the state of emergency soon.
"I asked the Chief Adviser about the lifting of the state
of emergency during my meeting with him. He assured me
that general election will be held in due time in free,
fair and congenial atmosphere. British Government prefers
to work with a democratic government," said visiting
British Home Minister Jacqui Smith on Wednesday at a press
conference held at British High Commission residence at
Baridhara in the city. The British Home Minister arrived
in Dhaka on Tuesday night on a two-day visit. He will
leave Dhaka for USA today (Thursday)
Concluding her two-day visit to Bangladesh, Jacqui Smith
has reiterated the UK's commitment to co-operation with
Bangladesh on countering terrorism and extremism and
further boosted the trend of top-level engagement between
the UK and Bangladesh.
"Achieving democracy that can endure will be vital to
Bangladesh's future stability, development and prosperity.
The UK, as a close friend of Bangladesh and its people,
supports the process and ambition for transparent,
inclusive and fair elections of the highest standard,
before the end of2008 which can help deliver that. We have
contributed $20 million to the process of voter
registration, which is progressing well. All have a stake
in this; and so all have a responsibility towards the
process of reforming and strengthening democracy," she
said.
This is the third senior UK Ministerial visit to
Bangladesh in four months, following visits by the Foreign
Secretary David Miliband in February 2008, and
International Development Secretary Douglas Alexander in
December 2007. This, and the recent high-level meeting in
London between Bangladesh's Chief Adviser and the UK's
Prime Minister Gordon Brown, reflect the new heights of
UK-Bangladesh relations and the special partnerships
across many key areas of engagement.
"We value our counter-terrorism relationship with
Bangladesh very highly," she said. "Sadly, both our
countries have known the horrors of indiscriminate
terrorist violence and have seen the damaging effects of
extreme ideologies which only nurture division, fear and
suspicion. Bangladesh has shown commitment to tackling
terrorism and we welcome recent successes in making
arrests. There can be no room for complacency, however. It
is important also to address root causes of radicalisation."
Jacqui Smith also expressed UK's support for the steps to
elections in Bangladesh in 2008 and has encouraged
dialogue between the Caretaker Government and the
political parties.
Resume
indoor politics before holding dialogue: AL
Staff Correspondent
Awami League has demanded of the Caretaker Government to
resume indoor politics across the country before holding
the formal dialogue between the Government and the
political parties.
"Five representatives of the army-backed interim
Government will sit with the AL as part of its unofficial
round of talks with political parties in preparation for
the final dialogue today (Thursday). Before the official
dialogue - likely to be held next week – AL will finalise
its agenda after discussing in the party forum. For taking
the consent of the root-level party leaders and activists,
exchange-views-meetings with root-levels AL activists is a
must and for that lifting of emergency rules is a
pre-requisite,," observed the AL leaders.
AL Presidium Member Tofael Ahmed urged the Government to
free the former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to maintain a
peaceful political environment across the country.
"Our party chief earlier announced support of all
activities of the interim government, but she has been
detained after filing false cases. In the prevailing
situation Hasina’s leadership is badly needed. The nation
demands immediate and unconditional release of Sheikh
Hasina," he said threatening, "The present rulers must
take lesson from the history as AL knows how to realize
their demands. The authorities concerned should bear in
mind that they are neutral, non-political government."
Threatening to launch a tough action programme, the former
AL Commerce Minister said, "If the government fails to
free Hasina immediately, to hold a free, fair and credible
national election within the Election Commission’s roadmap
by December this year, this huger strike would turn into a
mass upsurge like the historic incident of 1969."
"The country and its people are in trouble at present. The
hunger strike programme of AL and its other front
organisations have already planted the seedlings of
movement and it would spread allover the country very
soon," he cautioned.
The veteran AL leader thanked the Army Chief for his
speeches for repeatedly saying, "Election will be held
within the stipulated timeframe by December 31, this
year."
Suranjit Sengupta termed the functions of the present
Caretaker Government an unconstitutional and violation of
the Human Rights.He vowed to continue the legal fight
against the cases of Hasina. He urged the government to
create a congenial atmosphere prior to the arranging the
former dialogue with the political parties.
Meanwhile, as part of ongoing Mass Signature Champaign
demanding Hasina’s release, of Dhaka City AL colleted
signatures of people at capital’s Maghbazar Crossing
yesterday. AL Presidium member Motia Chowdhury inaugurated
the programme at 6am.
Allow
me to meet Khaleda before dialogue: Delwar
We have no need to talk to her: Hafiz
Staff Correspondent
BNP Secretary General Khandoker Delwar Hossain on
Wednesday said BNP would not sit with government for any,
formal or informal, talks until he is allowed to meet the
detained Chairperson to have her consent, while the
reformist faction said they have no need to talk to Begum
Zia for holding talks with the government.
Meanwhile, BNP acting Office Secretary Ruhul Kabir Rizvi
Ahmed carried a letter from the Secretary General seeking
permission to meet the detained Chairperson and handed it
over to jail authorities at the jail gate on Wednesday.
"If the government wants to make the dialogue meaningful,
I would urge the government ‘allow me to meet Begum
Khaleda Zia to take her views and opinions before going
for talks," Delwar Hossain told newsmen at a press
briefing at his Nam flat residence.
When his attention was drawn to Hannan Shah’s statement
that the BNP is ready to sit with the government, Delwar
said, "He said this on his own behalf, not on behalf of
the party. Any decision of BNP should be taken from here
(Nam Flat)."
About the readiness of his rival camp for sitting with the
government, Delwar retorted, "There is no existence of any
faction in BNP. What can we do if the government produces
a BNP from a factory? The party rank and file has no
relation with a factory-produced BNP."
Calling upon the government to set Khaleda, Hasina free
soon, he said, "the country is now passing a critical
juncture and right at this moment, opinions and
instructions of the two leaders –Khaleda Zia and Sheikh
Hasina –are very much crucial. They are languishing in
jail on false and motivated cases."
"The people of the country do not want to see an unelected
government for a longer period. Hold a credible election
ensuring participation of Begum Khaleda Zia and Sheikh
Hasina."
Delwar cautioned the government against holding a ‘staged
election’ saying, "the people of the country will foil any
move to hold a farcical election. Let the people practice
politics lifting the emergency at the quickest."
Referring to the Election Commission’s (EC) activities,
Delwar alleged, "The EC has adopted a dillydallying
tactics to pass time so that the general election cannot
be held on time. The people’s can no more put their
confidence on the EC as it is resorting to fraud with the
people."
"A certain agency of the government is patronizing the
local leaders to raise demands for holding local
government elections before that of national one," Delwar
alleged, urging the government, "Hold the election before
December of this year and do not go for local elections
before the stalled parliamentary elections."
Quoting the statement of the state department of USA,
Delwar said, "The government has started lobbying with
foreign agencies so that the election cannot be held by
the year end."
At a press briefing at his Banani residence, acting
Secretary General of the pro-government splinter of BNP
Major (retd) Hafiz Uddin Ahmed said, "We have no need to
talk to the detained Chairperson. There are many senior
leaders to take decision. Nobody being interned in jail
can do politics."
In response to a question, Hafiz said, "The Standing
Committee of the party can take any policy level decision
on their own for the sake of the party."
Modernization
of agriculture stressed: speakers at discussion
Staff Correspondent
Advisers, former ministers and experts on Wednesday
stressed the need for stocking food grains and taking
right decision to overcome such disastrous situation.
Agriculture Adviser CS Karim, Commerce Adviser Hossain
Zillur Rahman, former Food Agriculture minister Matia
Chowdhury and Agriculture Minister MK Anwar and experts
were speaking at a discussion on "Food Security and
Modernisation of Agriculture" held at BRAC centre in the
city.
"Only right decision and proper distribution of fertiliser,
seeds can ensure the food security in the country. First
of all, we will have to ensure adequate reserve of food
grains with a view to overcome the food crisis caused by
various natural disasters and international market," they
said.
They said people from all walks of life will have to be
conscious about the selling of crop lands. "Our crop lands
are being reduced day by day following increased growth of
population, urbanization and industrializing. Besides,
many people are digging big sized ponds and water bodies
for cultivating fish instead of food grains. So we all
will have to come forward to stop such trend. On the other
hand, modern technologies will also have to be used for
growing more food grains," they suggested.
Experts also underscored the need for releasing pressure
on rice changing dietary habits with potato.
They said, "The government should relax the restrictions
of doing business imposed by the caretaker government,
otherwise the price of daily commodities including staple
food rice would go up continuously."
Suggesting the government for stocking rice in the peak
periods of harvesting season, they said, "The government
should put emphasis on hoarding huge amount of rice in the
harvesting season to ensure the food safety of the
country. If the government could do so, the country would
have never faced such food crisis."
C. S. Karim said, "We must be prepared to face any natural
disaster, if due to any cause, the country fails to
produce huge amount of rice by itself, then we will try to
import the rice from abroad."
"Besides, as the prices of different items of fertilizers
are increasing at a high rate in the international market,
so from now onward, we should encourage our local farmers
to use compost fertilizers instead of chemical
fertilizers." said the agriculture adviser.
Hossain Zillur Rahman said, "We have to take both short
and long term policy to ensure the food security. To face
the present crisis, the government can expand its OMS
programme to contain the rice price. But there is need of
efficient distribution system to make sure that the poor
people can buy the rice from this OMS shop without any
harassment."
Back Page
Registration of
leftout voters starts from Friday in city
UNB, Dhaka
The left-out voters in the
capital city who could not get enlisted in due time are
getting three days from on Friday to register as voters in
a runoff opportunity.
Voter-registration centres have been set up in all thanas
of the city to get the leftovers enrolled.
The remaining eligible adults would get the opportunity of
having their names enlisted from the centres on April 11,
12 and 13, according to an Election Commission meeting
minutes signed by Brig Gen Shahadat Hossain Chowdhury,
project director of the voter list-plus photograph and
national identity (NID) card formulation project.
It says the left-out voters need to bring five kinds of
document (whichever is applicable for the concerned voter)
along with them to the registration centres to get
enrolled).
The documents are any kind of certificate or passport as
an evidence of age, utility certificate like municipality
tax, electricity and water bills and receipt of house rent
or PIN or phone number of the landlord (applicable for the
lodgers). Those also include any documentary evidence of
not being enrolled as voter in due time and a person who
has already been enlisted as voter or has PIN to identify
the concerned left-out voters.
Earlier, a special measure was taken in March to enlist
the left-outs following a three-month (December 1, 2007 to
February 29, 2008) voter-listing drive in the city, the
meeting sources said.
"Still there are left-out voters who want to be enlisted
and so the EC has taken the measure for the second time.
It won't be possible to take such measure anymore in the
future," said a source.
The registration centres are: Mirpur-10 Community Centre
(wards 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13 and 14) for the
residents of Mirpur, Pallabi and Shah Ali thana (phone
8034464), Mohammdpur City College (Wards 41, 42, 43, 44,
45, 46, 47, 48 and 51) for the residents of Mohammdpur and
Adabar thana (phone 9135558).
The centres also include Wari Abdur Rahim Community Centre
(Wards 68, 69, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 76, 77, 78, 79, 80,
81 and 82) for residents of Sutrapur and Kotwali thana
(phone 7171719), Panchayet Community Centre, Jatrabari
(wards 83, 84, 85, 86, 87, 88, 89 and 90) for the
residents of Jatrabari and Shyampur thana (phone 7554742).
Motijheel AGB Colony (wards 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35 and 36)
for residents of Paltan and Motijheel thana (phone
9356681). Sabujbagh Community Centre (wards 27, 28 and 29)
for the residents of Sabujbagh thana (phone 8251863).
Haji Camp, Uttara (wards 1, 17 and 21) for the residents
of Uttara, Airport and Badda thana (phone - 8932855 and
8932877).
Army Stadium, Banani (wards 17 and part of 15) for the
residents of Khilkhet and Dhaka Cantonment (phone -
875001, ext. 7766). Mirpur Model High School, Senpara
Parbata (wards 4, 14, 16 and part of 15) for the residents
of Kafrul (phone 8713173).
Banani Bidya Niketan (wards 18, 19 and 20) for the
residents of Gulshan thana (phone - 8713173). Ideal School
and College (wards 49, 50, 51, 52 and 86) for the
residents of New Market and Dhanmondi (phone - 9669630).
Leather Technology College (ward 48) for the residents of
Hazaribagh (phone - 9669630). Lalbagh Model School (wards
58, 59, 69, 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66 and 67) for the
residents of Lalbagh and Hazaribagh thana (phone -
9665933). Khilgaon Model University College (wards 22, 23,
24, 25 and 26) for the residents of Khilgaon thana (phone
- 8833280).
T & T High School (wards 53, 54 and 55) for the residents
of Ramna and Motijheel thana (phone - 911288). Jatiya
Natyashala (wards 56 and 57) for the residents of Shahbagh
(phone - 9111288).
Rajdhani High School (wards 38, 39 and 40) for the
residents of Tejgaon thana (phone - 911288). Textile
Engineering College (wards 20 and 37) for residents of
Tejgaon Industrial Area (phone - 9111288).
Miserable
situation of city’s 47 parks
Ainul Haque Royal
City's all 47 parks which had been used by the city people
for various recreational purposes have now been turned
into a safe haven for criminals, drug peddlers, addicts
and floating sex workers. Everything is happening openly
and yet the police or other law enforcing agencies seldom
visit the area making these into pits of corruption and
crime round the clock.
"As the city's all parks have turned into crime zones
where criminals, vagabond and floating prostitutes have
taken shelters and are engaged in various criminal and
anti-social activities under the very nose of concerned
authorities, so we do not feel comfort to enter the parks
with our family members," talking to this correspondent an
official of a private bank said.
In a spot visit, this correspondent found all sorts of
anti-social activities are being committed in and around
these parks in broad day light. On the other hand in the
name of beautification and other development works for
these parks DCC has been allocating a large portion of
money in its yearly budget, but no development or
beatification work and security measures has been taken by
the regulatory body yet.
While talking to this correspondent, Mannan, 45 and Anisul
Haque, 25 two drugs addict in Osmani Uddan said, around
two to three thousand homeless people including women are
staying in the park and engaged in different criminal
activities specially drug trafficking, trading and
anti-social activities. A section of people are openly
selling ganja, phensidyl and other narcotic items. They
are also engaged in women and children trafficking.
Besides, another section of women building makeshift tents
on the park ground are engaged in anti-social activities
in broad daylight.
Sirajul Islam, Faruk Hossain and Alamin, small shop owners
of the area said centering drug trade, the incidents like
clash, chase and counter chase between addicts and drug
traders are happening daily. A group of snatchers and
hijackers are taking shelter here after committing hijacks
at different parts of the capital, they added.
Sohrab Hossain assistant sub-inspector of Shahbagh police
station said despite the shortage of manpower,
apprehending the matter we are conducting drive against
the activities twice daily but the situation remain
unchanged.
While talking to this correspondent, the chief estate
officer of DCC Khalilur Rahman said "I am a chief estate
officer of DCC. I am not a member of law enforcing agency.
Only law enforcing agency can take steps against incidents
and irregularities taking places daily inside city's
parks.
Seasonal fruits dearer this year
F.M. Masum
The summer fruits have already started arriving in the
city's kitchen market but the prices are much higher
compared to that of previous years. Even after bumper
production of some fruit items like water melon, the price
of these items is so high that the low and middle income
group people cannot afford to buy these seasonal fruits.
Yesterday, talking to this correspondent, fruits traders
at different markets in the capital said, "Production cost
was much higher than that of last year, that's why the
prices of these fruits are high a little bit in spite of
huge production. Besides, the carrying cost is also higher
than that of last year leading to the high price of
fruits."
On Wednesday, a medium size of water melon was being sold
at between Tk 60 -Tk 80 and melon at Tk 50-70 and custard,
a very popular fruit in our villages, was selling at Tk 70
per kg.
Some items of mango which are reaching in the city's
market in large quantities from our neighboring India, are
selling at Tk 120-Tk 140.
However, on Wednesday grapes was selling at Tk 120 per kg,
one dozen big size orange at Tk 150 per kg and apple at Tk
120 per kg.
The fruits traders said, "this is just the starting of
fruits arrival in the city markets, the price would go
down in the coming days but the price might not be so
cheaper like the previous year."
Permanent probe cell to check river accidents suggested
BSS, Dhaka
The formation of a permanent investigation cell and
strengthening water traffic in 112 kilometres of riverways
around Dhaka city can reduce the risk of river accidents,
a probe report suggested.
The probe report on the February 28 launch accident in the
Buriganga river that left 49 people dead was released at a
press briefing here on Wednesday.
Director General of the Department of Shipping Captain AKM
Shafiq Ullah released the report to the press in the
conference room of the department. Chief Engineer of the
department AKM Alauddin was present.
The report said the recent accident in the Buriganga took
place when sand-laden 'MV Al Amin' hit passenger launch
'ML Shourav-1'. Besides absence of efficient 'sarengs',
overloading of passengers and imbalance structure of 'ML
Shourav-1' were responsible for the accident, it said.
A five-member committee led by a joint secretary of the
Shipping Ministry was formed soon after the launch
accident on 28 February to investigate and submit its
report within seven days. Accordingly, the committee
submitted the probe report on March 6.
The probe committee held responsible the 'sukani', 'grizar'
and owner of the sand-laden vessel, and the owner and the
master of the passenger launch for the accident.
It accused BIWTA [Bangladesh Inland Water Transport
Authority] transport inspector, and berthing sareng, and
two surveyors and one inspector of the Department of
Shipping of negligence in discharging duties. Cases have
been filed against them on the charges.
Crime
School
teacher killed
UNB, Kishoreganj
A female schoolteacher was stabbed to dead by a young man
in Kolapara area of the district town on Wednesday.
The deceased was identified as Amena Akhter Moni, 28,
assistant teacher of Sahilati Govt. Primary School in
Tarail upazila.
Police quoting local people said Farid time and again
tried to develop an affair with Amena, wife of Siddiqur
Rahman, on her way to school.
Farid intercepted her on her way home from the town at
about 12:45 pm and gave an illicit proposal which she
refused. At this the culprit became furious and stabbed
her to death. Local people caught Farid from the spot and
after mass beating handed over him to police.
Husband stabs wife to death
UNB, Dhaka
A woman was stabbed to death allegedly by her husband
following a family feud at Pallabi in the city on
Wednesday afternoon.
The victim was identified as Shahnaz Begum, 25, wife of
Jahangir. Shahnaz, also a garment worker, resided with her
husband at Section-11, Block-B in Pallabi.
Police said Jahangir had an altercation with Shahnaz at
about 2:00 pm when she came home from her working place
for having lunch.
At one stage of their brawl, Jahangir started stabbing
Shahnaz indiscriminately, leaving her dead on the spot.
On information, police recovered the body and sent it to
Dhaka Medical College Hospital morgue for autopsy. They
also arrested Jahangir along with a blood stained knife.
A case was filed with Pallabi police station.
Eight sentenced to
5.5 yrs for extortion
UNB, Sylhet
A court here on Tuesday jailed eight people for five and
half years for extortion.
The convicts are Sona Miah and his brother Tofazzal Miah
Tofoi, Riazuddin and his brother Nizamuddin, Kabir Ahmed,
Shahabuddin, Matabur Rahman and Ebad of Hazrapara Boroiail
village in Bianibazar upazila.
The court also fined them Tk 2,000 each, in default, to
suffer two months RI more.
According to the prosecution, the convicts demanded Tk 1
lakh as toll from expatriate Altaf Hossain of Boroiail
village on January 11, 2006.
After examining the records and witnesses, Joint Districts
and Sessions Judge of court-2 M Akhtaruzzaman handed down
the verdict.
Garment worker found dead
UNB, Dhaka
A female garment worker was found dead in the city's
Kafrul area on Wednesday afternoon.
Police recovered the body of Monira Begum, 28, from inside
the boundary wall of house No 282 in Ibrahimpur and sent
it to Dhaka Medical College Hospital morgue for autopsy.
Police suspected Monira might have been strangled as some
injury marks were found on her neck.
Monira Begum, daughter of Rashu Mollah of Bandabari
village in Kotalipara upazila of Gopalganj district, used
to live with her cousin Mariyam in Ibrahimpur.
Mariyam told reporters that Monira went to her working
place Hamim Apparels on Tuesday morning, but did not
return their rented home at night.
A case was filed with Kafrul police station.
3 held for black marketing OMS rice
BSS, Barisal
Members of Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) arrested three
persons alleged for Open Market Sell(OMS) rice selling in
black-market at Bandroad Bhaterkhal area in the
city on Tuesday.
The arrested persons were identified as Sikdr,40, Siraj
Mredha,45 and Jasim Mredha.
RAB said when the arrested persons selling three sacks OMS
rice in the market in a secret information, RAB members
caught red handed them from the spot.
Later, the arrested persons handed to police and filed a
case with respective police station in this connection.
Navy seizes banned nets, 'Jatka' worth Tk 100cr
ISPR, Dhaka
'Operation Jatka' launched by Bangladesh Navy since
February 10, 2008 and in seventy operations so far about
19026000 metres of current nets and 800 kg Jatka, which
are worth about Tk one hundred crore. Nine Navy ships from
Chittagong and Khulna naval areas are taking part in this
operation.
Later, apprehended nets were destroyed in presence of
local administration and district fishery officer. The
Navy is to continue the programme till May 31, 2008 to
protect our asset Silver Hilsha from extinction.
Kidnapped madrasah teacher rescued, two abductors held
UNB, Chittagong
Police rescued a madrasah teacher two days after his
abduction and arrested two kidnappers from Bhatiari in
Sitakunda upazila on Wednesday.
Police said the abductors brought Abu Sayed, a teacher of
Darul Imam Madrasah, from Cox's Bazar Monday evening and
confined him at an abandoned house at Bhatiari.
The abductors phoned a madrasah student Firoz Ahmed
Tuesday noon and demanded Tk 1 lakh ransom. "They also
asked him to come with the money alone in the house and
warned of dire consequence if inform police," a police
officer said. Firoz took the matter to metropolitan DB
police who conducted a drive in the house early morning
and rescued the teacher.
They also arrested abductors Forkan Ali and Ekramul Haq
from the house.
A case was filed with Sitakunda police in this connection.
BDR seizes 1.3 kg heroin, contraband items
UNB, Chapainawabganj
BDR jawans, in separate drives in different frontier areas
of the district, seized 1.3kg heroin and other Indian
contraband items on Tuesday night.
Acting on a tip off, BDR members of Diar Manikchar outpost
in Sadar upazila chased two smugglers when they entered
into Bangladesh territory through the border at about 9:00
pm. Sensing danger, the smugglers fled the scene leaving
behind the heroin worth Tk 1.36 crore, BDR sources said.
In other raids BDR teams also seized 285 pieces of India
sari from Hakimpur border area, 1542 spare parts of
shallow machine from Ekchar and 185 kgs of zinc from
Monabosha. None was arrested during the drive.
BDR members deposited the seized goods, including heroin,
to their headquarters.
3 arrested, phensidyl seized
BSS, Dinajpur
Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) and police in separate drives
arrested three persons with 218 bottles of phensidyl from
different places in the district on Tuesday. The arrested
persons were identified as Nazrul, 28, Faizer, 30, and
Rupom, 25.
BDR said, in a secret information a BDR team raided at
Basudebpur Haripukur near hilly border and arrested Nazrul
and Faizer with 200 bottles of phensidyl.
In another drive police arrested Rupom with 18 bottles of
phensidyl from a passengers bus at Ghoraghat bus-stand
area in the district.
Separate cases were filed with concern police stations in
these connections.
Two bodies recovered from river Meghna
UNB, Chandpur
Police recovered decomposed bodies of two young men from
river Meghna near Katakhali under Haimchar upazila on
Tuesday.
One of the dead was identified as Omar Faruque, 24, of
Rajoir upazila of Madaripur district. Identity of the
another youth could not be known.
Police said local people found both the bodies floating in
the river and informed them.
Relatives said Omar and another youth went missing after
falling from a speedboat as a launch hit it at Maowa ferry
ghat on April 2.
The bodies were sent to hospital morgue for autopsy.
Revolver recovered
BSS, Barisal
Detective Branch (DB) of police recovered a foreign-made
revolver from Rupatali in the town on Tuesday.
Police said, acting on a tip-off, a team of DB police
recovered the revolver in an abandoned condition from
under a tree in Rupatali area.
Editorial
Political Dialogues
It
is good that the Emergency Government has decided to pick up a
dialogue with the political parties, at least informally,
although the Government is not saying much about it. The
Government had promised such a dialogue in January this year
and the political parties were eagerly waiting for it. It is
hoped that the informal discussions would be able to create
conditions for holding the formal dialogues which will quickly
pave the way for a fruitful partnership between the political
parties and the Emergency Government for immediately holding
the stalled national elections.
The political parties however, are more concerned about how to
get the Emergency Government to wind itself up within the
shortest possible time. Evidently the AL and the BNP would
like to bargain about how to get their chairpersons out of an
indefinite incarceration, facing a battery of corruption
allegations and charges. In addition, these two major
political parties are also much concerned and apprehensive as
to whether they would at all be allowed a free hand at
participation in a "free and fair" election although agendas,
programs and manifestos of political parties are not at all
clear in the changed circumstances brought about by the
Emergency.
Some of the issues, which will invariably crop up in any
political dialogue between the Emergency Government and the
political parties include the ratification of the Declaration
of Emergency, ratifications of the various actions, measures,
rules and directives issued by the President and the Emergency
Government, the modus-operandi of holding the election and the
mechanism of handing over the reins of government to the
elected representatives. Other possible issues for discussion
could well revolve around the banning from elections and
politics those alleged to be "collaborators" and those who
base their politics on religion. The point which will not come
up for discussion at least from the political parties,
particularly the AL and the BNP, would be the issue of dozens
of leaders in jails facing charges of corruption, some already
sentenced to prison terms running to 30 years!! It would of
course be assumed by political parties that they would be in a
position to do some thing about it soon after they have won
the elections.
We have had disappointing experiences with dialogue before and
an impasse of one such dialogue between the BNP and AL had
cleared the way for the Emergency to be imposed; an impasse
now could lead to far worse conditions than what we had before
the Emergency was imposed. Therefore, whatever the agenda of
the dialogue, from the sides of the Government and the
political parties, it ought to be clear to all concerned that
these dialogues cannot turn into a dialogue of the deaf, for
the deaf and by the deaf where nobody is ready and willing to
listen to anyone.
All this hype about political dialogue is fine but what about,
the common people, the 150 million people of this Country,
often referred to as the "masses", thereby giving them an
inert role in the polity called Bangladesh. What the "masses"
have to say about politics in general, about the Emergency
Government and about political dialogues, is unprintable. The
"masses" are not much bothered about this or that form of
government, they merely want to survive and will vote for
anyone who promises them even the slightest amount of
improvement from their present conditions of harsh poverty and
even harsher exploitation. Nobody is talking about these
masses and their conditions, neither the Emergency Government
nor the political parties. If there has got to be a dialogue,
it has to be a dialogue about the political, social and
economic conditions of these "masses" - That is the dialogue
we need but that is the dialogue we often wish to avoid and
forget about.
Dhaka-Kolkata Train Service
At
long last, the Dhaka-Kolkata Train Service is set to kick off
formally from Pahela Baishakh (April 14). The decision to
introduce direct train service between Dhaka and Kolkata was
taken at a meeting between Chief Adviser Dr. Fakhruddin Ahmed
and Indian Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh on the sideline
of the SAARC Summit in New Delhi in April 2007. As a follow up
action railway officials of Bangladesh and India in a meeting
on April 24-25 in Dhaka had finalised the decision to launch
the train service from 1 July 2007.It was decided that the
Bangladesh-India Friendship Train would run between Dhaka
Cantonment Station and Sealdah Station, Kolkata. But due to
bureaucratic bottleneck and some other problems the launching
of the train service has been delayed.
Now, a formal agreement between Bangladesh and India in this
regard is expected to be signed in Dhaka today or tomorrow and
the train service is going to begin from April 14. Initially
two trains will run between Dhaka and Kolkata on Saturday and
Sunday every week. Each train will be able to carry 418
passengers and take 13 hours, including five hours for
immigration check on both sides, to reach the destination. The
fare will vary from 8 dollars to 20 dollars for each
passenger.
Train services between the then Eat Pakistan and India
continued after the partition of British India as well, but it
stopped in September 1965 when a war broke out between the two
neighbours. And now direct train service between Bangladesh
and India is going to resume after about 43 years.
The Dhaka-kolkata train service will be a positive step
towards the improvement of relations between Bangladesh and
Pakistan. It will benefit both the neighbours as thousands of
people travel between the two countries for different reasons
including medical treatment, trade and business and meeting
relatives. The easy communication facilities to be provided by
the train service is expected to bring the people of the two
countries closer and strengthen their friendly ties. however,
although train journey is comparatively comfortable than
travel by bus, long five- hour time for immigration check
seems to be too much and painstaking. The time for immigration
check should be reduced to maximum three hours.
Analysis
Care Taker Government:
Undemocratic Child by the “Politicians for Democracy”.
Time after time, over and over; our eccentric
politicians have failed to deliver this nation what they
promised and thus lost all the public trusts.
Mohammad Gani
In
Russia, people eat ice cream there in the winter because it’s
warmer than the weather outside; more or less meaning!
Politicians and their chauvinists in Bangladesh are now taking
whatever atmosphere-warming they could get and thus Awami
League and BNP leaders have now put a “pause” on stepping on
each other and began embracing closely for strategic
partnership on super democracy; also perhaps in quest of
developing a truculent joint force to declare crusade against
this unconstitutional Care Taker Government.
Our “JonoNetri” Hasina and “GonoNetri” Khaleda, nation’s 2
ultimate and the only role models and champions of
super-democracy in Bangladesh have fallen into the deep holes;
visibly virtual consequences of inadvertently inviting
“crocodiles” into the street of Bangladesh on 11 January 2007.
Interestingly, still they haven’t stopped digging down and
their unscrupulous Comrades and Lieutenants querulously
demanding this unconstitutional Care Taker Government (CTG) to
unconditionally release these two “leader” along with all
other alleged “honest criminals” like Tariq Zia, Lord Babor,
Sk. Selim and many more immediately. They also cautioned that
“illegitimate Care Taker Government” has NO right or
Constitutional Authority whatsoever to apprehend/harass our
genuine “patriotic” leaders and must stop illegally
persecuting them (except the War Criminals, formerly Razakars!!).
Can’t we include the killers of our founding father Mujib, Zia,
Siraj Sikdar or Colonel Taher etc into this War Criminals
list?
One could now wonder how an “illegitimate” Care Taker
Government could possibly conduct an “Election for legitimate
Democracy” in Bangladesh regardless of how “fair or unfair,
free or not free” it could be?” Imagine a “Democracy” coming
out through the barrel of an “undemocratic” Care Taker
Government! We have more exciting stories behind the story of
this unconstitutional Care Taker Government though most often
our recalcitrant politicians come up with misleading
information for fooling the entire nation as usual. Why this
nation or any democracy needs a “Care Taker Government” in the
first place? Who did exactly declare State of Emergency in
Bangladesh for quite sometimes and why? Were State of
Emergency and/or a Care Taker Government warranted for any
good reason? Couldn’t this nation or its Democracy live
without an “illegitimate Care Taker Government”? Allergic
politicians and their lieutenants need to recognize the
importance of all these truths-in-politics before taking upper
hands on Care Taker Government. They need to recall that
“State of Emergency” was actually declared by a “Legitimate,
Democratic and Constitutional” President Iajuddin Ahmed (a.k.a
formerly “YESuddin”) of elected BNP-Razakar Government and not
by this Care Taker Government by any means. Didn’t our
founding father Mujib declare “State of Emergency” during a
peaceful democratic Government? After proclaiming “State of
Emergency”, didn’t he use his parliamentary majority to win a
“Constitutional Amendment” limiting the powers of the
legislative and judicial branches, establishing an executive
presidency, instituted a one-party system (BAKSAL) that
required all civilian government personnel to join the party?
Was it warranted?
The concept of Care Taker Government or the “Other kind of
Democracy” in Bangladesh was the final conclusion of all the
miserable failures of our “National Political Assets” and
their super-democratic minds. Thus, it (CTG) has been an
undemocratic “child” of estranged Hasina and Khaleda who
trusted or committed to trust an “illegitimate Care Taker
Government” over “Democratically elected Government”.
Regardless of whatever could be their strong reasoning and
arguments behind trusting an “illegitimate Care taker
Government” over “democratically elected Government”; the
catch is that this manifestation or practice of approbation of
an undemocratic Care Taker Government is entirely undemocratic
and flouting the norms of any democracy! Why and how an
undemocratic or illegitimate Care Taker Government could be
more trustworthy to Hasina or to Khaleda over an elected
Democratic Government in securing democracy in Bangladesh?
Very strange!
Political aspirations and inspirations for democracy among the
people of Bangladesh more often become emotionally-charged
ambitions despite having chronic poverty in their day to day
life style. Our politician’s habitual hegemonies during this
process shock and shutter their consciousness and expectation
over and over again. Leader’s stentorian pre-election
commitments and rhetoric get lost almost immediately after the
election. So, only voting or conducting a “free and fair”
election alone does not guarantee true democracy in Bangladesh
that could address and resolve nation’s exigent problems.
Though outcry for democracy by our political leaders continues
and is becoming stronger, we shall see their actual interests
behind this outcry clearly if look through carefully, that
their rancorous noises are merely for their own benefits.
Unlike the norms of true democracy, our candidates usually buy
nominations from the political parties with huge and
competitive price tags and then invest more wealth and muscles
to win the election. Their election victories then bring them
unimaginable fortunes during the following 5 years in return
of their pre-election investment!
During last 37 years, nation’s 75 million to 145 million
people have done their part to the politicians and to their
democracy but in return what exactly the politicians and their
“home-cooked” democracy have done for this nation, if any at
all? Existing and ongoing developments in Bangladesh were
accomplished and /or would have been accomplished even more
effectively and successfully without Hasina/Khaleda’s circus
democracy as those were actually executed by the spending
funded by the donor nations and local entrepreneurs of course
with huge invisible “line losses”! These developments have
nothing to do with our democratic touts and thieves those have
been reigning and ruining Bangladesh for years and to their
tenuous policies of deceits, deceptions and manipulations.
Obviously, it is assumed without question that majority rule
democracy is the best system “available” to organize humanity
and to rule a nation. We all find the majority rule democracy
which is rule “by the most” appears to offer a clear advance
over dictatorships which are rule by the one, or oligarchy
which is rule by the few. In Bangladesh, majority rule
democracy of “we the people” actually ends the moment we exit
the voting booth and our elected leaders then legally have no
need of our opinions for the following five years.
Nevertheless, compared to the rule by the one of dictatorship,
the rule by the most of majority rule democracy appears to be
working in a much fairer way. And “this fairness” is perhaps
the only greatest value to any nation under democratic rule to
embrace as the best “available system” to govern that nation
but no, it is not the absolute! Democracy is not always the
best system that evenly fits all and thus often nations need
to introduce its “own model” to develop an eclectic structure
of government in accordance with their desired needs. In
Bangladesh, we need a democratic model, a Government and a
culture that shall respect the law of the land over power and
honesty over greed for personal wealth. We need to consider
the steps we must begin to take today to help shaping our
Democracy in a manner to have a successful future for the
entire nation. This nation could live and have lived without
aggressive democracy of Hasina and Khaleda who have been
abusing and choking the teachings and philosophy of true
Democracy for years.
Indeed, we always have a very poor opinion on our most
political leaders; one of the noblest profession to serve our
nation, to serve humanity, to serve mankind. Time after time,
over and over; our eccentric politicians have failed to
deliver this nation what they promised and thus lost all the
public trusts. For years, they have pushed the already
beleaguered fates of 145 million of people miserably down to
the ground and to an alarming uncertainty to our future
generations. We now vehemently disagree with their policies,
performance and leadership etc. because of their unscrupulous
behavior who are always determined to do anything to gain
power, always abusive of their position and privileges. So, in
a challenging game of politics, it becomes difficult for them
to address injustices and create changes. We historically have
a “culture of corruptions” and all politicians in the
Government are susceptible to political corruption like
bribery, extortion, cronyism, nepotism, patronage, graft and
embezzlement. These endemic corruption are so alarming that
all level of government officials have proclivity for these,
as if our entire nation have been held hostage by the rule of
thieves.
Finally, 145 million people in a tiny slice of our “lonely
planet” Earth, with only 55 thousand square mile land do exert
buckling loads on everything we could possibly afford as a
nation. Our problems and issues are huge and truly resolving
them by giving out some hopes to this impoverished nation is
an onerous task. At this moment, we need someone with
revolutionary leadership, powerful spirits of statesmanship
and patriotism to supplant Hasina and Khaleda at least for 1
(one) five year term. Let us close our eyes and open our
hearts, then only pray and hope for some delightful smiles of
happiness in the pale faces of 145 million people of our
beautiful Bangladesh!!
(Mohammad Gani; Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA.
E-mail: magani69@gmail.com)
No good blaming Pakistan
After the recent elections
results, Pakistani political leaders have a historic
opportunity to reverse the tendency of prostrating before the
US.
Tariq Amin-Khan
THE
New York Times in its Feb 12 editorial has claimed that the
'problem in Afghanistan is manufactured in Pakistan'. Others
in the western mainstream media are convinced that the 'war on
terror' will be won or lost in that state.
But the US presidential candidates have gone a step further.
During the debates in the round of primaries in February and
March, their unabashed militarism was plain to see. This
attitude was expected from the Republicans in support of the
Bush doctrine of unilateral military action. However, when
Obama - who voted against the use of force in Iraq - and
Clinton also chimed in from the same songbook of
unilateralism, it did not seem to be just election-year
rhetoric.
Even if one assumes that that such militaristic chest-thumping
and flag-waving in an election year is meant for US domestic
consumption, it is irresponsible. It is irresponsible because
the consequences will be disastrous for the region and for
Nato.
What is foolhardy in even speaking about US military
intervention is to ignore how docile and compliant Pakistan
has been historically as a client-state. The clientelism of
the country's military and bureaucratic elite and its upper
classes has been built since the early 1950s. Most Pakistani
political leaders' clientelist embrace of the US has been with
great eagerness. However, after the recent elections results,
Pakistani political leaders have a historic opportunity to
reverse the tendency of prostrating before the US.
However, in terms of the Nato mission in Afghanistan, there is
a need to separate fact from fiction. Despite Nato's claim,
the Taliban in Afghanistan have not been contained but have
actually become stronger. Militant Islam is a political
movement and its aim is to capture state power. The US played
a significant role in the 1970s and 1980s to empower the
Islamists. The Taliban in Afghanistan took advantage of this
nurturing environment to hone their political and military
skills. They have had a taste of holding on to state power,
and are eager to return to it.
Militant Islam, as is now becoming clear, cannot be defeated
militarily. Every time overwhelming force has been used, Nato
and Pakistani military casualties have increased and the
Taliban, Iraqi and Pakistani militant Islamists have withdrawn
and regrouped to launch their attacks again another day. This
has been the pattern, and given the terrain of Afghanistan and
Pakistan, winning the 'war on terror' appears to be a pipe
dream.
All this raises the possibility that the 'war on terror' is
not a war to be won at all. By all accounts, the Bush
administration has crafted this war as the new permanent war,
a 'long war', along the lines of forcing a stalemate as in the
Cold War. This permanent war fuels not only the
military-industrial complex, but now also the
security-industrial complex all combined with the synergy that
there is among big oil, the military and western economies.
However, this strategy of forcing a stalemate is ill-conceived
against mobile and geographically untethered adversaries.
These adversaries, in the heat of battle, can simple melt into
the populace as Nato commanders are left to mull over their
battle plans. Blaming Pakistan for the 'war on terror' going
badly for Nato, therefore, does not help; it merely compounds
the problem. The sobering fact is that Pakistan has very
little to do with the 'war on terror' being won or lost. But
alienating Pakistan is an option that Nato takes at its own
peril.
As to the support that militants in northwest Pakistan have
provided the Taliban on the Afghan side, there is a need to
understand the ground realities of the area.
Southern Afghanistan and northwest Pakistan are contiguous and
are inhabited by the same ethnic group, the Pashtuns, who have
had historical kinship ties. The border, the Durand Line, is
an arbitrary divide established by British colonial rulers,
and it has never been possible to effectively police it. The
border has always been porous and an attack by an occupying
force against the Pashtuns on one side is seen as an attack
against the other side as well.
Now that religious ideology undergirds this ethnic solidarity,
it has become a potent combination that has produced a
resilient guerrilla force. This kind of guerrilla force worked
wonders for the US when its Islamist proxies in Pakistan and
Afghanistan were waging jihad against 'godless' communism.
Ironically, now that the shoe is on the other foot, Pakistan
is being blamed for the war going badly for Canada, the US and
Nato.
Therefore, the sooner the realisation sets in that the war on
terror cannot be won in Pakistan or for that matter in Iraq or
Afghanistan, the better it will be for all concerned.
The only way militant Islam can be contained, nay challenged,
is for a democratic alternative to evolve within the realm of
the political. However, it would be naïve to assume that this
shift will be simple and painless because the democratic
alternative is good neither for the military nor the
militants. It will have to be the people who currently support
the Taliban and other militants that will have to be won over
through a meaningful democratic alternative.
In this context, the outcome of the Feb 18 elections in
Pakistan gives cause for hope. The outcome reinforces the
position that the political and democratic alternative is the
best antidote to check the rise of militant Islam.
Undoubtedly, the use of force will not immediately end given
the trajectory of militarism and violence on both sides. But
for the long-term survival of Pakistan, democracy will have to
be deepened, the sacked judiciary will have to be reinstated,
the media will have to be free, meaningful public education
will have to be promoted, the abysmally poor will need to have
a semblance of human existence, and the unbridled
privatisation of the public domain will have to be checked.
This may appear a tall order, but if the politicians get their
act together for once - and there are signs of this happening
- then all this is within their grasp.
The writer teaches politics at Ryerson University, Toronto.
takhan@politics.ryerson.ca
Source: www.dawn.com
Viewpoints
The Future of
Stupidity
Those who are civilized by definition do not
clash. The clash is always between the uncivilized.
Sundeep Waslekar
Exactly
500 years ago, Niccolo Machiavelli served the court of Cesare
Borgia, Duke of Valentinois and Romagna, son of Pope Alexander
VI, and the military general of the papacy. Machiavelli was so
impressed by Borgia’s crude pursuit of power that a decade and
half later, he wrote a treatise, The Prince, as an offering to
the Medici princes. Machiavelli was particularly impressed by
Borgia’s assassination of rivals on the new year’s eve of 1503
in Sinigaglia. He advocated that princes should use crude use
of force to acquire and retain power at any cost.
Machiavelli’s theory of the pursuit of power was based on
false hypothesis. Cesare Borgia, his hero, was nothing but his
father’s poodle. He was a spoilt arrogant kid who could only
become the military general for no other reason than nepotism.
His incompetence was proved after his father’s demise. As soon
as his father died, he was arrested by Pope Julius II. And
that was the end of Machiavelli’s powerful hero.
Many world leaders in the last 500 years have followed
Machiavelli’s advice based on the life of an incompetent
prince. They believe that they should retain power at any
cost. They also believe in dynastic regimes. All they want is
to grab power and serve the interests of a particular group or
a family using a combination of prudence and force. This is
the Machiavellian doctrine. It has often resulted in massacres
and killings of innocent people. Sometimes the practitioners
of this theory may not go as far as enforcing death on their
victims but they practice discriminatory politics causing
miserable life for many.
The French Revolution challenged The Prince in a real sense.
But it was usurped by its own enthusiastic supporters.
Finally, it gave in to a prince, Prince Napoleon.
Nevertheless, when Napoleon’s revolutionary army won a victory
over the Prussian Empire in 1806, Hegel declared the end of
history. This was another stupid theory that has been revived
from time to time. Within a decade of Hegel’s proclamation,
Napoleon was defeated and the House of Bourbon was restored.
If Hegel’s followers claim that Hegel was celebrating the
victory of the revolutionary principle, Napoleon was no
embodiment of such lofty ideals. He was a great military
commander. That’s it. His nephew took the help of the Church,
undoing the French Revolution, to come to power and later on
demolished the Republic to create the second empire under the
Napoleon dynasty. Thus, the end of history was nothing more
than the heralding of a new empire.
Centuries later, Marx also advocated that the history would
end when a classless society were established on the earth. In
reality, Marxism has only given birth to different types of
empires. These empires are not dynastic but the ruling
coteries enjoy absolute power. Communist societies in the
former Soviet Union and China, among others, have been known
for dictatorship and atrocities by the Politburo. The Soviet
Empire has collapsed and the Chinese one is trying to reform
itself from inside. But the Marxist declaration of the end of
history proved to be nothing more than arrival of new forms of
empires on the earth.
Francis Fukuyama declared the end of history in exactly the
opposite way that Marx had connoted. His is the triumph of
liberalism and free market. Until Fukuyama’s proclamation, the
United States often helped people to secure freedom. The
United States since then has been trying to build an empire.
Once again, the announcement of the end of history has proved
to be the trumpeting of another empire. Of course, the French
empire and the Soviet empire have disappeared in the debris of
history. We have to wait and see what happens to the new
American Empire.
In the last decade and half another theory has dominated
global discourse. This is the theory of clash of
civilizations. I had the pleasure of staying with Prof Samuel
Huntington at Hotel Cresta Sun at Davos on a couple of
occasions and he repeatedly told me that he did not advocate
any clash of civilizations. But there is no doubt that a
number of scholars and leaders have quoted his essay in
Foreign Affairs not only to describe but also to influence
world events in a way that would divide humanity on religious
lines. The translation of this theory into reality has
resulted in the death of over 3000 soldiers in Iraq under the
Bush presidency, even more than the number of innocent people
killed by Al Qaeda at the World Trade Centre. The application
of this theory has meant American support for tin pot
dictators and malignant neglect of the cancerous racket of a
nuclear weapons smuggler. It has meant the killing of hundreds
of children in Iraq and Afghanistan, and bombing the shelter
of thousands of absolutely innocent people. Most important, it
has meant an assault on freedom and trust.
This theory has proved to be yet another example of stupidity
not only because its author disclaims it at least in private
conversations but also because it is based on wrong
understanding of the English language. As I have repeated in
every forum what I once heard from a senior statesman – those
who are civilized by definition do not clash. The clash is
always between the uncivilized.
Prof Huntington’s theory was corroborated by Osama bin Laden
in the name of fighting Jews and Crusaders. This is another
stupid theory based on ignorance of history. Crusaders and
Jews were always on the opposite sides. The Crusaders killed
the Jews first, then Christians of the Orthodox Church and
then the Muslims. At times the Crusaders did not even go as
far as Jerusalem. They satisfied themselves by looting
Constantinople, torturing the Christian priests of the
Orthodox Church and raping Christian women to satisfy their
lust. At times they traveled to the southern France to execute
dissidents. To accord religious sanctity to this brutal
historical nonsense, merely because shrewd Pope Urban started
it all by citing religious justification, is to sacrifice
truth to serve political ends. It is crazy for anyone to
believe in this theory and leave behind their dear ones to
undertake suicide bombing. The theory of religious justice, in
its deep analysis, is a cover for power politics.
It is amazing to see how we allow ourselves to be taken for a
ride by these stupid theories. The more educated we are, the
more likely it is that we will use one of these theories in
cocktail conversations or seminars. If we carry on accepting
such insults to human intellect with pride, we will together
contribute to creating an atmosphere that will create a split
in the human society. In a way, our survival in the future
depends on our willingness to respect stupidity. Perhaps,
instead of chasing stupidity of grand theories advocated by
the so-called wise men, we need to place faith in the simple
wisdom of core human values.
(Sundeep Waslekar is the President of Strategic Foresight
Group.
Source: www.strategicforesight.com)
Mugabe:
From Freedom Fighter to Tyrant
Both endured long terms of imprisonment, Mandela, 27 years,
Mugabe, 11 years. Both suffered the anguish of losing a son
while in prison; and both were refused permission to attend
the funeral.
Martin Meredith
The
careers of two of Africa's most prominent politicians - Robert
Mugabe and Nelson Mandela - have striking similarities. Both
were born in an era when white power prevailed throughout
Africa, Mandela in 1918, Mugabe in 1924. Both were products of
the Christian mission school system, Mandela of the Methodist
variety, Mugabe of the Catholic. Both attended the same
university, Fort Hare in South Africa. Both emerged as members
of the small African professional elite, Mandela a lawyer,
Mugabe a teacher. Both were drawn into the struggle against
white minority rule, Mandela in South Africa, Mugabe in
neighboring Rhodesia. Both advocated violence to bring down
white-run regimes. Both endured long terms of imprisonment,
Mandela, 27 years, Mugabe, 11 years. Both suffered the anguish
of losing a son while in prison; and both were refused
permission to attend the funeral.
But whereas Mandela used his prison years to open a dialogue
with South Africa's white rulers in order to defeat apartheid,
Mugabe emerged from prison bent on revolution, determined to
overthrow white society by force. Military victory, said
Mugabe, would be the "ultimate joy".
Even after seven years of civil war in Rhodesia in which at
least 30,000 people died, when the opportunity to gain power
through elections was on offer, Mugabe expressed his
disappointment that he would be denied the kind of power that
military victory would have given him. Power for Mugabe was
not the means to an end but the end itself.
This year Mandela celebrates his 90th birthday, acclaimed
around the world as one of the great leaders of his time,
while Mugabe battles on grimly after 28 years of power in
Zimbabwe like an 18th-century prizefighter blinded by his own
blood -- and the blood of many others.
Yet the early years of Mugabe's rule seemed so full of
promise. Instead of the angry Marxist ogre that the white
minority had feared, after winning the 1980 election Mugabe
appeared as a model of moderation, pledging to work for
reconciliation and racial harmony. Even the recalcitrant white
leader, Ian Smith, who had previously denounced him as "the
apostle of Satan", now found him "sober and responsible".
Western governments lined up with offers of aid. In its first
year of independence, Zimbabwe was awarded £900m in aid,
enabling Mugabe to embark on ambitious programs of education
and health development. The white population, too, benefited
from growing economic prosperity. Given large increases in
commodity prices, white farmers - the backbone of the economy
- became ardent supporters of Mugabe's government and his
ruling ZANU-PF party. "Good old Bob!" they cheered.
But Mugabe's black political opponents fared less well. Within
weeks of gaining power in 1980, Mugabe set out to crush
political opposition in Matabeleland and establish a one-party
state. The military campaign he unleashed there in the 1980s
culminated in mass murder. As many as 20,000 civilians are
estimated to have died. But it gave Mugabe the total control
he had always sought.
In Harare, meanwhile, Mugabe's inner circle scrambled for
property, farms, businesses and government contracts. Mugabe
joined the fray, but his real obsession was not with personal
wealth but with power. Year by year, he acquired ever greater
powers, ruling the country through a vast system of patronage,
favoring loyal aides and cronies with government positions and
ignoring the spreading blight of corruption. "I am rich
because I belong to ZANU -PF," boasted one of Mugabe's
proteges, a millionaire businessman. "If you want to be rich
you must join ZANU -PF."
With his one-party system, Mugabe's tentacles reached into
every corner of the land. One by one, Parliament, the state
media, parastatal organizations, the police, the civil service
and, eventually, the courts, were subordinated to his will. In
dealing with dissidents, his secret police were licensed to
harass, intimidate and even murder at will.
By the mid-1990s, Mugabe had become an irascible and petulant
dictator, brooking no opposition, contemptuous of the law and
human rights, surrounded by sycophantic ministers and
indifferent to the incompetence and corruption around him.
Whatever good intentions he had started out with had long
since faded. A land-reform program financed by Britain came to
a halt when it was discovered that Mugabe was handing out
farms intended for peasant resettlement to his own cronies.
Ordinary people meanwhile suffered the brunt of government
mismanagement. By 2000, Zimbabweans were generally worse off
than they had been at independence: average wages were lower;
unemployment had trebled; public services were crumbling and
life expectancy was falling.
As opposition to his rule mounted, Mugabe struck back with
increasing ruthlessness. His first target was white farmers
who, worried about their title to land, had shown signs of
supporting a new opposition coalition, the Movement for
Democratic Change. Hoping to bolster his popularity, Mugabe
sent gangs of party activists to rural areas to seize control
of white-owned farms to distribute to his supporters, but it
led only to the collapse of the agricultural industry. His
ultimate objective, however, was to crush all opposition and
remain in power for as long as he wanted. Since 2000, he has
used all the government's resources to attack his opponents,
sanctioning murder, torture and lawlessness of every kind,
rigging elections, violating the courts and suppressing the
independent press. In a speech in 2003, he warned he would use
even worse violence if necessary, threatening to act like a
"black Hitler" against the opposition. "If that is Hitler,
then let me be a Hitler tenfold. That is what we stand for."
The cost of this strategy has been enormous. Zimbabwe has been
reduced to a bankrupt and impoverished state, threatened by
economic collapse and catastrophic food shortages.
But still Mugabe fights on. "No matter what force you have,
this is my territory and that which is mine I cling [to] unto
death," he said in 2001. And he is far from finished. Though
losing control of Parliament in last month's election, he can
still rely on party militias, youth groups, war veterans,
police and army generals to help him win the next round of the
presidential election. Violence has been Mugabe's
stock-in-trade for more than 30 years. Indeed he has boasted
that he has "a degree in violence". It is not a pleasant
prospect for Zimbabweans yearning for something better.
Source: www.arabnews.com
Opinion
Food Value
The
ongoing India-Africa summit in New Delhi may have taken a leaf
out of China's aggressive wooing of Africa. Yet India and
Africa share a far older relationship and many common
problems.
Centuries of colonialism have badly dented self-confidence in
both India and Africa, a situation from which they are only
just emerging.
As newly independent nations they found industry more
prestigious, at the cost of neglecting agriculture. Since many
in India and Africa struggle to feed themselves, spiralling
food prices across the world will hurt them the most.
Yet India and Africa have the potential to become the
granaries of the world. Besides abundant sunlight and fertile
soil, they have regions that are favourable for the
cultivation for practically every commercially important crop
in the world.
In terms of productivity per acre, India scores badly for most
crops. Yet even now, it is the second highest producer of
fruits and vegetables.
Africa has a variety of soils and agro-climatic zones. It's
crying out for its own green revolution.
India has had its green revolution which, however, is running
out of steam in terms of feeding its ever-expanding
population. Indian farms badly need a makeover.
If India and African nations were to realise their joint
agricultural potential, think of the effect that would have.
Currently, 60 per cent of Indians and 70 per cent of the
African population are engaged in farming.
Agriculture directly generates demand for rural labour. It
delivers the most bang for the buck in terms of employment
generated and gives opportunities to the poorest.
South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa enjoy the dubious reputation
of hosting the majority of the world's poor. Enhancing
agricultural productivity and growth in India and Africa could
destroy the last big concentrations of poverty in the world.
The task would require coordination between Indian and African
agricultural scientists and representatives from farmers'
organisations. Research must be undertaken into high-yielding
varieties of seeds that are suited for soil and climatic
conditions in India and Africa.
Help can be solicited from UN agencies and scientific
academies all over the world. Best practices in terms of
crops, cropping patterns, efficient use of water and
fertiliser can be incorporated and taught to local farmers.
India is showing potential in biotechnology, which ought to be
harnessed for new high-yielding varieties of seeds that are
resistant to disease.
Above all, both India and African nations must undergo a
paradigm shift in thinking about agriculture. Thanks to the
colonial experience the corporate sector is seen as an enemy
of small farmers when the involvement of large-scale private
enterprise can, in fact, provide agriculture just the fillip
it needs.
Source:
www.timesofindia.com
International
Nepal goes to polls
today
BBC Online
Across this dirt-poor Himalayan nation, millions of voters
are expected to go to the polls Thursday in an election
whose outcome will demonstrate, in large measure, whether
they believe his promises-and, in turn, whether he keeps
them.
He insists he will. The brutal, decade-long "People's War"
waged by communist insurgents in which more than 13,000
died is a thing of the past, says Prachanda, the nom de
guerre of Pushpa Kamal Dahal. Democracy and peaceful
collaboration are the order of the day.
"Let there be no doubt," he declared in an interview after
a recent election rally in this Maoist stronghold outside
Katmandu, the capital. "We will not break the peace
process even [if] we are in the minority. But we believe
we will be in the majority."
Plenty of Nepalese view such pledges with mistrust,
especially when the former guerrilla follows them with
accusations of a conspiracy to undermine his party. Some
of his deputies warn of a backlash if their party loses.
The balloting has already been postponed twice, partly
because of alleged violations of the peace process by
Maoist cadres.
Security for the election remains a serious concern:
Several small bombs exploded in Katmandu over the weekend,
and there have been numerous cases of campaign violence,
including the reported fatal shooting of a communist
candidate Tuesday in western Nepal.
Many analysts think the former rebel group will finish
last out of the three main parties, though none of the
formations will own an outright majority. Official results
may not be known for up to three weeks.
Regardless of the outcome, the election is likely to
change this backward country of 28 million people forever.
The 601 seats up for grabs are for a constituent assembly
that will draw up a new constitution. Most of the assembly
will be elected, but a few members will be appointed.
Women, those of low caste and the long-oppressed people
from the southern plains are among those angling for a say
in how to reinvent their country.
It is a mark of how profoundly the Maoists have reshaped
the political discourse here that the assembly's first
order of business, by consent of all the major parties,
will be to address the Maoists' most cherished dream:
abolition of the monarchy.
Nepal has been a unified Hindu kingdom for 239 years,
under the reign of monarchs believed to be earthly
incarnations of the god Vishnu. But a disastrous, 15-month
period of absolute rule by King Gyanendra, which ended in
April 2006 after a popular revolt, has turned him into a
figure of widespread odium. Onetime royalists have become
fervent republicans.
"The monarchy has a long history," said Prakash Man Singh,
a former government minister and an assembly candidate
from the country's biggest and oldest party, the Nepali
Congress. "But since the king couldn't abide by the
constitutional-monarchy principle, and since the monarchy
has been a destabilizing factor in Nepal, all the people
have come to the conclusion that the monarchy should come
to an end."
The three major parties promise to declare Nepal a
republic. Over the last two years, the interim government
has stripped Gyanendra of power, scrubbed his portrait
from the currency, subjected him to taxes and excised the
word "royal" from the army and the national airline. He
rarely appears in public anymore.
For the Maoists, it is sweet revenge. The king zealously
prosecuted the war against them, relying on a security
apparatus that was accused by human rights groups of
committing atrocities every bit as bloody as the Maoists'
own record of killings, kidnappings, torture and
intimidation.
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