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ADP won't be implemented timely
Staff Correspondent
Economists and experts have
apprehended that the Annual Development Programme (ADP)
would not be implemented in the current fiscal as the
ongoing corruption drive has created panic among the
government and non-government organizations' high ups and
officials.
"The incumbent government's high ups and officials from
different organizations are failing to take decision to
implement projects, invite bids and approve new programme
as they think that if any decision is taken by them right
now they would be implicated in corruption cases," they
said at a exchange of views meeting held at National Press
Club on Saturday.
Economists Mohammad Maimul Ahsan Khan, Mahbub Ullah,
Sheikh Toufiq, Aziz Masud and Riyazul Islam addressed the
function. They observed that during the previous two
political governments Bangladesh ranked the top list of
corruption but the ADP had been implemented 29 per cent
and 27 per cent respectively.
"But the present caretaker government has implemented only
21 per cent of the ADP. We are surprised that in the face
of massive anti-corruption drive, the government and non
government high ups and officials don't dare to
misappropriate money or indulge in any corruption but why
has the ADP declined," they added.
"On the other hand, following prescription given by
foreign donor agencies like World Bank and International
Monetary Fund, the implementation of ADP is being hampered
in a large scale. Following the World Bank formulated
Public Procurement Regulation 2003, the government would
not be able to purchase anything without consulting with
the WB and IMF. Almost all ministries fail to purchase or
collect consultancy service due to WB interference. In
delaying to purchase anything in suitable time, the
country is incurring loss," they said.
About impediments to ADP implementation, they alleged a
snail- pace in the use of mid-term regulatory funds
allocated for three years to the 14 ministries due to the
lack of efficient manpower. Many public servants are
reluctant to implement projects for the fear of audit
objection. Only 10 advisers are not capable of handling 55
ministries and scrutinising the files for implementation
of ADP. After change of rules of business in 1996, the
secretaries cannot take many decisions without approval of
the ministers.
They cut in to say, "As the ADP is not being implemented
at local government level, the people specially common and
poor people are facing the worst situation as they are
becoming jobless. Simultaneously, prices of essentials
commodities are hiking up day by day."
The economists and experts also demanded of the government
to lift restriction on politics as economic development is
not possible without a good political and social
atmosphere and that is why father of modern economics Adam
Smith called the subject 'political economics'.
BIOJ reveals names of 15 'war criminals'
Staff Correspondent
Bangladesh Islami Oikkyo Jote (BIOJ) Chairman Misbahur
Rahman Chowdhury on Saturday revealed the names of 15
identified war criminals, including Jamaat-e-Islami Ameer
Maulana Motiur Rahman Nizami and Secretary General Ali
Ahsan Mohammad Mujahid, and demanded immediate trial of
the war criminals.
The IOJ Chairman urged the Caretaker Government to form a
high-powered investigation committee led by a Supreme
Court justice to freely work to prepare a list of the war
criminals so that they are brought to justice.
He said, " the Caretaker Government should start the trial
of war criminals through constituting a tribunal if they
want to remain alive in the mind of the people for a long
time. But it seems to me that this Government is reluctant
to do so."
At a press conference in the central party office, the
BIOJ Chairman released the names of 15 top war criminals.
They are: Jamaat Ameer Matiur Rahman Nizami, Secretary
General Ali Ahsan Mujahidi, incumbent Jamaat leaders Mir
Kashem Ali, Sarder Abdus Salam, Mohammad Qamruzzaman,
Chowdhury Farid Uddin Ahmed, Muhammad Shamsul Huq,
Director General of Islami Bank Mohammad Younus, Jamaat
Majilsh member ASM Ruhul Quddus, businessmen Ashraf
Hossain (Dhaka), Dubai expatriate Abdul Hai Faruki and
Chowdhury Moinuddin( now in London), Owner of Ibne Sina
and Islami Bank Abdul Zaher Mohammad Abu Naser, Food and
Disaster Management secretary Ayub Miah, Barrister in the
Supreme Court Abdur Razzak.
Misbahur Rahman also demanded immediately release of two
detained ex-Prime Ministers, Khaleda Zia and Sheikh Hasina
and create atmosphere conducive to a fruitful dialogue
with political parties for holding a free, fair and
credible election.
He urged countrymen to boycott the listed war criminals
socially and not to invite them to participate in any
roundtable, seminar or symposium. Replying to a query, the
BIOJ Chairman said, "if the AL-led fourteen party combine
can win the next election, its victory in the polls will
help establish a real democracy in the country."
Asked whether his party will handover the list of war
criminals to the government or not, Misnbahur Chowdhury
said, " If this government considers our request, then we
will formally handover this list to this caretaker
government and it is easy for the caretaker government to
bring the war criminals to justice, as it is a
non-political government."
Defending his allegations against the established
personalities of Jamaat, Misbahur Rahman Chowdhury said
relevant documents and evidences have already been
collected regarding war crimes and these documents will
prove their offences. "Those who had gone into hiding
during Bangabandhu's rule, their rise as millionaires, we
have all the details. Those who have been affected by
their crimes and activities, we have collected 651 such
witnesses. They will appear in court and give their
depositions after identifying the accused," he said.
Replying to another question, he said, " Bangabandhu
forgave the people who opposed the liberation war not the
war criminals who killed hundreds of freedom fighters,
innocent people and raped our mothers and sisters."
Misbahur Rahman also accused some two or three Islami
Party and some left parties who opposed the liberation war
but the leaders of Jamaat e Islami were directly involved
in war crimes.
"Matiur Rahman Nizami was the supreme commander of Al-Badr
and he killed thousands of innocent people. By killing
intellectuals they wanted to eliminate the seeds of free
thinking from this soil." said the BIOJ leader. "The
incidents that have been described as war crimes by the
United Nations-all have been committed by them. They
violated the Geneva Convention," he said.
Grenades recovered from Satkhira
Staff Correspondent
A huge cache of grenades were recovered from Shimulia
village under Dehata Upazila in Satkhira district on
Friday night. These powerful explosives were similar to
the grenades which had been launched on Awami League rally
on August 21, 2004.
On the basis of information extracted from Mufti Mainuddin
Sheikh, alias Abu Jandal a special squad of RAB went to
the village Shimulia village under Dehata Upazila. Later
they dug up the ground near a pond and unearthed at least
46 live grenades and arrested another suspect involved in
August 21 grenade attack Nazrul Islam Ghoram. Mufti
Mainuddin Sheikh, alias Abu Jandal, who was arrested on
February 14 from Gazipur, one of the top ranking members
of Harkatul Jihad.
"Following the arrest of Mufti Mainuddin Sheikh alias Abu
Jandal and recovery of grenades, it will be to easy for us
in finding more clue about the August 21 grisly carnage.
We had launched a massive hunt to nab Mufti Hannan's
accomplice Jandal and at last we arrested him," talking to
The Bangladesh Today on Saturday RAB Director General
Hasan Mahmud Khandaker said.
Earlier, October 29 in 2007, nine people, who had directly
or indirectly launched the grenade attack on the Awami
League rally on August 21, 2004, at Bangabandhu Avenue in
a bid to assassinate Sheikh Hasina, had been arrested,
along with a huge cache of grenades, firearms, ammunition
and explosives from different parts of the country, the
RAB Director General said.
"On the basis of confessional statements given by Mufti
Hannan, his accomplices Mofiz, Bipul, Maolana Abu Sayeed
and arrested nine others at the Task Force Intelligence (TFI)
cell, special squads of RAB intelligence wings continued
to launch a massive crackdown at different place in
Kushtia, Jenidah, Khulna and Narsingdi to nab the
criminals who had launched the grenade attack on the Awami
League rally
The DG said as part of the operation the Criminal
Investigation Department (CID) and the RAB are
continuously raiding different places of the country to
nab the culprits involved in the grisly carnage at the AL
rally.
During the interrogation at the TFI cell, they confessed
their involvement in the grenade attack and gave
sensational statements to the intelligence personnel.
Meanwhile, the progress in framing charge sheets against
the main culprits in the August 21, 2004 grenade attack on
Awami League rally and its President Sheikh Hasina at
Bangabandhu Avenue in the city is at final stage.
It may be pointed out that there was no progress in the
investigation into the case for three years into the
August 21 grenade attack due to the interference by the
past BNP government. At least 24 Awami League activists,
including Ivy Rahman, were killed in the grisly carnage.
Extortion case against Hasina
Government likely to file appeal today
UNB, Dhaka
The
government is likely to file today (Sunday) application
for leave to appeal against the High Court judgment that
declared illegal the trial of detained ex-Prime Minister
Sheikh Hasina under the Emergency Powers Rules.
On Feb 12, a 7-member full court of the Appellate Division
held up a government petition that sought stay on
operation of the much-talked-about High Court judgment and
asked them to file leave-to-appeal petition against the HC
judgment by February 19 at the latest.
A government attorney, requesting not to be named, told
UNB on Saturday that they had already collected the
certified copy of the Feb 6 High Court judgment, a
prerequisite for making appropriate the application for
leave to appeal.
The High Court in its verdict, upon a writ petition of
Hasina, also quashed midway the entire trial proceedings
of the Tk 3-crore extortion case at Dhaka metropolitan
sessions judge court relocated to the high-security
parliament-building complex.
Before the delivery of the High Court verdict, the trial
court had recorded only depositions made by the
complainant of the case, businessman Azam J Chowdhury. The
formal trial began on Jan 30. "As the High Court rulings
remain in force, the trial of the Azam Chowdhury-filed
extortion case against Hasina stands quashed," a counsel
for Hasina said.
However, the Awami League president will not be freed from
incarceration since she has been shown arrested in a
similar extortion case filed by the Anti-Corruption
Commission against her relating to Khulna barge-mounted
power-plant deal. The government took identical stand in
bringing the alleged offence, which had been committed
before promulgation of state of emergency, for trial under
the EPR.
On June 13 last year, Azam J Chowdhury, managing director
of East Coast Trading Pvt Ltd., a private power company,
filed the extortion case against Hasina. After a month,
she was arrested on July 16 in connection with the case.
Since then, Hasina has been detained in a makeshift jail
in the parliament-building complex. Her younger sister,
Sheikh Rehana, now living in London, and cousin, detained
ex-Minister Sheikh Fazlul Karim Selim, are also made
accused in the case.
City AL-party advisers demand
Hasina's release, early general election
Staff Correspondent
The Awami League Dhaka city unit on Saturday demanded of
the caretaker government immediate release of detained
party president Sheikh Hasina and to hold next general
within the shortest possible time. They also urged the
authorities to ensure better treatment for Hasina and
withdrawal of 'false, baseless and fabricated' cases
against the former premier. The demands were made in a
meeting of AL Advisory Council with the Executive
Committee members of Dhaka city AL at the AL central
office at Bangabandhu Avenue in the capital yesterday.
Chaired by AL acting president of city unit M A Aziz, the
meeting also discussed different issues including, how to
intensify various organisational programmes though
mobilizing public opinion for Hasina's release, what role
should be played by the wards-level party leaders and
activists in the changed circumstances, and the health
condition of the party chief. The City AL also decided to
hold an extended meeting at the Bangabandhu Avenue at 4pm
on February 18. The AL leaders also underscored the need
for announcing a lawful programme amid the state of
emergency with a view to freeing detained party president
Sheikh Hasina. Expressing grave concern over the soaring
prices of essentials, leaders at the meeting said, "Due to
indifference and inefficiency of the government, people
are passing a miserable life and the government should
take necessary steps to arrest price hike across country."
Back Page
Jute sector
Hectic efforts to identify corrupt suspects
Rabiul Islam
The Government has started
working to identify the 'corrupt people' in jute sector
with a view to purging the sector of corruption and
irregularities which led the jute industry to the edge of
ruination. "We have been working to identify the corrupt
people in the jute sector and many corrupt suspects have
already been identified", BJMC Chairman Ataharul Islam
told The Bangladesh Today at his office on February 11.
Meanwhile the Government has taken up various steps to
revitalise the jute sector which was once upon a time the
highest foreign currency earner in the country. Due to
unabated corruption, mismanagement, and the Government's
negligence, the jute industry has reached to the edge of
ruination while the existence of jute cultivators is under
challenge, sources said.
Against this backdrop, the economists, civil society
members and stakeholders recently raised the voice to save
the jute industry, sources said. Civic leaders campaigning
for jute sector revival recently expressed determination
to identify the persons responsible for crippling the jute
industry and sue them after withdrawal of the state of
emergency. Sources said the BJMC is examining the bank
account and the amount of assets of the officials who are
allegedly involved in corruption in jute mills. BJMC
Chairman told this correspondent that the corrupt
officials would be sacked soon to clean the jute industry.
Following huge loss in jute mills over the years, the
Government recently decided to lease out eight state-owned
jute mills. The eight jute mills are Quami Jute Mills in
Sirajganj, Karnaphuli Jute Mills in Chittagong, Forat
Karnaphuli Carpet Factory in Chittagong, and Peoples Jute
Mills in Khulna, M M Jute Mills, R. R. Jute Mills,
Baghdad-Dhaka Carpet Factory in Chittagong, and Alim Jute
Mills in Khulna. But the leasing out of these jute mills
face problems because of insufficient bids and low price,
sources said.
On February 12, the economic affairs committee sent back a
proposal of the Jute Ministry on lease of 7 state-owned
jute mills to private operators. Sources said the
committee didn't approve the proposal as it was observed
to be procedurally incomplete. The number of jute mills
under the state ownership was 77 before the beginning of
the privatisation of jute mills in 1983. After closing
four jute mills, the number of mills under the Bangladesh
Jute Mills Corporation has come down to 18.
ACC chairman envisions corruption-free BD
BSS, Dhaka
Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) Chairman Lt Gen (retd)
Hasan Mashhud Chowdhury feels corruption-free Bangladesh
is a Herculean task, but not impossible if commitment is
strong and genuine in that direction.
"Certainly it is an uphill task, but not beyond reach
because Bangladesh has to get rid of this vice today or
tomorrow for the sake of the country and its people," he
said while addressing as special guest a discussion in
Dhaka on Saturday marking the 24th death anniversary of
General M.A.G. Osmany, commander-in- chief of the
Liberation War.
The ACC chairman paid glowing tributes to Osmany for his
legendary role in the Liberation War in 1971 and said he
matched this great phase with personal integrity
exemplified by his penchant for simple life and hatred
towards corruption and hypocrisy.
"He showed what is called integrity in professional and
personal life and all these along with his patriotism made
Gen Osmany a rare breed of great personality," said the
ACC chairman.
He referred to the curse of corruption that has engulfed
Bangladesh like a demon and said the task to eradicate it
definitely a big challenge.
But, Chowdhury observed, there could be no slackening in
the drive against corruption since the nation has to fight
this menace to ensure a good image of Bangladesh at home
and abroad as well as for welfare and betterment of the
people.
"The ideals of persons like Gen Osmany will serve as a
beacon light of inspiration to those who are engaged in
the grueling job of making Bangladesh corruption-free and
those who want to see this country happy and healthy as
dreamt of by the martyrs of the Liberation War," said the
ACC chairman.
Held at the Osmany Memorial Auditorium, Foreign Adviser Dr
Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury was the chief guest on the
occasion while the discussants included former advisers of
the caretaker government Major General (retd) Mainul
Hossain Chowdhury, Bir Bikram, C.M. Shafi Sami and
Advocate Sultana Kamal.
UGC comes down hard on private varsities
Bdnews24, Dhaka
The University Grants
Commission in its annual report came down hard on private
universities, saying students were being enrolled beyond
their accommodation capacity and the qualification of
students was not verified, as tuition fees were the main
source of income.
Contacted by bdnews24.com, UGC chairman Prof Md Nazrul
Islam said most of the private universities do not care
for qualification of students or enrollment capacity
resulting in deteriorating quality of education.
Islam said there were some exceptions, adding that the
commission would monitor the situation. In its report,
submitted to the president recently, UGC highlighted the
widely varying tuition fees and salaries in the
universities.
It also alleged that private universities enroll
additional students without considering their merit, as
their main source of income was tuition fees.
Referring to the huge differences in salaries and tuition
fees of private universities, Islam said there would be
provisions in a proposed private university act featuring
rules and regulations on the matter. Abul Quashem Haider,
president of the Association of Private Universities, told
bdnews24.com that they would welcome any move to identify
those universities that did not abide by the rules for
enrolling students and take action against them. He also
supported any move towards a regulatory law for private
universities.
But, Haider stressed, the UGC had to stop its stereotyped
allegations against private universities.
The UGC report recommended formulating clear rules and
regulations for admission, tuition fees and salaries,
proposing that fees and charges be kept at such a level
that private university education be affordable and open
for poor but meritorious students.
UNGA to support broad-based CC action
BSS, New York
The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) concluded in
New York on Friday, with a call that the UNGA should
remain engaged in supporting the negotiations on climate
change and in promoting effective coordination by the UN
on the issue.
UNGA President Srgjan Kerim said the Assembly would
convene two additional meetings this year that will focus
on the needs and concerns of vulnerable countries and on
corporate responsibility and sustainability.
Crime Watch
Foreign currency recovered
Staff Correspondent
A customs surveillance team arrested a Singapore-bound
passenger and recovered foreign currencies worth about Tk
91 lakh from his possession at Zia International Air (ZIA)
on Friday night.
The arrestee was identified as Rahat Khan, 32, son of Nobi
of Gazipur district. He is the member of an organised
money trafficking gang, customs sources said.
According to sources, acting on a tip-off, the customs
personnel observed the suspicious movement of Rahat Khan
and arrested him while he was passing through the gate
no-4 at about 10:30 pm. He was scheduled to fly for
Singapore by an aircraft of Singapore Airlines flight
SQ-435.
The customs officials also recovered around 4 lakh and 85
thousand Saudi Riyal, 5 thousand and 5 hundred British
pound and 100 Singapore dollar worth about Tk 91 lakh from
a suitcase of the passenger at about 10.30 pm.
The arrestee was sent to the Air port police station for
interrogation. A money laundering case was lodged.
VoIP hardware seized
Staff Correspondent
Another cache of the voice over internet protocol (VoIP)
equipment worth about Tk 60 lakh was recovered by Rapid
Action Battalion (RAB) from Mirpur in the capital on
Saturday.
According to sources, basis on secret information, a
patrol team of RAB-4 led by captain Moshiul raided a multi
stored building no-16 at section 6 under Mirpur police
station at about 12:30 pm.
After a massive search, the law enforcers recovered 6
pieces of quantum gateway, 6 channels boxes, 2 computers
and huge amount of VoIP equipment worth about Tk 91 lakh.
Jasim has been running the illegal VoIP business for eight
months. After sensing the presence of the law enforcers,
Jasim left the spot immediately, RAB sources said.
A case was lodged with Mirpur police station but none was
arrested till the filing of the report last night.
Minor boy injured, 5 bombs recovered
UNB, Brahmanbaria
Five bombs were recovered at a remote char in
Banchharampur upazila on Friday after the explosion of a
bomb that wounded a minor boy.
Police said some boys while playing found six bombs in
abandoned condition in the char of Titas River at noon.
At one stage, a bomb was exploded with a big bang when
Saidur Rahman, 9, son of Kitab Ali, was trying to open it,
leaving him seriously injured.
He was first rushed to the Upazila Health Complex and
later shifted to the Dhaka Pangu Hospital.
On information, police rushed to the spot and recovered
the five bombs. A general diary was lodged in this
connection.
Brac Bank robbery case
3 busted from Mongla
UNB, Bagerhat
Police arrested three people from Morshed Sarak in Mongla
in connection with the BRAC Bank robbery committed in the
first week of January.
Acting on a tip-off, Mongla police raided the area and
nabbed Hanif Sardar, his wife Haowa Begum and brother
Rustom Sardar.
Police said the trio, during the interrogation, confessed
their involvement with the sensational robbery.
A gang of robbers looted gold ornaments and other
valuables, worth several crores of taka, by breaking open
75 safe deposit lockers of the Dhanmondi branch of BRAC
Bank Ltd in the capital in the first week of January.
RAB seizes fertiliser
BSS, Madaripur
Members of Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) in a drive at
Puran Bazar seized 44 sacks of urea fertiliser from a shop
named Sharif and Brothers.
Acting on a tip-off a team of the elite force conducted
the drive and seized the fertiliser sacks.
They also filed a case against three persons. They were
identified as Babul Das, Sharif and Narayan.
VGF rice scandal
UP Chairman arrested
UNB, Jhenidah
Chairman of Nittanandapur Union Parishad in Shailakupa
upazila here was arrested on Friday noon on charge of
misappropriating VGF rice. The arrested chairman was
identified as Chand Ali.
Local people informed Shailakupa Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO)
Mahmudul Hossain Khan that chairman Chand sold out some
VGF rice in the black market depriving the card holders.
Later, the UNO visited the UP office in the morning and
found that three 50 kg bags of rice missing from total
allocated 78 bags.
Police later arrested the chairman. A case was filed in
this connection.
Husband kills wife
UNB, Sylhet
A woman was killed allegedly by her husband at Niazul
village in Goainghat upazila on Wednesday night.
Local people said Jamaluddin (35), locked into altercation
over a trifling matter with his wife Rahela Begum (28), at
about 10:00 pm. At one stage, he strangulated her to
death.
Being informed by local people, police recovered the body
on Thursday morning and sent it to the morgue for autopsy.
Later, the law enforcers also arrested Jamaluddin from a
nearby village.
Man beaten to death
UNB, Sylhet
A man was beaten to death while trying to stop quarrelling
of two groups of people during a football match at Palpara
village in Golapganj upazila on Thursday.
The dead was identified as Nurul Islam, 40, son of late
Mokbul Ali of the village.
Witnesses said a member of Shahid Mostafa Kamal Gold Cup
Football Tournament committee beat up a fan, Jewel, as he
tried to cross the football ground during its tiebreaker
session.
Later, an altercation ensued between the committee members
and sympathizers of Jewel. At that time Nurul Islam,
maternal uncle of Jewel, was beaten up mercilessly when he
tried to settle the dispute.
He was rushed to the Sylhet Osmani Medical College
Hospital where the attending doctors declared him dead.
Case against SI for torturing woman
BSS, Rajbari
A woman filed a case against SI of Baliakandi thana for
torturing the woman apprehending her into custody of the
thana without filing any case in the district.
Editorial
Our Banks & Banking Systems
Inaugurating
a daylong "National Women SME Entrepreneurs Conference 2008",
the Chief Adviser suggested a 4 point measure for encouraging
the SMEs with emphasis on helping female entrepreneurs.
Significant among the 4 points were the intimations that bank
lending interest rates ought to be considerably reduced and
bank procedures ought to be greatly simplified. Demands and
contentions for reduction of bank interest rates and
procedures are nothing new but banks in Bangladesh, both
private and state owned are extremely reluctant to do either
because that would imply cutting into their very large profits
and lengthy procedures ensure that bank service charges remain
at comfortably high levels.
To an absolute extent banks are preserves of the rich and the
powerful who have little if any moral obligations towards
anyone least of all to the common man or woman and who have no
scruples in maximizing profits in whatever way they can. The
decade of the 1990s saw a massive proliferation of private
banks in Bangladesh and those who invested in and sponsored
these banks had massive amounts of surplus "black money" which
they needed to put somewhere and so our Nation's politicians,
many of whom were themselves masters of these "black money",
with the active support and participation of the State's
financial and other regulatory institutions found a way out to
legalize and secure these colossal fortunes through the
establishment and institution of banks. Having done that, they
went into "money-lending" on a large scale to others with
similar morals and proclivities of robbers and looters who
then comfortably defaulted on those loans and the term "loan
defaulter" was coined and caught public attention. The later
part of the 1990s and the first half of the decade of 2000
witnessed a spate of these defaults but that in no way
affected or deterred these banks because they had practically
nothing to lose - it was the depositor's money going out and
there were millions upon millions of such depositors. Inspite
of these defaults the banks continued posting profits and vied
with each other in paying their executives salaries which at
one stage reached the astronomical sum of taka 7 lakhs a month
for a Managing Director.
All of these was possible because banks were charging 14 to 16
percent interest rates on lending and hefty service charges
for lengthy procedures. There are of course, no businesses or
industries in Bangladesh or anywhere else in the world which
could generate enough returns to service these loans, debts
and interests year after year and so there were defaults which
banks then recycled through a process called "Re-scheduling".
All this while, the State's financial and regulatory
authorities turned a blind eye to these activities on the
contention and false justification that money was circulating
and if some of it did'nt come back it was acceptable because
there was enough to go round. The State was benefiting too
because banks deposited money to the Central Bank, paid
whatever taxes they felt like and lent money to the Government
as well when called upon to do so. The State spent this money
in a massive proliferation of bureaucracy, administration, the
military and the all important Annual Development Plan.
Everyone was happy except for the millions of poor relegated
to the hinterlands of rural-agricultural Bangladesh.
Today, Dr. Fakhruddin Ahmed, the Chief Adviser of the
Emergency Government pleads for reduction of bank interests
and simplification of procedures so "that labour-intensive
small and medium industries can accelerate economic growth
through poverty alleviation and reduction of unemployment".
What an irony because Dr. Fakhruddin Ahmed had presided as the
Governor of Bangladesh Bank, for a long time, over the course
of events we have narrated in this Editorial and over the
laissez-faire banking system of loot, robbery and
exploitation.
Analysis
Australia unburdens her
torments by an apology
The difference between Mr. Rudd and Mr. Howard
as Prime Ministers has thus been the divergence between a
statesman and a political leader.
Maswood Alam Khan
Beseeching
apology to the stolen generations of aborigines Australian
Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has entered history as a courageous
leader to relieve his nation from an emotional burden,
removing a blight from his nation's soul and helping a Day of
Atonement to dawn for original inhabitants of Australia.
A new episode has been opened in Australia's tortured
relations with its indigenous peoples pointing other world
leaders in the direction of a novelty to 'right a historic
wrong', a courageous approach to emancipate incarcerated
conscience, a redemption of the posterity from the sins of
their predecessors' misdeeds.
Politicians indulge in tall talks before election campaigns
only to court cheap popularity and shy away from a pledge that
may not appeal to each and every voter. Rudd was an exception
by pledging before his November election that 'He would
apologize to aborigines'---an idea not favorable to each
voter---if he were elected to the Prime Minister's office. He
has put his campaign pledge into practice as he became Prime
Minister knowing full well that many Australians would deem
such an admission of guilt disgraceful and a dishonor to their
forefathers.
Pakistan regime had an ulterior motive to transfuse our
tongues to speak in Urdu forgetting our mother tongue. By the
same token, aboriginal children in Australia were also
systematically snatched away from their mothers and sent to
live with white families, where they grew up often unaware of
their indigenous background in an attempt by the government to
dilute their indigenous culture under a ('blackmailing')
policy of assimilation that began in 1910 and lasted into the
early 1970s, a period Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has
termed 'a black era in his nation's history'.
Stolen children while living with white families were
perplexed to see a difference in their skin and body
structures with those of their foster guardians and could not
fathom out why they did often feel an inner emptiness and a
trauma until the truth of their removal from their families
emerged years later. A 1997 national inquiry into the stolen
generation found that many children suffered long-term
psychological effects from the loss of family and culture.
Aborigines in some parts of Australia were governed by laws
covering wildlife and plants and it was not before a
referendum in 1967 that gave the indigenous people the same
legal rights as everyone else. Since that recognition of
humans as humans it has taken more than 40 years for an
Australian Prime Minister to utter a simple, five-letter
word---sorry!
On 13 February, Aborigines smeared with white body paint and
playing didgeridoos opened Parliament for the first time where
was echoed the premier's apologetic voice saying "For the
pain, suffering and hurt of these 'Stolen Generations', their
descendants and for their families and communities, we say
sorry; and for the indignity and degradation thus inflicted on
a proud people and a proud culture, we say sorry." February 13
will remain a momentous day for acknowledgement of injustices
suffered by Aborigines for more than 200 years after European
colonization that began in late 1700s.
Former Australian Prime Minister John Howard missed the train
to journey into the pages of history by not lending his ears
to an official report of a commission on Australia's past
assimilation policies that urged the government about 11 years
back to issue a formal apology to the Aborigines. Howard
refused to show any contrition, insisting that current
generation of Australians should not apologize for injustices
of the past, a stance still harbored unfortunately by a number
of Australian politicians.
The difference between Mr. Rudd and Mr. Howard as Prime
Ministers has thus been the divergence between a statesman and
a political leader: one statesman who is ready to navigate his
nation taking full responsibility for the past, the present
and the future and one political leader who feels loath to
budge an inch beyond the narrow confines of time and space of
his limited tenure. Aborigines, who under Howard, felt
alienated and segregated by Australian society are now the
same people feeling embraced and valued by the same society
under Rudd---a difference in captaincy denoting a difference
between captivity and liberty.
Now is the time for Australians not only to embrace the
aborigines as their siblings who comprise two percent of the
country's population of 21 million but also to address acute
problems related to their ill-health, unemployment and
imprisonment.
The pink complexioned race (better known as white race) that
went to the shores of America brought in shiploads of slaves
from Africa. Have they ever apologized to the blacks? Instead
of apologizing they think by enchaining the black slaves they
rather developed the land and taught those 'human like beasts'
how to add and subtract enabling them to count their children
on arithmetic formula other than on their fingers and toes.
But they while playing God are oblivious of their roots, the
reason they were shipped to America: most of the Europeans who
arrived on the shores of North America at the early part of
settlement in the new-found-land were convicts who had to be
segregated in islands far from the civilized world.
Hollywood movies have left an impression with us that great
Indian wars came in the Old West of America during the late
1800s. But in fact that was a 'mopping up' effort. By that
time Red Indians were nearly finished, their subjugation
complete, their numbers decimated. The killing, enslavement,
and the land theft had begun immediately after the arrival of
Europeans on the shores of America. It reached its nadir in
1838 and 1839 when under President Andrew Jackson's Indian
removal policy; the Cherokee nation was forced to give up its
lands east of the Mississippi River and to migrate under
duress. The migrants faced hunger, disease, and exhaustion on
the forced march. Over 4,000 out of 15,000 of the Cherokees
died. Have the Americans ever begged apology to the American
aborigines who were known as Red Indians?
Many historians believe that Japan compelled up to 200,000
women---mostly Chinese and Koreans---to become sex slaves or
in other words 'comfort women' who were employed in army
garrisons to calm the nerves of Japanese troops, though
Japanese politicians deny that force was used to round up the
women.
There is no denying the fact that during our liberation war
Pakistani military personnel in connivance with Bangladeshi
brokers broke into our peoples' homes and took many of our
women by force. When will a Kevin Rudd emerge in Japan or
Pakistan to beg apology to China, Korea or Bangladesh? Have
those Bangladeshi collaborators who helped Pakistani
aggressors kidnapped our women ever begged apology to our
freedom fighters?
We humans err in our attempts to do any activity in our
mundane life and learning from our past mistakes next time we
rather err on the side of caution. When mistakes committed
turn out to be irreparable we beg apology, we say 'sorry' to
one who suffers from our fault. Saying sorry to the aggrieved
man does not help him get back his lost time or his lost son
or his lost money, but greatly helps him heal his wounded
soul---like a soothing balm on our lacerated skin.
Some Titas Gas employees who made fortunes by grabbing bribes
from dishonest subscribers at the expense of our national
exchequer had recently felt heavy with the burden of their
guilty conscience and in an attempt to unburden their torments
they queued up to redeem their sins by returning their wealth
so accumulated. They said 'sorry' and the government may also
forgive them, though the loss to our national resources due to
their bribery is beyond redemption.
Our former President Hussain Mohammad Ershad did not find his
popularity plummet to naught after his begging apology in a
public meeting in Purana Paltan saying: "I tried to serve the
nation to the best possible way, but during my tenure as
President of your country I committed some irreparable
mistakes and I fervently beg your pardon, my dear people".
Neither did former American President Bill Clinton find people
hate him when he begged apology by saying: "I did have a
relationship with Miss Lewinsky that was not appropriate. In
fact, it was wrong. I misled people, including even my wife. I
deeply regret that. I also let you down, and I let my family
down, and I let this country down. But I'm trying to make it
right. And I'm determined never to let anything like that
happen again. And I'm determined to redeem the trust. So I ask
you for your understanding, for your forgiveness on this
journey we're on. I hope this will be a time of reconciliation
and healing."
Spending a day in a jail on the part of an innocent person is
too long a period. But, hundreds of thousands of people all
over the world are spending years after years inside prisons
before or without trials and many innocent people are being
convicted due to mismatching of evidences. Thanks to cutting
edge of forensic technology proving an innocent guilty and a
guilty innocent, pundits in the world of jurisprudence are
repenting of what blunders they as the prosecution had
committed as many of their past judgments and arguments are
now emerging as irreparably wrongful.
Whenever we hear about an innocent person getting convicted or
harassed by any miscarriage of justice a towering figure like
apparitions of a tall man in his prison costume come into our
mental view reverberating the courtroom with his uproarious
voice: "Firiye Dao Amaar Shei Baroti Bosor" ("Give me back
twelve years vanished from my life") the most outstanding
actor of Bengali cinema Chhabi Biswas who in 1955 Bangla movie
"Sabar Uparey" shouted as he was proven innocent only after
spending 12 years of imprisonment on a wrongful judgment.
What could be the most appropriate answer to Chhabi Biswas's
demand? A simple five-letter word: Sorry?
(Maswood Alam Khan; General Manager, Bangladesh Krishi Bank.
The author may be contacted at: maswoodalamkhan@gmail.com)
Where Freedom is Relative
In France, girls who wanted to wear the hijab were seen as
rebels. But in Iran, the rebels were girls who dared to walk
down the street wearing tiny, transparent and slippery
headscarves.
Diana Ferrero
Tehran
- As she opened the door and welcomed me into her home on a
snowy morning in Tehran, "K." (her name is withheld to protect
her anonymity) - a 33-year-old mother - appeared to me as an
unexpected epiphany. A brunette, speaking fluent English in a
surprising American accent, she was wearing only skimpy shorts
and a clingy tank top, showing her bare skin and her boyish
haircut.
That day, K. talked to me on camera for three hours straight.
She spoke freely, without hesitation, giving me the most
outspoken, courageous and defiant interview I could ever hope
for as a journalist in Iran.
"No, I am not afraid" she said at the end - while I was
rolling my last tape. "These are my thoughts, and there is
nothing I said that I cannot take the consequences for.... I
am actually very happy I told you about myself."
I only had two weeks in Iran. I traveled there alone with my
Italian passport, hoping to shoot the second part of my first
documentary, They Call Me Muslim, a project I undertook as a
Fulbright fellow at Berkeley's Graduate School of Journalism.
But it's tough to make a movie in Iran - especially for a
woman. I had to wear a hijab, or Muslim headscarf, and remain
inconspicuous as I gathered footage. Shooting scenes on the
subway, on the street and at illegal late-night parties was
risky, because the Iranian police patrol the streets and watch
women closely to enforce the dress code.
The toughest part was in fact access: finding women who were
willing to tell me their stories.
Before my departure, I had lined up several interviews through
Iranian-American contacts in California. But when I got to
Iran, my main source was too scared to participate in the
project, so I started conducting private meetings with other
women - lawyers, filmmakers, journalists, bloggers,
photographers - and finally K., a woman who felt a documentary
could move beyond stereotypes and give the Western world an
accurate portrait of Iranian women.
But Iran was only half of the story.
They Call Me Muslim is a tale of two women struggling for
their individual freedom - one who wants to wear the hijab,
another who wants to take it off.
Samah, a French Muslim girl in Paris, feels naked without her
hijab, but was banned from wearing it in the classroom. K., on
the contrary, wouldn't wear the hijab if she weren't forced to
do so by the regime.
I shot the film from December 2004 to January 2005. The idea
for the project struck me about a year before when France
enacted a controversial law banning religious symbols,
including the hijab, in public schools. The law generated only
minor interest in the United States but sparked a fiery debate
in France. I started imagining the dilemma some Muslim girls
were going through as they faced a dramatic choice between
religious belief and education.
Having lived in Paris myself as a teenager, I was intrigued by
what was going on in France. The law on religious symbols
affected some 800 Muslim girls, and a few who refused to take
off the hijab were even expelled from school. It seemed
paradoxical that a country like France - one of the true
models of democracy in the West and a country so deeply rooted
in the revolutionary principles of Liberté, Egalité, and
Fraternité - was expelling girls from public schools for
exercising their Liberté on a personal matter. France seemed
to be denying its people one of the basic principles and
foundations of democracy.
Through this film, I wanted to explore freedom of choice in
both cultures, East and West, though neither is of course
monolithic. I wanted to give voice to a minority, fighting
against discriminatory laws. In France, girls who wanted to
wear the hijab were seen as rebels. But in Iran, the rebels
were girls who dared to walk down the street wearing tiny,
transparent and slippery headscarves. I wanted those women to
speak for themselves. And the final message - if there is one
- is the need for women to be free to choose, to find their
own voices, and to dialogue with each other for a better
understanding.
After seeing the film, both K. and Samah expressed respect for
each other's position. While Samah didn't see Iran as a model
for Islam because in her opinion women should not be forced to
wear the hijab, K. felt French secularism - as a foundation of
democracy - could be better appreciated if one lived in a
country like Iran. In fact, she even hinted about the desire
to move to France one day.
(Diana Ferrero, a native of Rome, is a reporter and producer
currently working in Washington, DC for Al Jazeera's new
English-language channel. Source: Common Ground News Service,
12 February 2008.Copyright permission is granted for
publication.).
Viewpoints
Malaysia Goes to
Poll
Malaysia
is a federal constitutional elective monarchy. The federal
head of state of Malaysia is the Yang di-Pertuan Agong,
commonly referred to as the King of Malaysia.
Dr. Abdul Ruff Colachal
A
Southeast Asian nation, Malaysia has been facing all kinds of
problems for quite some time now, threatening the stability of
Badawi government. Amid rising racial tensions in multi-ethnic
Malaysia and growing fears over inflation and crime, Malaysian
Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, in a surprise move, has
dissolved parliament more than a year ahead of schedule,
paving the way for a general election. Electoral officials
will meet soon to set a date for the polls, with a ballot in
early March widely expected. Badawi made his announcement at a
news conference in Malaysia's administrative center, Putrajaya.
The king has signed the declaration of dissolution of
parliament on 13 February. "We hope to get a big majority, at
least two-thirds, God willing." Prime Minister Abdullah said.
It is presumed the ruling coalition would win the election,
albeit with a reduced majority. A recent opinion poll also
suggested that Badawi's personal popularity had tumbled by
30%, but he remained the most popular face of Malaysia.
Moreover, party sources indicate that he would improve his
ratings during the campaign.
Badawi gave no reason for his decision, but analysts say he is
looking for a fresh mandate before the economy slows. Another
advantage for Badawi of holding the election next month is
that charismatic opposition figure Anwar Ibrahim cannot stand
for office. Anwar, who was the country's deputy prime minister
before being jailed in 1998 on corruption charges, is barred
him from politics until April 2008.
Late last year a string of rare street protests in the capital
exposed a growing unhappiness among some ethnic minorities.
The timing of the election does pose some risks, though, for
the ruling coalition. Nonetheless, the National Front
coalition government and the Malay party UMNO which dominates
it are virtually assured a healthy victory. They have won all
previous 11 general elections. Badawi is widely expected to
resume power as Malaysian premier after the poll.
Malaysia is a federal constitutional elective monarchy. The
federal head of state of Malaysia is the Yang di-Pertuan Agong,
commonly referred to as the King of Malaysia. The Yang
di-Pertuan Agong is elected to a five-year term among the nine
hereditary Sultans of the Malay states. The system of
government in Malaysia is closely modeled on that of
Westminster parliamentary system, a legacy of British colonial
rule. In practice however, more power is vested in the
executive branch of government than in the legislative, and
the judiciary has been weak. Since independence in 1957,
Malaysia has been governed by a multi-party coalition known as
the Barisan Nasional (formerly known as the Alliance).
Malaysia is a member of the Developing 8 (D-8 or Developing
Eight), consisting of Bangladesh, Egypt, Indonesia, Iran,
Malaysia, Nigeria, Pakistan, and Turkey. D8 are a group of
developing countries that have formed an economic development
alliance. Combined, the countries made up 13.5% of the global
population in 1997. The group was established after an
announcement in Istanbul, Turkey on June 15, 1997.
In the late 1990s, Malaysia was shaken by the Asian financial
crisis as well as political unrest caused by the sacking of
the deputy prime minister Dato' Seri Anwar Ibrahim. In 2003,
Dr Mahathir, Malaysia's longest serving prime minister,
retired in favor of his deputy, Abdullah Badawi. On November
2007 Malaysia was rocked by two anti-government rallies. The
2007 Bersih Rally numbering 40,000 strong was held in Kuala
Lumpur, Malaysia, on November 10 campaigning for electoral
reform. It was precipitated by allegations of corruption and
discrepancies in the Malaysian election system that heavily
favor the ruling political party, Barisan Nasional, which has
been in power since Malaysia achieved its independence in
1957. According to the reports, as the most popular figure in
the country, Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi is all set
to form the next government as well.
(Dr. Abdul Ruff Colachal is a Research scholar, School of
International Studies, Jawaharlal University, Delhi 110067)
Primates disappearing from tropical forests
These genuses are our closest
living family members. Non-human primates are indispensable to
keep up our eco-system's energy.
Mohammad
Shahidul Islam
Primates
are considered closest living relatives of mankind. These living
relatives -- apes, monkeys, lemurs and other primates -- are
becoming rarer in the tropical forest. "Reasons for the decline
are no mystery: they all relate directly or indirectly to human
actions" says a Worldwatch Institute report. A survey, worked
out by 60 experts from 21 countries, cautions that failure to
respond to the mounting threats has now been worsened by climate
change. On the whole, 114 of the world's 394 primate species are
categorized as threatened with disappearance on the
International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) red list.
Illegal wildlife trade and commercial plant-meat poaching have
been largely blamed for their disappearance.
Russell A. Mittermeier
The primate-mongers brutally kill primates for food and to vend
the meat. They encage them for live business; and farmers,
loggers and land promoters destroy their habitat. One species,
Miss Waldron's red colobus of Ivory Coast and Ghana, already is
feared extinct, while the golden-headed langur of Vietnam and
China's Hainan gibbon number only in the dozens. The Horton
Plains slender loris of Sri Lanka has been sighted just four
times since 1937.
"You could fit all the surviving members of these 25 species in
a single football stadium; that's how few of them remain on
Earth today," said Conservation International President Russell
A. Mittermeier, who also chairs the IUCN/Species Survival
Commission (SSC) Primate Specialist Group. "The situation is
worst in Asia, where tropical forest destruction and the hunting
and trading of monkeys put many species at terrible risk. Even
newly discovered species are severely threatened from loss of
habitat and could soon disappear." "By protecting the world's
remaining tropical forests," Mittermeier says, "we can save
primates and other endangered species while helping prevent
climate change."
Enlisted countries and regions
The 21st Congress of the International Primatological Society in
Entebbe, Uganda has published an alarming report that enlists
the world's 25 most endangered primates. Eight of the primates
on the latest list, including the Sumatran orangutan of
Indonesia and the Cross River gorilla of Cameroon and Nigeria,
are "four-time losers" that also appeared on the previous three
lists. Six other species are on the list for the first time,
including a recently discovered Indonesian tarsier that has yet
to be formally named. Madagascar and Vietnam each have four
primates on the new list, while Indonesia has three, followed by
Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Ivory Coast, Ghana and Colombia with two
each, and one each from China, Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea,
Kenya, Nigeria, Myanmar, Bangladesh, India, Peru, Venezuela and
Ecuador. Some primates on the list are found in more than one
country.
By region, the list includes 11 species from Asia, seven from
Africa, four from Madagascar, and three from South America,
showing that non-human primates are threatened wherever they
live. All 25 primates on the 2006-2008 list are found in the
world's biodiversity hotspots--34 high priority regions
identified by Conservation International that cover just 2.3
percent of the Earth's land surface but harbor well over 50
percent of all terrestrial plant and animal diversity. Eight of
the hotspots are considered the highest priorities for the
survival of the most endangered primates: Indo-Burma, Madagascar
and the Indian Ocean Islands, Sundaland, Eastern Afromontane,
Coastal Forests of Eastern Africa, Guinean Forests of West
Africa, the Atlantic Forest of Brazil, and Western Ghats-Sri
Lanka.
Basic issues
A journal states, the clearing of tropical forests for
agriculture, logging, and the collection of fuel wood continue
to be key factors in marauding the primates. Tropical
deforestation also emits 20 percent of total greenhouse gases
that cause climate change, which is more than the carbon
discharge of all the world's cars, trucks, trains and airplanes
combined. In addition, climate change is altering the habitats
of many species, leaving those with small ranges even more
vulnerable to extinction. Hunting for subsistence and commercial
purposes is another major threat to primates, especially in
Africa and Asia. Live capture for the pet trade also poses a
serious threat, particularly to Asian species.
The list focuses on the severity of the overall threat rather
than mere numbers. Some on the list, such as the Sumatran
orangutan, still number in the low thousands but are
disappearing at a faster rate than other primates. Others were
discovered only in recent years, and their low numbers and
limited range make them particularly vulnerable to habitat
destruction and other threats.
Conclusion
These genuses are our closest living family members. Non-human
primates are indispensable to keep up our eco-system's energy.
Through scattering seeds and other interactions with their
environments, primates facilitate to sustain a wide range of
plant and animal life that rebuild the Earth's forests.
Conservation of non-human primates is a critical issue facing
primatologists today. By protecting the world's remaining
tropical forests, we should save primates and other endangered
species for our easy breathe. We have to check strictly the
factors that lead to primate related business or its
annihilation.
(Mohammad Shahidul Islam is a Faculty Member of National
Hotel and Tourism Training Institute. Email: mohd-s-islam@myway.com)
Political democracy is not enough
What is required for democracy to succeed is a fair distribution
of wealth, a generous dissemination of cultural and social
services, particularly the right education, and the breaking
down of invidious class distinctions.
Anwar Abbas
IF
liberty and equality, as is thought by some, are chiefly to be
found in democracy, they will be the best attained when all
persons alike share in the government to the utmost. - Aristotle
ELECTIONS 2008 have become a symbol of hope in a country which
is passing through the worst period of its socio-political
history. That the people of Pakistan will, after long last, have
a say in their destiny and the governance of their country is
everyone's cherished dream.
But Pakistan does not have a glorious history of democratic
traditions. The country took nine long years to write its
constitution as the Constituent Assembly grappled with the form
and content of Pakistan's first Basic Law. Before elections
could be called under the new constitution the country fell
under the first of a series of martial law regimes, followed by
another and then yet another. For the past eight years or more,
we have gone through the fourth 'martial law' rule in the
country which has become progressively oppressive in the closing
months. The country has even had the dubious distinction of
having a civilian martial law administrator.
During the past 60 years, we have had only six general elections
of which one broke up the country while the assembly of another
was never called up for functioning. Three other assemblies
could not complete even half their tenure as elected prime
ministers were sent packing by extra-constitutional forces. If
the last assemblies, national as well as provincial, completed
their tenure it was because corrupt, incoherent and ineffective
governance had driven the people to despair and inertia. Or,
perhaps, in the words of former Sindh chief minister, Arbab
Ghulam Rahim, "The (Sindh) assembly completed its tenure because
of the general's uniform!"
One of the critical manifestations of the present crisis is the
reluctance on the part of the educated members of our civil
society to get involved in politics because of the corrupt
manipulation it requires. In Pakistan, there is a very fragile
infrastructure to insulate the institutions of democracy from
extra-constitutional influences, and many politicians are no
longer the representatives of the people but a front for some
shadowy, sleazy and unhealthy lobby or interests, domestic as
well as international.
Yet, I continue to believe in democracy because I consider it to
be a system of government and a way of life which offers greater
scope for the development of individuality and the varied
talents that nature has given to individuals and groups. Men and
communities thrive best in an atmosphere of freedom. Any system
that seeks to impose a rigid uniformity of ideas and practices,
of limitations and restrictions, sins both against the laws of
God and the spirit of man.
But modern democracy has proved to be a mixed blessing. It has
been cleverly exploited by vested interests: the demagogue
without principles, the capitalist without a social conscience,
the politician without a vision and a media without idealism. It
has not redressed that unequal distribution of wealth which is
not only economic, but also cultural and moral injustice. It has
been content to allow a majority of its citizens to lead less
than fully human lives, and in time of stress and emergency it
has proved to be less effective than the machinery of
totalitarian systems.
Some well-meaning persons, who suffer from intellectual laziness
and like to come to short-cut conclusions, are apt to attribute
all these defects to democracy per se and not to the fact that
there has not been enough of democracy which would be a more
correct diagnosis of the malaise.
Democracy must be so oriented in its ideology, its methods and
organisation that it should develop the basic qualities of
character which are necessary for the successful functioning of
democratic life. What are these qualities?
First and foremost, a passion for social justice and the
quickening of social conscience so that people learn to demand
for others the good things they demand for themselves.
Second is tolerance. A genuinely democratic society not only
allows but actively welcomes cultural, intellectual and belief
differences in society. The essence of democratic life is a free
flow of ideas which may lead to friction and deadly results in
the absence of tolerance.
The third requires the raising of the cultural and intellectual
standards of education. Many social evils exist not because of
conscious ill-will but on account of ignorance and apathy.
Finally, democracy must develop in the people a love for work,
the attitude of a true craftsman who takes pride and delight in
doing the best of which he is capable and who hates superficial
and half-hearted efforts. A system that fails to inspire the
people with a burning passion for social justice, with a passion
to break down the barriers of caste, creed, colour and faith, to
deepen their cultural understanding and sympathy and broaden
their intellectual outlook, to instill a love for honest work
and an attachment to the national culture is unworthy of its
high status and purpose.
Yet, democracy has failed to fulfill our hopes because we have
been content with a certain form of political democracy alone
and have not succeeded in establishing it in other areas of
life. For example, building up economic, social and cultural
democracy without which political democracy has become a pliant
tool in the hands of unscrupulous power-seekers.
What is required for democracy to succeed is a fair distribution
of wealth, a generous dissemination of cultural and social
services, particularly the right education, and the breaking
down of invidious class distinctions - differences that are
based on economic status, religious and sectarian affinity and
language hamper social mobility.
Will our newly elected representatives tread the all too
familiar route or introduce democracy in a fuller sense at least
now?
Source:www.dawn.com
International
India flags off
massive arms fair
AFP, New Delhi
India on Saturday kicked off South Asia's
largest defence fair, with hundreds of global weapons
firms offering their latest hardware to the country's
technology-hungry military.
About 450 weapons companies from 30 countries are present
at the four-day "DefExpo" in New Delhi, with several
big-ticket announcements expected.
"This is going to provide you a big platform to showcase
your capabilities and to interact, share and collaborate
with each other," Indian Defence Minister A.K. Antony said
as he opened the event.
Since 1999, India's military purchases have been worth 25
billion dollars. The country, which has the world's fourth
largest military, is expected to buy another 30 billion
dollars of arms in the next four years.
Up for grabs are deals for six submarines worth 2.3
billion dollars, an artillery contract tagged at three
billion dollars and a global tender for helicopters as
well as for scores of unmanned aerial vehicles.
India also plans to issue a tender for 126 war planes
worth at least 10 billion dollars as early as March.
Global aviation and arms firms from the United States,
Britain, France, Israel and Russia are participating in
the fair.
Maoists kill 13 police
Another AFP report from India adds: Maoist rebels have
shot dead 13 police and a civilian in eastern India,
police said Saturday. More than 100 rebels attacked two
police stations in eastern Orissa district, of which
Bhubaneswar is the capital, late Friday and stole weapons
before escaping, witnesses said.
"The attack was sudden and in the middle of the night.
They killed 13 policemen and a civilian," superintendent
of police Rajesh Kumar told AFP.
French FM urges Israel to lift Gaza blockade
AFP, France
French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner urged Israel to
lift its blockade of the Gaza Strip and to freeze its
policy of building settlements in the West Bank, at the
start of a visit to the region on Saturday.
"The economic and humanitarian situation in Gaza is
especially bad. The blockade directly affects the entire
economy and living conditions as well," he said in an
interview with Al-Quds newspaper.
"We call for the Gaza blockade to be lifted-there must be
free movement of both people and goods," Kouchner told the
main Arabic daily in the Palestinian territories.
Israel has kept Gaza under effective lockdown since last
June following the territory's takeover by the Islamist
movement Hamas, and on January 17 it tightened the
blockade before easing it again slightly.
The Israelis say the measure is in response to rockets
being fired at it by Palestinian militants inside the
impoverished coastal territory.
In the interview Kouchner also called on Israeli Prime
Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian president Mahmud
Abbas to respect their commitments agreed at the relaunch
of Middle East peace talks in the United States last
November.
He is due to meet both Abbas and Olmert during his visit.
Kouchner's arrival overnight on Friday came just hours
after eight Palestinians, including a leading Islamic
Jihad militant and members of his family, were killed in
what medics and witnesses in the Gaza Strip said was an
Israeli air strike.
A military spokesman in Tel Aviv denied Israeli
involvement in the blast.
Both Israel and the Palestinians relaunched the
US-sponsored peace process after a near seven-year hiatus
with the aim of reaching an agreement by the end of 2008.
President George W. Bush has said he would like to see an
accord before he leaves office in January next year.
"Israel must completely freeze settlements in the West
Bank and east Jerusalem, dismantle all those deemed
illegal, and reopen Palestinian institutions in east
Jerusalem, namely the chamber of commerce," Kouchner said
in the interview.
"It cannot be said enough that the settlements are an
obstacle to peace," he added.
On Thursday five firms won bids from the Israeli
authorities to expand the Har Homa settlement in east
Jerusalem, which the Palestinians consider to be the
capital of their future state.
US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has said the move
"doesn't help to build confidence," while Abbas adviser
Adnan Husseini said that if construction continues the
Palestinians may suspend peace talks.
Kouchner also called on the Palestinians to take steps to
improve conditions for a peace agreement.
The Palestinian Authority must "make very important
efforts to fight against terrorist movements and reform
the security services in order to make them more
efficient," he said.
"Encouraging progress has been achieved" but more must be
done, he added.
US forces turn the screw on Iraqi Al-Qaeda bastion
AFP, Mosul, Iraq
The city of
Mosul huddled sullenly under slate grey rainclouds with
few signs of Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's threatened
final offensive against Al-Qaeda fighters.
But three weeks after Iraq's premier announced his
"decisive battle," there was a definite air of menace as
US infantrymen piled out of their 30-tonne Bradley
armoured troop carriers on to a street of family homes.
Since the apparent success of the US and Iraqi militaries'
so-called "surge" campaign in Baghdad, the northern city
of Mosul has earned a reputation as the last true urban
bastion of the Al-Qaeda extremist group in Iraq.
Whereas elsewhere the militants have been forced into
underground cells and carry out hit and run attacks, in
Mosul both homegrown fighters and Arab jihadis still
enforce their law of terror over many districts.
The city west of the Tigris has the worst reputation, but
even in the east US troops find or trigger between three
or four roadside bombs daily. One last month completely
destroyed an armoured Humvee, killing five troops.
Angered by a pair of bloody bombings last month, Maliki
ordered commanders to crack down. Police reinforcements
have begun arriving, and frightened civilians are
stockpiling food and water ahead of the expected fight.
Any such battle will, however, be led by the US forces
which still work with Maliki's troops in Mosul, and
American commanders do not see the upcoming struggle in
terms of a single climactic engagement.
In east Mosul the fight is being waged by the 1/8 Infantry
Regiment, which arrived in the city only one month ago
after being diverted from Baghdad at the last moment in
order to strengthen the coalition's hand in the north.
Its commander, Lieutenant Colonel Chris Johnson, says the
plan is to use the next 12 months to build US patrol bases
in the city, establish Iraqi security forces on the ground
and build public trust in the Baghdad government.
"I think the legacy that we could leave would be Iraqi
police responsible for security within Mosul, that they
have a presence there and that the people feel secure by
their actions," he told AFP. "That the Iraqi army is
supporting the police, maybe on the outside of the town,
maybe in the rural areas, and that there would be secure
borders -- I think that would be the way that we would
like to leave Iraq," he said.
Myanmar warns of rebel attacks after their leader’s
assasination
AFP, Yangon
Military-ruled Myanmar's
state media Saturday warned of further attacks by ethnic
insurgents, following the assassination of a top rebel
leader in a Thai border town.
The New Light of Myanmar, which like other official media
has remained silent on the killing of Pado Manh Sha, said
rebels were plotting more bomb attacks in some "important
places."
"According to the information received recently, internal
and external destructive elements are scheming together to
detonate bombs again in some important places and busy
places in the nation," the daily said.
Pado Manh Sha, who ranked third in the Karen National
Union, the largest rebel group fighting Myanmar's armed
forces, was shot dead on Thursday by two gunmen at his
home in the Thai-Myanmar border town of Mae Sot.
State-run newspapers, radio and TV channels have ignored
the death of the rebel leader, who was also a critical
link between the rebels and Myanmar's pro-democracy
movement.
Myanmar has been hit by a series of small bomb blasts and
rebel shootings since December, prompting the ruling junta
to blame the Karen National Union for the attacks.
Myanmar, under military rule since 1962, has signed
ceasefires with 17 other ethnic armed groups, but the
Karen National Union is one of the few remaining ethnic
insurgent groups yet to sign a peace deal with the junta.
Kosovo inches closer to independence declaration
AFP, Pristina, Serbia
Kosovo inched closer to a widely expected declaration of
independence on Sunday, amid rising political tension and
Serbia's determination to resist what it considers an
illegal breakaway.
Kosovo Prime Minister Hashim Thaci refused Friday to say
exactly when independence would come, but both Belgrade
and the international community visibly stepped up their
preparations.
In Belgrade, Serbian President Boris Tadic vowed to do
everything to keep Kosovo within Serbia, as he was sworn
in for a second term in office Friday.
In Kosovo's capital Pristina, freshly printed posters
appeared on the streets appealing for calm during
celebrations-including street parties-that will herald
independence in the mostly ethnic Albanian province.
"Celebrate with dignity," read the posters, illustrated
simply with a bright red heart. "For a good start. For
Kosovo. Kosovo welcomes the future." The same message was
also carried on local television channels.
The Bota Sot newspaper said Kosovo legislators had been
ordered to stay close to Pristina on Sunday and to be
prepared for the Kosovo parliament to be convened at three
hours' notice.
Asked at a press conference Friday in Pristina on which
date the split would come, Thaci replied: "Let's stick to
what the press conference is about"-namely, a personal
pledge to uphold minority Serb rights.
"In independent Kosovo, not one citizen will feel
discriminated against or neglected," he said in Albanian.
"We guarantee equal rights and security. Kosovo is the
homeland of all citizens."
In the divided northern city of Kosovska Mitrovica,
however, local Serb leaders who reject independence said
they had accepted a proposal from Belgrade to form their
own parallel parliament in response to independence.
More than 220,000 Serbs have fled the province since the
end of the Kosovo war in 1999 when NATO bombing ended a
clampdown by Serb forces against separatist ethnic
Albanian rebels.
Kosovo's break is backed by the main EU powers and the
United States, while Serbia's position is strongly
supported by Russia.
The European Union is to start sending a 2,000-strong
force of police and legal experts imminently to smoothen
the transition to independence.
Independence for Kosovo would close the chapter on United
Nations administration in Kosovo that began in 1999 after
the NATO campaign against then Serbian leader Slobodan
Milosevic.
But the impending split has stoked nationalist fervour in
Serbia.
"I want clearly to confirm: I will never give up the fight
for our Kosovo and, with all my strength, I will fight for
Serbia to be in the European Union," said Tadic as he took
his presidential oath Friday.
Belgrade and Moscow have stated that any declaration of
independence would be "null and void" and a violation of
international law-a point they made at a closed-door
meeting of the UN Security Council on Thursday.
Kenya deal ‘very close’, says Annan
AFP, Kenya
Former UN chief Kofi Annan said a deal to end Kenya's
political turmoil was "very close" and voiced hope that
the "last difficult and frightening step" would be taken
next week.
Annan has been leading talks between negotiators for
President Mwai Kibaki and opposition leader Raila Odinga
to end weeks of violence, that has caused more than 1,000
deaths since a disputed December 27 election. A statement
from Ban Ki-moon, Annan's successor as UN chief, welcomed
the news. "The Secretary-General is encouraged by the
progress toward resolving the political crisis in Kenya
announced today in Nairobi," said the statement from his
office. In Nairobi, Annan told reporters: "We are very
close. We are moving steady."
"We are on the water's edge and the last difficult and
frightening step, as difficult as it is, will be taken."
US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is due in Nairobi
on Monday to meet with the leaders and support Annan's
mediation.
But President George W. Bush, who due to Washington on a
five-nation tour of Africa shortly, was not scheduled to
visit Kenya.
Annan said the rival parties had agreed to |