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Leading News
climate change
Hasina calls for common stand by poor nations
UNB, Dhaka
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Sunday opened the Asia
Conference of the Global Climate Change Alliance calling
upon the most vulnerable countries to forge greater unity
to establish their rights in the international forums.
Addressing the inaugural session at Hotel Sheraton in the
morning, she urged the developed economies to provide
adaptation fund and technical assistance for the
climate-victim countries soon to tackle the climate
calamities.
High-level representatives including Ministers and
diplomats from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia,
Laos, Maldives, Myanmar, Nepal and Yemen are attending the
two-day conference arranged with expectation to promote
dialogue and exchanges to ensure practical cooperation on
climate change.
"In many cases, small and Most Vulnerable Countries (MVCs)
have to accept proposals made by the developed, big and
advanced countries. Though many of their proposals do not
act as beneficial for us," she said.
Hasina said on many occasions, small and most vulnerable
countries do not remain in favorable position in
negotiation process.
"So if we, the most vulnerable countries do not become
more vocal about our rights and demands, the result of the
negotiations may not come in our favor at the end," the
Prime Minister expressed her concern.
Now time has come to become more united and vocal to make
the international community well convinced and realized
about the fair demands of the small and most vulnerable
countries regarding adaptation fund and technological
assistance to face the climate wraths, she added.
The Prime Minister also strongly hoped that world leaders
will be able to reach a much more concrete and concerted
stand in the upcoming Conference of the Parties (COP)-16
to be held in Cancun, Mexico from November 29-December 10
this year.
She said Bangladesh is being compelled to allocate huge
money in climate change sector though there are so many
most important sectors like agriculture, education and
health which also require massive finance.
"I have no hesitation to say that the developed countries
still have not come forward much regarding giving finance
to the countries which already have suffered massive
damage by the climate change impacts," she said.
Hasina hoped that most vulnerable countries to the climate
change will soon start to get fruits of USD 30 billion
Fund that was declared in Copenhagen Deal signed in the
COP15 Summit last year.
"Developed and advanced countries have to realize the
realities of the MVCs. Unfortunately, the finance and
technical assistances from the developed countries are yet
to be given to the victim countries," she said.
Hasina said the global climate is changing rapidly while
the process of action plan and negotiations among the
parties and countries on climate change is going ahead.
29th
death anniversary of Ziaur Rahman observed
UNB, Dhaka
Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) on Sunday observed the
29th death anniversary of the party's founder, late
President Ziaur Rahman, with due fervor and solemnly
across the country.
On May 30 in 1981, President Zia was assassinated by a
group of disgruntled army officers at the Circuit House in
Chittagong.
All units of BNP and its front and associate organizations
across the country observed Zia's death anniversary
through elaborate programmes including hoisting the party
flag at half mast and black flag atop their offices and
wearing black badges.
The day's programme also included milad mahfil, Quran
Khwani, placing wreath and offering fathea at the Zia's
mazar, voluntary blood donation, providing free medicine
and treatment to poor people, distributing cooked food
among destitute and photo-exhibition on Zia' s life and
works.
In capital Dhaka, BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia along with
leaders and workers of the party and its front and
associate organizations placed wreath and offered fathea
at the mazar of Ziaur Rahman in Sher-e-Bangla Nagar area
at 10:30 am and took part in a doa mahfil at the mazar
premises. Khaleda also inaugurated a voluntary blood
donation programme, organized by ZISAS, at the mazar
premises.
At the Zia's mazar, BNP secretary general Khandaker Delwar
Hossain lamented the way the ruling Awami League leaders
and ministers are undermining the contribution of Ziaur
Rahman.
Referring to the statements of the ministers and leaders
of the party in power over Zia's role in Liberation War,
he told reporters that Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman
had awarded Zia with 'Bir Uttam' for his heroic role in
the country's Liberation War in 1971. At the mazar
premises, Barrister Moudud Ahmed said BNP under the
leadership of Khaleda Zia will implement Zia's philosophy
and the guidelines he had given to the nation. He said
Zia's rule from 1975 to 1981 had generated a new sprit and
direction in the national life. The party leaders present
at the mazar premises included Khandaker Delwar Hossain,
Dr Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain, Barrister Moudud Ahmed,
Nazrul Islam Khan, Selima Rahman, Amanullah Aman and
Shirin Sultana.
HC
issues rule on govt over structures in the Buriganga
UNB, Dhaka
The High Court on Sunday issued a rule asking the
government to explain within three weeks why direction
should not be given to remove installations of a salt
industry by grabbing the river Buriganga in Lalbagh area
of the city despite court restrictions.
Upon a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) writ petition, a
division bench comprising Justice AHM Shamsuddin Chowdhury
and Justice M Delwar Hossain passed the orders.
The bench also directed the officer-in-charge of Lalbagh
police station to submit the name and address of the salt
factory owner within a week. Human Rights and Peace for
Bangladesh (HRPB) filed the PIL petition following a
recent newspaper report.
The petition stated that the salt industry has been set up
despite the HC ruling that had directed the government to
remove all structures in the rivers Buriganga, Balu, Turag
and Sitalakhya around the capital, excepting those
facilitating public utility services established by the
government.
Setting up of any kind of factory in the river Buriganga
is a flagrant violation of the HC ruling that is binding
upon all, the petition said.
Among others, the Industries Secretary, the Chairman and
top officials of Bangladesh Inland Water Transport
Authority (BIWTA), and deputy commissioner of Dhaka have
been made respondents in the case.
Advocate Manzill Murshid appeared for the PIL petitioner.
Jamaat accuses govt of
imposing political curfew
UNB, Dhaka
Jamaat Sunday accused the government of imposing political
curfew across the country and demanded immediate
withdrawal of ban on rallies including at Paltan Maidan.
"The government has imposed political curfew across the
country. We need to take whatever action against it for
our survival," Jamaat secretary general Ali Ahsan Mohammad
Mujaheed told a press conference in the party office. He
however did not spell out when and what action they will
take. "If the ban is not withdrawn on holding rally at
Paltan Maidan we have scheduled for tomorrow (Monday), we
will soon meet among ourselves and decide the course of
action. And the government will be responsible for the
consequences of that action," he said.
Mujaheed claimed that his party has secured permission for
holding rally at Paltan Maidan tomorrow from the National
Sports Council. But the police administration has imposed
the restriction. "Despite that we will go to Paltan Maidan
for holding the rally." He said Jubo League, youth front
of the ruling Awami League has announced its rally at
Paltan Maidan tomorrow only with nefarious intention to
foil the Jamaat programme.
Mujaheed said, although ruling Awami League preaches
democracy it does not believe in it. Obstruction in
holding public rally is nothing but autocracy. He said if
the government compels them to take to the street and
pushes their back to the wall, they will have no option
but to strike back. The Jamaat leader demanded immediate
withdrawal of Jubo League programme paving the way for
holding their rally at Paltan Maidan tomorrow.
CCC mayoral
candidates continue mass contacts
BSS, Chittagong
Nagorick Committee Ctg (NCC) backed mayoral candidate in
the upcoming Chittagong City Corporation (CCC) polls
outgoing mayor ABM Mohiuddin Chowdhury and his main rival,
Ctg Development Movement (CDM) backed M Manjur Alam Manju
have continued their mass contacts in different areas of
the city Sunday.
Former mayor Mohiuddin visited Mohora ward, wireless
colony of Pahartali, at Shaykat club of Katghar, Kathgar
Bazar, Dewan bazaar area on Sunday and exchanged views
with the voters.
He was accompanied by former MP Ishak Mia, NCC Secretary
Major (Retd) Emdad, Awami League leader Abdul Kader Sujan,
Chattara League President MR Azim and AL leaders and
workers of respective areas, where Mohiuddin Chowdhury
conducted campaign.
Mohiuddin, nominated by the NCC to vie for a fourth term
in a row, told locals at Mohora area that 15 years ago the
area was very undeveloped, but now it is a developed one
in the port city as he always worked for the people of the
area.
He also said Chittagong was once a neglected city but he
had upgraded the city by developing its roads and
educational institutions. He said that he was seeking
votes for the office of the mayor once again to continue
his city development plans.
Manju, nominated by the CDM for the mayoral post, held
several discussion meetings on the occasion of the 29th
death anniversary of the late President Ziaur Rahman in
the city. He also exchanged views with the leaders of
different units of BNP at Bongshal area of Double Mooring
thana at 2 pm today. He said he had a dream to turn
Chittagong into a modern city if people voted him to the
office of the mayor.
Speaking at a views exchange meeting at Shaykot Club of
Katghar area, former Mayor and City Awami League President
Mohiuddin Chowdhury said he has a long term development
plan to develop the prospective port city of Chittagong
through preserving its unique geographical and natural
characteristics including hills.
He said the main agenda of his forth term election is to
implement the 'city government' system for planned and
coordinated development of the city as well ensure civic
amenities of the residents.
Call to stop
corruption by electricity metre readers
BSS, Dhaka
The 15th meeting of Parliamentary Standing Committee on
the power, energy and mineral resources ministry Sunday
asked the authorities concerned to take necessary measures
to stop corruption by electricity metre readers.
The meeting was held at the Jatiya Sangsad (JS) Bhaban
with Committee Chairman Mohammad Subid Ali Bhuiyan
presiding, said a JS press release.\
Committee members State Minister for Power, Energy and
Mineral Resources Mohammad Enamul Haq, Chief Whip M Abdus
Shaheed, M Abdul Quader Khan and Omar Faruq Chowdhury
attended the meeting.
The meeting was told that the power crisis is a longtime
problem and it could be resolved only with government
efforts. Involvement of the private sector and regional
initiatives are required to solve the power problem.
The government is trying its best to mitigate the power
crisis, the meeting was told.
The meeting discussed the progress of setting up quick
rental power plants and stressed the need for using solar
and wind power to reduce pressure on gas.
Setting up of ship
breaking industry at Kuakata under consideration
BSS, Dhaka
The Parliamentary Standing Committee on the Shipping
Ministry Sunday discussed, in detail, about setting up a
ship building industry at Kuakata of Patuakhali district
or in Barguna.
The 14th meeting of the standing committee, held in the
Jatiya Sangsad (JS) Bhaban with its Chairman Noor-e-Alam
Chowdhury, asked the Chittagong port authorities to
examine whether it is possible to build a seaport,
dockyard and ship breaking industry at Kuakata of
Patuakhali or Barguna.
Committee members Shipping Minister M Shajahan Khan, M
Mazharul Haq Prodhan, Golam Kibria Tipu, Habibun Nahar,
Shamsul Haq Chowdhury, M Abu Zahir and M Nazrul Islam Babu
attended the meeting, said a JS press release.
The meeting recommended formation of a five-member
committee led by director general of shipping department
to formulate a complete organogram and recruitment rules
for the shipping department.
The meeting discussed about procurement of a 'mother
tanker' to ensure energy security. It reviewed the
progress of implementation of Annual Development
Programmes under the shipping ministry.
Back Page
President calls for hard work for
nation’s overall development
UNB, Kuliarchar
President Zillur Rahman on Sunday said the objective of
the liberation war to build a happy, prosperous and
prestigious Bangladesh has not materialized yet and urged
all to work hard to achieve the cherished goal.
"The aim of my life is to improve livelihood of the poor
and those ignored. Everyone will have to work hard to
achieve this goal," he said at a public meeting at
Kuliarchar Pilot High School ground.
Zillur, who made his first visit to his ancestral home
town after assuming the office of the President, said the
development of an individual means development of a
society and through this process national development is
possible.
He said the country is advancing towards pro-gress with
the blessing of almighty Allah. "We had bumper production
of Aman paddy in 22 districts by dint of hard labour of
the farmers… "Insha-Allah, Bangladesh will continue to
move forward in all socio-economic sectors."
Recalling his childhood and adolescent period in
Kuliarchar, the President said his soul and heart are
deeply linked with Kuliarchar from where he also started
his political career. Referring to the demands of the
local people, President Zillur agreed with the
justification of the demands and urged the ministers
concerned and local MPs to fulfill those demands quickly
on priority basis. Awami League general secretary and LGRD
Minister Syed Ashraful Islam, State Minister for
Liberation War Affairs Capt. (retd) AB Tajul Islam, Nazmul
Hasan MP, Shah Alam MP and Awami League leader Musa Miah
also addressed the meeting.
Earlier, the President unv-eiled the founding stone of
Victory Memorial at Bir Pratik Shaheed Selim Sarak
commemorating the freedom fighters who sacrificed their
lives during the liberation war in 1971.
Govt working for
strengthening parliamentary democracy: PM
BSS, Dhaka
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina Sunday said that her
government has been working relentlessly for further
strengthening parliamentary democracy in the country.
The Prime Minister said this when British High
Commissioner to Bangladesh Stephen Evans paid a courtesy
call on her at her official residence Ganabhaban here.
Sheikh Hasina said that her government has been providing
all out cooperation to the opposition political parties in
the Jatiya Sangsad aiming at ensuring an effective and
vibrant parliament. "We want to ensure welfare of the
people by making parliament effective with the active
participation of the opposition political parties," she
added.
In this context, she said the opposition lawmakers are
getting enough time in the house to speak for the people
of their respective constituencies although her microphone
was turned off for at least 70 times when she was in the
opposition bench. "Even, I was not allowed to speak in the
Jatiya Sangsad on the heinous grenade attack on me on
August 21, 2004" she said. During the meeting they also
discussed different issues of bilateral interest including
expansion of trade and business between the two countries.
Counter terrorism and climate change issues were also came
up in the discussion.
On the terrorism issue, Sheikh Hasina said that her
government and she herself never allowed any sort of
terrorism and militancy. "We will not allow terrorists and
militants to use the land of the country," she added.
During the meeting, the Prime Minister sought cooperation
from the UK to increase social safety net, food security
and enhancement of food storage capacity of the country.
Regarding climate change issue, she expressed the hope
that the new British government will continue playing a
leading role on global climate change debate and
negotiations and also considering Bangladesh as an
important partner.
Planned
nuclear power plant of Bangladesh
No neighboruing country raises any objection
UNB, Dhaka
Bangladesh has not received any objection from any country
to its plan for setting up Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant as
the country secured certificates concerning safety and
other aspects from International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
"We've not received any objection from any country… we
have the IAEA approval on safety and other aspects,"
Foreign Secretary Mijarul Quayes told a regular press
briefing Sunday. He made the remarks to a question if
India and USA have any reservation about Bangladesh's
nuclear power plant project.
Bangladesh and Russia signed a five-year framework
agreement on cooperation on the peaceful use of nuclear
energy during Foreign Minister Dipu Moni's visit to Moscow
on May 21. The agreement paved the way for establishing a
nuclear power plant at Rooppur in Pabna. The Foreign
Secretary said Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will visit
Moscow and the date of her visit will be announced soon.
A delegation of the Russian state energy corporation -
Rosatom - will visit Dhaka to follow-up the agreement.
Rosatom director general Sergey Kiriyenko may lead the
delegation.
Referring to the meeting between Dipu Moni and Russian
Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, Quayes said Russia has
agreed to provide special technology to enhance the
capacity of exploration from 79 old gas wells and a MoU to
this effect would be signed with BAPEX. Both the Foreign
Ministers also discussed direct air and shipping links,
banking cooperation, dredging of rivers and impact of the
climate change, he said, adding they also discussed
long-term agreement on food grains and agricultural
inputs.
The Foreign Secretary said Bangladesh and Russia will sign
two agreements on trade and investment protection during
the Prime Minister's upcoming visit to Moscow.
HC sets aside BEPZA graft
case against Hasina
UNB, Dhaka
The High Court on Sunday set aside the proceedings of
graft case filed against Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina
during the past BNP-Jamaat government over appointment of
lobbyists for Bangladesh Export Proce-ssing Zones
Authority (BEPZA).
Delivering a judgment upon a long-pending qua-shing
petition filed by Hasina in December 2002, an HC division
bench comprising Justice M Shamsul Huda and Justice Abu
Bakar Siddiquee made its rule issued earlier absolute.
With the judgment, Prime Minister Hasina was cleared of
all the thirteen cases including graft and extortion filed
by the past BNP-Jamaat government and the military-backed
caretaker rulers, said Barrister Sheikh Fazle Noor Taposh,
MP, the counsel for Hasina. Barrister Taposh said Hasina
was implicated in nine cases by the past BNP-Jammat
government that include purchase of Mig-29 and Frigate,
Meghnaghat Power Plant and Bangabandhu Novo Theatre, while
the military-backed caretaker rulers instigated six cases
including Niko, Barge-mounted Power Plant, and extortion.
The HC in its judgment termed mala fide and politically
motivated the action of the then alliance government in
initiating the case against the then former Prime
Minister.
The HC dubbed the litigation process as an attempt to
malign the popularity of Sheikh Hasina, now ruling the
country for a second time since 1996. In its judgment the
HC also observed that appointing lobbyist for BEPZA does
not constitute any offence as it was done through due
process of the Rules of Business.
On December 11 in 2001, during the BNP-Jamat government,
the now defunct Bureau of Anti-Corruption filed the case
accusing Hasina and three others of misusing of over Tk
2.10 crore from the national exchequer by appointing a
lobbyist in the United States for BEPZA during her
previous tenure.
Later, the case was transferred to the reconstituted
Anti-Corruption Com-mission (ACC) for dealing with the
case. On July 2 in 2002, Hasina was charge sheeted in the
case for trial. Advocate Abdul Matin Khasru, MP, also
appeared for the Prime Minister.
Sahara orders
vigilances against barbed wire fencing
UNB, Dhaka
Home Minister Advocate Sahara Khatun on Sunday asked BDR
and Coast Guards to remain on alert so no barbed wire
fencing is erected inside the Bangladesh territory.
The instruction was given at the 47th meeting of National
Smuggling Control Committee held at the Home Ministry with
Sahara in the chair.
Briefing to reporters on the meeting Sahara said the
Indian Border Security Force (BSF) who has been
constructing barbed wire fence reportedly encroached
inside Bangladesh in some places.
The BDR and coast guards were instructed to remain on
alert in this regard, she said.
Sahara said the meeting discussed elaborately how to curb
smuggling along the border as many goods, including
contraband phensidyle, drugs and firearms have been
smuggled into the country. The Home Minister said the
smuggling-pron areas along the borders have already been
identified. The meeting asked the concerned authorities to
take necessary measures to stop it. Sahara said the
meeting was informed that the smuggling goods are being
frequently transported by trains. It decided to ask the
Bangladesh Railway not to stop trains without designated
stations. The BDR, Coast guards and other law enforcing
agencies carried out around 3,40,000 anti-smuggling drives
across the country between August 2009 to April 2010.
During the period, the law enforcers seized smuggled goods
worth about Tk 722 crore and 229 various types of fire
arms. A total of 229 people were arrested in these
connections.
The Home Minister said cases have been filed after seizing
the smuggled goods across the country. The meeting decided
to take initiatives for quick disposal of those cases.
ICC,B council
report backs coal-based power generation
UNB, Dhaka
Despite global recession, Bangladesh economy in 2009
performed remarkably well and maintained a steady growth
with 5.9 percent growth which is expected to be 6 percent
in 2010, International Chamber of Commerce, Bangladesh (ICC,B)
President Mahbubur Rahman said Sunday.
"Despite perceived uncertainties during the year (2009),
the country achie-ved 5.9% growth in FY09 and is expecting
6% growth in the FY10," he said while presenting the
Executive Board Report at the 15th Council of ICC,B held
in its office.
Mahbubur Rahman said there is a strong justification to
use local coal for power generation considering constraint
of gas availability. "The estimated reserves of coal are
close to 3,300 million tonnes, while the proven reserve is
about 884 million tonnes." With adequate power and energy
supply and appropriate infrastructure, the country could
have achieved a higher GDP growth, he said.
Considering energy as the most crucial area for the
economic development, the ICC,B president said power and
energy crisis should be addressed on a top priority basis.
He said the business community strongly feels that public
spending and investment in power generation and
hydrocarbon exploration should now be taken up and
meaningful participation of the private sector encouraged
within a framework that is realistic.
Despite all hurdles, the ICC,B Council said the country is
now poised for a take-off, with manufacturing leading the
way, provided the energy shortages can be addressed.
Bangladesh will be one of the 11 countries that have a
high potential of becoming a leading economy in the 21st
century along with Brazil, Russia, India and China, it
said referring to the prediction made in the Goldman Sachs
Report released on December 4, 2009.
ICC,B Vice Presidents Latifur Rahman, Samson H. Chowdhury,
ICC,B board members ASM Quasem, AKM Rafiqul Islam, Aftab
ul Islam, Mahbub Jamil, Mamun Rashid, Masih Ul Karim, Md.
Fazlul Hoque, R. Maksud Khan, Barrister Rafique-ul-Huq and
Waliur Rahman Bhuiyan, ICC,B members Dr M. Zahir, DCCI
president Abul Kashem Khan, ex-president of DCCI Zafar
Osman, chairman of Transmarine Logistics Ltd M. Ghaziul
Haque, National Bank Managing Director Abdur Rahman Sarkar
and BASF( Bangladesh) Ltd. Managing Director Saria Sadique
attended the Council.
Managing Directors, CEOs and senior officials of banks,
insurance companies, national and multinational companies
were also present.
Editorial
Stern action needed
Home
Minister Advocate Sahara Khatun on Saturday warned that stern
actions would be taken against those students who would be
involved in terrorist and immoral activities in the name of
politics. No one will be spared from the action if he or she
gets involved in extortion, illegal capturing of seat or hall
and admission trade in the educational institutions, she said
while addressing the fresher reception of Eden College as the
chief guest.
Sahara Khatun said that the government will not allow any sort
of terrorist activities, extortion, illegal capturing of seat
or hall in the educational institutions in the name of
students' politics. Warning the student leaders of different
organisations, she said that Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has
clearly instructed her to take stern actions against the
students who would be involved in such heinous activities. We
feel sorry when we see the news or photographs of such
terrorist or immoral activities or admission trading of the
students in the name of politics, she said .
The Home Minister has spoken afresh of some old problems which
have vitiated the country's educational atmosphere. Stern
warnings against such nefarious activities have been sounded
from the high ups in the administration on many occasions, but
with no effect. Recently Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina
expressed serious disdain for the 'admission trade' prevailing
in different educational institutions of the country. The
Prime Minister gave vent to her anger when the standing
committee members of the Association of Universities of
Bangladesh called on her. Talking about the widespread
allegations of the admission trade in colleges and
universities, whereby students are admitted in exchange for
money rather than on merit, the Prime Minister said, "Nothing
can be shameful more than this."
Admission trade is rampant in the educational institutions
across the country nowadays. And unfortunately the
pro-government Bangladesh Chhatra League ( BCL) has been
playing the pre-dominant role in this shameful business to
earn easy money. The BCL has allegedly been engaged in
admission trade in educational institutions all over the
country since the beginning of the admission process. There is
widespread allegation that a section of BCL activists are
realizing money from the admission seekers in return for their
entry into colleges under 'BCL quota'. The government appears
to be unable to control BCL which continued to be engaged in
admission trade in different educational institutions
triggering clashes and unrests. Such incidents were reported
from a number of educational institutions in the country.
It is alleged that a section of BCL activists have been
forcing the authorities of some colleges to stop admission in
a bid to get some students admitted in the name of their
'special quota.' In this process, the BCL is reported to have
disrupted admission process at Satkhira College, Rajshahi New
Government Degree College, capitals Eden Girls' College,
Government Titumir College, Government Bangla College,
Badrunnesa College, Kabi Nazrul Government College and
Government Shaheed Suhrawardy College and MM College in
Jessore and BL College in Khulna.
The admission trade and the clashes and vandalism over it took
place in the wake of a number of incidents of violence and
intra-party and inter-party clashes involving BCL on the
campuses. In total eight lives have been lost in violent
clashes between rival student organisations, vandalism to
force illegal admission and factional fighting during the rule
of the present government. These incidents reveal the
helplessness of the government before some unruly BCL
activists.
The warnings against the rampant admission trade, extortion
and violence are encouraging. But mere warnings are not enough
to put an end to these. In fact, there is no credit in only
decrying admission trade, violence and clashes on the campus.
The government must be firm and act strongly to stop the
admission trade and all other irregularities in education
sector and elsewhere.
Spread of drugs
The
Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) in a drive recovered 60 Yaba
tablets and arrested two persons from a house at village
Mustofapur under Sadar upazila of Moulvibazar on Friday. The
RAB members recovered the drug and arrested Md. Shawkat Ali of
village Borohal and Ahmed Ali of Moulvibazar town. During
interrogation the arrested persons confessed to RAB that
collecting Yaba from Cox's Bazar they have long been selling
those in different areas of the district.
This small news item is of big importance because of the fact
that it indicates the large scale spread of drugs upto the
remote villages of the country while it was initially believed
that costly drugs like Yaba are generally consumed by affluent
people of the city. The report also shows that the network of
drug dealers and peddlers is widespread.
It is an open secret that brisk drug trade is going on across
the country in defiance of the law. Dangerous drugs including
yaba, heroin, pathedin , ganja, wine etc are on sale at
different points of the capital and elsewhere sometimes
allegedly under the nose of police. Bangladesh is increasingly
being used as a transit point by drug dealers and the drug
mafia, engaged in trafficking heroin from Pakistan and
Afghanistan, phensidyl from India and yaba from Myanmar and
Thailand to different destinations including India, Middle
East and the West. About 100,000 people, including 30,000
women and children, are reportedly involved in illegal trade
and trafficking of drugs in the country. Besides, the sale and
use of drugs in Bangladesh as well are growing fast.
The unchecked trafficking, sale and use of drugs are
destroying the morality and health of the young people and
destabilising the social order besides causing economic
losses. In view of this, stern measures should be taken to
stop the trafficking, sale and use of drugs in the country.
And above all, a strong public movement against drug abuse
should be launched nationwide to get rid of this social
scourge.
Analysis
The challenge of an uncertain future
The federal and provincial governments are
performing poorly so far as governance and delivery of
services to the people are concerned.
Dr Hasan-Askari Rizvi
The
most certain feature of Pakistan's democracy is an uncertainty
of its future. The optimistic view describes the current
difficulties as the issues of transition from a
military-dominated political order to a participatory civilian
political system, which will take time to settle down. The
current problems are the transitional problems on way to a
fuller and more participatory governance system. It is evident
from the unanimity among the provinces on the National Finance
Commission (NFC) Award (2009), the launching of the Reforms
Package for Balochistan (2009), the unanimous passing of the
18th Amendment (2010) and the growing independence of the
judiciary that the political conflicts are being resolved
through dialogue and political accommodation.
The realistic approach, focusing on the overall performance of
the state institutions and implementation of various policy
decisions, views the future of the current democratic
political arrangements as uncertain. The issues that cause
uncertainty about political stability and internal harmony
include poor governance, the troubled economy, persistence of
religious extremism and militancy, the overactive superior
judiciary that endeavours to expand its domain and the
off-again, on-again confrontation between the federal
government and an array of political adversaries.
The federal and provincial governments are performing poorly
so far as governance and delivery of services to the people
are concerned. This has caused alienation among the people
from the civilian governments who periodically engage in
street protest and violence, disrupting life in major cities
and towns.
The most serious challenge is in the economic domain. Pakistan
is not expected to create an economy, based primarily on
domestic sources rather than relying heavily on external
economic assistance and remittances from Pakistanis settled
abroad. These constraints make it extremely difficult for the
government to provide economic relief to the ordinary
citizens. Further, the government policies have utterly failed
to reduce economic disparities between the richest and the
poorest, making the latter more vulnerable to radical Islamist
appeals. Further, external economic dependence reduces the
security and foreign policy options.
Pakistan's civilian and military leadership has shown
determination to fight terrorism in Swat and the tribal areas.
These efforts have been reasonably successful, but this
challenge is expected to haunt Pakistan for at least four-five
years. This has led the government to divert some resources
from socio-economic development to counter insurgency.
Further, military action has displaced over one million
people. The government faces an uphill economic challenge for
assistance and relief to these people and their rehabilitation
back home after the extremists are expelled from their home
areas.
These two challenges - the economy and extremism and terrorism
- could be addressed more effectively if the opposition
political parties extend their full support. They appear to be
more active in pointing out deficiencies in the government's
economic policies and its inability to provide economic relief
to the common people. However, no opposition party, including
the PML-N - the major opposition party - has provided an
alternative economic plan of action for coping with the
current economic predicament.
The same can be said about the disposition of the PML-N on
terrorism. Nawaz Sharif maintains ambiguity on his party's
policies towards the al Qaeda and the Taliban. Several senior
members express sympathy for Islamic militancy and often
criticise the government's counter-terrorism and
counter-insurgency policies. Though the party's top leadership
avoids direct criticism of the Pakistan military, they often
accuse the government of bowing to American pressures and
serving American agenda in the region. Again, no opposition
party provides an alternate plan to deal with religious
extremism and militancy. The Punjab government refuses to
acknowledge the existence of Islamic militant elements in
Punjab. The two terrorist incidents in Lahore on May 28
clearly show that the Punjab government needs to review its
disposition towards militancy.
These developments have put the PPP-led federal government on
the defensive, especially because their governance and
economic management is far from satisfactory. The major thrust
of criticism has to be faced by the PPP because its coalition
partners, especially the MQM, do not own any unpopular policy.
In fact, the MQM does not hesitate to criticise the federal
government if it perceives a policy going against its
political interests and assets in urban Sindh.
Another source of pressure for the federal government is the
superior judiciary that invokes judicial activism to
repeatedly censuring the executive. This has created a
perception in the political circles that the Supreme Court
(SC) might pass an adverse order against the federal
government of President Asif Ali Zardari. In addition to the
court case pertaining to implementation of the NRO judgement,
the adversaries of the PPP have filed several cases in the SC:
the procedure for appointment of the judges of the superior
courts; constitutional amendment and the basic structure of
the constitution; President Zardari's decision to continue as
the co-chairman of the PPP; and presidential pardon for Rehman
Malik.
During 1988-1999, the opposition used to woo the army top
brass to apply pressure on the civilian government. Now, in
2009-2010, as the army avoids direct role in politics because
it is engaged in counter-terrorism, the PPP's adversaries are
approaching the SC with the hope that it would knock out the
PPP government or President Zardari.
It is interesting to note that after the appearance of the
federal law minister before the SC on May 25, Nawaz Sharif
made an extremely hard-hitting statement on the performance of
the government and advised them to implement the orders of the
SC. This press conference was meant to increase pressure on
the federal government as well as to communicate a subtle
message to the SC that the major opposition party would
support the apex court if it passed an adverse order against
the federal government.
Democracy cannot endure if the major political players do not
work in harmony within a democratic and constitutional
framework. Pakistan faces so many complex challenges that a
single political party cannot cope with them. If the PML-N
comes to power today, its government will face all the
problems that have adversely affected the present federal
government. The opposition should not seek extra-parliamentary
options to knock out the government. This will shift the
initiative to non-elected state institutions.
Similarly, an independent judiciary can exist only in a
democratic order. The judiciary alone cannot secure democracy
and the rule of law by curtailing the role of the legislature
and the executive.
Dr Hasan-Askari Rizvi is a political and defence analyst
The dragon
eyes the tiger
Huawei India's Chinese expatriates are now celebrating
traditional Indian festivals like Diwali (festival of
lights) and Holi (festival of colours). They're also
taking to butter naan and chicken tikka.
Saritha Rai
The
Chinese are out to conquer the world, and nowhere is that
more obvious than in the India operations of the giant
Chinese telecom equipment manufacturer Huawei
Technologies.
Against the backdrop of deeply rooted suspicion about a
Chinese company making inroads in a politically sensitive
area like telecom, Chinese employees of Huawei have hit
upon a new strategy to win over their subcontinental
customers: doing in India as the Indians do.
Chinese employees - especially on the marketing team in
New Delhi and in the Research and Development unit in
Bangalore - are adopting Indian names, going local in the
fashion sense, celebrating Indian festivals and even
learning a smattering of phrases from Indian languages.
Such is life as two of the world's fastest growing, and
most complicated, economies come together for mutual
benefit, profit and a bit of old-fashioned culture clash.
Consider Huawei's Chinese employees Sang Jing and Yao
Weimin. Those traditionally Chinese names are hard on the
Indian tongue, so they are being replaced by popular
modern Indian names such as Rohan, Rajiv and Nikhil. "It
helps the Chinese blend in India. It helps them click,"
said Gilbert Millicent Nathan, a Bangalore-based
spokesperson for Huawei, which has 5,000 employees in
India.
"Main Hindi bol sakta hoon [I can speak Hindi]," said Li
Jian, an expatriate Chinese in Huawei's marketing
operations in New Delhi who goes by the name of Amit. With
language skills and a local name, Li Jian said he finds it
effortless to forge bonds with Indians.
"Bahut aasani se," he said, Hindi for "very easily."
Female Chinese employees at Huawei's Indian headquarters
in Gurgaon outside Delhi are adopting the sari and the
salwar kameez, quintessential Indian garments. They are
also assuming names such as Deepika and Priyanka, after
the country's hottest Bollywood stars.
In yet another move, Huawei said it would establish a
board of directors for its Indian unit that would consist
entirely of Indians. India, one of the fastest growing
telecom markets in the world, is an important market for
Chinese equipment makers. This growing commercial
relationship, however, is an uneasy one. India and China
have had a complex political relationship for many
decades, and fought a bitter war in 1962. But economic
ties between the two countries have increased dramatically
since both governments liberalised their large, and now
rapidly growing, economies. Bilateral trade is approaching
$60 billion a year, a 60-fold increase since 2001. But an
almost $16 billion annual trade deficit with China has set
off alarm bells in this country.
Recently, New Delhi's government showed that it was torn
between treating China as a fellow economic power and a
serious political rival.
India's environment minister Jairam Ramesh said the
commerce ministry was "paranoid" in vetoing imports of
Chinese telecom gear (the fear is that Beijing could use
the gear to spy on its rival). Despite the tensions,
business marches on. Huawei has localised some operations
by taking on Indian vendors as partners, while outsourcing
product development and other projects to Indian
outsourcing firms like TCS, Wipro and MindTree. It has
also invested in large R&D operations in India's
technology hub, Bangalore.
And hence, the closer cultural ties.
Huawei India's Chinese expatriates are now celebrating
traditional Indian festivals like Diwali (festival of
lights) and Holi (festival of colours). They're also
taking to butter naan and chicken tikka.
Welcome to Chindia. And get used to it.
www.globalpost.com
Absent
friends
Again, France is not a nation of rabid Islamophobes, but
you do not have to scratch too deep to find antipathy
towards Islam and Muslims.
Chris Cork
The
Facebook furore is just a corner of a bigger and far more
worrying picture. There have been countless thousands of
column-inches of debate here - rather less elsewhere -
about the merits and demerits of the ban on Facebook and
I, at first, hesitated about adding to them. But there has
been relatively little debate about where this sits in the
bigger picture and the bigger picture that emerges as one
trawls the 'net is of a rising antipathy towards Muslims
and the Muslim world in general. I use the word
'antipathy' because it more accurately captures the
zeitgeist than does the more-often used 'Islamophobia'
which is usually an overstatement and has become something
of a journalistic convention.
This is not to say that there are no Islamophobes because
there most certainly are and they are deeply unpleasant -
but they are not representative of the whole spectrum of
sentiment. There are far greater numbers in the west who
have a more generalised and less focused sense of unease
about the Muslim world. They do not actively hate Muslims;
they would not turn out at a demonstration or scribble
blasphemous or pornographic images for an online
'competition'. They may live and work alongside Muslims,
even have Muslim acquaintances - but perhaps not close
friends. They may be uneasy with the sense of separateness
that most Muslim communities have in the west, of the way
that Muslims socialise differently and of the sense that
Muslims wear their faith like a second skin.
For most of those who feel this grumbling but unfocused
sense of antipathy there was going to be little more that
they did about it - but that is changing. Wherever one
looks there are signs that some of the once antipathetic
are becoming more actively 'anti' and less 'pathetic'.
They are a minority still but they are vocal, organised,
and have a rising profile. They show up in things like
advertisements on the sides of some buses in America which
appear to be inciting Muslims to leave their faith. They
have an obvious face and perhaps a catalytic effect in the
political far-right of Europe and America.
The Swiss recently voted in a national referendum to ban
the building of minarets on mosques. It is unreasonable to
assume that a majority of Swiss are Islamophobes - but it
is not unreasonable to assume that there is a widespread
antipathy towards Islam and Muslims in Switzerland.
Perhaps a few thousand women, and their families, will be
affected by the ban on full-face veils worn by French
Muslim women.
Again, France is not a nation of rabid Islamophobes, but
you do not have to scratch too deep to find antipathy
towards Islam and Muslims. You may feel, Dear Reader, that
I am being far too nuanced about all this, of splitting
hairs, but for me as a westerner living here in a Muslim
country I am acutely aware of the many antipathies that
surround me. A majority of Pakistanis probably feel a
generalised sense of antipathy towards the Ahmedis - but
few would kill over eighty of them as they said their
prayers.
There is a lower but no less pervasive sense of antipathy
towards Christians and Hindus and occasional casual
butchery of both. Most Shias sense the antipathy of most
Sunnis and vice-versa - and for most it is contained at
nothing more than that. But the great danger of antipathy
is that it is the seed-bed of latency, the place where
antipathy is nurtured into hatred and violent action.
Banning Facebook has massaged the antipathy on both sides
and latent hatreds have moved closer to the surface.
The writer is a British social worker settled in
Pakistan. Email: manticore73@gmail .com
Viewpoints
NPT deal under threat
Israel -
which like nuclear-armed India and Pakistan, never signed the
NPT - is presumed to have a sizable nuclear arsenal but
neither confirms nor denies that. It is not participating in
the meeting.
Ian Black
Frantic
efforts to shore up the world's most important nuclear arms
treaty were at crisis point at the UN Friday night amid fears
that a furious row over the Middle East would mean failure.
Prospects for a last-minute compromise deal depended on the
position of Iran.
Diplomats and observers in New York said the review of the
nuclear non-proliferation treaty (NPT) could still collapse
after the US dramatically changed tack and agreed with Egypt
to publicly press Israel to scrap its nuclear weapons.
But Iran, a signatory to the consensus-based treaty - and,
like all others, with a veto - had threatened to block any
declaration it viewed as too weak. It insisted the world's
five 'official' nuclear powers were not disarming quickly
enough. Iranian diplomats were reportedly awaiting
instructions from Tehran.
The 189 signatories of the 1970 treaty have spent a tense
month trying to bolster it after crises over Iran, North
Korea, and the slow pace of disarmament - an obligation in
international law.
The NPT is often described as a 'bargain' under which the
nuclear weapons states move to disarm while others forgo
seeking the bomb in return for help to develop civilian
nuclear programmes. Supporters say it was becoming dangerously
eroded by cumulative setbacks.
The draft of a final declaration for the conference called for
the UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon to organise a meeting of
all Middle Eastern states in 2012 on how to make the region
free of nuclear and other weapons of mass destruction (WMD).
That would, in theory, force Israel to abandon nuclear weapons
it has never admitted possessing.
Israel - which like nuclear-armed India and Pakistan, never
signed the NPT - is presumed to have a sizable nuclear arsenal
but neither confirms nor denies that. It is not participating
in the meeting. Israel's prime minister, Binyamin Netanyahu,
is due to meet President Barack Obama in Washington on Monday.
The novelty of this year's review conference was that the US
joined the four other nuclear powers - Britain, France, Russia
and China - in backing a Middle East conference while
encouraging a deeply reluctant Israel to participate.
Washington's shift was unprecedented. Israel has said it would
attend a conference but only if it is not singled out for
criticism now.
"If that happened it would be a major achievement," said Anne
Penketh of the British American Security Information Council.
"It holds out the prospect of Iran and Israel sitting at the
same table."
Iran's position will also be closely scrutinised, and it will
face criticism if it blocks a positive outcome with wide
support from others. It is already under pressure
internationally for its refusal to stop enriching the uranium
which western countries fear is intended to produce nuclear
weapons - a charge Tehran flatly denies.
Egypt, backed by other Arab states and Turkey, had lobbied for
Israel to be named in the final declaration. Ban urged the
parties to be pragmatic. The UN chief warned: "There is too
much at stake for the conference to end in failure, as it did
last time."
Iran's ambassador to the UN's nuclear watchdog accused the US
of causing the impasse. He said Washington and the other
nuclear powers had rejected key demands of Iran and the other
non-aligned developing nations. Ali Asghar Soltanieh said they
wanted a precise deadline for nuclear powers to disarm, talks
on a treaty banning the use of nuclear weapons and a pledge
from the five nuclear powers not to use nuclear weapons
against states which do not possess them.
The Guardian, London
Age of
accountability is upon us
The International Criminal Court casts an increasingly
long shadow. Those who would commit crimes against
humanity have come to fear it.
Ban Ki-moon
Twelve
years ago, world leaders gathered in Rome to establish the
International Criminal Court (ICC). Seldom since the
founding of the United Nations itself has such a
resounding blow been struck for peace, justice and human
rights.
On Monday, nations come together once again, this time in
Kampala, Uganda, for the first formal review of the Rome
treaty. It is a chance not only to take stock of our
progress but to build for the future. More, it is an
occasion to strengthen our collective determination that
crimes against humanity cannot go unpunished - the better
to deter them in the future.
Great progress
As UN secretary-general, I have come to see how effective
the ICC can be - and how far we have come. A decade ago,
few could have believed the court would now be fully
operational, investigating and trying perpetrators of
genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity across a
broadening geography of countries.
This is a fundamental break with history. The old era of
impunity is over. In its place, slowly but surely, we are
witnessing the birth of a new "age of accountability". It
began with the special tribunals set up in Rwanda and the
former Yugoslavia; today, the ICC is the keystone of a
growing system of global justice that includes
international tribunals, mixed international-national
courts and domestic prosecutions.
So far, the ICC has opened five investigations. Two trials
are underway; a third is scheduled to begin in July. Four
detainees are in custody. Those who thought the court
would be little more than a "paper tiger" have been proved
wrong. To the contrary, the ICC casts an increasingly long
shadow. Those who would commit crimes against humanity
have clearly come to fear it.
And yet, the ICC remains a court of last resort, stepping
in only when national courts do not (or cannot) act. In
March, Bangladesh became the 111th party to the Rome
Statute, while 37 others have signed but not yet ratified
it. Some of the world's largest and most powerful
countries, however, have not joined.
If the ICC is to have the reach it should possess, if it
is to become an effective deterrent as well as an avenue
of justice, it must have universal support. As
secretary-general, I call on all nations to join. Those
that already have done so must cooperate fully with the
court. That includes backing it publicly, as well as
faithfully executing its orders.
The ICC does not have its own police force. It cannot make
arrests. Suspects in three of the court's five proceedings
remain free, living in impunity. Not only the ICC but the
whole of the international justice system suffers from
such disregard, while those who would abuse human rights
are emboldened.
The review conference in Kampala will look for ways to
strengthen the court. Among them: a proposal to broaden
its scope to include "crimes of aggression", as well as
measures to build the willingness and capacity of national
courts to investigate and prosecute war crimes.
Striking a balance
Perhaps the most contentious debate will focus on the
balance between peace and justice. Frankly, I see no
choice between them. In today's conflicts, civilians are
too often the chief victims. Women, children and the
elderly are at the mercy of armies or militias who rape,
maim, kill and devastate towns, villages, crops, cattle
and water sources - all as a strategy of war. The more
shocking the crime, the more effective it is as a weapon.
Any victim would understandably yearn to stop such
horrors, even at the cost of granting immunity to those
who have wronged them. But this is a truce at gunpoint,
without dignity, justice or hope for a better future. The
time has passed when we might talk of peace versus
justice. There cannot be one without the other.
Our challenge is to pursue them both, hand in hand. In
this, the ICC is key. In Kampala, I will do my best to
help advance the fight against impunity and usher in the
new age of accountability. Crimes against humanity are
just that - crimes against us all. We must never forget.
Ban Ki-moon is the Secretary-General of the United
Nations.
Europe’s concerns
Behind the smiles, however, lurk profound concerns about
the future direction of the country.
Shada Islam
The
second EU-Pakistan summit to be held in Brussels on June 4
will commit both sides to an ambitious "partnership for
peace and development" as well as a "strategic dialogue"
to strengthen cooperation in key areas of mutual interest,
including counter-terrorism and trade.
The meeting was initially set for April 21 but postponed
because of air travel disruption caused by ash from the
still-active volcano in Iceland. Prime Minister Yousuf
Raza Gilani and loyal members of his delegation who attend
the Brussels meeting can expect a fairly warm welcome as
representatives of a democratic Pakistan. The EU is
certainly determined to upgrade the lacklustre
relationship. Behind the smiles, however, lurk profound
concerns about the future direction of the country. Here's
the message that, protocol permitted, EU leaders would
really like to send to Islamabad:
"Dear Prime Minister, welcome to Brussels and your first
meeting with us. A few months ago, we weren't sure you
would lead the Pakistani delegation because political
power in your country appeared to be in the hands of
President Zardari. But recent constitutional changes mean
that - as far as the outside world is concerned - you now
really are the 'leader' of Pakistan.
"This is good news. We Europeans have a soft spot for
democracy and the rule of law. True, we met Gen Pervez
Musharraf in the past but that was only to keep our
American friends happy. We'd much rather be talking to
elected leaders - however weak and fragile.
"There is much that worries us about Pakistan. All
developing countries are entangled in a dual narrative
combining aspirations of modernisation and development
with deep-rooted conservatism, tradition and superstition.
For a time, these trends run side by side. In some
fortunate countries, the forces of education, women's
empowerment, rising revenues and above all, the emergence
of a powerful middle class, ensure that over time, modern
values secure the upper hand. Except, it would appear, in
Pakistan.
"Like most Pakistan-watchers, we confess to a sense of
alarm/despair at recent developments: the chronic
infighting between political rivals, complicated even
further by an endless tug of war between politicians and
the judiciary and a constant and pervasive fear about the
intentions and future moves of the army and the country's
difficult-to-control security forces.
"True, we are impressed by Pakistan's continuing offensive
against the Taliban and Al Qaeda operatives but we also
hear conflicting reports: you tell us Islamabad is serious
about clamping down on terrorists but your neighbours
claim Pakistan is engaged in a double game: hunting down
the insurgents they want to and allowing others the
freedom to act as they desire, both in Afghanistan and in
India.
"Certainly we are concerned about the way in which many
European young men - like Faisal Shahzad in the US - are
being lured to training camps in Pakistan and told to
spread terror in the West.
"We worry about Pakistan's human rights record -
especially its treatment of minorities and women - which
makes it difficult for us to persuade our public opinion
and especially the European Parliament that building
stronger relations with Pakistan should be a strategic
priority for the EU.
"As you know, the European Parliament recently adopted a
resolution which, while showing support for Pakistan's
efforts to improve the situation for religious minorities,
calls for the review and amendment of the controversial
blasphemy laws, expressing concern that they 'are often
used to justify censorship, criminalisation, persecution
and … the murder of members of political, racial and
religious minorities'."The resolution also calls on the EU
to 'include the issue of religious tolerance in society in
its counter-terrorism dialogue with Pakistan', describing
it as being 'of central importance to the long-term fight
against religious extremism'. We have to listen to such
concerns - especially as these questions are also raised
by Pakistani non-governmental organisations and respected
freedom activists.
"The European Parliament has become an even more important
and influential player under the new Lisbon Treaty - when
it draws our attention to human rights issues, we have to
listen. Also, respecting human rights - the rights of your
own citizens, the people who vote for you - should be part
of a democratic government's agenda. "We have no
illusions: European governments are increasing their aid
to Pakistan but the figures still pale in comparison to
what Washington, Beijing and Tokyo provide. This means
that we have little political clout in Pakistan. However,
we do have enormous expertise in reform and experience in
helping to modernise and transform the political and
economic structures of countries in transition. The EU is
ready to provide such assistance.
"Pakistan wants the EU to open up its markets to Pakistani
exports and is desperate to be given access to the
so-called GSP Plus scheme which gives additional tariff
concessions to developing nations. We have promised to
look at the question as quickly as we can. The recent
approval by Islamabad of the international covenant on
civil and political rights and the convention against
torture will help Pakistan's case but implementation of
the treaties will be closely monitored.
"The EU recognises that the deteriorating security
situation in Pakistan has increased the cost of doing
business and decreased the competitiveness of Islamabad's
exports. Pakistan's exports to the EU have been declining
since 2004. In the long term, we are ready to consider the
negotiation of a possible free trade agreement.
"However, we also want Pakistan to start diversifying its
trade patterns and content - to look for new markets in
its neighbourhood, to make friends with India and to forge
closer trade and commercial links with Afghanistan.
"Having overcome historical enmities in Europe, we are
hoping that Pakistan and India can also make peace. We are
therefore encouraged by recent contacts between yourself
and your Indian counterpart, Manmohan Singh and your vow
to resume peace talks and work toward rebuilding trust
shattered by the deadly 2008 Mumbai terrorist attacks that
New Delhi has blamed on Pakistani militants.
"Peace in South Asia is essential for the region to
achieve its full economic potential. We are appalled by
the social indicators in Pakistan - the high illiteracy
rate, child and female mortality, the millions of people
living in poverty. EU aid is meant to redress these
imbalances - but often funds do not reach the people
because of security problems and governmental red tape.
The EU has also not been very good about coordinating aid
to Pakistan.
"So prime minister, let's go out and meet the press. And
don't worry, we won't be as blunt in our public
declarations."
The writer is Dawn's correspondent in Brussels.
International
Pakistan
delegation off to India for talks on water
Dawn Online, Lahore
An 11-member Pakistani delegation, led by Indus Water
Commissioner Syed Jamaat Ali Shah, left for New Delhi on
Saturday to hold talks on a range of water-related issues
between the two countries.
Talking to journalists at the Lahore airport, Mr Shah said
that water compensation, construction of two power
projects on river Indus, installation of the telemetry
system and other issues would be taken up with Indian
officials.
About the compensation of 200,000 million acre feet of
water which Pakistan has been seeking for the past one
year, he said the figure had been calculated after taking
into account the filling of Baglihar dam by India. Though
India has not agreed to Pakistan's view, the issue is on
the table, he added.
Next on agenda are the issues of Nimo Bazgo dam and Chutak
hydroelectric project being built by India on tributaries
of river Indus. Mr Shah said Pakistan had conveyed its
objections to both projects and would seek Indian replies
to them, adding if the current mechanism failed Pakistan
would be referring the matter to neutral experts.
India has stepped up construction of Nimo Bazgo dam and
Chutak hydroelectric project and it is diverting flow of
all rivers passing through occupied Kashmir.
The two gigantic projects would hit the Indus flow to the
extent of 35,000 cusecs and delay it for 20-25 days,
affecting Pakistan's cropping pattern.
India has reportedly agreed to bring some changes to the
projects' designs, but sought time to hold deliberations
on the matter.
Talking about the Kishanganga project, which has been
referred to international arbitrators, the water
commissioner said that Pakistan had conveyed names of two
experts in accordance with the Indus Water Treaty.
US rehearses strikes
inside Pakistan: diplomats
Dawn Online, Washington
The US military has already completed 'dry exercises' for
a unilateral strike in Pakistan, in the event an attack on
the American soil is traced to that country, diplomatic
sources said.
Also known as a dry run, this trial exercise is a
rehearsal of a military's combat skills without the use of
live ammunition.
The trial run for a unilateral strike in Pakistan,
however, did not involve US troops. Instead, it projected
computer simulations of such an attack with an assessment
of a possible counterattack and of the potential
resistance US troops might face if they entered the
Pakistani soil.
Diplomatic sources said the Americans had already informed
Pakistan of their intention to conduct such an exercise
before conducting the computer simulations.
The Bush administration had also planned live exercises
close to the Pakistan border after the Mumbai attacks in
November 2008 and conveyed its decision to Islamabad as
well, the sources added.
This caused the-then national security adviser, Mahmud Ali
Durrani, to fly to Washington for convincing the Americans
that such exercises would not help the fight against
terrorism. Instead, they would have weakened the nascent
democratic setup in Pakistan and eroded its ability to
support the US-led war.
The Americans cancelled the exercise after US military
chief Admiral Mike Mullen spoke to his Pakistani
counterpart Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani and received an
assurance that Pakistan would do its best to prevent
extremists from using its soil for attacking other
countries.
"The American decision to once again explore the
possibility of a unilateral military strike is not a
threat," said a diplomatic source.
China premier avoids
backing sanctions for NKorea
AP, Seogwipo
China's premier expressed no support for proposed U.N.
sanctions against ally North Korea over its alleged
sinking of a South Korean warship, declining Sunday to
join other key nations in blaming Pyongyang.
Premier Wen Jiabao said Sunday that tensions between the
two Koreas need to be urgently defused. He spoke at the
end of a weekend summit in South Korea where he was
closely watched for signs that Beijing would get tougher
on the North, which is accused of sinking the naval ship
Cheonan with a torpedo two months ago, killing 46 sailors.
China's backing is key to any effort to punish North Korea
with U.N. sanctions because Beijing wields veto power at
the Security Council as a permanent member.
North Korea has repeatedly denied attacking the ship, and
on Sunday tens of thousands of people packed the main
square in Pyongyang, the nation's capital, for a rally
condemning South Korea and the U.S. The isolated North
often organizes such events during times of tense
relations with foreign countries.
Clapping and pumping their fists in the air, the
protesters shouted anti-South Korean slogans, held signs
and carried a huge portrait of North Korean leader Kim
Jong Il, according to video footage from APTN in North
Korea.
"Because of the South Korean war-loving, mad puppets and
American invaders, the North and South relationship is
being driven to a catastrophe," Choi Yong Rim, secretary
of the North Korean Workers Party in Pyongyang, told the
crowd.
Wen joined the leaders of South Korea and Japan at the
two-day summit, which was to focus on economic issues but
was overshadowed by the sinking of the Cheonan, one of the
South's worst military losses since the Korean War in the
1950s.
At a closing news conference, Wen gave no clear indication
that Beijing was ready to endorse South Korea's plans to
bring North Korea before the U.N. Security Council for
sanctions or condemnation.
Nevertheless, Wen used China's strongest language yet to
describe the grave situation between communist ally North
Korea and South Korea, a vital trading partner. "The
urgent task for the moment is to properly handle the
serious impact caused by the Cheonan incident, gradually
defuse tensions over it and avoid possible conflicts," Wen
said.
"China will continue to work with every country through
aggressive negotiations and cooperation to fulfill our
mission of maintaining peace and stability in the region,"
he said.
Yang Moo-jin, a professor at the University of North
Korean Studies in Seoul, said he doubted the Security
Council would take up the Cheonan case.
"Wen Jiabao's speech today gave no practical measures in
dealing with the Cheonan incident," Yang said. "He said
nothing about how specifically China will get involved in
regard to the U.N. Security Council." South Korean
President Lee Myung-bak said the three leaders had agreed
to continue discussing the ship disaster.
"I expect Japan and China, as very responsible members of
the international community, to wisely cooperate in the
handling of this matter," Lee said.
Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama added that the
three nations have "a common view that (the ship sinking)
is a serious matter for peace and stability in Northeast
Asia."
Impeachment against 10 Thai
opposition party's MPs sought
Xinhua, Bangkok
Thailand's multicoloured-shirt group on Sunday submitted a
motion to Senate Speaker Prasopsuk Boondej, seeking an
impeachment against 10 opposition Pheu Thai Party's MPs,
the Nation newspaper's website reported.
Doctor Pojanaphan Meesajji, who represented the group,
submitted the motion to the Senate Speaker at Parliament
at 11:40 a.m. local time.
The multicoloured-shirt group has garnered 20,000
signatures of voters to back up the submitted motion.
The 10 MPs include Deputy House speaker Apiwan Wiriyachai
as these MPs have been accused of violating code of MP's
ethics by recently joining the anti-government "red-shirt"
protests.
The death toll from a series of violent clashes between
the anti-government protesters and troops during March 12
to May 19 stood at 88 as some 1,885 others were wounded,
Public Health Minister Jurin Laksanawisit said on May 25.
AFP adds: Thailand's Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said
Sunday the country appeared to be back to "normal" after
the lifting of a curfew imposed in the wake of deadly
anti-government protests.
The premier cancelled the curfew Saturday but said
emergency rule was still necessary after two months of
mass rallies by "Red Shirt" demonstrators that paralysed
the capital and left almost 90 people dead.
NATO general in
Afghanistan: Victory will be slow
AP, Kabul
The commander of NATO and U.S. forces stressed Sunday that
progress toward real stability in Afghanistan will be slow
as international troops painstakingly try to win over a
population that includes its enemies and has little trust
in the government.
The NATO push in Afghanistan has long been running on two
timelines: one in which officials call for years of
patience to establish peace in the war-wracked nation, and
one in which President Barack Obama promises to begin
drawing down troops in July 2011.
Gen. Stanley McChrystal told reporters in the capital that
the Afghanistan fight will extend long beyond Obama's
deadline, though hopefully with increasing involvement
from Afghan forces.
In recent meetings with President Hamid Karzai, Obama
"reaffirmed the strategic partnership, which is way beyond
July 2011," McChrystal said. "I think President Obama's
decision to begin the reduction of U.S. forces in 2011
really needs to be viewed in that context."
A winter offensive in the southern Afghan town of Marjah
has been followed by the re-infiltration of Taliban forces
into the area despite a continuing strong U.S. Marine
presence.
"We've dramatically changed the state of the insurgency in
that region," McChrystal said, but at the same
acknowledged that Marjah was still a struggle.
"Progress there is not yet fully established," he said.
A summer offensive planned for the Taliban birthplace of
Kandahar will be similarly painstaking, McChrystal said.
The plan is to focus on delivering services like
electricity and water, he explained.
"Progress will be measured in months, rather than days,"
he said.
Nepal’s leaders meet to
work out new govt
AFP, Kathmandu
Nepal's three main parties held talks on Sunday to try to
hammer out a new coalition government after the prime
minister agreed to resign to avert a political crisis.
Madhav Kumar Nepal he would step down in a last-minute bid
to secure the support of Maoist lawmakers for a bill to
extend parliament's term, which was due to end Friday and
leave the country without a functioning legislature.
"Leaders of the Nepali Congress, Communist Party of Nepal
(UML) and the Maoists are in deep discussions on how to
take Friday's agreement forward," UML leader Pradeep
Gyawali told AFP.
"They are also discussing the PM's resignation and they
hope to create a workplan on the next possible steps."
The opposition Maoists won 2008 elections, but their
government fell last year in a disagreement over the
integration of their former fighters into the national
army, and they have been agitating for a return to power
ever since.
As the largest party in parliament they are likely to take
a lead role in any power-sharing government, but the prime
minister's spokesman said there were issues to be
addressed before this could happen.
Socialists leave Japan
coalition over Okinawa issue
BBC Online
Japan's socialist party has voted to leave the ruling
coalition because of a row over a US base in Okinawa.
The Social Democratic Party (SDP) had opposed PM Yukio
Hatoyama's decision not to move the US Futenma airbase off
the southern Japanese island.
On Friday Mr Hatoyama fired SDP chief Mizuho Fukushima
from her ministerial post over her stance on the issue.
The SDP has few seats in parliament but the coalition deal
secured the ruling party a majority in the upper house.
The decision came at a meeting of senior party officials.
"We will leave [the coalition] but we will explore
relations with other parties in both houses of
parliament," SDP secretary-general Yasumasa Shigeno told
journalists.
The ruling Democrats have a large majority in the lower
house, which they can use to force legislation through the
upper house.
But the SDP's departure will come as a blow to Mr Hatoyama,
whose approval ratings have been plummeting.
He also faces his first electoral test in July since last
year's election, with polls for the upper house. Ms
Fukushima was fired as consumer affairs minister after she
refused to sign off on the Futenma deal.
Mr Hatoyama had said during his election campaign that he
would revisit the issue with the US - but then confirmed
last week that the existing agreement to relocate the
controversial base to the north of the island would stand.
Turkish
PM says West unfair, insincere in Iran row
AFP, Ankara
Turkey's prime minister Saturday accused Western powers of
lacking a "fair and sincere" approach on Iran in a
mounting row over a nuclear swap deal with Tehran,
Anatolia news agency reported.
Speaking to Turkish journalists during a visit to Brazil,
Recep Tayyip Erdogan reiterated criticism of the West for
staying mum on Israel, widely believed to be the Middle
East's sole if undeclared nuclear power, Anatolia
reported.
Without naming the Jewish state, he said: "You do not show
the same approach here but you stir up the world
concerning Iran. I do not see this as a fair, honest and
sincere approach." Turkey and Brazil, both non-permanent
members of the UN Security Council, have been in a
deepening confrontation with the United States over its
dismissal of a nuclear swap deal the two hammered out with
Tehran on May 17.
Washington insists the Security Council should press ahead
with fresh sanctions against the Islamic republic, which
the West suspects of seeking to develop an atomic bomb
under the guise of nuclear energy production.
Erdogan hit back at US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton
who said Thursday that the Brazilian-Turkish deal's effect
of "buying time for Iran... makes the world more
dangerous, not less."
"The step that we took is not one that puts the world in
danger. On the contrary, it is a step to prevent attempts
to put the world in danger," Anatolia quoted Erdogan as
saying.
"We have said it from the very beginning-we do not want
nuclear weapons in our region," he said.
The accord commits Iran to depositing 1,200 kilogrammes
(2,640 pounds) of low enriched uranium in Turkey in return
for 120 kilogrammes of more highly enriched uranium
suitable for research and medical use. France and Russia
had previously offered to supply Iran with the
higher-enriched fuel.
Erdogan accused Western leaders of backpedalling from
conditions they had set for Iran after Turkey and Brazil
secured those terms in the accord, and he named French
President Nicolas Sarkozy.
"In our previous contacts, they had said they can give the
(highly enriched) uranium to Iran in 10 months... We put a
clause of one year, securing an advantage of two extra
months.
"Now they are saying these 120 kilogrammes (of uranium)
cannot be made before two years... Mr. Sarkozy says so. It
is impossible to understand that," he said. Erdogan said
he and Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva would
maintain diplomatic efforts to drum up support for the
swap deal.
He said he was likely to discuss the issue with US
President Barack Obama during a G-20 summit in Canada next
month.
BP ‘top kill’ fails,
piling more pressure on Obama
Reuters, La./Houston
BP Plc said on Saturday its complex "top kill" maneuver to
plug the Gulf of Mexico oil well has failed, crushing
hopes for a quick end to the largest oil spill in U.S.
history already in its 40th day.
It may be another two months before the London-based
energy giant can definitively turn off the gusher -- a
delay that could undermine U.S. President Barack Obama as
he faces growing criticism for a perceived slow response
to the disaster.
"We will continue to pursue any and all responsible means
of stopping this leak until the completion of the two
relief wells currently being drilled," Obama said in a
statement after the news, noting that the wells will take
months to complete. The beleaguered BP said its next
option is a "lower marine riser package" that will not
plug the well ruptured in a rig blast, but rather capture
most of the oil on the sea floor and channel it to the
surface for collection.
BP Chief Executive Tony Hayward called the containment cap
"the best way to minimize the flow of oil into the Gulf"
and said it would take around four days to put it in
place. But even Obama sought to lower expectations for
this option, which he said is difficult and "has never
been attempted before at this depth."
BP and Hayward's credibility are at new lows, after the
chief executive had given the top kill a 60 to 70 percent
chance of success although it had never been done at the
depth of the well, a mile (1.6 km) beneath the sea. "I am
disappointed this operation did not work," Hayward said in
a statement.
Georgians hold 1st vote
since 2008 war with Russia
AP, Tbilisi
Voters in Georgia were choosing local leaders Sunday in
the first ballot since President Mikhail Saakashvili led
the country into a disastrous war with neighboring Russia
nearly two years ago.
Saakashvili's rule has elevated Georgia's status in the
West yet turned it into a bitter adversary of Russia. The
brief 2008 war, which Georgia lost, allowed Moscow to
consolidate control over two breakaway regions in Georgia
- South Ossetia and Abkhazia - and produced an influx of
thousands of refugees whose homes were destroyed.
Yet given Georgia's fractured opposition, Saakashvili's
party, the United National Movement, is expected to do
well in Sunday's elections.
"I am confident in our party's victory, and United
National Movement will keep on winning while the country
progresses," Saakashvili told reporters while casting his
ballot in Tbilisi, Georgia's capital.
Voters will elect 64 local councils and, for the first
time ever, the mayor of Tbilisi - an influential post that
could become a stepping stone for Saakashvili's successor
when the Georgian president's second and final term ends
in 2013.
Dzhuli Giorgadze, a spokeswoman for the central election
commission, said all voting precincts opened on time and
that the election was proceeding smoothly.
Cyprus trip a political
minefield for the pope
AP, Vatican City
Pope Benedict XVI, often under fire for political missteps
on foreign trips, is heading into a potential diplomatic
storm when he visits Cyprus this week, a pilgrimage to a
divided island that could anger Turkey and the rest of the
Muslim world.
Divisions between Greeks and ethnic Turks, splits in the
Orthodox Christian community, and concerns over damaged
Christian and Muslim houses of worship will be come under
scrutiny during Benedict's three-day trip starting Friday.
The visit will be a key test of whether the pope has found
his diplomatic feet.
The pope's linking of Islam to violence during a speech in
Germany led to outrage in the Muslim world, nearly forcing
cancellation of a trip to Turkey in 2006. Other
controversies arose from his remarks on a trip to Africa
that condoms can make the continent's AIDS epidemic worse
and his comments in Brazil that Latin America's native
people wanted to become Christian even before Europe's
conquerors arrived.
The Cyprus trip comes just days after the island's leaders
- Greek Cypriot President Dimitris Christofias and the
newly elected president of the breakaway Turkish Cypriots,
Dervis Eroglu - resumed peace talks after a two-month
pause. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has urged the
rival leaders to ensure that the reunification talks do
not fall apart, warning that time is working against them.
Cyprus police say that although they are aware of possible
protests by some religious groups against the pope's trip,
there have been no credible threats to his safety. "We are
continuing our planning regarding the pope's safety and
all necessary measures will be taken to ensure that not
even the slightest incident will take place," said police
spokesman Michalis Katsounotos.
Israel rejects new drive to
ban nukes from Mideast
AP, Jerusalem
Israel, thought to be the Middle East's only nuclear
power, has rejected a new U.N. call to come clean about
its secretive nuclear program, calling it a "deeply flawed
and hypocritical" act that ignores the threat posed by its
sworn enemy Iran.
Israel declared late Saturday that it would not take part
in a 2012 conference on establishing a nuclear-free Middle
East - an Arab-led initiative backed by top ally U.S. and
the 188 other signatories to the Nuclear Nonproliferation
Treaty.
Although a series of U.S. conditions put the conference in
doubt, the resolution, and the surprising U.S. support it
received, added new pressure on Israel to give up what is
almost universally believed to be a sizable nuclear
arsenal. Israel refuses to confirm or deny the suspicions.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu intends to discuss the
resolution with President Barack Obama when the two meet
in Washington Tuesday, the Israeli leader's office said.
Netanyahu was traveling in Canada Sunday, and a government
spokesman declined what contacts had been made with the
U.S. over the resolution.
But an Army Radio reporter traveling with Netanyahu in
Toronto said his office unsuccessfully lobbied the U.S. to
block the resolution ahead of Friday's vote. Israel's
so-called policy of nuclear ambiguity is a cornerstone of
its military deterrence. It has long said that a
comprehensive Arab-Israeli peace must precede such weapons
bans.
Israel has never signed the non-proliferation treaty,
which requires members to open nuclear facilities to
inspection and to disarm. In its statement, it noted that
since it's not a member, it is not a party to the
resolution.
South Africa risks World
Cup terror attack
AFP, Cape Town
South Africa is at high risk of a World Cup terror attack,
a Sunday newspaper reported, but the country's
intelligence ministry ruled out any threat less than two
weeks ahead of kick-off.
The Sunday Times cited a briefing to the United States
congress counter-terrorism caucus last week by the NEFA
Foundation which warned that simultaneous and random
attacks were being planned during the tournament. "I
believe there is an 80 percent chance of an attack," the
foundation's Ronald Sandee told the newspaper.
A South African state security ministry spokesman on
Sunday said no threat to the 64-match tournament which
starts on June 11 had been uncovered.
"As far as we're concerned there are no threats that we
have identified which are linked to the World Cup,"
spokesman Brian Dube told AFP.
"No country is immune to these things, that's why we say
we'll continue to be vigilant. But really there isn't any
threat to the World Cup itself." But NEFA, a
terror-research group, warned of Pakistani and Somali
militant training camps in neighbouring Mozambique and
said trainees may have crossed into South Africa to join
or set up cells planning attacks.
The Mozambique camps, the presence of operatives including
Al-Qaeda as well as the existence of terror strike cells
were confirmed by other sources, the newspaper said. World
Cup attacks were referred to in closed-frequency radio
broadcasts and telephone intercepts in Mauritania,
Algeria, Mali, Pakistan and Yemen, Sandee told the US
congress. "Information confirms that several venues will
be targeted, some simultaneously, others at random.
Reference is also made to the possibility of a
kamikaze-type attack," he is quoted as saying.
On Tuesday, the United States warned that large events
like the World Cup could present attractive targets for
terrorists, but that no specific or credible threat was
known. "There is a heightened risk that extremist groups
will conduct terrorist acts within South Africa in the
near future," it said in a travel alert. A watch list of
40 terror suspects has been drawn up, the newspaper
reported.
Sudanese president
reshuffles govt
Xinhua, Khartoum
Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir on Sunday issued a
decree to reshuffle the government.
The federal ministries' undersecretaries and general
secretaries will run the country's affairs until the new
government is formed.
The decree kept the Ministries of Presidency and Defense
and the Council of Ministers till the formation of the new
government.
The Sudanese president on Sunday chaired the last session
of the Council of Ministers in the presence of his two
vice presidents Salva Kiir Mayardit and Ali Osman Mohamed
Taha, federal ministers and state ministers. "The
council's session today marked the end of the
constitutional mandate for the ministers and state
ministers in the previous government," Omer Mohamed Salih,
spokesman of the Council of Ministers, told reporters
following the session.
He further said "the president has reiterated his desire
to form a broad-base government to meet the coming
commitments and challenges."
The new government is expected to be announced in the
first week of June.
It is expected that the Sudan People's Liberation Movement
(SPLM) will obtain 30 percent of the ministerial
representation.
German coalition partners
turn rivals in key state
Reuters, Berlin
Germany's ruling parties have become rivals to form a
government with the Social Democrats in a key western
state, a development which is likely to deepen tensions in
Chancellor Angela Merkel's embattled coalition.
Merkel's conservative Christian Democrats (CDU) had shared
power in North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) with their federal
coalition partner, the Free Democrats (FDP) of Foreign
Minister Guido Westerwelle, until an inconclusive vote on
May 9.
Having lost their majority, both sides have now signaled
they could work with the center-left Social Democrats (SPD)
in NRW, Germany's most populous state, even though it
would complicate policy in Berlin and the FDP had
explicitly ruled out such an option before the vote.
The showdown in NRW follows weeks of unrest in Merkel's
government, castigated at home for its domestic squabbles
and condemned abroad for its handling of the euro
crisis-raising new questions about whether it can last a
full four-year term.
Westerwelle has repeatedly rebuffed overtures to work with
the SPD in recent years, but he suggested at the weekend
that such a link might be possible in NRW.
"We'll have to wait and see which coalition we get in
North Rhine-Westphalia," he told newspaper Welt am Sonntag,
welcoming the fact that the SPD had decided against a
coalition with the Left party in NRW.
The NRW talks come against the backdrop of government
efforts to agree how to consolidate public finances,
already a contentious issue inside the coalition. Merkel's
cabinet will meet to discuss the planned overhaul on June
6-7.
Westerwelle's apparent opening to the SPD also follows a
plunge in support for his party, whose hopes of cutting
taxes were dashed by Merkel a day after the NRW vote. "It
looks like Westerwelle is annoyed with Merkel," said Gero
Neugebauer, a political scientist at Berlin's Free
University. "If the FDP were to enter a coalition with the
SPD in NRW, Westerwelle could use it to put pressure on
Merkel."
"This would have an impact on federal policy."
Business/Economy
DSE
index crosses 6100-point mark
BSS, Dhaka
Stock market began week Sunday with twin record in index
and market capitalization. DGEN-the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE)
general price index rose to a new high mainly influenced
by active trading of banking, power and energy sectors'
issues.
The DGEN crossed 6100-point mark to finish to 6108.50 at
Sunday's close, adding 34.58 points or 0.56 per cent more
to the benchmark on its rally, which began on Wednesday
after a single day fall on the previous day's
profit-taking trading.
Stockbrokers said behaviour of the market warranted a
cautious scrutiny as it already entered in over bought
region.
Daily turnover continued to increase, demonstrating higher
level of liquidity absorption capacity of the market.
The day's turnover was Taka 2,136 crore, higher from
Thursday's Taka 2,060 crore. Market capitalization reached
to Taka 255,016 crore, a record for the size of the
country's capital market.
Brokers said a good number of investors took position in
the government owned fuel and gas companies ahead of their
June year end. Titas Gas was on the day's top 20 issues
with over 13 lakh trade shares when the issue gained 6.32
percent on the last week's closing price.
Another public company DESCO posted 3.92 percent increase
on a voluminous transaction.
Private energy companies Navana CNG and Summit Power also
advanced on the day as some investors were expecting good
return from power and energy sector on post-budget
trading.
Face value hype continued to tilt the market towards
financial stocks.
Right share approval of Prime and Southeast banks also
pushed the sector, which accounted for over 30 per cent of
the day's total turnover.
CMC Kamal was an out of the blue issue on the top of day's
gainer as there was no price sensitive information. The
issue, however, gained 17.49 percent when only 5,250
shares of this company were changed hands.
BB
unveils plan for reforms in financial sector
BSS, Dhaka
The central bank on Sunday unveiled its first ever
long-term action plan for vigorous reforms in the
country's financial sector.
The plan, a guideline for the next five years, aims at a
stable monetary policy, speedy automation and skilled
development in the banking sector.
It also addresses development of agriculture, small and
medium enterprises (SMEs) and financial inclusion of rural
majority to attain inclusive growth for establishing
social parity.
Capacity building of the banking sector and developing an
effective credit policy are also two major areas of
attention of the plan.
"We should go far from our present position for ensuring a
sound banking sector," Bangladesh Bank (BB) Governor Dr
Atiur Rahman said while unveiling the plan in the city.
He said Bangladesh banking sector showed resilience to the
recent global recession, but the central bank prepared the
strategic plan as a contingency policy to make this sector
stronger.
The central bank prepared the plan after detail
discussions with all banks and financial institutions,
World Bank and International Monetary Fund and with
leading chambers and trade- bodies.
The plan will assist boosting the capacity and efficiency
of the banking sector through consistently endeavoring
automation programme, stable monetary policy, skilled
development, capacity building and a prudent credit
policy.
In the past few years the banking sector had been
modernised to some extent, but majority of bank branches
were still running on a combination of old and modern
system, leaving the vast majority out of efficient banking
services. The strategic plan will support banks to expand
their automation programme to bring more people under
institutional financial facilities with new and innovative
products.
It underlines the importance of continuing support to the
agriculture sector and increase assistance to the small
and medium enterprises (SME) by two to three times of the
present rate.
The overall investment will get more attention in the
plan, but it will encourage more investment in the
agriculture and SME sectors.
Human resource development will be another area of major
development under the strategic plan.
The central bank will review the plan once a year to
update it with new measures. A monitoring team of the
central bank, however, will oversee the implementation
process regularly and will have meetings in every three or
six months.
No need to
restructure Greek debt
AFP, Athens
Greece will not need to restructure its debt or take extra
measures beyond a swathe of austerity cuts agreed with the
EU and the International Monetary Fund, the Greek finance
minister said on Sunday.
"Greece will not need additional measures," George
Papaconstantinou told Eleftherotypia daily in an
interview, adding that debt restructuring "would be
disastrous for the country's credibility."
The minister said the recession gripping the country would
peak in 2010 and that recovery would "gradually" begin
thereafter.
"I remain confident and I believe that we will recover
very quickly," he said.
Greece has accumulated debt of nearly 300 billion euros
(368 billion dollars) and was narrowly saved from default
earlier this month by the first instalment of an
110-billion-euro bailout loan from the EU and the IMF.
The government had to adopt unpopular austerity measures
to clinch the loan, including tax hikes, wage and pension
cuts and a hiring freeze in the civil service.
It has also pledged to trim massive waste in state
hospitals which have a combined debt of around 5.6 billion
euros.
Sales of
electronics products gear up ahead of World Cup, national
budget
TBT Economy Desk
Electronics markets all over the country are experiencing
growing turnout of customers ahead of FIFA World Cup and
national budget announcement for the fiscal year
2009-2010. Huge rush of buyers is being seen at showrooms
of metropolitan cities and district and upazila towns
countrywide along with the Dhaka city markets. Sales of
different brand of vehicles and electronics
products--television, LCD television, refrigerator and air
conditioner-- have peaked.
Mostly, the customers are thronging the showrooms to buy
televisions as the customers apprehend that prices of
televisions may be increased ahead of World Cup. They have
an experience that during the World Cup Football prices of
televisions are increased significantly. Another factor of
their apprehension is the budget announcement that mostly
increases prices of products especially electronics
products in our country every year.
The sales of televisions have already increased all over
the country as on the occasion of World Cup and budget
announcement mostly all the companies have offered special
packages, different facilities and gift items, in addition
to warranty and after-sales-service, sources said.
Sales of Walton brand televisions have peaked as the
company has announced a gift item offer ahead of the two
occasions, sources also said. Under the programme after
every purchase of any Walton brand product, customers are
getting gift cards and after rubbing the cards they are
taking a wide rage of high quality gift items including
scopes to travailing to 20 countries including the USA and
Canada. Other Walton gift items include 125cc motorcycle,
42-14-inch LCD television, 21-14-inch colour television,
refrigerator, microwave oven, DVD player, LED light, cash
money, etc. This gift item offer is being provided by all
the Walton showrooms all over the country and will
continue till July 15, 2010.
Director of Walton Emdadul Haque Sirker told the
correspondent that all manufacturing and marketing
companies had announced special offers and packages. But
the Walton's offer is different from others for its
special gift item for every winner, and the customers have
been requested to receive their gifts, he said.
He also claims that Walton brand products have already
gained huge popularity due to its world standard quality.
Walton not only wants to increase its sales but also wants
to gain confidence among customers and know the countrymen
that Walton brand products are manufactured in Bangladesh,
he said, says a press release.
S.Korea, Japan and China agree to speed up trade
accord
AFP, South Korea
South Korea, Japan and China agreed Sunday to speed up an
investment accord and research on a trilateral free trade
pact.
The announcement came after a summit of South Korean
President Lee Myung-Bak, Japanese Prime Minister Yukio
Hatoyama and Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao on the South
Korean resort island of Jeju. "By 2012, we will endeavor
to complete the joint study for a free trade agreement
among China, Japan, and South Korea," the leaders said in
a joint statement.
The three countries agreed at their summit in 2009 to push
for research on the free trade pact aimed at eventually
creating a single economic bloc.
Last weekend, the trade ministers of South Korea, China
and Japan confirmed they would complete a feasibility
study within two years on creating a free trade bloc
grouping their three countries.
The three leaders also called for the early conclusion of
a trilateral accord on investment and agreed to establish
a cooperation secretariat in Seoul next year.
South Korea has for years been in separate free trade
talks with China and Japan, but with little progress.
Seoul and Beijing agreed Friday to hold preliminary talks
on sensitive sectors such as agriculture before starting
full-fledged negotiations on a free trade pact.
China has emerged as South Korea's largest trading
partner, absorbing some 24 percent of its total exports in
2009. South Korea has been actively pushing for free-trade
agreements worldwide to bolster its export-dominated
economy.
It already has such agreements with Chile, Singapore,
India, the European Free Trade Association and the
Association of Southeast Asian Nations.
A free-trade pact was signed with the European Union in
October 2009 and awaits ratification. A deal signed with
the United States in 2007 is also awaiting ratification.
Luxury market
slowly emerging from global recession
AFP, Washington
The luxury goods market is rebounding from the slump
caused by the global recession, but analysts say upscale
sellers will be facing a hard slog due to changing
demographics and lingering consumer caution.
Global luxury goods industry sales are expected to grow
four percent in 2010 to 158 billion euros (195 billion
dollars) after a painful 8.0 percent decline in 2009,
according to the consulting firm Bain & Company.
Much of that growth is expected in the first half of the
year, with more sluggish trends returning in the second
half, according to Bain's Luxury Goods Worldwide Market
Study.
In the United States, retail sales in the luxury segment
in April jumped 15.5 percent year-over-year in April after
a 22.7 percent surge in March, helped by comparison with
weak sales a year earlier, according to MasterCard
SpendingPulse.
Upscale retailer Saks swung to a record profit in the past
quarter after a loss a year earlier, with sales up 6.1
percent. At rival Tiffany, it was a similar story with
global sales up 17 percent in the most recent quarter and
profit up nearly fourfold. French luxury giants Hermes and
LVMH also reported strong growth in sales in the first
quarter boosted largely by rise in Asia excluding Japan as
buyers snap up watches, jewelry and other upscale goods
after months of economic gloom. But it may be too early to
break out the champagne for the luxury sector, analysts
warn.
In the US market, consulting firm Unity Marketing reports
that much of the growth is coming from super-rich
households with incomes of 250,000 dollars a year-the top
two percent of Americans. This group hiked spending by
22.6 percent in the past quarter. The so-called "aspirational
affluents" with incomes between 100,000 and 249,999
dollars increased their spending by only 1.9 percent from
fourth quarter of 2009 to first quarter of 2010, the
survey found.
"The ultra-affluents are returning to spending at
pre-recession levels, while the aspirational consumers are
holding back," says Unity president Pam Danziger.
Piracy stifling Asian software industry
AFP, Singapore
Entrepreneur Binod Hariharan has big plans for his
southern Indian firm, which develops astrology-based
computer software to help users find a suitable spouse or
plot their career paths.
Similarly ambitious is Somporn Maneeratanakul, managing
director of Thai Software Enterprises, and Nguyen Minh Duc,
director of BKIS Security, a Vietnamese company that makes
anti-virus programmes.
But their dreams of making it big overseas are in danger
of being hijacked in the dangerous waters of the global
software industry by pirates who make and sell illegal
copies of their products right in their home markets.
While global giants such as Microsoft and computer
security firm McAfee are prominent targets of copyright
thieves, what is less known is that start-up Asian
software companies are notable victims, industry players
said.
And unlike the cash-rich industry big boys, these
fledgling Asian companies are finding it harder to cope
with losses resulting from copyright violations.
Industry group Business Software Alliance (BSA) said in a
report released in May that software piracy losses reached
51.4 billion dollars in 2009, of which 16.5 billion
dollars was incurred in the Asia-Pacific region.
On average, 59 percent of the 900 million pieces of
software installed in the Asia-Pacific region were
unlicensed, said the study carried out with industry
research firm IDC.
Bangladesh had the highest software piracy rate in Asia,
followed by Sri Lanka, Indonesia and Vietnam, with China
and India also among the top culprits.
Beyond the revenue losses, the bigger impact is that
piracy prevents Asia from producing software giants such
as Microsoft's Bill Gates, analysts said.
"Piracy certainly stifles innovation," said Tarun Sawney,
Asia-Pacific senior director for anti-piracy operations at
BSA.
IPDC okays 10pc
stock dividend
TBT Economy Desk
Industrial Promotion and Development Company of Bangladesh
Limited (IPDC) has declared a 10 percent stock dividend
(Bonus Share) for the shareholders for the year 2009.
The declaration came at the 28th Annual General Meeting (AGM)
of the company held at the Trust Milonayatan of Mohakhali
in the capital on Sunday.
Dewan Zakir Hussain, Chairman of IPDC, presided over the
meeting, says a press release.
National
Farming of flood tolerant paddy
can make BD rice exporting nation
BSS, Rangpur
Renowned rice scientist and country manager of IRRI-Bangladesh
Dr MA Bari has said the country can export rice in near
future after meeting its own demand through expanded
farming of flood tolerant variety paddies.
Bangladesh can produce an additional 60-lakh tonnes of
paddy annually to ensure its food security by brining all
12 lakh hectares potential low-lying and flood-prone lands
under farming of four such variety paddies amid adverse
impacts of climate changes, he said.
He said this while distributing seeds of flood tolerant
variety paddies among the farmers of Sadar, Belgachha,
Halokhana, Mogalbasa, Kanthalbari, Panchgachhi, Jatrapur
and Ghoghadaho unions on Bhogdanga union office premises
in Kurigram Saturday.
Reputed NGO Solidarity organised the seed distribution
ceremony with the assistance of International Rice
Research Institute (IRRI) and Inter Co-operation with its
executive director and valiant freedom fighter Harunur
Rashid Lal in the chair.
Officials of Solidarity, local farmers, public
representatives, member of Technical Working Group of
Cereal Systems Initiatives for South Asia and Staff
Reporter of BSS Mamun Islam, BSS Kurigram Correspondent
Abdul Khalek Faruk, addressed.
Dr Bari said Bangladesh goes to large-scale countrywide
farming of epoch-making flash-flood tolerant variety
paddies from this season after official release of two
varieties of the seeds to ultimately produce an additional
six million tonnes paddy annually.
Distribution of 50 tonnes seeds of Swarna Sub1, BR11 Sub1,
IR64 Sub1 and Sambamasuri Sub1 flood-tolerant variety
paddies among 25,000 farmers in 21 districts throughout
the country has now been nearing completion, he said.
A total of 2,000 hectares land would be brought under
farming of these paddies in these districts under six
agriculture zones this season and the same will also be
cultivated on demonstration plots in Rajshahi and Jessore
zones to attract the farmers.
He urged the farmers to preserve their seeds after
harvests of the paddies and suggested all partner NGOs and
organisations for taking necessary steps to commercially
produce, preserve and distribute quality seeds of these
paddies in future.
On the other hand, the farmers expressed their happiness
following release of the seeds of flood tolerant Swarna
Sub 1 as BRRI dhan 51 and BR 11 Sub 1 as BRRI dhan 52
varieties last month by the technical committee of the
National Seed Certification Board.
Harunur Rashid Lal said his organisation Solidarity
successfully cultivated these submergence variety paddies
last year and has taken an extended programme for its
farming in all nine upazilas in Kurigram during this Aman
season.
Vitamin A Plus campaign successfully conducted
BSS, Rangpur
The district health administrations successfully completed
the Vitamin A Plus and De-worming Campaign-2010 in the
northern districts Saturday.
The campaign was conducted under the auspices of the
Public Health and Nutrition Institute of the Health
Directorate under the Ministry of Health and Family
Planning and assistance of the UNICEF, official sources
told BSS.
In Rangpur, the campaign was ceremonially inaugurated by
Director of the Health Directorate Dr AKF Mujibur Rahman
by administering Vitamin A Plus Capsule and De-worming
tablets to the children in village Chowdhury Para under
Sadar upazila.
Chaired by Chandanpat union parishad chairman Shahidul
Islam Chowdhury, the ceremony was attended by Sadar
upazila parishad chairman Mostafizur Rahman Mostafa, civil
surgeon of Rangpur Dr Rezaul Karim and UNO of Sadar
upazila Mostain Billah. Deputy civil surgeon of Rangpur Dr
Mozammel Hossain, Sadar Upazila Health and Family Planning
Officer Dr Jiban Krishna Ghosh, local public
representatives, elite, teachers, officials, women
community leaders and professionals were present.
The speakers on the occasion said the campaign was
conducted for reducing death risks of the babies, saving
them from blindness caused by shortages of Vitamin A.
Collective efforts must to
materialize dream of digital Bangladesh
BSS, Gaibandha
The speakers at a function on Saturday said collective and
united efforts are a must to materialize the dream of
digital Bangladesh as per the Vision 2021 declared by
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to lead the country towards
development and face the challenges of the twenty first
century in line with the modern world.
"The aim of Digital Bangladesh is to build a knowledge and
technology base society and turn the country into happy,
prosperous and poverty and hunger free one through
providing and ensuring the information communication
Technology on various sectors including heath, education,
agriculture and communication to the people to improve
their socio economic conditions and lifestyle," they said.
They said this to a daylong seminar entitled "Digital
Bangladesh and Our Duties" jointly organized by the
Ministry of Science and Information and Communication
Technology and Fulchhari Upazila Administration at the
auditorium of the Upazila Parishad in the district on May
30.
In the seminar, additional deputy commissioner (Revenue)
Ranjit Kumar Das presented the aim, mission, vision and
purpose of building digital Bangladesh elaborately and
urged all to help the government from their respective
positions to attain the cherished goal and vision by 2021
and Upazila Nibahi Officer M. Jahidul Islam conducted it
as the moderator.
Presided over by Upazila Agriculture Officer M. Yousuf
Rana Mondal, the ceremony was also addressed, among
others, by principal of Kanchipara Degree College M.
Aminul Islam, principal of Fulchhari Senior Madrasa
Moulana Sirajul Islam, Gozaria UP Chairman Shahida Islam,
Kanchipara UP Chairman Akbar Hossain Sarker and journalist
Shamsuzzoha Bablu. upazila level officials, public
representatives, teachers, political leaders, social and
cultural personalities and NGO activists, including
journalists took part in the seminar.
12 JMB men charge sheeted in
extortion case in Rajshahi
UNB, Rajshahi
Police in an extortion case on Saturday submitted a charge
sheet against 12 JMB members of Bagmara upazila.
They are: JMB advisor Lutfur Rahman and cadres Mahtab
Khamaru, Jebaul Ahmad Bipul, Abdul Quddus, Shamsuddin,
Mofazzal, Zaidul, Kalimuddin, Mamun Muhri, Siddique, Ainul
and Jalil. Bagmara police submitted the charge sheet to
the Judicial Magistrate Court.
Court sources said the JMB cadres on April 6, 2004,
kidnapped Manik of Jhikra village in the upazila and
demanded Tk one lakh as toll from him.
The kidnappers were paid Tk 50,000 on behalf of the
victim. But Manik was later tortured mercilessly at the
cadres' Hamirkutsa camp for failing to pay the rest
amount.
Though Manik failed to lodge complaint at that time for
fear of life, he, on May 6, 2009, filed a case with the
court against 34 JMB cadres. Police after investigation
submitted the charge sheet against the 12 JMB militants.
3 drug peddlers held with yaba
tablets in Comilla
UNB, Comilla
BDR and RAB in separate drives arrested three drug
peddlers along with huge amount of yaba tablets in Sadar
upazila early Sunday and Saturday night.
Acting on a tip-off, a team of RAB-11 raided the house of
Mohammad Shahjahan at Hatigara village and arrested
Shahjahan, 35, and his wife Jahanara and anther man Dulal
at about 12:30am. They also recovered 10,000 pieces of
yaba tablets worth about Tk 50 lakh during the raid
In another drive, BDR jawans recovered 25,000 pieces of
yaba tablets worth over Tk 1.25 crore from Jalua Para near
Gomoti river in an abandoned condition at 8pm on Saturday.
Drug peddlers fled away sensing the presence of the border
guards.
Sports
Tamim hits inspiring ton at Lord’s
AFP, London
Mercurial Bangladesh opener Tamim Iqbal struck a century as
the first Bangladeshi batsman at the historic Lord's cricket
ground as the tigers scored 180 for none in 37 overs in their
second innings against England.
Tamim scored 103 off 100 balls.
Earlier, Bangladesh was forced to follow-on when the tigers
were all out for 282 in its first innings, a deficit of 223,
on the fourth day of the first Test on Sunday.
James Anderson led an attack missing the rested Stuart Broad
with four wickets for 78 runs in 31 overs.
And 6ft 7in quick Steven Finn, playing his first Test in
England and on his Middlesex home ground, took Test-best
figures of four for 100 in 25 after making his debut during
the tour of Bangladesh in March.
Bangladesh resumed on 237 for seven on Sunday following a rain
marred third day in the opening match of this two-Test series.
Mahmudullah was seven not out and Shahadat Hossain three not
out after Bangladesh had struggled in overcast conditions
ideal for seam bowling following fine innings by Tamim (55),
Kayes (43) and Junaid Siddique (58) when the sun was out on
Friday.
Shahadat was first to fall on Sunday when, a ball after
driving Anderson down to long-off for four, he missed a slow
full toss and was bowled off his pad for 20. Anderson then
clean bowled Mahmudullah for 17 with a full length delivery.
But neither swing bowler Anderson nor Finn, wicketless on
Sunday, got the fifth wicket that would have secured a place
on the Lord's honours boards.
Instead fellow seamer Tim Bresnan took his only wicket of the
innings when when he had Rubel Hossain well caught in the
slips by Alastair Cook for nine.
Last man Robiul Islam was nine not out in a total of 282 - 24
shy of avoiding the follow-on.
And with so much time lost on Saturday, it was no surprise
when England captain Andrew Strauss asked Bangladesh to bat
again with just under two days' play left in the match.
England's total was built around South Africa born Jonathan
Trott's 226 - only the seventh double century by an England
batsman in a Lord's Test and the 14th in total. Fast bowler
Shahadat took five for 98 - the first time a Bangladeshi had
taken five wickets in a Test innings at Lord's.
Viqarunnisa
Noon B beats Rahmatullah Model school by 10 wickets
UNB, Dhaka
Viqarunnisa Noon School B team maintained their winning run in
the 3rd Girls School Cricket Tournament beating Rahmatullah
Model High School by 10 wickets at the Azimpur Girls School
ground on Sunday.
Winning the toss, Rahmatullah Model High School batted first
and scored 52 for 9 in 20 overs. Tasrim Zerin claimed three
wickets for 6. In reply, Viqarunnisa Noon School B team romped
home scoring 53 runs in 5.5 overs without any loss.
In another match at the Sultana Kamal Women's Sports Complex
today, Azimpur Girls School earned a 14-run victory over
Viqarunnisa Noon School A team.
Sent into bat first, Azimpur Girls School scored 87 for all in
20 overs with Suraiya making 11. Roshni, Rifa and Simran took
two wickets each for 7, 20 and 20 runs respectively.
In reply, Viqarunnisa Noon School A team were all out for 73
in 19.2 overs. Kamrul grabbed five wickets for 13.
In the day's other match at the Azimpur Girls School ground,
Par Ganderia PJHS beat Amjad Ali Sarker Pilot Girls High
School by five wickets.
Favoured by coin, Amjad Ali Sarker School batted first to
score 44 for all in 16.1 overs. In reply, Par Ganderia School
easily reached their target of 45 runs in 9.1 overs for the
loss of 5 wickets.
Farashganj
overpowers Muktijoddha 5-1
TBT report
Farashganj Sporting Club scored an emphatic 5-1 victory
against Muktijoddha Sangsad Krira Chakra in the Bangladesh
Football League at Bangabandhu National Stadium in the
city on Sunday.
Sabuj and Jitu scored two goals apiece, while Ismail added
one for Farashganj. Tipu scored the only goal for
Muktijoddha.
Jatrabari Krira Chakra defeated Dhaka Wanderers Club by a
solitary goal in the Basundhara Senior Division Football
League at Bir Shreshtha Shaheed Moha-mmad Mustafa Stadium
in Dhaka. After a barren first half, Topu scored the only
goal of the match for the winners on 68 minutes.
Shakil achieves second IM norm
UNB, Dhaka
Bangladeshi FIDE Master Abu Sufian Shakil on Sunday
achieved the 2nd International Master norm in the 2nd
International Open Grandmaster Chess Tournament now being
held in the Indian town of Bhubaneswar in Orissa.
Shakil finished 34th, the highest position among
Bangladeshi players, securing seven points from eleven
matches.
Besides, four Bangladeshi players earned 6.5 points each -
60th- FM Mohammad Javed, 66th- FM Minhazuddin Ahmed Sagar,
72nd- GM Enamul Hossain Rajib and 82nd- Debaraj Chatterjee.
Positions of other Bangladeshi players are: 87th- FM Mehdi
Hasan Parag, (6 points), 97th- Mohammad Hafizul Islam
Chapal (6 points) 127th-Abdullah Al Saif (5.5 points),
166th- Touhidur Rahman Toffee (5 points), 177th - M.
Kawsar Ali Eti (4.5 points), 190th - Al Qaiyum Rizvi (4.5
points), and 197th - M. Mokaddes Hossain (4.5 points).
In the day's 11th and last round matches, Shakil beat
Ashutosh Mohapatra of India, Sagar drew with GM Varga
Zoltan of Hungary, Razib drew with WGM Soumya Swaminathan
of India, Javed lost to IM Debashis Das of India, Parag
lost to GM Pogorelov Ruslan of Ukraine, Debaraj drew with
IM Prathamesh Sunil Mokal of India, Chapal drew with
Panigrahi Manoj Kumar of India, Saif lost to Fenil Shah of
India, Toffee lost to Anurag Mhamal of India, Mokaddes
drew with Somu Gorai of India, Rizvi drew with Akankhya
Kabi of India and Ety beat Samresh Mahapatra of India.
A total of 249 players, including 34 grandmasters, 3
women's grandmasters and 27 International Masters from 13
countries took part in the meet.
Dementieva shows no mercy
AFP, Paris
Fifth seed Elena Dementieva swept into the French Open
quarter-finals here on Sunday with an emphatic 6-1, 6-3
victory over South African qualifier Chanelle Scheepers.
The Russian, who had struggled to complete her third-round
win over Aleksandra Wozniak due to a calf injury, won in
74 minutes and will meet either Venus Williams or Nadia
Petrova for a place in the semi-finals.
Maria Kirilenko, the 30th seed who defeated defending
champion Svetlana Kuznetsova in the previous round, failed
in her attempt to follow her compatriot Dementieva into
the last eight. She lost 6-4, 6-4 to Italian 17th seed
Francesca Schiavone, who will now take on either
14th-seeded countrywoman Flavia Pennetta or Danish third
seed Caroline Wozniacki.
Play was due to resume later on Sunday in the third-round
clash between four-time champion Justine Henin and former
world number one Maria Shara-pova, after the match was
suspended at one set all amid fading light on Saturday.
Henin, playing at Roland Garros for the first time since
2007 following her temporary retirement, took the first
set 6-2, with Sharapova levelling the match by winning the
second 6-3.
The winner will face Australian seventh seed Samantha
Stosur for a place in the last eight. Dementieva and
Schee-pers, the world number 133, exchanged breaks in the
opening two games before Dementieva broke again twice,
opening up a 4-1 lead with a powerful forehand return
winner that left Scheepers floundering.
Dementieva, who wore bandages on both calves, secured the
first set when Scheepers double-faulted and captured the
decisive break in the second set when the South African
looped a forehand long.
Sonargaon Seven Star
wins Cooline AC Rugby title
TBT report
Sonargaon Noyapur Seven Star Rugby Team emerged champion
in the Cooline AC Rugby Championship defeating Bangladesh
J-Sports Rugby Team 17-12 in the final at Paltan Maidan
Sports Groun in the city on Sunday.
The winners led the first half 12-7. Bangladesh Rugby
Association organised the competition with the sponsorship
of Cooline AC.
Llorente saves Spain blushes
AFP, Innsbruck
An injury-time goal from substitute Fernando Llorente
saved Spain blushes on Saturday with a last-gasp 3-2
victory over Saudi Arabia in a pre-World Cup friendly
here.
The Saudis had taken the surprise lead over the European
champions when Osama Hawsawi found the net with a header
after 16 minutes.
Spain poured into attack with David Villa (30) and Xabi
Alonso (58) putting Vicente Del Bosque's side back in
control before an Mohammed Al-Sahlawi equaliser looked set
to upset a team who are among the World Cup favourites.
Athletic Bilbao striker Llorente, however, found the net
two minutes into extra time to give Del Bosque's side a
victory in the first of three friendlies ahead of the
World Cup finals. "They (Saudis) played well. We were
sluggish in our ball handling. If we'd been more alert we
could have won by a bigger margin," said Del Bosque.
Saudi Arabia's Portu-guese coach Jose Peseiro added: "They
deserved to win. They had more chances and we needed a bit
of luck." Midfielder Xavi Hernandez said that Spain was
finding their rhythm two weeks ahead of the World Cup.
"The team felt comfortable together despite conceding two
goals," he said. "These games are good to find our
rhythm."
Spain had dominated early play with Sergio Ramos heading a
corner just wide after 13 minutes.
But the Saudis went straight into attack and got a chance
to move ahead when defender Gerard Pique fouled Mishal Al
Saeed. Midfielder Abdoh Autef took the free-kick, but his
effort hit the Spain wall. But the Saudis did not have to
wait long before taking the lead through Al-Hilal defender
Hawsawi.
The shocked Spaniards poured forward with Barcelona's
Villa getting the equaliser when he rose to head in an
Andres Iniesta cross on the half hour mark.
The Spaniards dominated after the break with Real Madrid's
Alonso getting their second after 58 minutes.
But the Saudis did not let down their guard which allowed
Al-Sahlawi to break through after 74 minutes.
In the last quarter of an hour, Spain continued to push
for the winner, with Llorente, a 70th-minute replacement
for Villa, hitting wide in the 83rd minute.
The Saudis finally cracked with Llorente heading in an
Alonso's corner to give Spain their 14th consecutive
victory.
Brazilian Samurai ready to rumble
for Japan
AFP, Tokyo
Japan defender Marcus Tulio Tanaka may be just another
Brazilian who has made the World Cup after abandoning his
star-studded country, but he claims the Samurai spirit is
running in his blood.
Tulio acquired Japanese nationality in 2003 and has become
the third Brazilian-born player to represent them at a
World Cup, following Wagner Lopes in 1998 and Alessandro
Santos in 2002 and 2006.
But he is the first Brazilian of Japanese ancestry to
stand on the big stage. Other boys from Brazil are now
fighting for other flags - including Deco for Portugal and
Cacau for Germany.
Tulio admits that as a child he never dreamed of fighting
for the country which his grandparents left to seek their
fortunes in Brazil.
He remembers that his grandfather Yoshiyuki, who emigrated
to Brazil at 11 and died last year at 92 as a retired
coffee plantation owner, used to say: "We should never
spoil Japanese pride in Brazil." "No matter how, I wanted
to repay my grandfather who was courageous enough to
become a pioneer in Brazil," the 29-year-old Nagoya
Grampus hardman said.
With his long, dark tied-back hair and vocal presence on
the pitch, Tulio has become the pride of the 1.3
million-strong Japanese community in Brazil and is
bringing qualities which are rare among most other Blue
Samurai.
"I have unrivalled weapons," he said, citing his "strong
heading in aerial battles" and "fierce fighting spirit."
Tulio has scored seven goals in 37 matches for Japan since
his debut in 2006, when he was denied a World Cup ticket
by then Blue Samurai coach and legendary compatriot Zico
but named the J-League player of the year. That
goal-hungry quality is much needed for the former Asian
champions who face the Netherlands, Cameroon and Denmark
in Group E with a solid midfield but feeble firepower.
"Everybody recognises Tulio's scoring potential," Japan
coach Takeshi Okada said. But he demanded Tulio follow the
example of Brazil and Inter Milan centre back Lucio who
"returns to the defensive side with all his might".
Roddick, Hewitt seek Wimbledon
salvation
AFP, Paris
Grasscourt aficionados Andy Roddick and Lleyton Hewitt
quickly turned their thoughts to Wimbledon after seeing
their dreams of claycourt success at the French Open
ground into the Paris dirt.
Sixth seed Roddick lost 6-4, 6-4, 6-2 to Russian qualifier
Teimuraz Gabashvili, the world number 114, on Saturday,
while 28th seed Hewitt fell in straight sets to four-time
champion Rafael Nadal.
Roddick, like Hewitt a former world number one, had
skipped the entire pre-tournament claycourt season for
personal seasons and extended his record of having never
gone beyond the fourth round at Roland Garros.
Hewitt's best results at the French Grand Slam are
quarter-final finishes in 2002 and 2004, but both men are
a very different prospect on grass.
Cacau shines as Germany downs
Hungary
AFP, Budapest
Striker Cacau scored his third goal in two games for his
adopted country to seal Germany's 3-0 win over Hungary in
a World Cup warm-up friendly here on Saturday.
Brazilian-born Cacau, who only qualified to play for
Germany last year, came off the bench to add to the two
goals he scored in the 3-0 win over Malta to strengthen
his case for the starting line-up for the World Cup side.
Germany begin their World Cup campaign in Group D on June
13 against Australia and fly to South Africa on June 7
after their final warm-up game against Bosnia-Herzegovina
next Thursday.
Alongside Cacau, Lukas Podolski and Mario Gomez weighed in
with goals to cap impressive performances.
Germany coach Joachim Loew was pleased with the
performance, but must cut two players to announce his
final 23-man squad on June 1 for the World Cup.
"There will be lots of speculation in the next few days,"
said Loew.
"The coaches will sit down together on Sunday and Monday
with the coaching staff and announce the squad on Tuesday.
"Of course, it will hurt for the players concerned, but
unfortunately we can only take 23."
With Germany captain Michael Ballack injured and out of
next month's World Cup, Bayern Munich striker Miroslav
Klose took over the skipper's armband.
Having played in last weekend's Champions League final
defeat, Bayern Munich quartet Bastian Schweinsteiger,
Thomas Mueller, Hans-Joerg Butt and Germany's new World
Cup captain Philipp Lahm were all rested.
Like Loew, Hungarian coach Erwin Koeman opted for a
4-2-3-1 formation with Augsburg forward Sandor Torghelle
as the lone striker.
Germany opened the score at the Ferenc Puskas Stadium when
Podolski, playing as an attacking midfielder, drilled in a
long-range shot which Hungarian goalkeeper Gabor Kiraly
palmed over the bar.
From the resulting corner, defender Per Mertesacker was
fouled in the penalty area and referee Claus Larsen of
Denmark had no hesitation awarding the penalty.
Kiraly dived to his left and Podolski rifled his shot into
the top right-hand corner to make it 1-0 to Germany after
four minutes.
To compound things for the hosts, defender Laszlo Bodnar
was shown the first yellow card moments later for hauling
down Podolski on the edge of the penalty area. Germany
hammered the Hungarian defence in the first 20 minutes
with Bremen's Mesut Oezil going close with three clear
chances to score.
Trochowski was booked in the 41st minute for a heavy
tackle. It finished 1-0 at the break, but early in the
second-half Loew brought on Stuttgart striker Cacau for
midfielder Oezil and defender Dennis Aogo came on for
midfielder Sami Khedira.
Germany temporaily dropped their tempo in the second-half
and with 60 minutes gone, Loew introduced Marcel Jansen
for rising star Toni Kroos, Marko Marin for Trochowski and
Gomez for Klose.
Marin, who was a constant threat, made an instant
impression when he slid a pass through to Gomez who beat
Kiraly on 69 minutes.
Kiraly's luck did not improve as his clearance kick was
headed into the path of Cacau who drew the goalkeeper and
tapped home his shot on 72 minutes to seal a convincing
display from his side.
Bangladesh scores 192/2
TBT Sports Desk
Bangladesh scored 192 for two in 45 overs in its second
innings on the fourth day of the first Test against
England at Lord's Cricket Ground in London on Sunday.
Tamim was out for 103 runs, while Imrul Kayes added 75.
Jahurul Islam with three and Junaid Siddique with two were
batting after the departure of the opening duo.
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