Bangladesh fails Sidr victims

Seen on: YouTube

Life after Cyclone Sidr, has been mixed for its survivors. After a year of promises by the mostly corrupt Bangladeshi administration, people are putting their lives back-together with assistance from non-governmental organizations.

Bangladesh: A Nuclear-Dream

Bangladesh is heading towards the path of becoming the third nuclear nation in South Asia. The topic came in discussion during meetings between the Chinese minister Yang Jiechi and Bangladesh's foreign advisor Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury.
The Chinese minister was on a two-day tour to Bangladesh recently.

The foreign advisor of Bangladesh said, China is a partner and the visit of Chinese minister would further strengthen this relationship.

´Our friendship is rooted in history, but like all relationships, ties between nations also have to be renewed and reinvigorated from time to time, and this visit was an occasion to do just that,´ the foreign adviser stated.

The Chinese foreign minister said, military cooperation is an important part of the overall bilateral relation between Bangladesh and China. Jiechi, who also met the army chief, General Moeen U Ahmed, made the remarks to journalists.

Via American Chronicle

The Torture of Tasneem Khalil

The torture of journalist Tasneem Khalil by Bangladesh's notorious military intelligence agency highlights abuses under the country's state of emergency and the government's failure, Human Rights Watch has said in a new report.

The 39-page report, "The Torture of Tasneem Khalil", graphically details Khalil's 22-hour ordeal in May 2007 in Bangladesh's clandestine detention and torture system -- a setup well known to the government & ordinary Bangladeshis.

"Rampant illegal detention and torture are clear evidence of Bangladesh's security forces running amok," said Brad Adams, of Human Rights Watch.

"Bangladesh's international friends need to make the eradication of torture a top priority in their relations with Bangladesh," said Adams.

Excerpts from Tasneem Khalil's statement:
"[A member of the arresting party] jumped up from the chair, pulled out a revolver, pushed it against my lips, and started shouting, 'You are under arrest.' I started shouting back, telling them that what they were doing was illegal."

"Then they asked me about my connections with Human Rights Watch. I told them I work as their consultant. When they inquired further, I told them I had worked with Human Rights Watch since 2006. I worked with Human Rights Watch on a report about extrajudicial killings by RAB. That suddenly infuriated them so much that all of them started hitting the table with hands and sticks and started shouting at me. 'How dare you write against our brothers in RAB?"

"They started beating me again mercilessly, from all possible directions with hands and batons and kicks. I said I would not do those things again. But one person said I had already 'made the blunder'."

Via Bangladesh-Blogger

Shakira's Bangladesh-Appeal

Seen on: YouTube

Musician Shakira calls for action, after visiting Bangladeshi cyclone-victims in 07.

Power of the mobile phone

Why does poverty still exist despite decades of development aid?

In this talk, Iqbal-Quadir explains why "aid does damages: because it empowers authorities instead of people," and advocates a new approach to development from below, "by the people for the people." His own experience as a child in Bangladesh and later a banker in New York brought him to realize that "connectivity is productivity" -- and that a simple cell phone has enormous power.

Now his telecom company, Grameenphone, offers service to most of rural Bangladesh, creating new opportunities by connecting villages to the world.

Bangladesh-Corruption: Passport

Corruption is a part of each and every Bangladeshi life, both rural & urban.

The presence of corruption has made us obtuse in recognizing corruption. We routinely take part in various forms of corruption, without realizing.

What do you do as a common-citizen trying to obtain a passport, which is your right as a citizen, but; cannot obtain without a bribe? A passport is not-issued until a favourable police verification-report is submitted with an application.


Therefore, a common-citizen must pay a bribe for that. However, if you have power and influence, you will not face these obstacles.

Many of us feel extremely bad when we have to compromise with corruption, unfortunately the only recourse maybe to seek solace with family. We must refuse to surrender to corruption and only a social-movement can liberate us.

Via Shahzaman-Mozumder, Bir-Protik

Bangladesh Blogger says:

I personally had to pay Taka-10,000 to get a passport in Feb, 2007. This unofficial-fee was paid to a a police-officer Called 'Babar', in Sylhet. His mobile-phone number at the time was (017-122-02417). However I resisted, I was told by an elder - this was the norm, "you must pay a fee to the DB-officer..,".

Will write more about-this, soon. God willing.

Bangladesh Corruption: Titas Gas

About 80 percent of the staff at Bangladesh's biggest state-owned gas distributor took bribes to the tune of millions, the head of a anti-graft body has said.

Employees of Titas-Gas Distribution Company pocketed bribes in return for undercharging thousands of factories and homes, said the chief probing the company. Colonel Hasan, who uses one name, said so far 127 workers at Titas Gas had agreed to return 58 million dollars worth of assets bought with the money.

"But it is a tiny fraction of the money these people have made by under-billing the amount of gas a company or an individual household has consumed," he said.

Bangladesh Blogger says: Above image courtesy of Titas-Gas, is to encourage its clients, not to waste this vital national-treasure. However, it seems the management of this mis-managed organization was not paying much-attention.

Via AFP

Bangladesh bans talk-show

Bangladesh's government has banned two popular live political talk shows, the private satellite television channel ETV has said.

"The information ministry handed us a written order saying that we cannot telecast out our live talk shows," a senior ETV official told AFP.

ETV, the country's first terrestrial television station, was banned by a court order during the previous Bangladesh Nationalist Party-led government in 2002.

It resumed operation last year after foregoing its terrestrial rights.

Via Bangladesh-Blogger

Cash Back Bangladesh

Independent film with a focus on British-Bangladeshi remittances and foreign-aid, and their impact on British and Bangladeshi society.

• By far, the largest overseas Bangladeshi communities that have settled in the West are in the UK (and increasingly the US,) with well over a quarter of a million people of Bangladeshi origin living in Britain.


• The total value of remittances sent by expatriates to the developing world was conservatively estimated to exceed $80 billion last year. As members of the largest overseas Bangladeshi community in the developed world, we have a particularly poignant interest in this topic.
  


• Remittances are conservatively estimated to contribute at least 4% of Bangladesh's GDP and have directly helped Bangladesh's balance of payments by contributing around a third of its foreign exchange needs. In monetary terms, remittance income is larger as a net gain than the near $5 billion foreign exchange earnings earned by the ready-made garment (RMG) sector, because the latter figure is significantly reduced when adjusted for the cost of materials and tax breaks.
  

Excerpts from a Memorandum submitted by the British Bangladeshi International Development Group (BBIDG) to the Select-Committee.


Via Bangladesh Blogger

Dhaka-Burning

Seen on: YouTube

Ron from Dhaka says >
August 20, 2007: Dhaka-University (DU) erupts in violence as army men beat students. The army-personnel mercilessly beat 3 DU-students & humiliated a teacher over a petty-dispute concerning comments passed by spectators watching a soccer match on the university ground.

August 30, 2007: General-Moeen imposes curfew in all major cities; warns tough action against trouble makers; all universities closed for indefinite period.

Background
The army sneaked into power on January 11, 2007, through a bloodless-coup.

Via Bangladesh-Blogger

Khaleda-Zia: Out on parole

Former Bangladesh prime-minister Khaleda Zia and her two sons were temporarily released from jail to attend the funeral service of her-mother, an official said.

"The authorities have released Khaleda-Zia and her two sons on parole for several hours to attend the funeral service of her mother," home ministry spokesman Shahnur Mia said.

Zia, the country's last elected prime minister and the leader of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), and her two sons were arrested last year by the country's military-backed emergency government.

Via AFP

Student-protest continues in Bangladesh

Students have continued their protests in Dhaka against the leakage of question-papers for exams under the National-University.

Students of Dhaka-College on Tuesday took to the streets and blocked traffic on Mirpur-Road. "The students should not pay for this kind of errors, which is a fault of the authorities." they demanded.

Via Bangladesh-Blogger

Bangladeshi child-rape-victim released

A nine-year-old rape victim who has spent six-months in a Bangladeshi jail, has been released following a national-outcry over her-plight.

"She was kept in jail for the convenience of the investigation, because if she was given to her mother; she might not have been found for the court hearing," said Jesmin Ara Rosy, of the Bangladesh National Women Lawyers' Association.

"Whenever I went to the jail, she cried and begged me to take her out. I met the judge four times to ask for her release," Rosy told AFP.

The girl was finally sent to a shelter on Tuesday, she added, after the head of the army, General Moeen U. Ahmed, intervened.

Via Inquirer.net

A Question-of-Honours

The National-University of Bangladesh, has formed a committee to probe the leakege of question-papers for 2nd-Year Honours-English Compulsory-Exams.

The investigation-team is headed by NU-syndicate member Enamul Haque Shaheed, who has been asked to submit its report in seven working days.

At a meeting, chaired by its acting Vice-Chancellor Syed Rashidul Hasan, NU decided to form the probe-committee and announced that the postponed exams, would now be held on January 29/30, sources-said.

Student Protests
Students of Dhaka-College and Eden-College yesterday formed human-chains and demonstrated on the streets of Dhaka, after the revelations.


"We are suffering because of the frequent question-leaks, but the authorities are yet to take any steps," said a demonstrating-student.

Via Bangladesh-Blogger

Former PM's son tortured

The detained son of Bangladesh's most recent elected prime-minister has said he was tortured during questioning-on-corruption allegations, reports have suggested.

Rahman was arrested last March as part of the military-backed emergency government's graft crackdown.

Tareque Rahman, the son of Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) leader Khaleda-Zia, told a court bail hearing that he was blindfolded and suspended from a ceiling.

Via AP

Amnesty pushes Bangladesh

Amnesty International's Secretary General told a meeting of NGOs in Bangladesh that the organisation is in the country to push for reform.

Irene Khan said "as Amnesty International’s Secretary General and a Bangladeshi, I feel there is a window of opportunity that can turn the trend from which this-country has suffered. In this country, there has been a culture of impunity."

"This culture of impunity goes back to 1971; we feel it is an institutional problem. There needs to be a strong independent judiciary, police-reform, action to address torture and ill-treatment."

She said that the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) and the military need to be held accountable for human rights violations, that there needs to be an effective National Human Rights Commission and freedom of information legislation.

Via Bangladesh Blogger

Iajuddin's advisers

Bangladesh President Iajuddin Ahmed has appointed five new-advisers to replace those who resigned days before the military-backed interim government marks its first year.

Rasheda K. Choudhury and economist Hossain Zillur Rahman were sworn in by Ahmed, government official Ali Imam Majumder said.

In 2007, President Ahmed declared a state of emergency on Jan. 11 and appointed an 11-member interim government the next day following weeks of violent protests ahead of general elections, which had been scheduled for Jan.22.

That government, headed by former central bank governor Fakhruddin Ahmed, has the backing of the country's influential-military and most foreign donor-countries.

Via AP

Rice-Corruption in Bangladesh

Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) Chairman Hasan Mashhud Chowdhury has termed the ongoing rice-crisis, as a matter-of-corruption.

At a news-briefing, Hasan Mashhud said: "The act that is not acceptable to conscience is corruption. Acute scarcity of rice is corruption."

"I have nothing to do. The government will take steps in this regard.", he said in reply to a question whether ACC would track-corruption behind the crisis.

Via Bangladesh Blogger

> Bangladesh 'facing rice crisis'

The Diplomatic Rift

A row has erupted between Paris and Dhaka after the theft of two ancient-statues led to the cancellation of a ground-breaking exhibition.

Bangladesh scrapped the exhibition at the Guimet-Museum, amid claims that France could not be trusted with some of the country's finest cultural treasures.

French officials pointed out, however, that the 1,500-year-old statues were stolen amid insufficient security controls in Dhaka, and claimed that the exhibition had fallen victim to a plot involving art-traffickers and opponents of the Bangladeshi regime.

The artworks disappeared from Zia international airport, Dhaka, before they could be loaded on to an Air France aircraft for Paris, where the first important international exhibition of Bangladeshi relics was due to open.

The theft of the two representations of Vishnu, sparked a political crisis in Bangladesh and prompted the resignation of Ayub Quadri, the cultural affairs adviser.

With the controversy over the loss of the statues increasing in Dhaka, the Bangladeshi government withdrew authorisation for 143 remaining relics to leave the country and asked Guimet-Museum to return th 42 objects that had already arrived safely.

French authorities believe that the thefts were organised by corrupt Bangladeshi officials colluding with art-traffickers and government critics.

In a statement, the French-Embassy in Dhaka pointed to "a conspiracy".

The exhibition of statues, paintings, manuscripts and coins dating from the 3rd century BC to 19th century had already provoked fierce debate in Bangladesh, where opponents attempted to stop the loan of the artefacts with legal action.

Protests continued even after the Supreme Court approved the transfer of the artefacts to France in October. Intellectuals and artists also opposed the exhibition, saying that France had never returned works loaned for display in the 1950s.

Shamsuzzaman Khan, a former director of the Bangladesh National Museum, said: "The government should not have agreed to send them abroad."

Via Bangladesh Blogger