24 March 2014

Chaitra 10, 1420 Jamadiul Awal 22, 1435 Regd. No. DA 6238 Vol 1 No 360

MONDAY, MARCH 24, 2014 | www.dhakatribune.com | SECOND EDITION

B1 | H1 BUDGET SPENDING ACCELERATES

7 | NO END TO DHAKA’S WATER POLLUTION

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8 | EUROPE’S RESPONSE TO CRIMEA

13 | PAKISTAN SURVIVE MAX SCARE

Fourth phase sees more violence 4 die as clashes, rigging mar polls; allegations of anarchy widespread n Mohammad Al-Masum Molla At least four people were killed and scores injured in upazila elections-related violence in four districts yesterday, amid claims from the ruling party ranks and the Election Commission that the fourth phase polls in 91 local bodies have been peaceful.

The BNP on the other hand has brought allegations of widespread an-

P3, 5 MORE POLLS STORIES archy and vote rigging against the ruling party men.

At least 25 candidates, including BNP and JaPa-backed ones and even Awami League rebels, boycotted the polls in around 10 upazilas alleging irregularities and violence and demanded fresh voting.

Voting was suspended in at least 32 polling centers in 11 upazilas after law and order situation in those areas went out of control.

However, voting has been large-

ly peaceful in most places in Sylhet, Rangpur and Rajshahi regions.

In an intra-party clash at a polling centre in Gazaria upazila of Munshiganj, local Awami League leader Samsuddin Prodhan, also chairman of Baluakandi union, was killed.

Supporters of Awami Leaguebacked candidate Amirul Islam and rebel Refayetullah Khan Tota locked into a clash in front of the polling centre set up at the Dr Abdul Gaffar School and College in the morning, leaving Shamsuddin dead on the spot, said Presiding Officer Sarwar Morshed Chowdhury.

Voting was postponed at the centre following the skirmish.

In Rajapur upazila of Jhalakathi, an activist of Jubo League – Awami League’s youth front – was killed, allegedly by the supporters of the BNPbacked candidate.

In Akhaura upazila of Brahmanbaria, brother of a local BNP leader was killed when Border Guard Bangladesh men opened fire in front of a polling  PAGE 2 COLUMN 2

Locals block the Dhaka-Chittagong highway to protest the death of a union parishad chairman in a clash between two groups of Awami League supporters during the vote at Gazaria upazila in Munshiganj yesterday DHAKA TRIBUNE

Now Awami League takes a huge lead Probe report on Jamaat’s n war crimes tomorrow UPAZILA PARISHAD Mohammad Al-Masum Molla

The ruling Awami League has significantly made up for the grounds that it had lost in the first two phases of the upazila polls, clinching a massive majority in the fourth phase amid widespread violence and rigging.

Unofficial results suggest that out of the 91 upazilas that voted yesterday, the ruling party-backed contenders have bagged 53 chairman seats and those backed by BNP only 24.

The landslide result in favour of the Awami League stands in stark contrast with the outcomes of the previous three phases, in the first two of which the BNP came out on top by narrow

margins. In the third, however, the Awami League fought back by clinching a slim majority.

The rebel candidates, who have been big headaches for both the major parties, have once again failed to impress. Two rebels, one each from the ruling party and the BNP, have emerged victorious in yesterday’s voting.

Candidates backed by BNP’s ally Jamaat-e-Islami, many of whose top leaders have been convicted for war crimes, have won in only five upazilas.

For the party, this result is virtually a continuation from the last three phases – 12 in the first phase, and eight seats each in the second and third.  PAGE 2 COLUMN 2

POLLS

AL BNP Jamaat Others Witheld

Indian players celebrate after dismissing West Indies opener Chris Gayle during their ICC T20 World Cup match at Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium yesterday MUMIT M

India thump listless champs

n Mazhar Uddin It was yet another dominating all round performance from team India that powered them to a seven-wicket victory over defending champions West Indies in the World Twenty20 at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium yesterday.

India’s second consecutive win was identical to their first, as the Indian spinners shared all seven wickets to set the platform by restricting West Indies to 129, before Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli struck fifties to make the journey easier.

India suffered an early hiccup in their chase to the mediocre target as Shikhar Dhawan was removed without troubling the scorers in the first over. Shikhar could consider him unlucky as replays showed Samuel Badree’s delivery was sliding down the leg, but the dismissal had hardly troubled the Indian side as Kohli and Rohit ensured full points with a 106-run second wicket partnership.  PAGE 2 COLUMN 5

INSIDE News

4 A coordinated approach is necessary to properly face climate change issues, discussants said at a roundtable yesterday.

Nation

6 Rajbari Adhunik Sadar Hospital is facing hard times because of a serious

lack of doctors, nurses and staff, as well as proper accommodation for patients.

Op-Ed

11 Once, a famous writer said he didn’t want to go to heaven because none of his friends were there. So, where will Khushwant Singh end up – heaven or hell?

n Udisa Islam 4th

Previous

54 24 5 5 2

124 123 28 14 -

The investigation agency of the International Crimes Tribunal is ready to hand over to the prosecution its report on Jamaat-e-Islami’s role as a political party during the 1971 Liberation War. In its report, the probe team has prayed to the tribunal for imposing a ban on Jamaat as a political party and confiscation of its property.

If the party is charged with war crimes, it will be the first such case in Bangladesh.

The agency may submit the report

EC satisfied with ‘peaceful’ polls n Mohammad Zakaria Acting Chief Election Commissioner Abdul Mobarak yesterday expressed his satisfaction over holding “peaceful” elections to 91 upazilas across the country.

Mobarak, however, reluctantly admitted that there were some stray incidents of violence on the day of the polls.

He said the commission had taken all the allegations into cognisance and directed the authorities concerned to take action immediately against those involved in the violence.

“There were some isolated incidents during elections. These are undesirable. We have suspended elections in 32 polling centres in 11 upazilas.

Those who were responsible will not be spared,” Mobarak told a press conference at the Election Commission’s media centre after the polls ended.

Replying to a query he said: “The irresistible yearning to be a winner at any cost is responsible for the violence.”

About vote recounting, he said the commission has no authority to do so but the aggrieved candidates can apply to the Election Tribunal.

When asked about vote rigging,  PAGE 2 COLUMN 2

No Islami Bank money for anthem n Tribune report

to the prosecution tomorrow, said sources. Later the prosecution would scrutinise the report and submit formal charges before the tribunal.

During the investigation, it was revealed that Jamaat had been involved in all kinds of conspiracies to ruin the liberation movement and carried out inhuman atrocities in 1971.

The agency has mentioned in the report the names and positions of Jamaat’s central leaders during the ninemonth-long war. It also covers Jamaat’s activities from its very birth up to

The government yesterday said it would not take the Tk3 crore donation from Islami Bank for “Lakho Konthe Shonar Bangla” event on Independence Day upon reservation of the cultural affairs ministry.

When contacted, Ataur Sarkar, executive vice-president of Islami Bank and also public relations officer, told the Dhaka Tribune: “We have already informed the government authorities concerned to use the donated Tk3 crore in other suitable sectors of the country.”

The Bank and Financial Intuitions

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2

DHAKA TRIBUNE

News

Monday, March 24, 2014

JaPa stages walkout n Kamran Reza Chowdhury The Jatiya Party lawmakers yesterday staged a brief walkout from the assembly protesting the government decision to increase the power tariff.

This is the first apparent role of the opposition the JaPa played in the 25th sitting since the House was launched on January 29.

Around 20 JaPa MPs including State Minister for Labour and Employment Mujibul Haque walked out of the House around 5.25 pm – 10minutes after the assembly started its business with Speaker Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury in the chair.

Whip Atiur Rahman Atik: Walkout in parliamentary democracy is very common, but the issue for which they walked out is a only a walkout for walkout According to the parliamentary practices, the ministers cannot oppose the treasury as all government decisions are taken by the cabinet as a collective responsibility.

Tajul Islam Chowdhury, the chief whip of the opposition, took the floor in an unscheduled slot as soon as the speaker tabled the question-answer scripts without discussion, making it a part of the proceedings.

At the outset, Tajul Islam condemned the comments of the Transparency International Bangladesh that at a recent press conference observed that the 10th parliament had no opposition. He claimed that the JaPa was an

New rank badges introduced for BGB n Kailash Sarkar New rank badges have been introduced for the Border Guard Bangladesh as part of restructuring of the force.

The newly introduced badges were accorded to BGB officials, including DG Maj Gen Aziz Ahmed, by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina at her office yesterday.

Four regional headquarters, four new sectors and other units were formed as part of the restructuring.

M Muhasin Reza, information officer of the BGB, said with the introduction of the ranks, a longstanding and embarrassing situation was solved.

Bangladesh Rifles was restructured with the name BGB following the February 2009 carnage at Pilkhana in which 74 people, including 57 army officials, were killed. l

opposition in the legislature.

“The Jatiya Party was never an exclusive opposition. We were in the opposition bench either with the Awami League or the BNP. A good number of our MPs are young; they need some time to understand the parliamentary rules and practices,” said the opposition chief whip,justifying his party role as an opposition in the House.

He said the JaPa earlier talked against the “criminal activities” of the Chhatra League and raised the power price hike issue.

Leader of the opposition Raushan Ershad was seen sitting on her chair.

Tajul said the government promised to provide electricity to the people at affordable prices, but acted against its promise. He said the power hike would hurt the people further.

“In protest of this unfair and unreasonable decision, we are walking out of the Sangsad,” said the opposition chief whip.

The attending MPs expressed their surprise at the JaPa’s walkout decision.

“This is good walkout,” Atiur Rahman Atik, a whip, said as the JaPa MPs were leaving the House. Most of the MPs were seen laughing.

They returned to the House at 5.32 pm amid desk thumbing from theAwami League MPs. Awami League’s Israfil Alam took floor to deliver his speech on the president’s parliamentary address after the JaPa MPs left.

The JaPa MPs took position at the opposition lobby before they returned.

“Walkout in parliamentary democracy is very common, but the issue for which they walked out is a only a walkout for walkout,” he said.

Israfil then criticised HM Ershad’s government that increased the price of electricity by 135%.

He said the government had no way but to increase the power tariff. l

Newly elected MPs for the reserved seats for women take oath under Speaker Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury yesterday

Victim describes Mir Kashem’s torture n Udisa Islam

An elderly witness told the war crimes tribunal yesterday that he had been tortured at Daleem Hotel in 1971 by al-Badr men and their leader Mir Kashem Ali. SM Jamal Uddin, 75, submitted his deposition as the 18th prosecution witness. Jamal, a businessman from Pathantuli of Chittagong, said he had been abducted by al-Badr men on November 29, 1971. At that time, his brothers Kamal and Sarwar, and cousins Emran and Osman had also been

Now Awami League takes  PAGE 1 COLUMN 2

However, the right wing Islamist party, whom the International Crimes Tribunal has labelled as a criminal organisation in some of its verdicts, has once again done well in the areas known as its strongholds.

In Satkania of Chittagong and Zianagar of Pirojpur, Jamaat-backed contenders have bagged all the posts in the upazila parishad panels, namely chairman, vice-chairman and vice-chairwoman.

In Zianagar, home of death row war criminal Delawar Hossain Sayedee, his son Masud-Bin-Sayedee has emerged victorious as chairman.

In eight of the districts out of the 41 that voted yesterday, the Awami League came up with a clean sweep, with the candidates it backed winning chairman posts in two upazilas in Jessore, two in Bagerhat, six in Khulna, four in Patuakhali, three in Bhola, three

in Barisal, four in Jhalakathi and two in Feni.

Interestingly, in Patuakhali, Bhola, Barisal, Jhalakathi and Feni, all the contenders backed by the BNP and most of the rebel candidates from both the tents boycotted the polls alleging irregularities and demanded fresh voting.

AL came up with a clean sweep in all the upazilas that voted yesterday in seven districts For Bhola and Barisal, the boycotting – within a couple of hours of the start of voting – by the BNP-backed candidates is an exact repetition of the previous three phases.

A total of seven upazilas in Chittagong voted to elect their chairmen in the fourth phase yesterday. None of

No Islami Bank

EC satisfied with ‘peaceful’ polls

 PAGE 1 COLUMN 6

 PAGE 1 COLUMN 6

Division of the finance ministry in a statement said the government recently urged the private businesses to willingly contribute in two big events – ICC World Twenty20 and “Lakho Konthe Shonar Bangla” (national anthem by millions) – for which the government needs Tk90 crore.

Many organisations responded to the call and the prime minister received the cheques in presence of senior ministers including Finance Minister AMA Muhith.

“But after assessing the donations, we came to know that Islami Bank gave Tk3 crore for the Lakho Konthe Shonar Bangla event. But as the cultural affairs ministry refuted to accept the money, we have decided not to accept it,” said the statement signed by Joint Secretary Arjit Chowdhury.

“Islami Bank can decide to give the money for the T20 World Cup. It is a registered financial institution and has been conducting business in line with the law. Some [people] do not have positive perception about it while some organisations earlier refused to accept its money.

“We want to say unequivocally that the donation by Islami Bank for Lakho Konthe Shonar Bangla event is not being accepted,” the statement adds.

A week ago, Cultural Affairs Minister Asaduzzaman Noor denied receiving any donation from Islami Bank for the event.

While many in the country are enthusiastic about setting a new world record, many others criticised the government for receiving donation from Islami Bank on the ground that some of its top brass had allegedly been involved in war crimes during the country’s 1971 Liberation War. Arranged by the cultural affairs ministry and the Armed Forces Division, the event will be held on March 26 at 11am at the National Parade Square where around 3 lakh people are expected to sing the national anthem in chorus. l

Mobarak said the commission had taken the matter under consideration.

“If anyone has the evidence to prove it, the aggrieved candidates can bring the matter to the notice of the Election Tribunal within a month after publishing the gazette notification,” he also said.

“However, the allegation should be authentic.”

Asked about the police attacks on the election officials in some upazilas, the acting CEC said: “Legal action will be taken against the responsible law enforcing personnel. None will be spared.”

An incident of police assault on an assistant returning officer was reported in Gozaria. The Assistant Sub-Inspec-

tor of Louhajong police station Emdad beat the assistant returning officer of Gozaria upazila. Emdad also assaulted the upazila nirbahi officer of the same upazila.

The commission has already directed the home ministry to take legal action against the police official, assistant secretary Ashfakur Rahman said.

Referring to some media reports on the army’s authority, he said: “Some reports were misleading regarding whether the army was given magistracy power. It is not correct. They have been directed to follow the Section 131 of the CrPC.” “If any incidents of violence erupt the army will not remain silent; rather they will control the situation and arrest the troublemakers and hand them

Fourth phase sees more violence  PAGE 1 COLUMN 2

centre to check violence. BGB claimed to have using bullets after miscreants attacked the centre. BNP leader Bahar Mia, however, alleged that BGB opened fire on his brother without any provocation. Local BNP called a half-day hartal in the district protesting the death.

In Barura upazila of Comilla, a rickshaw-puller was killed when rival groups had been exchanging gunshots near the Moheshpur polling centre.

Local BNP claimed that rickshaw-puller Monir was an activist of Jubo Dal – BNP’s youth front.

In Jibonnagar upazila of Chuadanga, the home of Chief Election Commissioner Kazi Rakibuddin Ahmad, incidents of crude bomb explosion, ballot box snatching, occupying polling centres and attacks on polling agents were reported.

Although the first phase of the local body polls in February did not see any death, at least three people were killed in violence centring the second and third phases of the polls.

Apart from those killed yesterday, two other people were killed in pre-election violence centring the fourth phase.

Meanwhile, incidents of violence, vote rigging, illegal stamping and occupying centers, mostly by ruling men, were reported in more than half of the districts out of the 43 that voted in the fourth phase yesterday.

At a press briefing in the capital in the afternoon, HT Imam, co-chair of the Awami League election steering committee, claimed that compared to the first three phases, this time the elections had been freer, fairer and more peaceful.

“You [journalists] said there had been violence in this phase. But see how nicely and fairly the Election Commission carried out the responsibility in spite of the absence of the chief election commissioner,” Imam said.

The BNP, on the other hand, alleged that the ruling party leaders and activists had occupied polling centres and rigged votes in 56 upazilas.

picked up. The al-Badr men also abducted Nurul Huda and Kuddus from Sabaghata.

“They took us to Daleem Hotel. At the entrance, I saw at least four dead bodies. When we prayed to Allah, the alBadr men asked us to pray by the name of Indira Gandhi. And they insisted us to drink urine when we wanted water.”

“I saw Mir Kashem and Shoeb Ali. Then they started to beat me up by hanging from the ceiling. They repeatedly asked me how much money I gave to the freedom fighters as toll.” l

those posts went to the BNP-backed candidates. Five were bagged by ruling party-backed contenders while two went to Jamaat-backed runners.

In the first three phases, BNPbacked candidates won in a total of three upazilas in Chittagong district.

Awami League’s ally JP (Monju), whose candidates have not won a single chairman post in the previous phases, have come out on top with a full panel in Bhandaria upazila in Pirojpur. There was no Awami League-backed candidate in this upazila.

After failing to win anything in the third phase, a candidate backed by former military dictator HM Ershad’s Jatiya Party has won a chairman seat in Tarail of Kishoreganj.

Only two independent candidates in Habiganj Sadar and Bhairab of Kishoreganj have managed to impress voters in the latest spell of elections. l

over to magistrate for further action,” he further said.

About the use of bullets during ballot box snatching, he said that police would fire bullets below the knee, not above it. It will only injure the troublemakers. The bullets would be used to stop people from getting involved in violence.

Polls were suspended in eight centres in Patuakhali Sadar Upazila, and five centres in Dumki Upazila, eight centres in Gozaria Upazila of Munshiganj, three centres in Begumganj Upazila of Noakhali, two in Barura Upazila in Comilla, one each in Dhamrai Upazila of Dhaka, Jibonnagar of Chuadanga, Rangonia and Sathkania of Chittagong, Kanaighat of Sylhet and Kutubdia of Cox’s Bazaar. l

“Army deployment was merely an eyewash. People want to know why the army could not perform its duty,” said Salahuddin Ahmed, joint secretary general of BNP, at a press briefing at Nayapaltan.

Acting CEC Abdul Mobarak yesterday expressed satisfaction with what he said was a “peaceful” spell of elections in 91 upazila across the country.

However, at a press briefing yesterday, he somewhat reluctantly admitted that there had been stray incidents of violence in some areas.

Following an e-mail from CEC Rakibuddin Ahmad, who is now in the USA on leave, the EC sent a letter to the armed forces on Saturday asking them to play their roles in maintaining law and order in the fourth phase elections.

In a press release issued after yesterday’s voting, Bangladeshi poll observer Brotee said the elections had been gradually taking a turn towards the worse and the EC had not been successful in tackling the situation. l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Trial against Nizami likely to end today n Udisa Islam

The rehearing of closing arguments in the trial of Jamaat chief Motiur Rahman Nizami for war crimes is set to end today. The prosecution is set to give its reply on the points raised by defence and the International Crimes Tribunal has fixed one hour for them in the afternoon session.

Nizami was indicted on May 28 last year on 16 counts of crimes against humanity including murder, rape, arson and inciting violence.

Defence counsel Tajul Islam yesterday claimed that his client had not been involved in incitement and other offences during the Liberation War. He also said the prosecution could not prove any charge against Nizami.

The tribunal on November 20 kept the case waiting for verdict. But due to reconstitution of the tribunal, the argument part of the case was reheard.

Meanwhile, the same court yesterday deferred the proceedings in the case against war crimes accused ATM Azhar until today. l

India thump listless champs  PAGE 1 COLUMN 2

Kohli was cleaned up by Andre Russell in the 15th over but by then India were well ahead in landing their win. The right-handed struck five fours and a six during his knock of 54 from 41 balls.

Incoming batsman Yuvraj Singh lasted 19 balls for 10 runs before he returned in the last over with India a run away from victory.

Rohit carried his bat and remained unbeaten with a mesmerizing 62 as the former World T20 champions anchored the win with two balls to spare.

Earlier, put in to bat first West Indies did not have the start they were looking for despite having the monstrous Chris Gayle and Dwayne Smith in the middle.

West Indies had just 38 runs on the scorecard when Smith was caught and bowled by Ravichandran Ashwin in the 8th over while Gayle on the other end looked very unnatural to his usual

characteristics.

The gigantic hitter of the ball, Gayle was dropped twice – on zero at slips

by Ashwin and on 19 by Yuvraj at deep midwicket – but he failed to capitalise on the opportunity and eventually walked back with 34 from 33 balls.

West Indies never recovered from their slow start and kept losing wickets in regular intervals. They were further sent to back foot with man of the match Amit Mishra striking twice in two balls to send back Marlon Samuels (14) and Dwayne Bravo, zero, in the 15th over.

Left-arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja continued with the breakthroughs as he claimed the Caribbean skipper Darren Sammy and Andre Russell in quick succession before Lendl Simmons showed some urgency for quick runs.

Simmons clobbered two sixes along with a four in his 27 off 22 balls before falling as Jadeja’s third victim on the night. l

Probe report on Jamaat  PAGE 1 COLUMN 5

the present day.

On March 10, Investigation Officer Matiur Rahman placed the findings before the agency that scrutinised the documents in the last 12 days.

On August 18 last year, the investigation agency filed a complaint against “anti-liberation” political party Jamaat for its complicity in crimes against humanity and role as an organisation during the war.

Sanaul Huq, a senior member of the agency, said: “We have taken seven months to collect information and documents. Now we are satisfied with the job and ready to submit it.”

He said preparation had been taken by the investigators and the prosecution team together to set the mechanism of bringing charges against the political party.

Jamaat was banned just after the independence on December 16, 1971 but was later allowed to return to politics during the regime of BNP founder Gen Ziaur Rahman who lifted the ban on religion-based politics.

Justice seekers and war crimes victims and young generation have long been demanding the trial of Jamaat as a party.

Prosecutor Tureen Afroz, who is coordinating the case, said: “We will ensure by this trial that Jamaat, with their same ideology, could never be able to come as political party again.”

In the recent verdicts by the two war crimes tribunals, Jamaat has been labelled as a “criminal organisation.”

The tribunal 1 in the verdict against Ghulam Azam, the chief of Jamaat during the war, observed: “...Jamaate-Islami, as a political party under the leadership of accused [later convicted] Prof Ghulam Azam, intentionally functioned as a criminal organisation especially during the War of Liberation

of Bangladesh in 1971.”

Moreover, on August 1 last year, the High Court declared illegal Jamaat’s registration with the Election Commission as its party charter was contradictory with the country’s constitution and the EC-related laws.

The matter is now pending with the Appellate Division as the party filed an appeal against the judgement.

The trial of Jamaat is now possible as on February 17 last year parliament amended the International Crimes Tribunal Act, 1973, allowing the state to appeal against inadequate sentencing of a convict and paving the way to hold trial of organisations for their criminal activities during the war.

IO Matiur said: “In my investigation, I observed that crimes like genocide and murders were committed as per the directives and plans of Jamaat.”

With regard to the provision of punishment for an organisation, prosecutor Tureen said Jamaat could be easily punished as a criminal organisation under section 20 (2) of the tribunal law.

If proved, the provision states that the tribunal may give death penalty or any other punishment which may include ban or confiscation of property of an organsiation.

The probe agency officials said they would rely upon statements of Islamic scholars, victims and their family members, and researchers of war crimes. They also worked on the books published by Jamaat leaders including Abbas Ali Khan and the video footages of before and after the liberation.

A member of the agency seeking anonymity said: “We will challenge the political ideology and philosophy of the organisation’s founder, Abul Ala Maududi, and have prepared a list of policy witnesses and researchers who will be produced before the tribunal.” l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

News

3

Monday, March 24, 2014

Violence, rigging mar upazila polls n Tribune Report

Untoward incidents such as vandalism and attack on election officials and irregularities including vote rigging and illegal stamping marred the festive mood of the fourth phase of the upazila parishad elections yesterday.

In addition to the four deaths reported in four upazilas centring the fourth phase of the polls yesterday, scores had been injured in nearly half of the places that saw voting.

In at least seven upazilas, BNP-backed candidates called hartals of various durations protesting vote rigging by ruling party candidates and demanding re-election.

In Kalaroa upazila of Satkhira, at least 14 men were injured in violence at various polling stations. Of them, five were wounded in a clash between Awami League and Jamaat supporters at the Chandanpur High School centre where voting remained suspended for an hour.

In the same area, at least 15 Hindu houses were allegedly vandalised.

In Terokhada upazila of Khulna, BNPbacked candidate Mesbahul Alam boycotted the polls alleging that many of the centres had been captured.

In Agoiljhara of Barisal, all candidates except the ruling Awami League-backed one boycotted the polls within the first two hours of voting. Local BNP called a half-day hartal for today in the upazila protesting rigging.

Rebel Awami League candidate Jatindra Nath Mistri alleged that Golam Mortuza Khan – the candidate that the ruling party had backed – and his men harassed his supporters and threatened local voters, especially from the minority communities, to not go to the polling centres.

In Uzirpur upazila, BNP and Jamaat-backed candidates boycotted polls alleging vote rigging by the ruling party-backed candidate.

In Bhola district, all the BNP-backed and rebel candidates in Daulatkhan, Monpura and Tajumuddin upazilas boycotted polls alleging vote rigging and demanding re-election.

In Bhuapur of Tangail, JaPa-backed chairman candidate boycotted the polls

alleging vote rigging in at least 18 polling centers. In Kalihati upazila, eight people were injured when supporters of Awami League and BNP locked in a clash. Witnesses said supporters of the Awami League-backed candidate occupied the Soratail government primary school centre.

Reports of at least six people getting injured in clashes and crude bomb explosions came in from the Harinakundu upazila of Jhenaidhah.

In Comilla, clashes, allegation of vote rigging, harassing presiding officers and snatching of ballot papers were reported in Barura and Meghna upazila.

Fakhruddin, presiding officer of the Purbo Nalua Government Primary School polling centre, alleged that holding him at gunpoint on the election eve, supporters of Awami League candidate Mostafizur Rahman stamped on at least 800 ballot papers. Voting was cancelled at centre.

Another presiding officer in the upazila allegedly came under attack by Awami League men when he protested the snatching of ballot papers.

In Satkania upazila of Chittagong, supporters of Awami League-backed candidate Nurul Absar Chowdhury allegedly rigged votes, snatched ballot papers and boxes from a number of polling centres.

In Anwara upazila, BNP-backed candidate Abu Ahmed Hasnat pulled out of the polls following a clash between his and ruling party-backed contestant Mohammad Ali Shah’s supporters near a voting centre. Independent candidate Shamim Hossain was also allegedly assaulted by Awami League men.

Our Chittagong correspondent reported low voter turnouts in a number of polling centres in the Rangunia upazila, especially in the minority community dominated areas.

In Fatikchhari upazila, BNP and Awami League supporters clashed near the Azimnagar Ahmadia Rahmania High School centre in the morning leading to a few hours’ suspension of voting.

In Betagi upazila of Borguna, an agent of the Awami League-backed chairman candidate was jailed for six months on charges of influencing voters. l

Sayedee’s son wins upazila polls n Our Correspondent. Barisal

BNP: Deployment of army nothing but eyewash

Death row war criminal Delawar Hossain Sayedee’s son has emerged victorious as a chairman candidate by a huge margin in yesterday’s polls at the Zianagar Upazila Parishad in Pirojpur.

Jamaat-e-Islami-backed Masud-binSayedee clinched 21,152 votes with penand-ink symbol, toppling his nearest contender Awami League-backed Abdul Khalek Gazi, who got only 6,522 votes.

During campaign, Masud sought justice from voters claiming that his father was wronged by the Awami League government. He also highlighted the role of his father, who had been a lawmaker in the area in the past, in developing the upazila.

Local residents said one major reason behind Masud’s success was the organisational weakness of the ruling party in the upazila. Awami Leaguebacked Khalek Gazi, who had been the acting chairman of the upazila, is known as a corrupt person.

BNP leader Ekramul Kabir Maznu was the last chairman of the Zianagar Upazila Parishad. He, however, went out of the scene after being indicted in multiple cases. l

n Mohammad Al-Masum Molla

n Emran Hossain Shaikh

performed its role accurately through taking necessary actions against any turmoil,,” HT Imam, also co-chairman of election steering committee of ruling AL said in a press conference at the party office in Dhanmondi.

“After all we are satisfied at the elections,” Imam added.

Imam blamed the BNP-Jamaat activists for violent activities in various areas

The BNP yesterday alleged that the deployment of armed forces during the upazila parishad poll was nothing but eyewash.

It said the government had allegedly been conspiring to tarnish the image of armed forces.

“The Election Commission asked the army in writing to play its role to stop violence in the upazila elections, but what have we seen in today’s poll?”

Salahuddin Ahmed, joint secretary general of the party, posed a question yesterday at a press briefing at BNP’s Nayapaltan Headquarters. Salahuddin alleged that the Election Commission had been working, being completely subservient to the government.

“As per CRPC 131, army can play its role during poll. People want to know for which mysterious grounds, army cannot play its role,” he said.

The former state minister hoped that the army would play its due role following the legal procedure.

BNP Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi said the ruling party men

Supporters of Awami League-backed candidate and a rebel aspirant clash to take control over Barakotha polling centre at Uzirpur in Barisal. More photos on Page 4

AL leader killed, voting cancelled in 7 centres n Our Correspondent, Munshiganj

An Awami League leader was killed and scores of others injured in a polls violence in Gazaria upazila of Munshiganj yesterday.

Besides, voting in seven centres of the upazila were suspended while a person was sentenced to one-year imprisonment by a mobile court for his involvement in ballot staffing.

Supporters of the ruling party’s rival candidate chopped Awami League leader and union parishad chairman to death in the upazila.

The deceased was named Samsuddin Pradhan, 65, chairman and Awami League president of Baluakandi Union Parishad. He was loyal to AL-backed candidate Amirul Islam.

Around 11am on the day, support-

occupied polling centres and cast ballots illegally in 46 of 91 upazilas.

“From our sources, we came to know that in most of the centres in 46 upazilas, the ruling party men occupied the polling centres, ousted opposition party-backed candidates’ agents and cast illegal votes,” he told the press briefing.

The BNP leader alleged that the Awami League activists snatched ballots like a wolf with only one aim to bag more chairman posts.

Rizvi said the government would not change through the local body election, but the way the ruling party men behaved hinted what would happen if the parliamentary election took place under the Awami League.

The BNP also accused the ruling party activists of occupying poll centres with the help of local administrations and committing violence across the country.

Rizvi said: “Occupying polling stations seemed like a festival, and our apprehension of vote rigging by the ruling party men during election came true.” l

Awami League claims fourth phase upazila elections held free, fair Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s political affairs adviser HT Imam said the fourth phase of upazila polls held yesterday in 91 upazilas across the country was free and fair than the previous three phases.

“There is no chaos. The 4th phase elections were held amid a few clashes than the last three phases as the EC

DHAKA TRIBUNE

of the country during voting.

“BNP-Jamaat cadres barred minorities in different places like Satkhira and Pirojpur from going to polling centres to cast their franchise,” he said.

About BNP’s allegation of vote rigging against AL, he said BNP emerged as a ‘chatter box’ that used to give false statements. “As they (BNP leaders) have no other tasks, they are busy in giving false statements at their party office.”

In response to a query on sporadic clashes among AL candidates, he said they were investigating into the matter.

In another query over magistracy power of Army, the advisor turned down the claim, telling Army was just given the power of arrest during the polls.

Mentioning the results of 3rd phases, the adviser said the popularity of AL was increasing gradually.

AL central leader Fazilatunnessa Indira, Abu Sayed Al Mahmud Shapon Abu Syed Al Mahmud Shapon and Dr Bodiuzzaman Bhuiyan Dublew were present in the briefing among others. l

ers of Awami League rebel candidate Refayetullah Khan stabbed Samsuddin near Baluakandi Dr Abdul Gaffar School and College centre to take control over the pooling centre, leaving him critically injured. Samsuddin died after he was rushed to the Gozaria Health Complex.

District Returning Officer and Assistant Deputy Commissioner Md Sarwar Murshed Chowdhury said: “Voting in the centre was halted. Army, police, BGB and Ansar members were deployed in the area.”

Following the death of the chairman, his agitated supporters blocked the Dhaka-Chittagong highway around 12pm yesterday demanding punishment to Refayetullah Khan.

Vehicular movement came to a halt on either side of the road due to the blockade.

The army had to intervene to bring the situation under control. In-charge of Bhober Char Police Outpost, Saiful Islam said: “The situation is under control now.”

The seven polling centres where voting was suspended are Baluakandi Dr Abdul Gaffar School and College, Alipura Government Primary School, Baghaikandi Government Primary School, Paikkhar Par Government High School, Lakhsmipur Government Primary School, Kazipura Government Primary School and Gozaria Pilot High School.

Around 11am, police chased the supporters of Refayetullah Khan away as they were trying to take control over the Madhya Baushia Government Primary School centre. Later, the agitated supporters with lethal weapons vandalised vehicles on Dhaka-Chittagong highway.

Police hurled one round of rubber bullets to control the situation.

Around 2pm, the mobile court detained Mizanur Rahman, 38, and sentenced him one year of imprisonment for vote rigging in Islami Char Government Primary School centre. The executive magistrate of the court Md Alamin gave the punishment.

Chase and counter chase took place in 12 No Tengarchar Government Primary School centre, Imampur Bghaichandi Government Primary School centre, 36 No Karim Khan Government Primary School and Char Baliki Government Primary School centre.

Earlier, voting was suspended for 10 minutes in 13 No Tengarchar Government Primary School centre due to clash between supporters of two candidates around 9pm. l

4

DHAKA TRIBUNE

News

Monday, March 24, 2014

Clockwise from top left: Supporters of ruling party illegaly stamp ballot papers at Nalchhiti in Barisal l Journalists take snaps and videos of a box full of stamped ballot papers, allegedly rigged by ruling party men at Barura in Comilla l Police recover a ballot box allegedly snatched by ruling party men in Monpura of Noakhali l Hadis Mia, shot dead in election violence in Akhaura of Brahmanbaria, is being taken to a hospital by rickshaw l Relatives of a man killed in election violence in Gajaria of Munshiganj wail at the Dhaka Medical College Hospital DHAKA TRIBUNE

BCL activists lock hall, exam delayed n CU Correspondent Members of Bangladesh Chhatra League yesterday locked the exam hall of the Social Science Faculty at Chittagong University as one of them was not allowed to appear in an annual exam.

They also beat up an examinee.

Sadaf-u-Nur Islam, chairman of the anthropology department, said the examination was eventually held at 11am.

Witnesses said a group of about 20 Chhatra League activists, led by Soman Palit, locked the door of the exam hall just before the second year exam of anthropology at 9am. The chairman said Salim Reza Mridha, a second year student and Chhatra League activist, could not sit in the exam as he failed to get minimum marks in class.

CU Proctor Siraj-ud-Dowla said punitive measures would be taken against the Chhatra League members responsible for the incident.

In similar incidents earlier, Chhatra League activists reportedly locked exam halls of the botany and accounting departments, but the authorities did not take any steps against those involved l

WEATHER

Possible thundershowers n UNB Rain or thundershowers accompanied by temporary gusty or squally wind is likely to occur at a few places over Khulna, Barisal, Chittagong and Sylhet divisions and at one or two places over Dhaka, Rangpur and Rajshahi divisions until 6pm today.

Day temperature may rise slightly and night temperature may remain nearly unchanged over the country, Met Office said.

The sun sets in the capital at 6:11pm today and rises at 5:58am tomorrow.

Country’s highest temperature 32.8 degrees Celsius was recorded yesterday in Rangamati and lowest 17.0 degrees in Ishwardi.

Highest and lowest temperature recorded in some major cities yesterday were: City

High

Low

Dhaka Chittagong Rajshahi Rangpur Khulna Barisal Sylhet Cox’s Bazar

31.4 30.5 32.5 27.1 32.0 30.5 31.2 31.0

20.0 19.4 18.0 18.5 19.5 19.5 17.5 22.5

PRAYER TIMES Fajar Sunrise Jumma Asr Magrib Esha

4:44am 5:59am 12:05am 4:29pm 6:11pm 7:27pm

Source: IslamicFinder.org

Call for concerted effort to address climate change issues n Mushfique Wadud A coordinated approach is necessary to properly face climate change issues, discussants said at a roundtable yesterday.

They observed that success in climate change project would be difficult without a coordinated approach by all organisations working to address climate issues.

The observations came at the roundtable titled “Climate change, global problem, local action: A Bangladesh case study”.

Bangladesh Unnayan Parishad (BUP) organised the discussion at the city’s Centre on Integrated Rural Development for Asia and the Pacific auditorium.

In his address, Palli Karma-Sahayak Foundation Chairman Qazi Kholiquzzaman Ahmad said there should be coordination of climate change programmes among the government ministries.

“Every ministry should have a cell which will work for coordination,” he said.

Kholiquzzaman called for a probe into different programmes in the name of climate change.

Some organisations managed funds from donors and hired foreign consultants to run projects which would not bring any good for the country, he added.

“But the fund is taken using the name of Bangladesh.”

The NGO activist emphasised in-

volving mass people in the climate change issues and said the civil society could play an important role in ensuring people’s involvement.

Oxfam Country Director Snehal Soneji said the fund for mitigation and adaptation to climate change might be seen as a big chunk of money, but considering economic loss in the wake of disaster, it would not seem to be a big amount.

Snehal also emphasised accountability, saying that whether it is a state or non-state organisation, accountability is one of the major factors that should be concerned with.

PKSF Managing Director Abdul Karim said the world community praised the adaptation programmes Bangladesh had taken up.

He called for more funds to develop infrastructure for making climate change programme a success.

BUP Vice-Chairman Rezaul Karim said Bangladesh’s policy regarding climate change adaptation was on the right track, but infrastructure development and more research were required to make the programme successful.

With the help of government trust fund, the BUP is operating a project in 20 upazilas of 20 districts in the country.

Under the project, solar panel was given to the poor at free of cost.

Some of the beneficiaries were present at the programme.

In their address, they spoke of how solar energy changed their lives and was helping their children study. l

ACC: Charges framed against WORLD TUBERCULOSIS DAY TODAY Even free treatment Khaleda following law n Tribune Report The Anti-Corruption Commission yesterday said the Special Judge’s Court 3 in Dhaka framed charges in two corruption cases against BNP chairperson and former prime minister Khaleda Zia, her eldest son, Tarique Rahman, and seven others following legal procedures.

“A section of the media has been reporting misleading news in the past few days,” Kamrul Hossain Molla, director general of the commission’s legal wing, told reporters yesterday at the ACC media centre in Segunbagicha.

The anti-corruption body held the press briefing a day after Jatiyatabadi Ainjibi Forum, a platform of pro-BNP lawyers, made an appeal to the chief justice to initiate an inquiry against a lower court judge for allegedly violating the law while framing charges against Khaleda and eight others.

The court on Wednesday indicted the nine accused in the Zia Orphanage Trust case for embezzling over Tk2

crore by forming a “fake” trust in 1991, and in the Zia Charitable Trust case for raising funds by abusing power of the Prime Minister’s Office during BNP’s 2001-06 tenure.

Mosharraf Hossain Kajol, an ACC panel lawyer representing the prosecution side, said some people were trying to create confusion over the court order.

“The court framed charges against the accused after hearing both sides, and the court also asked Khaleda about her involvement,” Mosharraf said.

Rafiqul Islam Miah, Khaleda’s lawyer, had earlier claimed that due process was not followed as the judge framed the charges in his chamber, although Khaleda was present in the court. The judge’s assistant later announced the indictment in the courtroom.

Mosharraf also alleged that the accused were trying to delay the trial process as their lawyers had previously sought adjournments from the court 33 times. l

fails to attract patients n Moniruzzaman Uzzal The National Tuberculosis Programme (NTP) has been offering free treatment to tuberculosis patients but the patients are showing reluctance to come to hospital for receiving treatment.

The information was revealed yesterday during a press conference at the National Press Club auditorium. NTP, Brac and a number of other organisations jointly arranged the conference on occasion of the World Tuberculosis Day 2014.

Speakers told the conference that from 2004 to 2013, more than 1.5 million tuberculosis patients were enrolled in the NTP while nearly 1.4 million people seek treatment for TB every year.

Addressing the conference, NTP Line Director Dr Md Ashek Hossain said they have adequate funding for meeting the cost of treating MDR (Multidrug resistant) tuberculosis patients

Fakhrul denied bail in murder cases n Md Sanaul Islam Tipu

A Dhaka court yesterday rejected bail prayers of four top BNP leaders including acting secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir in connection with three murder cases.

Acting judge of the Dhaka’s Metropolitan Sessions Judge’s Court Ruhul Amin delivered the bail rejection orders.

The three other leaders are party’s Standing Committee members Mirza Abbas, Khandakar Mosharraf Hossain and Abdus Salam.

On March 18, the defence filed a criminal miscellaneous petition for their bail before the court against the bail rejection order of the CMM court.

Ramna police made the leaders accused in three cases – for the killing of a pedestrian by a speeding bus chased by pickets at Malibagh level-crossing on December 1; the killing of a policeman in an arson attack on a bus at Banglamotor on December 24; and a petrol bomb attack on a bus at Paribagh crossing on January 3 that killed several people.

Mirza Fakhrul, Mirza Abbas and Ab-

dus Salam were sent to jail on March 16 after they surrendered before the court.

The same court rejected the bail plea of BNP Standing Committee member Mosharraf in a money laundering case filed by the ACC. He was sent to jail on March 17 after a Dhaka metropolitan magistrate denied his bail.

On February 10, the High Court granted anticipatory bail to Mosharraf for six weeks but it was cancelled by the Supreme Court on February 24 following an ACC petition. l

but it is the patients who are not showing up.

“What can we do if the patients don’t come to receive treatment? Many tuberculosis patients including MDR haven’t yet enrolled in the NTP. It’s a challenge to bring everyone to hospital so that we can detect and treat them,” he observed.

He also sought help from the media in informing MDR patients of the free treatment. When asked about the total number of deaths of MDR patients, he, however, could not provide any specific statistics straight away.

According to a survey of NTP, the number of MDR patients across the country stands at 4,200 but only 2,761 of them have so far enrolled in the NTP. Last year MDR patient enrolment figure was 682.

Tuberculosis experts told the Dhaka Tribune that MDR tuberculosis is the worst form of the disease and the cost of treatment is more than Tk five lakh. l

Worker dies after falling from building

n Kailash Sarkar

A construction worker died yesterday after falling from the rooftop of an under construction building in the capital’s Paribagh. The deceased was identified as Mohammad Foyez, 20, of Begumganj upazila in Noakhali district.

According to sources, Foyez fell down from the rooftop while he was setting of sanitary pipeline in the building of one Anisur Rahman Miah. Immediate after his fall, co-workers rushed him to the Dhaka Medical College and Hospital where the doctors declared him dead. l

Charge sheet against 16 in AL leader murder

n Md Sanaul Islam Tipu

Police yesterday submitted a charge sheet before a Dhaka court, accusing 16 people in the murder case of city Awami League leader Khairul Alam Mollah.

The accused include Abul Kalam, president of Sayedabad Bus Terminal Owners Association.

According to the chargesheet, Abul Kalam had a conflict with Khairul Alam over control of the bus terminal and had him killed by some hired criminals.

Khairul was the organising secretary of AL’s Jatrabari unit and general secretary of Sayedabad owners’ association.

DB Inspector Rafiqul Islam submitted the charge sheet to the Dhaka Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Court yesterday.

Of the accused, Abul Kalam, Alamgir Hossein, Naimur Rahman Durjoy, Salauddin, ABM Awalad Hossein, Ali Akbar Bablu and Musfikul Manan have been arrested, while nine are on the run.

“Five suspects participated directly in the killing of Khairul Alam. They are: Tayub Ali, Alamgir, Salauddin, Sumon and Awalad,” the chargesheet said.

Earlier, Tayub Ali, Alamgir, Salauddin, Durjoy and Awalad gave confessional statements before a court.

On November 7, some assailants stabbed Khairul Alam on the ground floor of Samabaya Bank in the capital’s Motijheel area. Critically injured, Khairul was rushed to the Dhaka Medical College Hospital, where he was pronounced dead on arrival. l

JU female students demand adequate seats in dorms n JU Correspondent Second year female students of Fajilatunnesa Hall of Jahangirnagar University yesterday staged a demonstration, demanding adequate seats in the university dormitories.

However, the students withdrew their movement around 12noon following university authorities’ assurance to solve the accommodation problem immediately. The authorities had a meeting with the provosts of all female halls and later talked with the agitating students.

Sources said around 100 female students of the hall demonstrated in front of the JU administrative building around 11am and submitted a memorandum to Vice-Chancellor Professor Farzana Islam, asking her to reallocate students in the under-construction Sheikh Hasina Hall.

Around 150 first and second year students had been staying in the congested common room of Fajilatunnesa Hall for almost 14 months, they said.

The sources also said they had only one usable toilet and a bathroom in the hall. The residents also have to suffer from excessive heat during summer.

The students alleged that the authorities were reluctant to take any necessary steps although they had informed them of their problems many times. l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

News

5

Monday, March 24, 2014

Ballot snatching, vote rigging mar Satkania upazila elections Hayat and Tarek n Tushar Mahmud, Chittagong The upazila election was held yesterday at Satkania upazila in Chittagong amid ballot-snatching, vote rigging and violence at different centres.

Belal Mohammed Chowdhury, presiding officer of Choto Hatia Laksmi Bibi Madrasa polling centre in Sonakania area, said clashes erupted between the supporters of Awami Leaguebacked candidate Nurul Absar Chowdhury and Jamaat-backed candidate Jashim Uddin around 10:30am.

It was alleged that Nurul Absar Chowdhury’s men snatched ballot boxes from the centre.

The presiding officer said casting of votes was suspended as six ballot boxes and all unused ballots were snatched from the centre during clashes.

Vote casting was completed with some stray incidents in Banskhali, Raozan, Rangunia and Fatikchhari About 100 of the total 2,500 votes had been cast before the incident, he added.

Jotirmoy Chakma, a police nayek deployed to the center, said about 200 people launched the attack on the centre.

He added that they could not open fire during the incident as there was no official to order them.

Ajit Kanti Das, presiding officer at the Sadaha Kefayet Ullah Kabir Ahmed High School, said a group of people snatched 109 ballots from a booth around 12:30pm.

The presiding officer said they had cancelled the snatched ballots.

According to local sources, the supporters of Awami League- backed candidate tried to cast his vote forcibly and fled with the ballots when police opened fire.

Mehedi Hasan Chowdhury, presiding officer at Demsha Government Primary School, said a group of people set fire to all the eight ballot boxes entering into the center around 3pm.

Abu Raihan Mohammed Ashiqur Rahman, presiding officer at the Jonar Kewchia Government Primary School, said a group of people fled with 20

ballots, failing to cast votes forcibly around 1:30pm.

Sheikh Mohammed Mohiuddin, BNP-backed chairman candidate, said it was a farce in the name of election.

The supporters of Jamaat-backed candidate vandalised the vehicle of the Awami League-backed chairman candidate Nurul Absar Chowdhury at Sonakania Sayed Hossain Government Primary School around 3:15pm.

Meanwhile, Jalal Uddin Ahmed, BNP-backed chairman candidate at Anwara upazila, withdrew himself from the election at a press conference around 2:30pm, alleging rigging by the AL-backed candidate.

Vote casting was completed with some stray incidents in Banskhali, Raozan, Rangunia and Fatikchhari.

Supporters of Awami Leaguebacked chairman candidate Mohammad Ali Shah and BNP-backed candidate Abu Ahmed Hasnat were locked into a clash in front of Muraderghona Government Primary School in Rangunia centering torching a bike.

Casting vote was halted for a while and army men came to the spot to take the situation under control.

After visiting several polling centres at Rangunia, the Dhaka Tribune found a low turnout of voters in Majumderkhill, Shantiniketan, Rajanagar, Sonargaon and Dharmogoda inhabited by minority people.

BNP-backed chairman candidate Hasnat claimed that AL men rigged votes in nine poling centres.

Visiting Gohira College, Raozan University College and Gohira AJYMS High School of Raozan, the Dhaka Tribune also found a low turnout of voters.

It also found that the supporters of AL-supported chairman candidate AKM Ehsanul Hayder Babul and vice-chairman candidate Nur Mohammad took at least 20 ballots and appropriated those.

Babul, however, claimed that he and his men believed in a free and fair poll and he would abide by the result if he won or be defeated.

Besides, an assistant presiding officer of booth number 4 in Gohira AJYMS High School was found allegedly tearing at least 12 ballots and hiding those, sensing the presence of newsmen.

In Fatikchhari upazila, BNP and AL supporters were locked into a clash in front of Azimnagar Ahmadia Rahmania High School in the morning. l

Members of physically challenged beggars association operating in the city’s Sadarghat area form a human chain in front of the National Press Club yesterday, demanding government jobs, khas land SYED ZAKIR HOSSAIN

36 candidates boycott polls in seven upazilas n Tribune Report

At least three dozen chairman candidates from Barisal division, mainly from BNP, Jamaat-e-Islami and rebel candidates of the Awami League yesterday boycotted the ongoing fourth phase of upazila election in seven upazilas on allegations of violence and vote rigging by ruling party-backed candidates and supporters.

The boycott took place in Agoiljhara and Uzirpurupazilas of Barisal, Monpura, Doulotkhan, Tojumuddin and Monpuraupazilas of Bhola and Nalcity upazila of Jhalakathi.

In Agoiljhara, 16 candidates boycotted the polls within the first two hours into the polling. Only AL backed-chairman candidate- GolamMortuza Khan remained in election race, out of five candidates for the chairman post.

Agoiljhra BNP also called a half-day hartal in the upazila today, protesting vote rigging and demanding a fresh, free and fair election on a level playing field, BNP-backed chairman candidate SM Afzal Hossain told the Dhaka Tribune.

JatindraNathMistri, an AL rebel candidate for chairman post, alleged that GolamMortuza Khan and his supporters, with the help of the local adminis-

tration and law enforcers, had harassed his voters and threatened the minority communities not to cast their votes.

Denying the allegations GolamMortuza Khan said, “Rival candidates are raising false allegations assuming their sure defeat. Minority voters of the upazila will cast votes for the AL backed candidate, not for rebels or BNP-backed candidates.”

Barisal District Police Superintendent AKM EhsanUllah and District Election And Returning Officer Dulal Talukdar said Police, Ansar, RAB, Army, BGB had performed their duties to ensure the security of the voters.

In Uzirpur upazila, three BNP and Jamaat candidates boycotted the polls.

BNP-backed chairman candidate Abdul MajedTalukdar and Jamaat-backed vice-chairman candidate Abdul Mannan and BNP-backed female vice-chairman candidate Nurun Nesa boycotted the polls.

In Monpura upazila of Bhola, BNPbacked chairman candidate Shamsuddin Bachchu Chowdhury, Jamaat backed vice chairman Hafez Mawlana Rafikul Islam, independent chairman candidates Rakib Chowdhury, Zobayer Hasan, independent candidate Yasmin JahanMinuandAL-rebel women vice

chairman candidate Parvin AktarRebu boycotted the polls.

Abu Sayeed, additional deputy commissioner Bhola and the returning officer, said he was not informed about the boycotting of the election or the demand for a fresh poll from the candidates. In Nalcity upazila of Jhalakathi, around six candidates boycotted the election.

BNP backed chairman candidates KM Anisur Rahman, Shah Alam Miaand ShahadatMenon, IslamiAndolon- backed candidates Sihabuddin Ahmed and Amirunnessa, Bangladesh for vice chairman, and AL-rebel candidate for women vice-chairman ZakiaSiddika, boycotted the polls.

After Shah Alam boycotted polls, Md. GolamFaruk, AL backed candidate was the lone candidate for the chairman post.

BNP backed candidates and two rival candidates of the party also boycotted the polls in Doulotkhan, Tojumuddin and Monpuraupazilas of Bhola and demanded a fresh election in the upazila, reported our Bhola correspondent.

At least 10 people were injured when a clash erupted between the supporters of two chairman candidates at Joinogor Fokir Bari centre in Doulotkhan. Later, police and BGB took con-

One dies in Comilla violence; presiding officers harassed n Our Correspondent, Comilla

A rickshaw puller was killed as voting of the fourth phase of upazila elections in Barura and Meghna upazilas of the district yesterday marked by sporadic clashes, ballot papers snatching, polls boycott and alleged rampant vote rigging.

The deceased is Monir Hossain, 25, son of Mofiz Mia, of Hosenpur village in Barura upazila.

The deceased’s cousin and former UP member Abdul Bari said Moniz accidently sustained bullet injuries as police fired shots on some miscreants who were trying to snatch ballot papers from Moheshpur voting centre around 2:15pm, leaving him critically injured.

He was whisked off to local health

complex and later shifted to Comilla Medical Collage Hospital where he died around 4pm. However, general secretary of Barura Municipality unit BNP Kabir Hossain Patwari claimed Monir was a leader of Jubo League, a youth wing of ruling AL. Barura police station OC AKM Kawser Chowdhury said, “Two groups were locked into a clash over snatching ballot boxes, to prevent which police sprayed 30 rounds of rubber bullets in which Monir might be injured.”

On the other hand, supporters of AL-blessed chairman candidate Mostafizur Rahman stormed into Purbo Nalua Government Primary School around 2:30am and stamped 800 ballot papers by keeping presiding officer Fakhruddin hostage at gun point.

Fakruddin said, “A gang of miscreants held me hostage at gun point and put 800 ballot papers into box after stamping the symbol of pineapple that was allotted for Mostafizur Rahman.”

Later around 9:00am, some unruly supporters of the candidate snatched 1200 ballot papers from Kadba Tolagram Tarinilaha High School centre and assaulted presiding officer Mohiuddin Md Shahjahan as he tried to prevent them.

To the last, voting was cancelled in both centres, said District Returning Officer Rashedul Islam.

Moreover, police foiled an attempt of ballot papers snatching at Moheshpur Government Primary School centre and its presiding officer Gopal Krishna Chakrabarti said, “The miscreants

snatched 900 ballot papers at gun point.”

Another Presiding Officer Abdul Mannan of Adompur Government Primary School was physically harassed when miscreants put 1100 ballot papers into ballot box after stamping.

Zakir Hossain, presiding officer of Shalukia centre said, “A gang of miscreants stamped 1200 ballot papers at gun point and cast those into ballot box.”

BNP-backed chairman candidate Abdul Khaleque alleged supporters of Mostafizur stamped ballot papers of at least 20 centres in the dead of the night.

On the other hand, the members of joint forces arrested AL rival chairman candidate Mazharul Islam Mithu while he at a press briefing was giving the announcement of polls boycott around

3pm.

In Meghna Upazila, chase and counter chase erupted at Lokkhonkhola Government Primary School and Moheshkhola High School centres.

Meghna UNO Md Shamsul Haque said, “Miscreants tried to enter the polling centres to cast fake votes and they beat up presiding officer Abdul Quader when he tried to resist them.”

Around seven candidates except AL backed chairman candidate Abdus Salam boycotted the polls in the upazila, the UNO added.

District Assistant Superintendent of Police Jahangir Alam said they would take legal actions against the culprits soon involved in the incidents for destroying the congenial environment of the polling stations. l

Experts for taking more water-saving methods n Tribune Report

Speakers address a World Water Day seminar titled ‘Saving Water is Saving Energy’ yesterday at the DPHE Auditorium in the capital. The seminar was organised by the NGO Forum for Public Health RAJIB DHAR

Water experts yesterday recommended taking up more water-saving methods in energy production instead of coal- or nuclear-power ventures.

Speaking at the working session of the World Water Day Seminar 2014, they also stressed the need for developing a culture of environment compliance to protect the country’s dying rivers.

The seminar was jointly organised

by Department of Public Health and Engineering (DPHE), United Nations Information Centre, Unicef, World Bank, Bangladesh Wash Alliance, Japan International Cooperation Agency, (JICA) and the NGO Forum for Public Health at the DPHE auditorium.

In his keynote presentation, Mujibur Rahman of the Civil Engineering

Department of Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (Buet) said water is required to produce almost all forms of energy production, and even to extract energy resources from the environment, reports UNB. Methods such as the coal-based power production and nuclear power production requires excessive amount of water, whereas solar and wind power production requires the least amount of water, he said.

The government should seriously think about wind power generation for the future, he recommended.

Brac University Vice Chancellor Ainun Nishat also observed that power projects like the Ruppur Nuclear Power Plant are not at all sustainable, given the need for excessive use of water required for cooling the plant. l

trol of the situation.

BNP backed candidates Samsuddin Bacchu Johurul Islam Khushbu, Amirul Islam Baset, and rebel BNP candidates Mostafizur Rahman and Golam Mostafa Mintu boycotted the polls.

The candidates demanded postponement of ongoing voting and a fresh election in the upazila with assurance from the administration over the security of their workers and voters.

Meanwhile, an activist of Jubo League was beaten to death in Rajapur upazila of Jhalakathi district during a clash centring the upazila polls.

The deceased was identified as Ripon, 24, hailing from Dakkhin Tarabunia.

Awami League-backed chairman candidate Munir Hossain claimed that supporters of BNP-backed chairman candidate Nasim Akon assaulted Ripon and other election workers at Tarabunia vote centre at around noon.

“The victim was rushed to Barisal Sher-E-Bangla Medical College Hospital with severe injuries to the head.

He later succumbed to his injuries at 4:00pm,” he said.

Nazrul Islam, officer in charge of Rajapur police station said, no case was lodged and the dead body was sent for autopsy. l

HEALTH BULLETIN 2013 UNVEILED

Healthcare lagging behind population growth n Moniruzzaman Uzzal The country is witnessing a gradual rise in population but the number of doctors and beds in both public and private hospitals in proportion to the total population is showing an opposite trend.

The information was revealed as the Health Bulletin 2013, an annual publication of the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), was officially unveiled

by Health Minister Mohammed Nasim at the health ministry yesterday.

Diarrhoea, torture, peptic ulcer, typhoid and asthma as the top five causes that sent patients to hospitals Asked, Professor Dr Abul Kalam Azad, Additional Director General (ADG) of DGHS, told the Dhaka Tribune although the number of doctors and beds rose in 2012-13, it was not enough to ensure balanced healthcare services compared to the increase in population.

“The government should think about coordinated efforts to increase manpower in this sector, and also raise hospital bed facilities,” he added.

A survey involving 17,86,451 patients in upazila hospitals showed diarrhoea, torture, peptic ulcer, typhoid and asthma as the top five causes that sent patients to hospitals while diarrhoea, diseases, pneumonia, road accidents and peptic ulcer were found to be the main causes patients were hospitalised within district hospitals. The district hospital survey was conducted among 9,55,117 patients. l

6

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Nation

Monday, March 24, 2014

Rajbari Adhunik Sadar Hospital in sorry state n Our Correspondent, Rajbari Rajbari Adhunik Sadar Hospital is facing hard times because of a serious lack of doctors, nurses and staff, as well as proper accommodation for patients.

Consequently, the patients who came to the hospital are suffering immensely as they are not getting proper medical services, though the hospital was recently upgraded to 100-bed hospital from 50-bed institute in June 2003.

Sources at the hospital said there are only ten doctors against 42 posts for about 15.5 lakh people living in the district. Of them, four doctors were giving medical services to the outdoor patients. These doctors were also brought there on deputation from nearby Union Health sub-centres.

Moreover, there is no senior consult-

ant at most of the wards, while there are no junior consultants at paediatric and surgery ones, said Rajbari civil surgeon office sources.

On the other hand, the vital posts of Nursing Superintendent, Administrative Officer, Statistics Officer, Accountant, Storekeeper and other 24 posts remain vacant as well, along with no doctor being present for emergency patients.

While visiting, the correspondent found a huge number of patients are lying on the floor as well as passages and corridors in different wards.

One patient named Rahima, 30, said she along with others was returning home after failing to meet a single doctor after waiting for a long time.

Due to not having any paediatrician, four-month-old Arifa, who was struck with severe pneumonia, was referred

to nearby Faridpur General Hospital for better treatment. ‘’ I came to the hospital with 10-day fever, but I could not get any treatment as only two outdoor doctors were too busy dealing with huge number of patients,” said a patient named Asikur Rahman who had trekked 25-kilometers off the district headquarters.

On the other hand, indoor treatments are also badly hampered while there is a daily rush of 180-200 patients on average.

The operating theatre is hardly operational. There is a serious shortage of senior surgeons and anesthesia doctor and nurses, along with staff and sophisticated medical equipment, a shortage that has even led to fatalities.

A big generator was installed here to ensure smooth electricity, but budgetary constraints have meant it has never been used.

Dr Abdul Hannan, residential medical officer (RMO) of the hospital, said they could not give proper medical assistance to the patients here due to most medical posts lying vacant.

Contacted, Rajbari civil surgeon Dr Nurul Amin echoed the RMO, saying they have sent letters to the higher authorities expressing concern to solve the crisis immediately, but no result has yet come.

“The miserable situation is not only here, but also all hospitals situated in the district are suffering as well, while there are only 45 doctors against 126 posts,” he added.

The civil surgeon also said despite having all kinds of sophisticated equipment at the hospital, patients were deprived from the service because of a lack of technical expertise to use them. l

Bandarban passport office at standstill n Our Correspondent, Bandarban Seventeen months after inauguration, the Bandarban passport office is yet to start any official activity.

Inhabitants of the district still have to go to Rangamati for passport-related matters despite having an office in their town.

During a recent visit to the Bandarban passport office, it was found that the ground floor is being used as a store room filled with irons rods.

On the second floor, there are only a few papers, four chairs and a table. A mosquito net was found lying on the floor.

Sources said on October 31, 2012, Arifuzzaman, acting assistant commissioner of passport section of Bandarban district administration, had received a letter from the Department of Immigration and Passports ordering to

run the passport office immediately if the office had enough space.

Officials of Bandarban passport office said four officials had been appointed while some were on deputation as no activities were taking place in the office.

The office had been issuing passports to Bandarban dwellers since 2008.

A total of 3,000 people from seven upazilas of the district have received passports from the office until 2011.

However, the activities of the office came to a halt in 2011 when the government introduced machine readable passports. Since then the residents of the district had no other choice but to approach the Rangamati passport office.

Shahjahan Kabir, assistant director of Bandarban passport office, said the office might start operations in full swing by June. l

No sign of promised footbridge in Haluaghat n Our Correspondent, Mymensingh Despite an election promise made by local MP and State Minister for Social Welfare Advocate Promod Mankin, no footbridge has been built over the Boraghat River in Haluaghat upazila of Mymensingh till date.

Jharna Pathang, a member of Gajirvita union parishad of Mymensingh, said before the parliamentary elections this year, Promod Mankin had assured the residents of Haluaghat that a footbridge would be constructed over the river.

The river which is 10 kilometer away from Haluaghat sadar upazila is largely used by the locals.

To continue communication, the locals had built a temporary bamboo

structure over the river that they had been using risking lives, claimed a number of locals.

The suffering is doubled during the rainy seasons, they added.

They said because of the rise in water level, people, particularly the students, suffer highly while using the fragile bamboo structure.

“No sign of building a bridge had been seen yet, since the completion of elections. The locals are becoming agitated day by day,” said Jharna Pathang.

ABM Rejaul Bari, executive engineer of Local Government Engineering Department, said: “A proposal in this regard is under process in the ministry.

The construction work would start as soon as we get the funds.” l

Three hurt in Jhenaidah thunderbolt strike n Our Correspondent, Jhenaidah Three people were injured when struck by thunder at Bhatai and Kulchara villages in Sailkupa upazila of Jhenaidah on Saturday night.

They were rushed to Jhenaidah General Hospital and condition of one of them was said to be critical, said hospital sources.

Sources say it was raining outside

Paralysed man burnt to death in Manikganj n UNB A man paralysed by accident was burned to death in a fierce fire at Kholshi Haldarpara village in Daulatpur upazila on Saturday night.

The deceased was identified as Joynal Sheikh, 40, son of Badaruddin of the village. Witnesses and family sources said the fire originated from an unknown origin at the house of Joinal Sheikh in the area around 10:30pm, leaving Joinal, bed-ridden for paralysis due to an accident, dead on the spot.

However, his other family members were outside the house during the incident. Shawkat Alam, officer-in-charge of Daulatpur Police Station, confirmed the incident. l

and thunderbolt struck two women, Benu Begum and Swapna, when they were working in the yard around 9pm.

A farmer named Jahangir Hossain also sustained injuries as he was feeding cows in cowshed.

The emergency medical officer of the hospital said Benu Begum and Swapna were out of danger and were recovering fast but the condition of Jahangir was critical. l

A motorcyclist crosses the Boraghat River using a bridge made of bamboo in Haluaghat upazila in Mymensingh

Eight shops gutted in two districts n Tribune Report At least eight shops were gutted in several fires in Rajbari and Gazipur districts yesterday.

Rajbari correspondent reports: At least five shops were gutted in a devastating fire in Goalpara Bazar under Kalukhali upazila in the district.

According to fire service sources, the fire originated from an electric short circuit at a shop of Mohammad Rafique Mollah, near the Rajbari– Kushtia Highway in the upazila in the morning and engulfed the adjacent four shops.

On the other hand, a shop was gutted in a fire in Uttar Daulatdia under

Daulatdia union in Goalondo upazila.

On information, fire fighters went to the spot and doused the flames.

Gazipur correspondent reports: Three shops were gutted in a fire at Joina Bazar under Sreepur upazila in the district.

Abdus Sattar, station officer of Sreepur Fire Service and Civil defence said the fire had originated at a computer shop in Abdul Awal College area and engulfed the adjacent area leaving three shops burnt to ashes.

On information, fire fighters went to the spot and doused the fire.

The affected shop owners claimed the loss caused by fire could go up Tk10 lakh. l

A heavy monsoon rain plunders farmlands in Jhenaidah yesterday. The picture was taken from Harikunda upazila

FOCUS BANGLA

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Magura farmers take delight in bumper vegetable yield

Piracy on the rise in the Sundarbans

n UNB

n Our Correspondent, Barguna

Farmers in Magura district have seen a bumper production of vegetables in the current season much to their delight.

Sources at the Department of Agricultural Extension said this year, a total of 3,785 hectares of land in four upazilas of the district were brought under vegetable farming with a production target of 70,780 tonnes.

The growers cultivated vegetables on 1,675 hectares of land in Sadar upazila, 880 hectares in Sripur upazila, 450 hectares in Shalikha upazila and 780 hectares in Mohammadpur upazila. Bottle guard, bean, bitter guard, , pumpkin, wax guard, tomato, cauliflower, cabbage, arum, eggplant, spinach, Indian variety spinach and other vegetables were cultivated in a large scale in the district.

After meeting the local demand, the vegetables are being supplied to different parts of the country, including the capital.

The vegetable farmers in the district are happy with fair prices of their produces as well. l

Piracy in the Sundarbans has sharply risen with the killing of at least 10 fishermen and around 200 incidents of abduction in the last three months.

Local sources said the pirates had also looted fish and nets worth around Tk130 million by attacking over 120 fishing trawlers during the period.

The pirate groups led by Raju, Shirsha, Nayan and Zero have been conducting robberies in the forest area under the very nose of district administration.

On January 12, a group of pirates attacked FB Tanzila Trawler and took control of it, after throwing nine fishermen into the bay, tying them up with a rope.

The fishermen – Sukkur Ali, Nazrul Islam, Abdus Sattar, Liton Mia, Masum Hossain, Kalu Mia, Shiraj Uddin and Jamal Hossain – have remained missing since then. All of them were residents of Barguna.

Another fisherman who managed to escape and came to land with help of a fishing boat narrated the incident.

On January 11, Nazir Ali, 45, a fish-

erman received bullet injury in a pirate attack in Boleswar river of Patharghata.

On February 7, Hafiz, a fisherman of FB Kazal trawler was shot dead during a pirate attack in Mandharbari area of Barguna.

Babul, another fisherman of the trawler, also received bullet injuries from the attack.

On February 17, pirates abducted around 30 fishermen by attacking over 20 trawlers at Sonarchar and Gange areas of the sea.

After the death of the pirate group leaders Mortuza, Manik and Raju at different gunfights with Rapid Action Battalion, their second-in-commands are now operating the groups, locals said.

Golam Mostofa Chowdhury, president of District Trawler Owners’ Association, told the Dhaka Tribune that the piracy had reduced since RAB officials set up a camp in Dubla char area of the Sundarban, but it had risen once again since they withdrew the camp from there.

Sources at coastguards said they were operating raids to stop piracy in the area. l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Long Form

7

Monday, March 24, 2014

Will Dhaka’s water pollution ever end?

An aerial view of the Kamrangir char shows how much toxic waste is being dumped into the Buriganga river

Khan and n Nusrat Syed Faiz Ahmed

B

eing the capital of a riverine country Dhaka is blessed with rivers around it.

Actually, the city was built and became paramount due to these rivers. Ironically, these rivers have not only lost their glory but are also becoming a heavy liability upon the city.

Dying rivers The sources of most refreshing water has become bodies of toxic sludge.

110 square kilometre area of the Shitalakkha, the Turag, the Balu and the Dhaleshwari – the surrounding rivers of Dhaka – is being continuously polluted by the contamination of

SYED ZAKIR HOSSAIN

tannery situated in Hazaribag.

A decade earlier, the government took initiatives to relocate tanneries and apporved a “tannery town” in Hemayetpur of Savar at a meeting of Executive Committee of Economic Council on August 16, 2003. It was supposed to be completed by 2005 but the time was extended for five more years and then another two more upto 2012.

Despite extension of the schedule thrice, the work is yet to be finished.

According to the Department of Environment (DoE), 20,000 tonnes of tannery waste, including some highly toxic materials, are released into the river every day.

Apart from tannery there are many more big and small industriues in the bank of these rivers. Most of them do not have proper ETP (effluent

treatment plant) and they do not follow even the basic laws regarding the protection of rivers.

Experts identified nine industrial areas in and around the capital city as the primary sources of river pollution: Tongi, Tejgaon, Hazaribagh, Tarabo, Narayanganj, Savar, Gazipur, Dhaka Export Processing Zone and Ghorashal. Most of the industrial units of these areas have no sewage treatment or ETP plants of their own.

Although the Water Act 2013, River Protection Act 2013, the Environment Conservation Rules 1997 have provision of punishment, they are evaded by corruption, political muscle and the lackluster role of River Commission and other authorities.

Back in 2009 the High Court directed the government to demarcate river banks, but that is not yet implemented. That is related to another huge problem – the encroachment of rivers. The problem is severe for these rivers and the pollution is optimum for encroachment.

Dumping grounds One of the most crucial issue is the sewerage management of the city. A city of 344 square kilometres with more than 15 million inhabitant the function is humongous; amazingly there is no proprer sewerage management system.

In the capital, everyday 9000 tons of waste is produced; 49% of them are from households and the rest from commercial, industrial and medical. Only about 5-6% of the waste is recycled despite the presence of technology and manpower. Hasin Jahan, program director of Wateraid, Bangladesh said less than one-fourth of Dhaka city area is currently under the coverage of sewerage network.

In Dhaka, where there is no sewerage network, more than half of the buildings do not have any septic tank and the sewer pipelines of these buildings are directly connected either to the open drain or to the storm drainage system polluting the surface water and the environment.

Apart from that, the solid waste produced here daily is disposed directly into the rivers without treatment. A recent Asian Development Bank (ADB) research published that, by 2015, the city dwellers will generate 8000 tons solid waste that needs a 292-hectare land for management, which is not possible.

Possible solutions

SYED ZAKIR HOSSAIN

Recycling the waste would be a possible way for management, said Hasin Jahan. Bangladesh uses around 3.5 million tons of fertiliser every year, of

which about 2.6 million tons are imported. Government provides subsidy of around Tk18 per kg of fertilisers to the farmers.

Hypothetically, if we could convert the entire amount of sludge produced in the country into proper fertiliser, we would get upto 3 million tons.

Bangladesh can save an estimated amount of Tk5,000 crore per year.

Even if we could utilise a certain percentage of this potential, it could be a huge gain for the country.

This should not be considered from monetary perspective only; use of this manure will improve soil texture and environment. It will save the treatment cost for turning polluted water into standard drinking water at water treatment plants by not polluting surface water. This is

improving the design of the sewage lines, the rivers can be saved. That way, the condition of surface water would improve for use.

Time to act All know that water supply of Dhaka city is heavily dependent on groundwater extraction; more than 87% of the supplied water is being extracted from this source and the rest amount from rivers. Such extensive dependency enhances a very high depletion rate of groundwater table.

A research from Unnyan Onneshan published that Dhaka city has been experiencing a sharp decline in groundwater table with more than 20-meter fall during the last seven years at a rate of 2.81 meter per year

To solve this problem of water crisis and at the same time to protect the surrounding rivers, now is high time to take action for improving the sewerage system and redo the urban planning

one of the propositions to managing the sludge.

At the same time, environment specialist Engineer Nasir Uddin Khan, based on UK, commented about the present scenario of water pollution due to the sewage waste in Dhaka city. He said any kind of action taken for human waste management would help in the rivers getting back their life.

Back in the days, river water or any other source of surface water was used for drinking and cooking purposes. But, nowadays, the odor of the Buriganga river water makes one think it is a waste dumping zone rather than a river. It cannot be cleaned by penalising industries situated on the bank of rivers. That is not the permanent solution.

Those industries have the ETP, but they don’t use it all the time. If they are bound to construct CETP (common ETP), then individuals cannot make the decision of not using ETP. And that way, industrial waste-water can be treated. At the same time, the waste collection process would develop, and then the generated human waste can be recycled to energy.

He also blamed RAJUK for developing an unplanned sewage system in this city. If authorities can take action to separate the solid waste by

(m/y). Considering the existing depletion rate, the study predicts that the groundwater table will go down to 120 meters by 2050.

To solve this problem of water crisis and at the same time to protect the surrounding rivers, now is high time to take action for improving the sewerage system and redo the urban planning. Though the master plan of Dhaka Water and Sewerage Authority (DWASA) proposed construction of sewerage network and treatment plants, the divisional towns and municipalities have no plan on how they would manage fecal sludge.

Master plans for few small towns are in development process; but these do not have any specific proposition for fecal sludge management, said Hasin Jahan. However, implementation of any master plan in terms of its investment, timeline and other factors are pretty uncertain.

There must be proper work distribution among DWASA, RAJUK and Dhaka City Corporation. Right now more than 5 million people are directly facing the danger of water pollution in Dhaka. This number will virally increase if quick steps are not taken. l Nusrat Khan is a freelance environment journalist. Syed Faiz Ahmed works for the Dhaka Tribune.

8

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Russian troops seize Crimea airbase Nato General raises concern political and business allies with n Reuters, Belbek Airbase, Crimea time personal sanctions.

Russian troops used armoured vehicles, automatic gunfire and stun grenades on Saturday to seize a Ukrainian airbase in Crimea a day after President Vladimir Putin signed laws completing Russia’s annexation of the Black Sea peninsula.

Meanwhile, a top Nato military commander has raised concerns over the number of Russian troops around Moldovan borders.

Ukrainian forces also abandoned a naval base after attacks by pro-Russian protesters, and had to surrender two flagship vessels to Russian forces.

The facilities at Belbek and Novofedorovka had been among the last still under Ukrainian control after Moscow’s armed takeover and subsequent annexation ofCrimea, which has a majority ethnic Russian population and harbours one of Russia’s biggest naval bases at Sevastopol.

Russia’s seizure of the peninsula after the ousting of Ukraine’s pro-Russian president by mass protests has triggered the worst East-West crisis since the Cold War. The United States and the European Union have targeted some of Putin›s closest long-

Nato concerns

Nato’s top military commander said on Sunday that Russia had a large force on Ukraine’s eastern border and said he was worried it could pose a threat to Moldova’s mainly Russian-speaking separatist Transdniestria region.

Nato’s Supreme Allied Commander Europe, US Air Force General Philip Breedlove, voiced concern about Moscow using a tactic of snap military exercises to prepare its forces for possible rapid incursions into a neighbouring state, as it had done in the case of Ukraine’s Crimea region.

Russia launched a new military exercise, involving 8,500 artillery men, near Ukraine’s border 10 days ago.

“The (Russian) force that is at the Ukrainian border now to the east is very, very sizeable and very, very ready,” Breedlove told an event held by the German Marshall Fund think-tank.

The president of ex-Soviet Moldova warned Russia last Tuesday against considering any move to annex Transdniestria, which lies on Ukraine’s western border, in the same way that it has taken control of Crimea. l

World

Monday, March 24, 2014

Europe’s response to Crimea falls short of Washington n AFP, Brussels Europe has ramped up its response to Russia’s annexation of Crimea with a new round of sanctions that still fall short of Washington’s moves and will have little bite, experts say.

The European Union this week slapped sanctions on 12 new officials linked to Moscow’s takeover of the Crimean peninsula, bringing its blacklist to 33. Among them are Russian politicians, including Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin, along with other members of President Vladimir Putin’s inner circle and Black Sea and Crimea military commanders.

But, unlike the United States, the EU has not yet extended its measures to economic sanctions. According to Brussels, the annexation of Crimea merits only “Stage 2” sanctions, which include visa bans, asset freezes and political wrist-slapping, such as suspending G8 meetings, halting bilateral summits and stopping negotiations on Russia’s joining the OECD. The EU sanctions “are very limited, their impact is more symbolic,” said Xavier Follebouckt, a specialist in Russia and international relations at the Catholic University of Leuven in Belgium.

US President Barack Obama meanwhile ordered a second round of hard sanctions on Thursday against nearly two dozen Putin allies and Bank Rossiya, which sent shares tumbling and ratings agencies Standard and Poor’s and Fitch changing Russia’s outlook to

A general view of Daugavpils March 21, 2014. In the former Soviet republics of Latvia and Estonia, there is unease over events in Crimea, which was formally annexed by Moscow last week on the pretext of safeguarding its Russian minorities. In the Latvian town of Daugavpils, you are more likely to be greeted in Russian than Latvian, with 51 % of the city’s residents Russians REUTERS negative from stable.

Several Russian banks including Rossiya and its main shareholder Yuri Kovalchuk – described as a “crony bank” for the Russian elite by Washington – saw their customers barred from using Visa and MasterCard credit cards on Friday.

Putin on Friday made light of the latest US sanctions over the Ukraine crisis, saying Moscow would hold off on reciprocal punitive measures. Russia has yet to announce any retaliatory action against the EU. Ukraine’s interim prime minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk on Friday signed the political provisions of a landmark accord on closer ties with Europe as a

Rifts beset Arab nations ahead of summit

n Agencies

Syria’s chair is seen empty at the preparatory meeting of Arab Foreign Ministers in Kuwait City March 23 Sunni Muslims, notably in the Gulf, and Shi’ites in Iraq, Lebanon and Iran, whose faith is related to that of Assad’s Alawite minority.

‘Stand by the syrian people’

“There is a desperate need to clear the Arab atmosphere and to benefit from convening the summit,” Arab League Secretary-General Nabil Elaraby said in remarks carried by Egyptian media last week.

In separate remarks, Elaraby agreed at a news conference that the sum-

mit’s decisions would be affected by “differences.”

Syrian opposition leaders have been lobbying the 22-member League of Arab States to give them Syria’s seat on the pan-Arab body, and to push Arab states to approve the delivery of military hardware to them to boost their fight to bolster Assad.

Elaraby said in Kuwait that Syria’s Arab League seat would remain vacant.

A senior Kuwaiti official, however, said that the head of the opposition Syrian National Coalition, Ahmed al-Jarba,

Even imposing sanctions on the 12 new Russian officials blacklisted by the EU is proving difficult as some have hidden assets in Luxembourg and Cyprus, said a European diplomat who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

If economic sanctions were imposed “one would have to consider the distribution of the potential burden of injury among EU countries,” said another diplomatic source. Overall, “Europe and the United States have taken a different approach” to imposing sanctions with the EU focusing more on targeting “people with a direct link to the Crimea,” said British Prime Minister David Cameron on Friday. l

Ebola alert grips Guinea and Sierra Leone

n Reuters, Dubai/Kuwait Rifts over foreign policy will likely make it harder for Arab leaders meeting at a summit this week to forge a common stand on regional challenges, including what many of them see as a threat from Iranian-US rapprochement.

And while the Arab League meeting may agree more humanitarian action in response to Syria’s war, any communique calling for the removal of President Bashar al-Assad will not reflect divergent views behind the scenes about the Syrian leader’s handling of the conflict.

Syria and Iran are not the only points of contention at the annual summit, scheduled to take place in Kuwait on March 25-26.

The meeting follows an unprecedented row among members of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) alliance of Gulf Arab states over support for Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood and a verbal spat between Iraq and Saudi Arabia over violence in Iraq’s Anbar province.

“No summit has been without differences, but this one is full of differences. It is distinguished by the intensity of these disputes which puts an extra burden on the host country,” said Ebtisam al-Qitbi, a professor of political science at the Emirates University in the United Arab Emirates.

“It will definitely make it more difficult to focus on coming out with adequate resolutions, not to mention an agreement on anything,” she added.

Arab summits have long been dominated by the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, a topic on which most Arab states share a common view. But “Arab Spring” uprisings that began in 2011 have polarised the region.

Syria’s war echoes strains between

defiant Russia formally completed its takeover of Crimea with firework displays over Moscow and the Crimean cities of Simferopol and Sevastopol.

“The best way to contain Russia is to submit it to a real economic pressure,” he said during his trip to Brussels to sign the pact. Europe has said it will consider imposing economic sanctions on Moscow, but only if tensions over Ukraine continue to escalate.

Such sanctions would be far more economically damaging to the EU than to the US because of the 28-nation bloc’s dependence on Russian gas, which accounts for a quarter of its supplies, and other trade links.

REUTERS

would deliver a speech at the summit.

“The Arab summit is required to stand by the Syrian people in its great tragedy, not with words only but with material, financial, political and military backing,” Saudi Arabia’s Okaz newspaper quoted National Coalition member Mohammed al-Sarmini as saying. But Syria’s Arab allies, including Iraq, Algeria and Lebanon, oppose any such support for the rebels.

They point out that Islamists, including groups linked to al Qaeda, are the most potent force in the armed opposition. l

Ebola has killed at least 59 people in Guinea and there are fears the virus may have spread to neighbouring Sierra Leone, world health officials have said.

Cases of the disease, which can kill 90 percent of those infected, have been registered in three southeastern towns and in the Guinean capital, Conakry, since Februrary 9.

They are the first recorded cases in the country.

“It is indeed Ebola fever. A laboratory in Lyon, France, confirmed the information,” Damantang Albert Camara, a government spokesman, told the Reuters news agency.

Dr Sakoba Keita, who leads the epidemics prevention division at Guinea’s health ministry, said that officials had registered 80 suspected cases of the disease, including 59 deaths.

“But you have to understand that not all the cases are necessarily due to Ebola fever. Some will have other origins, including a form of severe dysentery,” Keita said.

Officials from the World Health Organisation said that cases showing similar symptoms - fever, diarrhoea, vomiting and bleeding - had also been reported in an area of Sierra Leone near the border with Guinea.

Sierra Leone’s chief medical officer, Dr Brima Kargbo, said authorities were investigating the case of a 14-year-old boy who died in the town of Buedu in the eastern Kailahun District.

The boy had travelled to Guinea to attend the funeral of one of the outbreak’s earlier victims.

Kargbo said a medical team had been sent to Buedu to test those who came into contact with the boy before his death.

EBOLA • A highly virulent form of haemorrhagic fever • Can kill up to 90% of those infected • Symptoms include fever, diarrhoea, vomiting and bleeding • Can be caught through close contact with wildlife • Passed between through fluids

humans

Medical teams sent

The international medical charity, Medecins Sans Frontieres, announced on Saturday it was reinforcing its medical and logistics teams in Guinea in response to the outbreak.

It was also flying in 33 tonnes of medicines and equipment and setting up isolation units in the three affected towns in Guinea.

“Yes, this is an outbreak.”

“These structures are essential to prevent the spread of the disease, which is highly contagious,” Dr Esther Sterk, the group’s tropical medicine adviser, said in a statement.

Humans can catch ebola through close contact with infected animals including chimpanzees, gorillas and monkeys. The disease also spreads easily between humans.

It is most commonly found in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda, South Sudan and Gabon. l

Presidential campaign kicks off in Algeria n Reuters

Hamas: Israel to pay ‘very Erdogan rallies against ‘terrorist’ rivals high price’ if it attacks Gaza n

Campaigning for Algeria’s April 17 presidential election has begun as criticism mounts of a bid by incumbent Abdelaziz Bouteflika to clinch a fourth term despite concerns over his health.

The president rejected such concerns in a message to the nation on Saturday, insisting he was fit to govern and had decided to run in answer to persistent calls from Algerians.

“It is my duty to respond positively, because never in my life have I shied away from the call of duty,” Bouteflika said.

“The difficulties linked to my health do not appear to disqualify me in your eyes or plead in favour of me giving up the heavy responsibilities which have, in part, affected my health,” APS news agency quoted him as saying.

Bouteflika, who is widely expected to win, will square off against five other presidential hopefuls, including one woman, Louisa Hanoune, and key challenger Ali Benflis. l

Gaza’s Hamas premier Ismail Haniya warned Israel Sunday it would pay dearly if it heeded its foreign minister’s call to reoccupy the enclave to try to halt rocket attacks.

“We tell the enemy and (Foreign Minister Avigdor) Lieberman who is threatening to reoccupy Gaza that the time for your threats is over,” Haniya told a rally in Gaza City.

“Any aggression or crime or stupidity you commit will cost you a very high price.”

Israeli forces shot three Palestinian militants dead on Saturday in a raid on a home in the occupied West Bank to capture a wanted Hamas Islamist militant, Israeli military and Palestinian officials said.

The Palestinian Authority denounced the violence that it said threatened US-brokered peace talks ahead of a looming April deadline set

by Secretary of State John Kerry.

On March 12, during a two-day

Reuters, Istanbul

n AFP, Gaza City

flare-up in which Gaza Palestinians fired at least 60 rockets into Israel and the Israelis responded with dozens of air strikes, Lieberman said Israel would have no choice but to reoccupy Gaza, from which it withdrew all troops and settlers in summer 2005. “There is no alternative to a full reoccupation of the entire Gaza Strip,” he told Channel 2 television.

Speaking to tens of thousands of supporters on Sunday at a public rally marking 10 years since an Israeli air strike killed Hamas spiritual leader Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, Haniya warned Israel that Gaza militants “have far more capabilities than you imagine.”

He also restated his Islamic movement’s opposition to peace talks between Israel and the West Bank-based Palestinian Authority of Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas.

“Stop negotiating with the enemy,” he told the PA. “We will not recognise Israel.” l

With a huge rally on the approach to the Bosphorus waterway, Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan will launch a final electoral push on Sunday to stifle rivals he described this weekend as an ‹alliance of evil› in cahoots with terrorism.

Erdogan, who vowed last week to wipe out Twitter in Turkey for carrying anonymous postings accusing him and associates of corrupt dealings, ac-

cused the networking site of “systematic character assassination.” The site remained blocked on Saturday in Turkey, access denied as a “protection measure.”

Leading condemnation from Western governments and rights groups, the White House said the Twitter ban ahead of March 30 local elections undermined democracy and free speech.

Criticism reflected growing concern over events in a NATO country held up in the past as a template for a stable

Muslim democracy.

The setting for Sunday’s rally on reclaimed land beside the Sea of Marmara matches the drama of Turkish politics since police graft raids in December triggered a vitriolic power struggle between Erdogan and Islamic cleric Fethullah Gulen, who had helped him secure his hold on power over the last decade.

In a whirlwind of rallies across Turkey, Erdogan has railed against “the individual from Pennsylvania.” l

Leading Egypt activist ordered free on bail n Agencies Court orders left wing activist Alaa Abdel Fattah to be released on bail pending trial for violating new protest laws.

An Egyptian court has released leading left wing activist Alaa Abdel Fattah on bail, in the opening session of his trial on charges of participating in an illegal and violent protest.

Abdel Fattah, a prominent youth

leader of the 2011 uprising that overthrew Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak, was arrested last November for taking part in a protest against widened military powers under the new army-appointed regime.

The interim government, appointed after the military coup that ousted President Mohamed Morsi in July, has cracked down on both Islamists and secular opponents.

Abdel Fattah faces trial with 24 co-

defendants, with all but one already released on bail before the trial.

They were arrested after taking part in a protest outside the senate, where a panel was drafting a new constitution allowing the military more powers in choosing the defence minister, and retaining its right to try civilians before military tribunals.

The protest violated a recently enacted law banning all but police-authorised demonstrations. l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

World

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Monday, March 24, 2014

MH370 drama fuels aviation security rethink French satellite n image also shows possible plane debris AFP, Kuala Lumpur

n Reuters, Kuala Lumpur/Perth French satellite images show “floating debris” in the southern Indian Ocean, Paris said on Sunday, which together with Chinese and Australian images of suspicious objects in the same wide area have focused the search for a missing Malaysian jetliner in remote seas offAustralia.

The new lead came as the international search for Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 entered its third week, with still no confirmed trace of the Boeing 777 that vanished with 239 people on board.

“This morning, Malaysia received new satellite images from the French authorities showing potential objects in the vicinity of the southern corridor,” the Malaysian Transport Ministry said in a statement. “Malaysia immediately relayed these images to the Australian rescue co-ordination centre.”

Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott had said there was “increasing hope” of a breakthrough in the hunt for the plane on the strength of Chinese and Australian images of possible large debris.

The French Foreign Ministry said radar echoes from a satellite put the new debris finding about 2,300 km (1,430 miles) from Perth, without giving a direction or a date.

The debris in the Australian image was about 2,500 km southwest of Perth and the Chinese sighting, captured two days later, was around 120 km (75 miles) “south by west” of that.

“These elements have immediately been passed on to the Malaysian authorities,” the French ministry said in a statement. “France had decided to mobilise complementary satellite means to continue the search in the identified zone.”

Flight MH370 vanished from civilian radar screens early on March 8, less than an hour after taking off from Kuala Lumpur on a scheduled flight to Beijing.

An international force resumed its search efforts on Sunday, zeroing in on two areas around where the earlier sightings were made in an effort to find the object identified by China and other small debris, including a wooden pallet, spotted by a search plane on Saturday. l

As the hunt for Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 enters a third week, the piecemeal returns from one of the most intense, international searches in living memory have delivered a public and institutional shock that could force a major rethink about aviation security.

The fact that a Boeing-777 equipped with state-of-the-art location tracking technology could vanish for so long, is in itself, aviation experts say, shocking enough to compel changes in the way commercial aircraft are electronically monitored.

One priority would be to enhance tracking coverage for a plane in an emergency situation that forces it beyond the reach of conventional radar systems.

It was modern satellite imagery that pointed MH370 investigators to a remote part of the Indian Ocean 2,500 kilometres (1,500 miles) southwest of Perth, but the physical search for debris in the area had to rely on less sophisticated methods – binoculars held to the windows of spotter planes.

If a crash site is finally located, investigators will have to rush to find the plane’s crucial “black box” before it stops emitting its tracking signals.

“There’s no doubt that what has gone on is one of the greatest mysteries of modern aviation and it will have an impact on the global aviation and airline industry,” Jonathan Galaviz, part-

ner at the US-based travel and aviation consultancy firm Global Market Advisors, told AFP. “I expect there will be a real examination of the kind of recording technology we have right now in airplanes, a debate on how they are designed and how long they can last,” Galaviz said.

Priority would be to enhance tracking coverage for a plane in an emergency situation Live data streaming?

“There will also be discussion about live satellite streaming of such data so that it can constantly be monitored,” he added.

The separate flight data recorder and cockpit voice recorder currently send pings for about 30 days – a timespan that could well be reconsidered given the unprecedented length of the search for the Malaysian airliner.

The mystery of MH370 owes much to the abrupt nature of its “disappearance.”

Nearly one hour into its flight, both its automated signalling systems ceased to function and the plane dropped off civilian radar.

The immediate assumption was of

a catastrophic event that plunged the plane into the South China Sea before any distress call could be made.

But sketchy satellite and military radar showed that, in fact, the aircraft had veered sharply off course, backtracked across the Malaysian peninsula, and then flown on – possibly for hours – in a northerly or southerly direction.

Technology already exists for passenger jets to immediately relay the black box data via satellite, but most commercial airlines have baulked at the prospect of investingms in such systems, as bottom lines come under pressure due to rising fuel costs and increasing competition.

Major airlines, including Malaysia Airlines, have access to the Aircraft Communications Addressing and Reporting System (ACARS), a digital datalink via satellite or VHS radio, for brief text messages from aircraft, but they do not compare with the parameters that the flight data recorder monitors.

In the case of Flight 370, the ACARS, which was supposed to transmit data every 30 minutes, failed to send messages after the aircraft fell off civilian radar.

Minimising upgrade costs

Andrew Herdman, director-general of the Asia Pacific Airlines Association, said costs for satellite-linked black boxes could be minimised by programming them to transmit data to ground controllers only when an in-flight ab-

normality is detected.

Such abnormalities might include the disabling of communications systems or a sudden deviation from the flight plan.

“The idea of live streaming the black boxes would also entail an enormous amount of data being transmitted on any given day and that in itself would also be a huge logistical challenge,” he told AFP. Greg Waldron, the Asia managing editor for aviation industry magazine Flightglobal, said the uptake of such technology by airlines would be a “slow and gradual process.”

Airlines may move faster if leading civil aviation regulators including the US Federal Aviation Administration and the European Aviation Safety Agency decide to make such systems mandatory for their respective jurisdictions within a set deadline, he said.

“There is still a sense of shock that a modern aircraft like the Boeing 777 can just go missing, and I’m sure there will (be) more robust monitoring as we go along,” he said.

Galaviz said rekindled debate over aviation security was always an important and constructive by-product of events like the disappearance of MH370.

“Aside from the tragedy of it all and the unanswered questions, perhaps at this point we need to take a step back and acknowledge that despite all of it there may be some positives that come out of it,” he said. l

UN report draft: Climate change to disrupt food supplies, brake growth n Reuters, Oslo Global warming will disrupt food supplies, slow world economic growth and may already be causing irreversible damage to nature, according to a UN report due this week that will put pressure on governments to act.

A 29-page draft by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) will also outline many ways to adapt to rising temperatures, more heatwaves, floods and rising seas.

“The scientific reasoning for reducing emissions and adapting to climate change is becoming far more compelling,” Rajendra Pachauri, chair of the IPCC, told Reuters in Beijing.

Scientists and more than 100 governments will meet in Japan from March 25-29 to edit and approve the re-

port. It will guide policies in the run-up to a UN summit inParis in 2015 meant to decide a deal to curb rising greenhouse gas emissions.

The 29-page draft projects risks such as food and water shortages and extinctions of animals and plants. Crop yields would range from unchanged to a fall of up to 2% a decade, compared to a world without warming, it says.

And some natural systems may face risks of “abrupt or drastic changes” that could mean irreversible shifts, such as a runaway melt of Greenland or a drying of the Amazon rainforest.

It said there were “early warning signs that both coral reef and Arctic systems are already experiencing irreversible regime shifts.” Corals are at risk in warmer seas and the Arctic region is thawing fast.

NSA allegedly hacked Chinese telco Huawei n AP The US National Security Agency has secretly tapped into the networks of Chinese telecom and internet giant Huawei, the New York Times and Der Spiegel reported.

The NSA accessed Huawei’s email archive, communication between top company officials internal documents, and even the secret source code of individual Huawei products, read the reports, which were published on Saturday, based on documents provided by fugitive NSA contractor Edward Snowden.

“We currently have good access and so much data that we don’t know what to do with it,” states one internal document cited by Der Spiegel.

Huawei, founded in 1987 by former People’s Liberation Army engineer Ren Zhengfei, has long been seen by Washington as a potential security Trojan Horse due to perceived close links to the Chinese government, which it denies.

The United States and Australia have barred Huawei from involvement in broadband projects over espionage fears. l

Climate change will hit growth.

Warming of 2.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels could mean “global aggregate economic losses between 0.2 and 2.0% of income,” it says.

Almost 200 governments have agreed to limit warming to less than 2.0 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial times, mainly by curbing emissions from burning fossil fuels. Temperatures have already risen by about 0.8 Celsius (1.4F).

But many people in big emitting nations are unconvinced. Only 40% of Americans and 39% of Chinese view climate change as a major threat, according to a Pew Research Center survey of 39 nations in 2013.

A third instalment, due in Berlin in mid-March, will show solutions to climate change such as more renewable energy. l

Pawar: Vote twice! n Agencies NCP president and Union agriculture minister Sharad Pawar on Sunday waded into controversy by allegedly advising Mathadi workers from the APMC market in Navi Mumbai to cast their votes twice: first in Satara, where they hail from, on April 17, and then to wipe the indelible ink on their fingers and vote again for the party in Navi Mumbai on April 24.

Pawar’s comments are, in effect, an advise to violate the Indian election laws that allow only one vote for one person.

BJP leader Vinod Tawde took objection to Pawar’s speech, and said he had procured a CD of the speech and was in the process of making a complaint. l

THE GREAT WALL HOSTS THE FIRST LADY

A member of election duty staff arranges electronic voting machines (EVM) inside a strong room ahead of the 2014 general elections in the western Indian city of Ahmedabad March 21 REUTERS

Jaitley on Jaswant sulk: Leaders should learn to take ‘no’ for an answer n Agencies With a sulking Jaswant Singh set to contest from Barmer as an Independent after being denied a party ticket, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Arun Jaitley on Sunday said leaders should learnt accept “no” after being showered with privileges.

Jaswant Singh will file his nomination on Monday from Rajasthan’s Barmer constituency. (HT Photo) “Membership of a political party is a privilege. It is also an act of self oppression where personal views and ambi-

for and the direction in which it is being led now,” he said. “It is unfortunate the BJP has been taken over by elements who have never respected the party’s ideology.”

Jaitley on Sunday said the politician or leader denied a ticket must accept the decision with a “smile.”

“This becomes a test of his loyalty and discipline. Restraint and silence are always a preferred option. Over reaction may prove be a transient storm in a tea cup. Silence is always dignified and more gracious,” he said in an oblique reference to Singh. l

2008 Indian embassy attack in Kabul sanctioned by ISI, new book claims n Agencies

Security personnel keep watch as US first lady Michelle Obama (not seen) visits the Mutianyu section of the Great Wall of China, in Beijing March 23 REUTERS

tions are subjected to collective wisdom of the party. At times, the party may flood leaders with privileges and positions. On other occasions, the leader may have to take ‘no’ as an answer to his desires,” Jaitley wrote on his website.

Camping in Jodhpur earlier, Singh hit out at the BJP for welcoming outsiders and diluting its ideology. The 76-year-old was overlooked for former Congressman Col Sonaram Choudhary, a new entrant.

“We have to differentiate between the real and fake BJP… One has to reflect on the principles the party stood

The deadly 2008 terror attack on the Indian embassy in Kabul was sanctioned and monitored by senior officials of Pakistan’s ISI, according to a new book.

The suicide car bomb attack on the Indian embassy in Kabul on July 7, 2008 left 58 people, including two top Indian officials, killed and over 140 injured.

“The embassy bombing was no operation by rogue ISI agents acting on their own. It was sanctioned and monitored by the most senior officials in Pakistani intelligence,” wrote senior journalist Carlotta Gall in her latest book ‘The Wrong Enemy: America in Afghanistan 2001-2004’, to be out next month.

The then Bush administration, that received advance intelligence information, mainly through intercepts of phone calls, could not prevent the deadly attack, wrote Gall, one of the only women western re-

porters on the ground in Afghanistan after 9/11 and covered the AfPak conflict for 10 years.

The bombing of the Indian embassy in Kabul “revealed the clearest evidence of ISI complicity in its planning and execution,” according to excerpts from the book.

“American and Afghan surveillance intercepted phone calls from ISI officials in Pakistan and heard them planning the attack with the militants in Kabul in the days leading up to the bombing. At the time, intelligence officials monitoring the calls did not know what was being planned, but the involvement of a high-level official in promoting a terrorist attack was clear.

“The evidence was so damning that the Bush administration dispatched the deputy chief of the CIA, Stephen Kappes, to Islamabad to remonstrate with the Pakistanis. The bomber struck, however, before Kappes reached Pakistan,” she said.

“Investigators found the bomber’s

cell phone in the wreckage of his exploded car. They tracked down his collaborator in Kabul, the man who had provided the logistics for the attack.

That facilitator, an Afghan, had been in direct contact with Pakistan by telephone,” Gall wrote.

“The number he had called belonged to a high-level ISI official in Peshawar. The official had sufficient seniority that he reported directly to ISI headquarters in Islamabad. The embassy bombing was no operation by rogue ISI agents acting on their own. It was sanctioned and monitored by the most senior officials in Pakistani intelligence,” she claimed in her book, running into more than 300 pages.

While Pakistan has repeatedly denied its involvement in the Indian embassy attack, several mainstream US newspapers, including The New York Times, and the governments of India and Afghanistan have accused the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) of being behind the attack. l

10

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Editorial

Letters to

www.dhakatribune.com

Help business by taking a lead to improve logistics

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conomic growth is being held back by poor infrastructure and logistics, both administrative and physical.

Bangladesh has been ranked 108th out of 160 countries in the World Bank’s latest logistics performance index (LPI). Poor customs performance and delays in shipments led to the country’s ranking falling significantly from 79th in 2010.

Improving the efficiency of our logistics performance and better integrating our supply-chain with world trade is absolutely vital to future well-being.

There are a number of straightforward steps which the government can implement, to reform customs procedures to help facilitate cross border trade. It can also work to keep reducing red tape and tarrif barriers.

It must also show vision on physical infrastructure. Business leaders at the Bangladesh Brand Forum Leadership summit this week have been pointing out a number of ways in which infrastructure improvements can boost logistics and help the economy.

As the Asian Development Bank pointed out in 2004, simply having a fully functioning modern motorway between Dhaka and Chittagong alone could grow the economy by 1 percent. Goods could be shipped more easily and industries could develop and relocate to other districts and satellite towns. The opportunities for growing sectors such as packaging could also be boosted tremendously by improving Bangladesh’s regional links with neighbouring states.

The government needs to listen to business leaders. It must show vision by doing more to improve Bangladesh’s efficiency in trading goods, to allow the country to fulfill its economic and export growth and potential.

Improving the efficiency of our logistics performance and supply-chain is vital to future well-being

T

the Editor

LETTER OF THE DAY

Forever is a long long time March 22

The auspicious month of March is here. In this month in 1971, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman gave a clarion call to the people to rise up against the unjust acts committed on them, and asked them to unite and resist. Those who belonged to this land responded to his call and many, including those who were in defence services, joined hands to free this country in nine months.

But it is regretful that Bangabandhu’s daughter has resorted to underhanded ways to stay in power, thereby doing great harm to her party. The latter have shifted from their earlier stance of holding a midterm election to make it seem as if they want to remain in power forever, at any cost.

Nur Jahan

Mango and creative juice March 17 Robert Imam Was this a ticketed AR Rahman concert with the others listed as opening acts? Including Sabina Yasmin? I bet the Melbourne “opening” acts knew exactly what was happening, what their role was there, and didn’t get surprise treatment from the organisers; but in this case, dear analyst, the performers clearly fell into the grips of mismanagement (not the first time)! That should not be justified using Mr Rahman’s stature. matthewislam Robert Imam: It had two artists billed in prominence with huge font sizes and the rest in minuscule print. Did it need to state they were supporting acts to the main billing with titling?

Robert Imam matthewislam: Concerts have supporting acts, eg Madonna’s Australasia tour, featuring Ponytail or tails, which is the culture of supporting acts as far as I know. Was this a “global” event for the cricket tournament or not? Look, whether you advocate cultural diversity or not, we are very open to certain cultures. It’s not like you are promoting artists from all countries who are playing here, just defending the presence of Akon and AR (who are both via Bollywood). You’re flogging a horse that is running two miles ahead of you! Find a better cause!

Make strategic use of Japan’s $1.18bn loan

he $1.18bn soft loan package announced by Japan is a welcome vote of confidence in the future of Bangladesh.

When taken with growing private sector investment from Japan, it is a further indicator of the longstanding friendly relations shared by our nations.

The government must ensure that these funds are utilised efficiently to boost long-term economic development and opportunities. There are too many instances of land remaining idle or unproductive in existing industrial parks and EPZs because of poor communication and power links around the country.

As a consequence, many industries are forced to cluster around Dhaka where land is expensive and there is less space to build modern factories. It also holds back rural and regional development, preventing the country from making efficient use of its land area.

Improved communication and highway links are needed to overcome the challenges businesses currently face in efficiently transporting goods and raw materials, and to incentivise businesses to invest and spread development around the nation.

The new package can help as it is intended to help finance projects to develop various city corporation areas in the areas of energy, natural gas, electricity and infrastructure development.

It is vital the government shows long term vision by putting renewed emphasis on building efficient transport links to allow EPZs to serve as export corridors. New industrial parks and better communications are needed not only to help the crucial RMG sector to modernise further, but also to attract other industries and investment for future growth.

Monday, March 24, 2014

matthewislam Robert Imam: Not defending the presence at all, just saying that shows and events happen. People bought tickets and went. There is a demand and it was supplied for. Those who went as a supporting act signed up to two songs and the audience, both TV and live, knew it was going to be a predominantly Indian show just from the ticket stub, unless they expected Rahman to sing in Bengali and Akon to tag along.

I find it unbelievable that the complaints started after the show because a lot of the ones who are acting “holier than thou” are making themselves look very naive.

Robert Imam matthewislam: There are a few sides to this story, and I am just disappointed at your selection of a side from the array of choices.

Jamil A write-up without a political bias it seems!! That was sarcasm without a bias from my side.

Ruhaini Islam We need constructive criticism given while maintaining a decorum of respect to people of the opposing views. Is this the sort of speech we want from our educated class?

Unequal traditions March 18

The arguments are obviously incontrovertible. Views opposed to what the article stand for is simply indefensible. But the problem is almost all of us want our wives

or girlfriends to abide by what we the male counterparts think to be appropriate for the womenfolk. nds

Bangladesh produces record electricity March 19

Parveen Yet there were power outages in Banani yesterday!

Nizam Ahmad At what price and why were contracts given to government cronies? Why is the government not out of this electricity business, which is surely one of the biggest fraudulent operations in Bangladesh?

The privatisation of SoEs and liberalisation of the energy policy would cut costs and supply energy to all in the country as in developed countries, which government-controlled producers are still unable to do despite 40 years in this business.

Abolish the energy ministry and watch the private producers produce enough at affordable rates with the government doing only two things – protecting the property of producers and arresting those who cheat and threaten the lives and properties of others.

Court rejects Khaleda’s time petition March 19

Seriously? And they speak of negotiations?

Time is an interesting thing and particularly when the odds eventually but inevitably turn.

Ahnaf Saber

Be Heard Write to us at: Dhaka Tribune FR Tower, 8/C Panthapath Sukrabad, Dhaka-1207 Email us at: letters.dt@dhakatribune.com Send us your Op-Ed articles: opinion.dt@dhakatribune.com Visit our website: www.dhakatribune.com Come join our Facebook community: https://www.facebook.com/DhakaTribune

CALVIN AND HOBBES

Ensure funds are utilised efficiently to boost long-term development and opportunities

PEANUTS

CROSSWORD

SUDOKU ACROSS 1 Arab vessel (4) 4 Cavity (4) 8 By way of (3) 9 Augury (4) 10 Stagger (4) 11 Spirited mount (5) 12 Repose (4) 14 Knight’s title (3) 15 Liable (3) 17 Faucet (3) 19 Male sheep (3) 21 Facial features (4) 23 Bird (5) 26 Bewilder (4) 27 Dry (4) 28 Pale (3) 29 Story (4) 30 Fasting period (4)

DOWN 1 Straightforward (6) 2 Above (4) 3 Cajolery (5) 4 Pungent (3) 5 Greek letter (5) 6 Sheltered side (3) 7 Finish (3) 11 Wander off (5) 13 Sea nymph (5) 16 Natural gift (6) 18 Danger (5) 20 Decoration (5) 22 Of sound mind (4) 23 Headwear (3) 24 Period of time (3) 25 Lyric poem (3)

YESTERDAY’S SOLUTIONS Crossword

How to solve Sudoku: Fill in the blank spaces with the numbers 1 – 9. Every row, column and 3 x 3 box must contain all nine digits with no number repeating.

Sudoku

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Op-Ed

11

Monday, March 24, 2014

Leave it to the people n MH Bari

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Why adhere to moral restrictions when you only live once?

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Do they serve scotch up there?

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n Towheed Feroze nce, a famous writer said he didn’t want to go to heaven because none of his friends were there. So, where will Khushwant Singh end up – heaven or hell? For the most piercing writer to come out of the sub-continent, the issue of afterlife was never a bother, because Singh was an avowed agnostic.

Interestingly, he also wrote the most comprehensive book on the history of the Sikhs, deciphering in detail, religious texts. So, was he a believer after all?

The thing is, Khushwant stressed more on living in this life, relegating the importance of the life beyond. Of course detractors were very quick to label him a god-forsaken apostate who was propagating a vile philosophy.

Sorry, but millions of readers who could understand his viewpoint actually saw that, though the writer himself was an agnostic, he was not asking readers to renounce their faith in order to lead a good life.

Instead, what he subtly upheld in his writings were mostly fundamental religious ideals like fraternity, tolerance, harmonious living without racial prejudice, and a liking for all things beautiful. That of course means appreciating the attraction of the opposite sex. God has given you eyes to marvel at feminine grace, why suppress the desire? And if they are willing, then …

In this dubiously puritan world, speaking out in public about love for women is deemed the sign of a lascivious man; hence, the writer became the “dirty old man.”

Good to remember, while the writer loved women, he always underlined

the need for mutual attraction and never the vulgar habit of one-sided stalking.

The epithet never bothered him, but gave him a wicked cachet. Again, one must admit, the word “wicked” also has a layer of covert appreciation about it.

While so-called moralists always panned his works for too much sexuality, they could never dispel the writer’s irrefutable logic – after food, sex was the most important of human instincts.

All through his works, human sexuality always surfaces as a visceral force, often driving men and women to go beyond demarcated lines.

writings as well as his life. A few pegs of scotch and no differences appear insurmountable.

Wait! That does not mean he championed intemperance.

When he passed away last week, I took out one of his articles on living and dying where he categorically points out the need for some sport or outdoor activity to ward off the negative sides of eating and drinking merrily.

Singh played competitive college hockey during his days at Cambridge, and, till the age of 85, was a regular at the tennis court.

As most writers are negligent about material possessions, Singh, all

He always portrayed humans as humans – with a fair share of faults and never as saints

The writer actually broke a taboo to show our so-called “very proper” society was anything but in reality. In fact, the sexual intricacies of a man-woman relation depicted in his books find resonance to how society has evolved to accommodate murky sides of sexual behaviour. It’s not always by the book or tradition.

After all, going by rules is never a thrill. The forbidden is always more tempting than the conventional. Otherwise, Adam would not have eaten the apple.

Singh’s one other side was that he unfailingly celebrated events that cemented human bondage. Hence, the drink featured prominently in his

throughout life, advocated the need to be practical instead of becoming rapacious. A secure bank balance to support one in old age is needed, plus a place to call one’s own.

Tell me what can beat a languorous evening drink by the window, during monsoon in one’s own small flat? Bliss does not have to be too Bohemian nor too calculating.

Also, envy, topped with a desire to compete with others, only erodes contentment.

After he passed away, most obituaries – with genuine reason - mentioned his book Train to Pakistan, though I feel his magnum opus is his last one, Sunset Club.

Revolving around three men in their old age, the book rubbishes the common belief of absolute good and bad by simply placing three different characters with both redeeming sides and some essential vices at the twilight of life.

Singh wrote on many things, but the one common leitmotif is that he always portrayed humans as humans – with a fair share of faults and never as saints of total perfection.

That is exactly why when he was lambasted for endorsing the emergency imposed by Indira Gandhi in the mid-70s, he unabashedly presented his own selfish reasons.

An outspoken critic of radical Hindu nationalism, he clearly chalked out his position during the Babri mosque demolition stating vociferously that India’s main threat was simmering religious fanaticism.

Oh, he got plenty of hate mail for that, but what is a writer if he is only loved and not hated?

The writer, who penned words fearlessly, is dead. Only his philosophy lives on – dump the pseudo moral restrictions to enjoy life because you only live once. However, make sure in doing so, one hurts as few people as possible.

Drink and love for women do not make men vile, however they do make men naughty. Now tell me ... would there be a “zing” in existence, if everyone followed the rules?

On that note, we remember the “dirty old man.” Here’s a toast to his name. Khushwant never believed in an afterlife, but if he finds himself in another world then lets hope he gets his scotch … l Towheed Feroze is a journalist currently working in the development sector.

fter the emergence of Bangladesh as an independent state in 1971, political parties professing Islamic ideology were banned due to their controversial roles in our war of liberation. The fifth amendment brought to the constitution of Bangladesh in 1977 removed the legal bar for the formation of an Islamic political party. Through a convention held in the precincts of Eden Hotel in Dhaka in May, 1979, Jamaat-e-Islami emerged as an Islamic political movement.

Some left-leaning political parties and their affiliated professional and cultural organisations have long been demanding the banning of Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami. Their reasons behind this are that they have no right to do politics in Bangladesh as they were against our liberation war, they were involved in crimes against humanity, they did not apologise or repent for their heinous crimes, they are still patronising terrorists activities, and finally, their student wing Islami Chhatra Shibir is terorising the country, and above all, they are using Islam in achieving state power and are misleading our people regarding Islam.

But some political scientists, analysts, and intellectuals have opposed banning any political party no matter what the reason. They opined that banning a political party, because one does not like it or the party does not like it or the government does not like, is completely against democratic norms and principles. A political party, no matter how extreme or odd its ideologies are, must be dealt with by the law in true democratic fashion.

Legal experts opined that political rights are a part of civil liberties. Constitutionally, every Bangladeshi citizen has the right to form associations or unions, and this is guaranteed by Article 38 of the Constitution. Freedom of thought and of speech is guaranteed by Article 39 of the Constitution.

Article 37 ensures the right to assemble and to participate in public meetings.

Freedom of movement throughout Bangladesh is guaranteed by Article 36, and freedom of religion is ensured

by Article 41.

Each and every citizen of the country has the above fundamental and constitutional rights, subject to any reasonable restrictions imposed by law. Therefore, banning any political party would effectively mean depriving individuals of their constitutional rights and liberties.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, in a press conference held after the January 5 elections, confirmed that her government would not label Jamaat as a terrorist organisation by applying executive power, since a case on the ban over the party was pending with the top court of Bangladesh. As a political party, the AL will surely carry out the political calculation of benefits and losses on the ban issue. So they may not go for banning Jamaat.

Jamaat only hold 5% of all votes, but they are important in the voting race. As such, they always get shelter from our larger political parties. Pat-

ronisation from the BNP and the AL made it possible for the Jamaat to rise as the country’s fourth largest political party.

Jamaat is disqualified from taking part in any election as it has lost its registration within the Election Commission as a political party because of its avowed principles that go against the country’s constitution. So, Jamaat-e-Islami as a political party is not an important factor at the moment, as they cannot play any active role in our internal politics.

Our people will not run after a political party with a scandalous past

It seems that our leading political parties have no principles, no ideology, no set policy, and no goal, except to retain power or gain power. As such, our future generations are not interested in them. Another omnipresent sign is that our young people are getting attracted to Jamaat. This may not be good for the nation. If Jamaat is banned, then they may go underground and destabilise public life and security even further.

Excessive oppression and media coverage will create a sense of sympathy towards them on behalf of the public. There is no doubt that our Islamic parties are now mostly united due to the present government’s antagonistic policy when it comes to them.

Why should we be so worried about Jamaat? Politically, they are an immature party. They could not gain even the minimum public support in this sub-continent despite being one of the oldest political parties around.

They opposed our struggle for liberation, their biggest political mistake, for which they are now bearing the wounds.

It may be noted here that radical forces like BJP, Sheeb Sena, and RSS are involved in politics in a highly democratic country like India, and no one is demanding banning their activities. Many fundamental parties are doing politics in Europe as well.

Let Jamaat participate in politics according to our norms and laws.

There is no doubt that the people of Bangladesh are highly politicised.

They are fully aware of their right to rule. They will not run after a political party like Jamaat, a party with such a scandalous past. They are committed to establishing participatory democracy through free and fair elections.

So, let our people decide Jamaat’s fate. It is not a good idea to have our political matters be decided by the judiciary. It only seeks to embarrass our judiciary and bring their neutrality into question. l MH Bari works in the global marketing of seafood from Bangladesh.

A pressing time for newsmen n Khawaza Main Uddin

W

e protested more than once when foreigners asked if Bangladesh was one of the world’s most dangerous places for journalists. They referred to the unfortunate deaths of a number of correspondents at the hands of bandits in frontier areas.

To be fair, those killings involved issues of personalised local interests.

For professionalism per se, journalists earlier were not under constant threats despite occasional harassment.

We can no longer say that. I joined a rally in Manila in 2010 to protest the massacre of 32 reporters (58 people were killed altogether) in Maguindanao the year before. My Filipino friends are still showing brave hearts while pursuing journalism in conflict-prone zones like Mindanao that sometimes make global headlines.

The killing of journalist couple Sagar and Runi in 2012 came as a shockwave to all those who want to express their opinions – be it at home, school, or the office – without facing a witch-hunt. It was seen as an attempt to silence the voice of individual journalists after the unseen hands of killers and conspirators had proven to

be stronger than the social conscience that demands justice.

I don’t think working journalists deserve to be in newspapers headlines, since they are mostly there for the wrong reasons. Sagar-Runi becoming household names after their murder was in no way expected by us.

Our colleagues captured media attention in recent times, again not for the right reasons. Attacks, intimidation, litigation, and assault have compelled media professionals to express their own grievances. This focus on self-defence undermines the community’s capacity to uphold the ethos and altruism of the profession.

Bangladesh’s journalists didn’t need to talk about themselves because of the massive social support behind them for vibrant media. They were often treated by politicians as friends and comrades during historic movements, including pro-democracy demonstrations.

A minister of the Ershad regime said a high official had asked him if universities that were the sources of anti-martial law campaigns could be replaced by technical institutions. “It was a hypothetical statement but it bore a certain mindset,” that minister, who deserted Ershad many years ago,

told me last year.

When the personal aide of a minister, during upazila elections in Comilla on March 15, publicly said nothing would happen if a journalist were shot dead, we have reason to be worried.

The reported threat or abuse towards the on-duty reporters suggests that political musclemen, inspired by the culture of impunity, do challenge freedom of the press and also of expression in general.

Journalists are nice people to the opposition political parties the moment they face repression from the establishment. Different groups, including professionals, and even those who oppose freedom of the press, go to journalists whenever they are in trouble and desperately need media intervention.

Freedom of the press actually belongs to all people – not merely to any government, party, or media house.

That freedom is not a gift from the regime but a natural right of every citizen. The incumbents try to make this right, enshrined in the constitution, “subject to reasonable restrictions” with the ulterior motive of censoring the press.

Our bipartisan (and especially criminalised) politics has polluted the me-

dia alarmingly. Some of us believe they could save and promote their masters by reporting, writing, and broadcasting selected footage. They further fail to understand that the people have to spend money and time to read the newspaper or watch television.

These poor fellows who pretend or really consider themselves to be powerful journalists are not journalists by the standard definition. Parasites cannot assert independence.

television stations come?

I see no room in journalism for half-educated, dishonest people.

Journalists have to live under the surveillance of the readers and viewers every day. A true journalist needs to maintain a high level of integrity, austerity, and dignity alongside lifelong dedication to the profession.

Any deviation from truth and the betrayal of public interests is punished through a fall in newspaper circula-

Freedom of the press belongs to all people – not merely to any government, party, or media house

How are declarations and licences issued to a section of people who have no credentials but avowed ill-intensions to run newspapers and television channels? Who does provide accreditation cards to party cadres and blackmailers, or allot plots to self-proclaimed journalists? From where does the recommendation for filling in the top positions of some newspapers or

tion or number of viewers. The loss of credibility is the biggest loss for a media outlet. We have witnessed the deflation of the “newspaper bubble” as well as the biasness of “embedded” journalism by BBC and CNN during the 2003 Iraq War. In Bangladesh, journalism has now been threatened from both within and outside. If the media loses its

social backing, it means we have somehow failed to serve the society.

When political mercenaries are seen attacking the media, journalists are believed to be weak and vulnerable to many things.

One of the major casualties of the recent political bickering is the loss of strength of the media, being suppressed, intimidated, manipulated, or kept in the grip of powerful quarters. A section of seniors, too, have left us in a lurch by endeavouring to impress their mentors and aligning themselves with groups outside of journalism.

In the 1990s, the decade of our renewed journey toward democracy, we embraced journalism as a profession, defying the reservations of relatives and ignoring offers for relatively better-paying jobs. I stayed in journalism to serve the people. Also as an incentive, I find this profession a platform for an artistic and intellectual pursuit. Should I still pity myself for being unsuitable for most professions other than journalism?

No. The spirit of a serious journalist can never be defeated by forces that are subservient only to the evils. l Khawaza Main Uddin is the Executive Editor at ICE Business Times.

12

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Entertainment

Arefin Shuvo and Achol pairs up for the first time n

Afrose Jahan Chaity

Popular model and actor Arifin Shuvoo and aspiring actor Achol signed up for a film titled Kistimat. This is the first time the duo will share screen space together. Directed by Ashiqur Rahman, the film’s shooting commenced from March 15 at BFDC (Bangladesh Film Development Corporation). Misha Showdagor and Tiger Robi are the anti-heroes of the movie.

Kistimat is an entertainment packed movie featuring action, romance and drama and is bound to hold the interest of the audience with its striking star cast and unique script. The story of the film is written

by Kashem Ali Dulal.

A police officer named Durjoy lives a reckless life and is insincere to his duties. After some time, he understands his duties as a police officer and becomes serious. At one point, he makes enemy out of powerful corrupted people of the society which threatens his life.

A major element in the film is its music which is directed by young talents Shawkat Ali Emon, Imran, Naveed and Shuchi Shams. The film contains five songs including an item song and a title song. Shooting of the film will be held in home and abroad.

While shooting the title song from the film, director Ashiqur Rahman said: “My film Kistimat is all about

portraying the social norms. But the twist is that I will depict these in a humorous manner and by no means it is an easy task.”

Talking about the cast, he said: “For the character of the police officer, I was looking for a handsome dashing hero like Arifin Shuvoo. He has already made a niche for himself in the action genre and the audience appreciates him in such roles. On the other hand, I wanted a cute heroine and I found Achol to be perfect for the character.”

Kistimat will hit the cinemas on July-August this year. This is Ashiqur Rahman’s second film. His first film Gangster Returns will hit the cinemas mid April. l

Monday, March 24, 2014

A cultural procession on the gory night n Entertainment Desk A good number of theatre activists, artists, singers and musicians will embark on a cultural procession at 4:30pm on March 25 from Chhobir Haat to the glass tower of the Independence Monument via Shikha Anirban in the capital. With acting and art performances, songs and music, they will be remembering the horrific massacre by the Pakistani army on pro-liberation Bangalees on the black night of March 25 in 1971.

Prachyanat, a prominent theatre troupe, along with like-minded friends arranged the parade and termed it Laljatra alternatively called Red Procession.

The march will start with a theatre

performance portraying the mass execution on the night followed by a popular patriotic song of Dwijendralal Ray’s Dhono Dhanne Pushpe Bhora.

The musicians and singers will march forward singing patriotic songs, creating musical ensemble and remembering the martyrs of the night. The idea of the procession is generated by theatre activist and singer Rahul Anand.

The procession is happening for the fourth time in consecutive years.

The organisers said: “This year’s episode is also planned with the participants joining hands and marching down the path where the martyrs have been brutally killed. United voices and tunes will resonate from the participants.” l

IGCC celebrates 44th Independence Day n Entertainment Desk

Indira Gandhi Cultural Centre (IGCC) in association with Asian Paints, IRCON and Marico Bangladesh is organising a three-day event from March 24-26 to celebrate the 44th Independence Day of Bangladesh at the IGCC, House 35, Road 24, Gulshan 1, Dhaka.

The three-day event will commence with An Evening of Poetry Recitation at 6:30 pm on March 24 in which five of the most renowned poets of Bangladesh – Syed Shamsul Haq, Nirmalendu Goon, Nurul Huda, Rafiq Azad and Habibulla Siraji will participate along with two eminent poetesses, Dilara Hafiz and Anwara Syed Haq. On March 25, the second day, IGCC will organise A Musical Evening by Swadhin Bangla Betar Kendra, featuring three versatile artists

associated with the Kendra, Tapan Mahmud, Shaheen Samad and Timir Nandi. Swadhin Bangla Betar Kendra was the radio broadcasting centre of Bengali nationalist forces during Bangladesh’s Liberation War of 1971.

This station played a vital role in the liberation struggle, ran a propaganda campaign through the war and broadcast the Declaration of Independence. In 1971, radio was the only form of media reaching to the far ends of Bangladesh.

Tapan Mahmud is a distinguished exponent of Rabindra sangeet. He has been a special grade artist of Bangladesh Betar and Bangladesh Television since 1969. He joined the Swadhin Bangla Betar Kendra in 1971 and has released eight albums till date. Shaheen Samad contributed to the independence movement of Bangladesh by inspiring Bangladeshi nationals through Nazrul’s

music. She won the “Nazrul Award” in 2009 for her outstanding contribution to the genre of Nazrulgeeti.

She is a regular performer for BTV and Bangladesh Betar. Timir Nandi commenced singing for the Radio & Television in Bangladesh from 1969 and joined the Swadhin Bangla Betar Kendra during the Liberation War of Bangladesh in 1971. He is a regular performer for BTV and Bangladesh Betar, and has also established himself as a music composer.

On March 26, the third and concluding day of the event, the IGCC will organise a live screening of three films based on Bangladesh’s independence. At 11:30am, Nasiruddin Yousuf Bachchu’s Ekattorer Jishu (Jesus 71) will be screened, followed

by Tanvir Mokammel’s Rabeya at 3pm. The event will conclude with the screening of Tanvir Mokammel’s Jibondhuli at 5:30pm. l

TODAY IN DHAKA Film

Enders Game Avatar 3D Aakash Koto Dure Thor: The Dark World 3D The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug in 3D, Frozen in 3D Agnee Time: 10am - 10pm Star Cineplex, Bashundhara City Robocop, Gravity Captain Phillips, Elysium Time: 12:30pm – 9:30pm Blockbuster Cinemas Jamuna Future Park

Exhibition

I Bow My Head to You in Deep Obeisance

By Shahid Kabir Time: 12pm – 8pm Bengal Shilpalaya, House 42, Road 16 (New) / 27 (old), Dhanmondi, Life Gallery Cosmos-2 Villa de Anjuman, Road No 6, House No 115, New DOHS Color of Natural Disposition

By Bipad Bhanjan Sen Karmaker Time: 3pm – 9pm

India releases film on child trafficking n Entertainment Desk An award-winning film focusing on the problem of child trafficking in India opened in cinemas in the country recently. The movie is based on the true story of a girl sold into the sex trade who fought to see her kidnappers convicted.

Described as “stomach-churning” by one commentator, Lakshmi is directed by Nagesh Kukunoor, who also stars in it as a ruthless pimp.

He said he was inspired to make the film after meeting a girl, whose real name is not revealed, on a visit to a rescue centre on India’s southeastern coast.

“A 14-year-old forced into prostitution, when she got away, she had the courage to take her traffickers to court and set a precedent,” Kukunoor told AFP news agency.

ON TV La Galerie, Alliance Francaise de Dhaka, Dhanmondi

DRAMA 9: 00pm Star Jalsha

Soil and Spirit

By Samar Majumder Time: 3pm – 8pm Dhaka Art Center (DAC) House-60, Road-7A Dhanmondi R/A Sculpture Exhibition

By Hamiduzzaman Khan Time: 10am – 8pm Athena Gallery of Fine Arts Progoti Shoroni Uttar Badda

“When I met her she was 17 and living and working in the rescue centre.”

The director said the verdict in the girl’s case was the first of its kind in his home state, Andhra Pradesh and there have since been more than 100 successful cases of girls bringing their abductors to book in the state.

Kukunoor said: “Story after story of inhuman behaviour from women at the rescue centre was recalled. In spite of the abuse they had endured, these women were having a normal conversation with me which was a testimony to their resilience.”

Lakshmi, an independent film that won an audience award at the Palm Springs Film Festival in the United States this year, has been certified for viewing by adults only.

“There is no way to sugarcoat child trafficking and yet I do not show any sexual activity -- it is implied,” explained Kukunoor.

“However I have made it uncomfortable and disturbing in parts because we are numb to statistics and until I met these women I was also desensitised. I needed to serve the story and not sensationalise it.”

Social commentator Shobhaa De wrote in a recent column in the Mumbai Mirror that the film was “a savage story, savagely told.” l

Bojhena Shey Bojhena

11:00pm Sony TV

Bade Achhe Lagte Hain

COMEDY

Band Ajob launched its latest album Hajar Bhuter Rajar Doya on Saturday at the Bengal Shilpalaya in Dhanmondi. They enchanted a good number of audience by performing a few of their new and popular tracks QUAMRUL ABEDIN

12:30pm Star World Two Broke Girls 10:30pm Comedy Central Anger Management

Scarlett Johansson will request Marvel for a Black Widow movie n Entertainment Desk Scarlett Johansson says she was interested in seeing a Black Widow standalone movie. She plays Black Widow – better known as Natasha Romanova – in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and there has been much discussion about the character receiving her own film.

“If you want to see a Black Widow spin-off movie, then I want to see it,” Johansson told reporters on the red carpet for the London premiere of Captain America: The Winter Soldier on Thursday.

“We’ll see. We will put the request into Marvel tomorrow.”

Whether Black Widow gets her own movie even after that

request is still up for debate. In an interview with Badass Digest, Marvel Studios head Kevin Feige said nothing was set in stone because producing a Black Widow movie might not make the societal impact that everyone would want.

“Frankly if we do a Black Widow movie after Age of Ultron, when she’s been central in three or four movies I don’t think we’d get the quote unquote credit for it,” Feige said when asked if Black Widow made sense as the studio’s “first standalone female hero.”

“People would say, ‘She’s already a big giant superhero!’ But if we had a great idea, we’d do it,” said Feige. l

Did you know?

The 14.8 run rate in the Finch & Maxwell stand was the 2nd highest in a T20I century p’ship, after Gayle & Pollard v NZ, 2012

Sport

Monday, March 24, 2014

14 Strugglers

Serena, Maria survive at Miami

Pakistan 5 31 13 94 5 20 6 17 191

Fall of wickets 1-7, 2-25, 3-121, 4-147, 5-180 Bowling Starc 4-0-35-1 (w3), Bollinger 4-0-28-1, Watson 4-0-38-1 (nb1), Coulter-Nile 4-0-36-2 (w5), Hogg 3-0-29-0 (w1), Finch 1-0-18-0.

Australia D. Warner b Babar 4 A. Finch b Ajmal 65 S. Watson c Kamran Akmal b Babar 4 G. Maxwell c Shehzad b Afridi 74 G. Bailey b Afridi 4 B. Hodge c Ajmal b Gul 2 B. Haddin c Malik b Bhatti 8 N. Coulter-Nile b Gul 0 M. Starc run out 3 B. Hogg b Bhatti 3 D. Bollinger not out 0 Extras: (lb3, nb5) 8 Total (all out, 20 overs) 175 Fall of wickets 1-4, 2-8, 3-126, 4-146, 5-155, 6-162, 7-163, 8-172, 9-173, 10-175 Bowling Babar 4-0-26-2, Hafeez 2-0-18-0, Gul 4-0-29-2, Ajmal 4-0-33-1, Afridi 4-030-2, Bhatti 2-0-36-2 (nb5)

Pakistan won by 16 runs

Pakistani allrounder Shahid Afridi consoles Umar Akmal after he got out on 94 against Australia at the SBNS yesterday

MUMIT M

Pakistan survive Max scare The momentum of the game shifted like a pendulum before the Pakistani bowlers crawled back in the high scoring affair to bring their side a 16run win over Australia in the World Twenty20 yesterday.

In a must win match to stay in the race of reaching the last four Pakistan rode on a blistering 94 from Umar Akmal to post a commanding 191 for 5 before Aussie prodigy Glen Maxwell threatened to steal the game away with his prolific 33-ball 74.

Pakistan made one change to their side, bringing in 34-year-old Zulfiqur Babar in place of Junaed Khan and the left-arm spinner gave the Asians the perfect start by sending back the two

most dangerous T20 batsmen David Warner and Shane Watson in the very first over.

However, the double blow hardly made any difference to incoming batsman Maxwell who clobbered the Pakistani bowlers to all corners of the ground. He equaled the fastest fifty in the format off 17 balls with five fours and five sixes, a feat that kept the fans at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium glued to each ball.

Australia reached 100 off just 49 balls and looked to race to victory with Maxwell and Aaron Finch adding 118 in just 10.4 overs. However, Shahid Afridi had the right-handed Maxwell caught at deep midwicket with Australia well on course needing 65 from 50 balls. The leg-spinner struck again cleaning up George Bailey for only four which triggered the pressure on the lower middle order.

Facing former champions will be tough: Shakib Country’s ace all-rounder Shakib al Hasan believes it will be tough for them to face the three former World Twenty20 champions in their group and said it will be a challenge to them.

Bangladesh returned to practice for the World Twenty20 Super 10 after a two-day rest following their disastrous effort against Hong Kong in their last match of the first round.

“It’s tough but obviously it will be a tough competition for us as we have to play four world champions on our group. But it will also be a good challenge that we can face the big teams and we have the ability to win,” said Shakib after their training session at the Fatullah stadium yesterday.

The south paw before the tournament began asked not to put the expectations high and he reminded the saying yet again as he agreed that their momentum was rocked by the defeat against ICC Associate Member’s Hong Kong.

“Of course a defeat affects the momentum and that’s why I said before the start of the tournament not to expect much and rather enjoy the match.

Everyone will support when we play well and critisise when we don’t play well. But one should critisise constructively which will also help us,” he said.

The 26-year-old reflected on the Hong

Bangladesh lift title

13

15 ITHC boost

for Bangladesh football

Akmal credits seniors, Bailey disappointed

SCORECARD Ahmed Shehzad c and b Bollinger Kamran c Warner b Coulter-Nile Mohammad Hafeez b Watson Umar Akmal c Maxwell b Starc Sohaib Maqsood b Coulter-Nile Shahid Afridi not out Shoaib Malik not out Extras: (b4, lb3, w9, nb1) Total (for five wickets, 20 overs)

15 Unbeaten

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Kong match and said, “When we face the bigger sides we always target them and when we win, those big teams also felt like we did against Hong Kong. We should not lose these types of matches and though we always play for win but sometimes it happens in cricket.”

The Tigers had their middle order tested for the first time against the minnows where they failed miserably.

Bangladesh lost their last six wickets for just 23 runs which saw them getting bundled out for 108. Shakib thought they should have scored at least 160-140 runs from the position they were in, and the failure has them working hard now.

Bangladesh’s most experience T20 cricketer, Shakib brushed away any concerns regarding their commitment and said they are always fully committed to the game.

Meanwhile, Bangladesh physio Vibhav Singh cleared Mashrafe bin Mortaza, who was sidelined against Hong Kong with a side strain, and said the fast bowler is fit to play.

“Mashrafe has given all the fitness test today (yesterday) and also trained, fielded and bowled too where he passed all the tests,” said Vibhav before adding, “The pain may increase when his body gets cold and we have to assess how his body is reacting. We have a practice tomorrow (today) and after the training we can say anything (for sure).” l

Finch, who was happy to nudge the ball around when Maxwell was dominating the opponent, opened up and made 65 off 54 before Saeed Ajmal yorked him to leave the stumps flashing.

168 runs scored by Umar Akmal and Glen Maxwell yesterday was the highest aggregate by batsmen at No 4, beating Ricky Ponting and Scott Styris’ in the first ever T20I The Akmal brothers, Kamram (366) and Umar (302), are the top two most T20I runs scorers against Australia Umar Akmal’s 94 was the second highest individual T20I score for a Pakistani Rest of the bowlers cashed in at the dismissals as they allowed none of the other batsmen reach double figures.

Bilawal Bhatti, who was hit for 30 in his first over by Maxwell, returned to bowl the last over and cleaned up the

Aussie tail to tag two wickets beside his name and end Australia’s chase on 175.

Earlier, Pakistan lost Ahmed Shehzad and Mohammad Hafeez inside the powerplay which allowed them to take only 36 from the six overs before the Akmal brothers, Kamran and Umar, put on a 96 for the third wicket.

Kamran, who made run-a-bal 31, concentrated on rotating the strike while his younger brother was busy smashing fours and sixes. Age got the worst of Brad Hogg as the oldest player of the tournament, who is 43, spilled a catch off Umar which came back to haunt them. The chinaman later proved expensive going for 29 runs off three overs.

Umar was unlucky to miss out on his maiden T20 hundred as he holed on inches from the long-on boundary on 94 from just 54 balls in the last over.

Afridi chipped in with a 11-ball 20 taking Pakistan close to 200. l

Pakistan made a brilliant comeback in the World Twenty20 after going down to India in the first match with Umar Akmal smashing his career best 94 off just 54 balls against the Australians yesterday.

The 23-year-old came on with Pakistan reeling on 25/2 and smashed nine fours and four sixes to set the platform for a big total. He labeled the knock as his best till date and credited the backing from the team management behind his performance.

“It is really the best innings of my life, mainly because of the kind of pressure the team was under, after losing the first game. The team management and the seniors told me to express myself, and I thank them for this message.

It helped me score big, as these words made me confident. I play positively despite all the pressure. I took it over me, and played my shots,” said Umar.

Umar, who added 96 runs in the third wicket with his elder brother Kamran Akmal, informed the opportunity to bat along his brother came after a long time.

At one point Australia looked to run away with the game with Glenn Maxwell and Aaron Finch staging a destructive fight back hammering the Pakistani bowlers all over the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium. However, Umar said he was never in doubt of losing the match as they have world class bowlers, “We didn’t think about that game. Our bowling is really good, so I never thought we would lose the game. There’s no doubt that Glenn Maxwell hit very well, but

our bowlers came back well.”

On the other hand, Aussie skipper George Bailey rued the dropped chances on the field rather than the bowling effort. Australi dropped three catches, including one off a no-ball. It was Umar’s chance that went down at deep square-leg from Brad Hogg when the batsman was on 22.

“Not as disappointed with the bowling as the fielding. I wasn’t too disappointed with the bowling. There are always things you can improve, but I think they were two for 40 after about seven, which was a really good start for us. Certainly things to improve on, but not too disappointed,” said Bailey.

Australia’s T20 captain was also disappointed over the loss as they were favourites to win at a point when they needed just 65 from 50 balls before getting bundled out for 175.

“Absolutely disappointed to lose the game,” said Bailey. “I think there’s a sense of disappointment of losing, but I guess in terms of the bigger picture I’m not disappointed. Two outstanding innings from [Maxwell and Finch], so that’s really good for us, but absolutely, from there, you’d like to think that you can finish it off,” he added.

The four time world champions in the 50-over format, Australia are yet to win a T20 world title and they are in a situation now where they need to win the remaining matches. “Most probably; I think you start these tournaments with that mentality, of winning everything and maybe you’re able to lose one,” he said. l

Duminy eyes win It will be tough for South Africa to bounce back in to winning ways when the face new Zealand today, said all rounder JP Dumniy in the pre-match conference on Saturday. The Proteas lost their first game to Sri Lanka by five runs and are now in a position where they need to win all their next three games in order to reach the semi-finals of the ICC World Twenty20.

“There’s always going to be that added pressure on us now, depending on how other results go we’re probably going to have to win all three,” said Duminy. “We want to make sure that we give ourselves the best chance in this tournament and that unfortunately means winning the last three games.

That’s what it is and we’re going to have to play accordingly.”

New Zealand won four of their last five outings in the format and Duminy believes that the Kiwis will be a tough

New Zealand cricketer Kane Williamson (L) takes tips from bowling coach Shane Bond in the nets during a training session at ZACS in Chittagong yesterday

opponent to crack.

“I guess if you look at the way they’ve been playing the last few months, they’ve come into this tournament with a lot of confidence so it’s going to be an uphill battle for us,” said the 29-year-old.

“But I’m confident that we have the armoury to give ourselves the best chance. They’re a really good side, especially in the shorter formats, so we’re going to have to bring our Agame,” added Duminy.

The rivalry between New Zealand and South Africa in a game of rugby is considered that the two countries are at war. However New Zealand opening batsman, Kane Williamson said that they have respect for the Proteas and that the game will be a challenge.

“We’ve never tackled them on the cricket field (like rugby). We have got a lot of respect for them. They are a very good side in all formats. We are looking forward to the challenge of playing against some of the best players in the world,” said Kane. l

South Africa cricketer Imran Tahir (R) talks with JP Duminy during a training session at The Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium in Chittagong yesterday

AFP

AFP

SA battle for survival, Dutch eye upset Chittagong promises two exciting Group 1 games on match day eight of the World Twenty20 today with South Africa battling for survival against a power hitting New Zealand side before high flying Sri Lanka take on the only ICC Associate Member left in the tournament Netherlands at the evening.

Sri Lanka v Netherlands

Sri Lanka spent around two months in Bangladesh and came in to the mega event bolstered with a terrific run. Having Netherlands as their opponents, the Lankans will want their senior trio - Mahela Jayawardene, Kumar Sangakkara and Tillakaratne Dilshan – to return to form with more crunch

matches on its way.

Sri Lanka is the favourites with a more balanced side but one cannot rule out the momentum the Dutch carried in to the Super 10 phase. The way they stormed in to the phase, overpowering Ireland’s 190 in 13.4 overs, is the perfect thrust a team needs in this short format.

Netherlands are a little further along cricket’s evolutionary curve than most of the ICC associate member that had qualified for the big event this time.

The Oranges had a wretched run of late failing to qualify for the 2015 50over World Cup and also lost to Hong Kong and Afghanistan in the warmup games. But these are past and they have nothing to lose at the moment, which makes them more dangerous.

In the continued absence of the “retired” Ryan ten Doeschate, the experience of skipper Peter Borren and Wesley Barresi will be crucial alongside Michael Swart

if they are to set some testing targets.

Their bowling unit is stronger, though, and Ahsan Malik, who was the leading wicket-taker at the ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier in November, with 21 wickets and an economy rate of only 5.67, could be the key.

South Africa v New Zealand

New Zealand, after beating England through the D/L method in a rain hit game, looks to take another step forward when they face South Africa in their second game. Meanwhile, the Proteas lost narrowly to Sri Lanka in their opening match which makes this match a must win for them in need to survive.

Since their defeat to England last year the Kiwis have been in terrific T20 form. They have a finely blended lineup with power-hitters who play with perfection. Martin Guptill, Brendon McCullum and Ross Taylor are all ex-

plosive batsmen at top while if Corey Anderson gets going, it will be raining sixes. They are also boosted by a disciplined pace attack led by Tim Southee and Mitchell McClenaghan.

Meanwhile, South Africa will be keen to have their T20 captain Faf du Plessis back which will also strengthen their batting unit. Quinton de Kock, AB de Villiers, Hashim Amla, JP Duminy and David Miller got starts in the previous game and will be looking for a similar start in their crucial encounter.

The wicket at Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium does assits the fast bowlers with bounce and Dale Steyn will be very crucial up front before Pakistani born leg spinner Imran Tahir makes an impact in the mid overs.

The fact that the Proteas have played well in patches should be the booster while they also generally tend to dominate New Zealand in the shorter form. l

14

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Sixers losing streak hits 24

Sport

Monday, March 24, 2014

Marquez on Qatar pole

The Philadelphia 76ers established the second-longest losing streak in NBA history on Saturday, losing 91-81 at Chicago to drop their 24th game in a row.

Joakim Noah scored 20 points and pulled down eight rebounds to spark the Bulls, who also had 17 points from Jimmy Butler and 16 each from Taj Gibson and D.J. Augustin. The 76ers, whose 15-55 record in the second-worst in the NBA this season, are two defeats shy of matching the all-time record NBA losing streak of 26 games set by the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2010-11 season.

–AFP

Scott leads bid for title, top spot

World champion Marc Marquez stormed to pole position for the seasonopening Qatar Grand Prix on Saturday, just a month after breaking his leg. The 21-year-old Spaniard, riding a factory Honda, claimed his 10th pole in the MotoGP class and 38th overall. Marquez, who became the sport’s youngest world champion when he triumphed in his rookie year in 2013, finished ahead of compatriot Alvaro Bautista on a Honda and Britain’s Bradley Smith on a Yamaha Tech3.

–AFP

Adam Scott moved within reach of a wire-to-wire victory Saturday at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, one that would all-but ensure he overtakes Tiger Woods for the world number one ranking. Scott, the reigning Masters champion and first Australian to capture the green jacket, struggled to a one-under par 71 Saturday but held a three-stroke lead after the third round at Bay Hill. Scott, who led by a tournament-record seven strokes when the day began, stood on 15-under 201 after 54 holes with American Keegan Bradley second on 204. –AFP

Spurs fightback sink Saints Rooney wonder lob lifts United

Manchester United's Wayne Rooney scores against West Ham United during their English Premier League match at the Boleyn Ground in London on Saturday

Fifa apologizes to Brazil for ‘advice’ gaffe FIFA performed an embarrassing Uturn on Saturday and apologized, saying it had withdrawn publicity material for the World Cup in Brazil that poked fun at local customs.

Just weeks after sports merchandiser Adidas pulled from the market two shirts which Brazil viewed as sexist, FIFA has now removed material which depicted Brazilians as unpunctual, impatient and even chaotic.

Having regularly complained to Brazil about the slow pace of construction of stadiums for the June-July World Cup -- six out of 12 missed FIFA’s original December 31 deadline -- football’s world governing body felt moved to

add: “In Brazil, things are largely done last-minute.”

FIFA admitted its attempts at humor had backfired.

“The material was light-hearted and at no time was meant to criticize Brazil,” a FIFA statement said.

“The objective was to show the laid-back characteristics of the Brazilian people. At any rate, we have withdrawn the content from the Internet and apologize if it was interpreted as criticism of the country.”

Fifa “advice” for visitors to the World Cup host had offered “10 tips for avoiding any cultural misunderstandings.”

They included giving Brazilian friends some leeway when arranging appointments. l

Bilbao stay on course for UCL shot Athletic Bilbao remain on course for a place in Champions League qualifying after a Markel Susaeta strike secured a 1-0 win at home to Getafe in La Liga on Saturday that strengthened their grip on fourth.

Susaeta cracked home a superb firsttime shot five minutes before halftime at the San Mames to put Bilbao nine points clear of fifth-placed Real Sociedad ahead of their Basque rivals’ match at Almeria on Monday. Espanyol and Levante, who are in with a chance of a place in the Europa League, drew 0-0 at Espanyol’s Cornella El Prat stadium in Barcelona, while Granada pulled further away from danger with a 1-0 win at home to Elche. l

Wenger gets the blues on milestone Arsene Wenger described his 1,000th game in charge of Arsenal as one of the worst moments of his career after his side were humiliated 6-0 by Premier League title rivals Chelsea.

The Frenchman, who joined the Gunners from Japanese club Nagoya Grampus Eight 18 years ago, has been widely praised for revolutionising “boring boring” Arsenal and overseeing one of the most successful periods in the club’s history.

What was meant to be a day of celebration for Wenger, however, quickly turned into a nightmare as Arsenal suffered their heaviest defeat by Chelsea

having been completely dominated by their rampant London rivals at Stamford Bridge.

“Yes, of course it’s one of the worst days (in my career),” the 64-year-old told the BBC. “It’s over after 20 minutes and it’s a long game after that. You don’t prepare all week to experience that kind of experience.”

Arsenal equalled their heaviest margin of defeat under Wenger - an 8-2 thrashing by Manchester United in 2011 - and the Frenchman cut a disconsolate figure on the sidelines before failing to attend the post-match news conference.

But he took the blame for the loss in his television interview.

“This defeat is my fault, I take full

responsibility for it,” he said. “I don’t think there’s too much need to talk about the mistakes we made. We got a good hiding today.”

So impressive against the lesser teams, Arsenal’s problem this season has been against the other sides in the top four.

The Gunners have now conceded 17 goals in trips to Manchester City, Liverpool and Chelsea, the same number they have let in in their other 27 league games this season.

The performance at Stamford Bridge was littered with mistakes which led to a number of Chelsea’s goals but Wenger was reluctant to dwell on his side’s inadequacies. l

Roma keep European push on track

AS Roma forward Gervinho celebrates after scoring against Chievo during the Italian Serie A match at Verona's Bentegodi stadium on Saturday AFP

Gervinho and Mattia Destro scored in the first half to give Roma a 2-0 win against struggling Chievo and keep their push for an automatic Champions League spot on track in the Serie A on Saturday.

Roma opened up a six-point lead on third-placed Napoli, who host Fiorentina on Sunday, but are 11 points behind leaders Juventus who travel to Catania in Sicily.

And with Juve closing in on a third consecutive title, Roma are also under pressure from Napoli in the fight to secure the runners-up spot and an automatic Champions League qualifying place.

But it was a confident display for the side from the capital which delighted coach Rudi Garcia in Verona’s Bentegodi Stadium.

Gervinho opened after 17 minutes when he picked up Bostjan Cesar’s pass

RESULTS Torino Immobile 25, 60, 67

Chievo

3 1 0 2

Livorno Siligardi 89

Roma

Gervinho 17, Destro 42

and Destro added a second three minutes before the break.

Earlier Torino striker Ciro Immobile netted a hat-trick to put himself top of the Serie A goalscorer standings with 16 goals in a 3-0 win against struggling Livorno. l

REUTERS

Gylfi Sigurdsson scored a stoppage time winner after Christian Eriksen’s double as Tottenham Hotspur stormed back from 2-0 down to beat Southampton 3-2 in the Premier League on Sunday.

Sigurdsson converted Denmark midfielder Eriksen’s layoff to keep alive Spurs lingering hopes of a top four finish. They are fifth on 56 points, six behind fourth-placed Arsenal having played one more match.

Southampton dominated the opening period with some delightful onetouch football and two mistakes from Spurs right-back Kyle Naughton enabled the visitors to take a 2-0 lead after 28 minutes.

Within a minute of the second half Spurs were level when Roberto Soldado out-muscled defender Dejan Lovren before crossing for Erkisen to score from point-blank range.

Sigurdsson, a halftime substitute for Moussa Dembele, rounded off with the winner from a low drive with time running out.

Wayne Rooney posted a goal of the season contender as Manchester United ended a memorable week by winning 2-0 at West Ham United in the Premier League on Saturday.

A week ago, manager David Moyes had seen his players humiliated 3-0 at home by Liverpool, but United recovered to overturn a 2-0 first-leg deficit

RESULTS Tottenham Eriksen 31, 46, Sigurdsson 90+2

Saturday West Ham

3 2

0 2

Southampton Rodriguez 19, Lallana 28

Man United Rooney 8, 33

against Olympiakos in mid-week to reach the Champions League quarterfinals.

Rooney's opening goal worthy of a Hollywood script by emulating former United hero David Beckham by beating the goalkeeper from astonishing range.

It was not quite as far out as Beckham’s famous halfway-line lob against Wimbledon in 1996, but the former England captain just so happened to be in the stands to watch it go in. l

Nadal takes aim at elusive title, Wawrinka struggles through World number one Rafa Nadal launched his bid for one of the few titles to elude him by crushing Australian Lleyton Hewitt 6-1 6-3 on Saturday to reach the third round of the Sony Open.

The Spaniard has won 62 titles, including 13 grand slams and 25 Masters series events, but a victory on the Miami hardcourts is not among them.

Three times Nadal has made it to the Miami final and the Spaniard served noticed that he plans to be back there again after disposing of Hewitt in just over an hour. World number two Novak Djokovic, a three-time winner in Miami, did not play on Saturday but became the first player through to the fourth round

RESULTS Marseille

0 1 2 0

Bastia

when his scheduled opponent Florian Mayer pulled out with a groin injury.

Australian Open champion Stan Wawrinka survived a rollercoaster start to his Sony Open campaign, advancing with a bumpy 6-0 3-6 6-3 win over Spain’s Daniel Gimeno-Traver.

Third seed Wawrinka, playing just his second event since his milestone win in Melbourne, came out all guns blazing, blasting through the opening set in just 18 minutes.

However, things got much tougher on centre court for the Swiss and he needed nearly an hour and a half to finally tame Spaniard Gimeno-Traver.

With the victory Wawrinka pushed his season record to 14-1, a run that includes a pair of titles.

Seventh seeded Czech Tomas Berdych joined Wawrinka in the third round by dispatching Frenchman Stephane Robert 7-6(5) 6-1 while big-hitting Croatian Marin Cilic, the 25th seed, was shown the exit by Frenchman Edouard Roger-Vasselin 6-2 7-6(5).

John Isner continued to carry the American flag, battling back for a 6-7(5) 6-3 6-4 win over compatriot Donald Young.

Isner was left the last American man standing after Canada’s big-hitting Milos Raonic, seeded 12th, dispatched Jack Sock 6-4 7-6(1) and Sam Querry was dismissed 6-4 6-4 by Spaniard Nicolas Almagro.

German 13th seed Tommy Haas was a late withdrawal with a sore shoulder, handing Taiwan’s Lu Yen-Hsun a walkover into the third round. l

Rennes Doucoure 76

Reims

Raspentino 9, Bruno 42

1 1

Bordeaux Jussie 63-P

Nantes Gakpe 3, Djidji 21

Toulouse Ben Yedder 56

Valenciennes Waris 51, 72-P

2 1 1 1 2 3

Nice Bosetti 67

Montpellier Djidji 34-og

Evian Nsikulu 89

Ajaccio

Andre 62, Baradji 87, 90

Rennes inflict more misery on Marseille Marseille’s bid for European football next season received another major blow on Saturday when struggling visitors Rennes inflicted a 1-0 defeat on Jose Anigo’s side at the Ve-

lodrome.

Abdoulaye Doucoure’s 76th minute goal from a sparkling counter attack left Marseille in sixth place, a yawning nine points off the last Champions league spot, third-placed Lyon, and four points off the Europa league spot inhabited by Saint Etienne.

Those gaps could well increase with the teams above Marseille enjoying a game in hand.

Saturday’s upset came on the back of last week’s 1-1 draw with Reims and a 1-0 loss to Nice. It was Marseille’s sixth home loss of the season and Anigo’s out of form team have now gone four games without a win. It promises to be a long end of season run in for Marseille who were booed off their pitch by unhappy home fans. l

Maria Sharapova of Russia returns a shot to Lucie Safarova of Cazech Republic during the Sony Open in Key Biscayne, Florida on Saturday AFP

Strugglers Serena, Maria survive at Miami World number one Serena Williams and Russian star Maria Sharapova each battled through three sets Saturday to advance into the fourth round at the ATP and WTA Miami Masters.

Defending champion Williams and last year’s runner-up Sharapova struggled mightily to survive, with five-time finalist Maria Sharapova requiring nine match point to book her win. Sharapova beat Czech Lucie Safarova 6-4, 6-7 (7/5), 6-2 in a battle which took five minutes short of three hours to complete.

Sharapova let out a scream of relief when she finally went through as Safarova’s shot hit the net, Sharapova having missed two chances in the second set to wrap it up early.

“She was just hitting unbeliev-

able shots on the match points,” said Sharapova. “I kept asking myself how many more chances I had.

“I’m just so happy to go through.”

Sharapova ended her marathon with nearly twice as many unforced errors, 51, as winners, 27, and doublefaulted eight times.

Top seed Serena Williams waited out a 45-minute rain third-set interruption before dispatching France’s Caroline Garcia 6-4, 4-6, 6-4. Wimbledon finalist Sabine Lisicki, seeded 14th, was unable to play due to influenza, handing a walkover to Belgian Kirsten Flipkens.

German fifth seed Angelique Kerber beat Tsvetana Pironkova 6-0, 6-2, eighth seed Petra Kvitova stopped Croatian Donna Vekic 6-3, 6-4 and Ekaterina Makarova upset Italian ninth seed Sara Errani 6-3, 2-6, 6-4.l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Sport

Monday, March 24, 2014

15

NZ women edge past Australia

Dhanmondi giants cruise to win

Australia women’s cricket team followed the route of their men’s team as they started their Women’s World Twenty20 campaign with a seven-run defeat against New Zealand in their Group A match at the Sylhet Stadium yesterday.

The Aussies suffered from a number of run-outs and were all out for 121 in their chase of 128 by the Kiwis.

Holly Huddleston struck twice in her two overs before Bates also chipped in with a wicket to leave the Aussies reeling at 14 for three before Alyssa Healy took up the responsibility and made run-a ball 41.

Alex Blackwell played a supporting 31 off 28 balls as Australia recovered from the early disaster and moved closer to their target. Their dismissal however triggered another major collapse which eventually saw them getting bowled out with three balls to spare.

Earlier, put in to bat New Zealand were pushed to back foot losing their skipper Suzie Bates in just the second over before Frances Mackay and Sara McGlashan (15) put on a 22 runs. Mackay, who made 25 from 24 balls, added a further 46 with Katie Perkins (31) to take their side to a safe position.

A late blitz from Nicola Browne, 29 from 19 deliveries that included the only six of the innings, drove the Kiwis to a decent total with two wickets to spare. l

Abahani Limited and Sheikh Jamal Dhanmondi Club kicked off their Modhumoti Bank Independence Cup campaign with comfortable victories over their respective opponents at the Bangabandhu National Stadium yesterday.

Cameroonian striker Ekele Patrick netted a brace as Abahani cruised to a 2-0 win over 10-man Arambagh Krira Sanga before Haitian international Sony Norde’s brace helped Sheikh Jamal thrash Uttar Baridhara 4-0.

The traditional Sky Blues dominated the opponents from the start of the match and came close in several occasions. Ekele squandered a chance in the 22nd minute before Abul Kashem made a goal line clearance to deny Awudu Ibrahim’s effort. Arambagh were reduced to 10 men in the 42nd minute when forward Monwar Hossain was shown a straight red for allegedly using abusive words towards the referee. The protest from the victims saw the game go in to a seven-minute break before the half finally ended goal less.

Abahani took the advantage of an extra man as Patrick put the Sky Blue ahead six minutes in the second half.

The Cameroonian slotted the ball home after receiving a through pass from Osei Morrison. Patrick netted his second of the day ten minutes later after placing the ball past Biplob Kumar Bishnu following a cross of Awudu Ibrahim.

Meanwhile in the day’s other game, Sheikh Jamal enjoyed majority of the ball possession as they killed the game scoring four goals in the first half.

Sony broke the deadlock in the 16th minute with a chip over the goalkeeper before in form Nigerian forward Emeka Darlington doubled the lead two minutes later with a volley on a Sony rebounder.

Sony scored his second of the evening six minutes later following a simple pass from Wedson Anselme. Sohel Rana completed the rout in the 35th minute after Sony’s shot came off the keeper, only to see Sohel firing it back. l

Entry asked for school table tennis The Dhaka Metropolis Inter-School Table Tennis Championship organised under the auspices of Bangladesh Table Tennis Federation from 12 to 16 April at the Shahid Tajuddin Ahmed Indoor Stadium.

The events of the meet are singles and doubles of boys and girls and the participants should have to be U-16. All the interested teams are requested to register their names with the required entry fee at the Bangladesh Table Tennis Federation within April 5. l

SCORECARD, WI v IND West Indies D. Smith c and b Ashwin C. Gayle run out M. Samuels st Dhoni b Mishra L. Simmons c Dhawan b Jadeja D. Bravo lbw b Mishra D. Sammy c Sharma b Jadeja A. Russell c Kohli b Jadeja S. Narine not out D. Ramdin not out Extras: (lb1, w12, nb1) Total (for 7 wickets, 20 overs)

11 34 18 27 0 11 7 7 0 14 129

Fall of wickets 1-38 (Smith), 2-62 (Gayle), 3-74 (Samuels), 4-74 (Bravo), 5-97 (Sammy), 6-108 (Russell), 7-121 (Simmons).

Bowling Kumar 3-0-3-0 (w1), Shami 3-0-27-0 (w5), Ashwin 4-0-24-1 (w1), Mishra 4-018-2 (w1), Raina 2-0-8-0 (w2), Jadeja 4-0-48-3 (w2, nb1) India R. Sharma not out 62 S. Dhawan lbw b Badree 0 V. Kohli b Russell 54 Y. Singh c Gayle b Samuels 10 S. Raina not out 1 Extras: (w2, nb1) 3 Total (for 3 wickets, 19.4 overs) 130 Fall of wickets 1-1 (Dhawan), 2-107 (Kohli), 3-129 (Yuvraj) Bowling Badree 4-0-28-1, Santokie 4-0-27-0, Narine 4-0-20-0 (nb1, w1), Bravo 1-012-0, Sammy 1-0-9-0, Samuels 3.4-022-1, Russell 2-0-12-1

India won by seven wickets

DAY’S WATCH Sony Six 7:30AM NBA 2013-14 La Lakers v Orlando BTV, Gazi TV, Maasranga TV Star Sports 1, HD1 ICC World T20 3:30PM New Zealand v South Africa 7:30PM Sri Lanka v Netherlands Star Sports 4 1:00AM Sony Open Tennis Star Sports HD1 3:00AM La Liga Almeria v Real Sociedad

Bangladesh hockey team celebrates with the national flag after clinching the title of the Islami Bank Asian Games Hockey Qualifiers beating Oman 6-1 at the Maulana Bhashani National Hockey Stadium yesterday COURTESY

ISLAMI BANK ASIAN GAMES QUALIFIERS

Unbeaten Bangladesh lift title Team spirit, determination and a never say die approach steered Bangladesh to the title of the Islami Bank Asian Games Qualifiers with a 6-1 win over Oman in the 1st place decider at the Maulana Bhashani National Stadium yesterday.

It was also a big revenge for Bangladesh after the 2-4 loss against the same team in the Asia Cup Hockey last year.

Bangladesh got stronger after two hard matches against Iran and Sri Lanka and the best was in display when it mattered most, it was prestige issue for Bangladesh and the young team capped the duty in style.

With the win Bangladesh clinched the top position, Oman was second and Sri Lanka, Singapore, Iran and Chinese Taipei finished third, fourth, fifth and sixth respectively. All these six teams will join Korea, India, Pakistan, China, Japan and Malaysia in the Asian Games Hockey at Incheon, Korea in September next.

The performance is admirable in any criteria as Bangladesh team comprised five players who made their debut in the international arena. In the field, Mamunur Rahman Chayan, the skipper led the way scoring the opener, saved two sure goals from the goal line, custodian Ashim Gope brilliantly saved a couple of Omani penalty corners and

the team absorbed the pressure to stay alive.

Bangladesh took the lead in the 13th minute through a penalty corner of their drag and flick specialist Mamunur Rahmam Chayan. Omam scored the equalizer in the 24th minute when forward Rajab Basim Khatar went through the Bangladesh defence and rocked the board with a fierce hit. Bangladesh again went ahead in the 29th minute off quick counter attack when Sheikh Md. Nannu danced down the left flank and provided a square pass to Hasan Jubaer Niloy who dived forward to send the ball into the post. The lead was extended to 3-1 in the 45th minute when Pushkor Khisha Mimo dashed

down through the midfield and scored the third goal. Niloy made it 4-1 after Pushkor Khisha Mimo set him free in the 65th minute and Niloy scored his second. Another two goals were scored in the last two minutes as Mimo scored his second one in the 69th minute and Sheikh Md. Nannu netted the 6th goal in the last minute of the match. Pushkor Khisha Mimo was adjudged as the man of the match.

In the other matches of the day Sri Lanka defeated Singapore 3-2 in the 3rd- 4th position decider, Iran triumphed by 2-1 goals against Chinese Taipei in the 5th-6th decider and Qatar beat Hong Kong China 4-2 in the 7th8th place decider. l

ITHC boost for Bangladesh football Dhaka calling for Ctg fans Bangladesh football is all set to taste the flavour of international sponsorship as International Trade Holding Company (ITHC) of Kuwait agreed to sponsor the eight nation Bangabandhu Gold Cup football tournament scheduled to be held in September next.

Bangladesh Football Federation has been eying to host its own international tournament for a long time and their dream is all set to come true with the arrival of ITHC who have hotel, real estate and construction business in a number of Asian countries.

In a press conference held at the Ruposhi Bangla Hotel yesterday BFF President Kazi Salahuddin welcomed Dr. Hamad Al-Tuwaijri, the chairman of the ITHC and disclosed the Kuwaiti conglomerates involvement with Bangladesh football. “Dr. Hamad is a great friend of Bangladesh and he is keen to help the development process of the Bangladesh football, I welcome him to the Bangladesh football arena, ITHC has agreed to sponsor the Bangabandhu Cup and I hope the involvement will be strengthened further” said Salahuddin.

“With the arrival of ITHC, a new

Dr Hamad al Tuwaijri, the chairman of ITHC speaks at the presser while BFF smiles at Ruposhi Bangla Hotel yesterday COURTESY door of Bangladesh football had been opened” added the BFF president.

Dr. Hamad’s was upbeat with the development. “Bangladesh and Kuwait have a friendly relationship for near 40 years and I feel honoured to get involved with Bangladesh and particularly with football, we hope to build a sustainable relationship, we also have interest to assist the youth development” said Hamad.

The details of sponsorship will be revealed later. BFF vice presidents Kazi Nabil Ahmed, Tabith Awal, women’s wing deputy chairman Mahfuza Akter Kiron and general secretary Abu Naeem Shohag were also present on the occasion.

ITHC was founded in 2001 by its Chairman and President Dr. Hamad AlTuwaijri and continues to expand and grow in Kuwait and overseas. l

Nothing to lose makes Dutch dangerous Netherlands, the only ICC Associate Member surviving in the tournament, engineered an electrifying surprise to barge into the World twenty20 Super 10. The Dutchmen are now aiming at the shins of giants as they get on the field today against one of the title contenders of the tournament Sri Lanka.

Dutch skipper Peter Borren said it is a ‘massive’ opportunity for them having reached the second stage of the world event where they are looking to go all out against the big guns of the game.

“I think having nothing to lose in Twenty20 can be dangerous. We got some players who can do well in such situation. Hopefully we can put up a number of good performances,” said Borren at Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium yesterday.

“We are not sure, when we will get an opportunity like this, hopefully we will, if we don’t this will be massive. I think we have competed for this very

well. I guess we have that memory from 2009 which is fading now a little bit. For me if we don’t get to play at this level, not there in the next 50 over world cup, it is never an easy task. We need to take this opportunity,” added the all-rounder.

Netherlands qualified for the second phase by shooting down 190 runs inside 14.2 overs against Ireland which

I think having nothing to lose in T20 can be dangerous. We got some players who can do well in such situation. Hopefully we can put up a number of good performances took their run-rate above all in the group. A side which lost its ODI status two months ago, Borren informed that his side believed in progressing to the Super 10 stage.

“Otherwise I guess we would have been back home in Holland (Netherlands). It took something special at the end. When we went to the ground, it wasn’t going to be as difficult as it

ended up being, Zimbabwe made our job harder. We did genuinely believe that there was a very good chance of making it here. I guess the chance was really small because of Zimbabwe, although we decided that we would have a go and perhaps the belief might have been there, there was a belief that we might be going home,” said the 30-year-old.

Meanwhile, Sri Lanka captain Dinesh Chandimal informed of watching the Ireland-Netherland match on TV and as like to any other opponents, the Lankans have respect for the Dutchmen too. Chandimal also informed of being aware of Netherlands’ hitting ability and said, “We have got some really good spinners in the lineup. Ajantha (Mendis), Sachitra (Senanayake), Rangana (Herath). So we will decide who is going to play in the game tomorrow (today).”

“We played some really good cricket last night (against South Africa), specially against a top side in our group stage. As I said we never underestimate any team, we will play our best eleven and looking forward to play the game,” said the 24-year-old. l

No Bangladesh matches from the Super 10 phase in Chittagong disappointed a majority of the cricket crazy fans in the port-city. However it is being expected that a huge number of supporters from the commercial capital will travel to Dhaka to catch the Bangladesh matches at Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium.

Bangladesh played its two first-round games at Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium nestled adjacent to the Chittagong sea beach. In both the occasions the port-city dwellers made sure that the stands are packed and they back Bangladesh in the preeminent way possible.

There was no surprise in this as the event’s fixture was revealed at least three months prior to the tournament but this had always made the cricket lovers in Chittagong carry distress.

Rashed Amin, a Chittagong resident and a Bangladesh team fanatic, thinks the organizers should have considered

of holding at least two Super 10 games in the port city while chalking down the fixture.

“Bangladesh hosting the World Twenty20 meant it was an opportunity for thousands to go to the stadium and support their country. Like many, I also don’t know if I will ever get the opportunity to attend a Bangladesh game in the world cup if the event is not happening in Bangladesh,” said Rashed to Dhaka Tribune yesterday.

Rashed, a small business owner informed he and five of his friend however is fortunate enough travel to Dhaka to attend the Bangladesh-India match on March 28.

“I have never missed a Bangladesh game when it is in Chittagong,” said Sohrab Shaha. “Bangladesh hosting the world cup and playing in it is a very big thing for many of us, but being a student I don’t have enough money to travel to Dhaka and watch the game,” he said. l

16

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Back Page

Monday, March 24, 2014

Mahmood tacitly calls Kissinger a liar n Sheikh Shahariar Zaman Foreign Minister AH Mahmood Ali has come down heavily on former national security adviser and US secretary of state Henry Kissinger for his remarks on Bangladesh and India in 1971 and tacitly termed him a liar.

“He [Kissinger] said that countries like Bangladesh and India – they cannot survive in the long run mainly because of the discrepancy between the population and the resources. And therefore they should be allowed to die a natural death,” Mahmood said yesterday at an award ceremony by Better Bangladesh Foundation in the capital’s Gulshan Club.

The Better Bangladesh Foundation Award 2014 was conferred on five organisations, including the Dhaka Tribune, and the foreign minister for their contribution to creating a positive image of the country.

“At that time I was busy organising our small community in the United States and we were trying to counter that argument and it’s a very dis-

heartening and, I should say, stupid argument that Kissinger started,” said Mahmood, who was a Pakistan diplomat posted in New York and actively mobilised opinion in favour of the Liberation War abroad in 1971.

Kissinger never supported the liberation of Bangladesh and termed Bangladesh “an international basket case.”

The minister said the same Kissinger after 28 years in 1999 handed over the Unesco Peace Prize to then prime minister Sheikh Hasina.

“The media pounced upon Dr Kissinger and asked him the most difficult question: ‘How come today you are presenting Unesco Peace Prize to Sheikh Hasina, the prime minister of Bangladesh, and the same you had predicted that Bangladesh would become an international basket case in 1971?’”

Mahmood said.

The foreign minister said Kissinger had given a sheepish smile and did not answer it.

“He [Kissinger] said: ‘Well, these are all lies. These were fabrications created by my detractors. I never said

anything like that about Bangladesh,’” Mahmood said, adding: “I can vouch for that that he said that, and not only said he wrote also that Bangladesh could not survive.”

Sheikh Hasina won the prize as she signed a peace agreement in 1997 which put an end to 25 years of unrest in the Chittagong Hill Tracts and Henry Kissinger was the president of the jury for that year’s Nobel Peace Prize.

Kissinger after 28 years in 1999 handed over the Unesco Peace Prize to then prime minister Sheikh Hasina The Better Bangladesh Foundation has awarded Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association for its contribution to the country’s garment sector, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for its contribution in the field of international relations, Bangladesh

Armed Forces for serving in the UN Peace Support Operations, and the International Committee of the Red Cross for its role during the Liberation War, and Mahmood Ali for his role during the Liberation War. The Dhaka Tribune was chosen for the award for carrying the name of the country’s capital and playing a remarkable role in branding a positive image of the country both at home and abroad.

Editor of the Dhaka Tribune Zafar Sobhan, head of Delegation Bangladesh of ICRC Christine Cipolla, President of the BGMEA Md Atiqul Islam, and Director General (Operations and Planning) of the Armed Forces Division Brig Gen Abu Sayeed Khan received the awards on behalf of their organisations.

Saida Muna Tasneem, director general of the United Nations and Human Rights wing of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, delivered the keynote speech at the programme.

Egyptian Ambassador to Bangladesh Mahmoud Ezzat, South Korean Ambassador Lee Yun-young and other diplomats were present at the event. l

CAR LOAN FOR DEPUTY SECRETARIES

Public administration seeks finance’s opinion n Asif Showkat Kallol The Ministry of Public Administration has sought opinion from the Finance Division of the Ministry of Finance about installing car loan facilities for government officials at the deputy secretary level.

A finance ministry official said before placing the proposal with the cabinet division sometime soon, the public administration wanted to take finance’s opinion because putting such facilities in place involved a huge amount of money.

Sources said a letter, signed by Deputy Secretary Mahmuda Khatun of the public administration ministry, was sent last week to the finance ministry.

Under the existing facilities introduced in 2012, government officials ranked joint secretary and above are entitled to Tk20 lakh loan for buy-

ing cars. Against this loan, Tk17,000 monthly repayment installment is deducted from their salaries. They are also allowed Tk30,000 per month for maintenance of the cars they buy with the loan.

According to current arrangements, deputy secretaries, who work in various government offices and autonomous bodies outside the Secretariat, can use cars. However, those working at the Secretariat, are not allowed to use government vehicles.

At a meeting in the second week of January last year, 26 secretaries of various ministries sought expansion of car loan facilities for other civil bureaucrats and more office spaces at the Secretariat.

Public administration Secretary Kamal Abdul Naser Chowdhury said: “It [installing loan car loan facilities for deputy secretaries] still requires value judgment.” l

Rana Plaza owner gets bail in building law flouting case n Nazmus Sakib The High Court yesterday granted bail to Rana Plaza owner Sohel Rana for six months in a case lodged for flouting building construction law.

The vacation bench of Justice Md Rezaul Hasan and Justice Khurshid Alam Sarkar passed the order following a bail plea placed by defence lawyer Abdul Kader Bhuiyan.

Deputy Attorney General Md Selim told the Dhaka Tribune that the court granted the bail as it found the offence bailable. During the hearing, Selim opposed the plea.

On February 2, the High Court bench of Justice Nizamul Huq and Justice Jahangir Hossain rejected the bail petition of Rana.

Selim said the defence placed fresh petition yesterday.

The eight-storey Rana Plaza collapsed on April 24 last year, claiming at least 1,135 lives and injuring nearly 2,500 people, most of them female workers of the five factories housed at the building.

Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha (Rajuk) filed the case against Rana and 11 others with Savar police station for using substandard materials and violating building construction law.

The High Court earlier granted bail to

Abdul Khalek, father of the building owner, and seven others in the Rajuk case.

The defence yesterday also submitted a bail petition in the case filed by Savar police against Rana and five others for causing deaths of workers due to negligence.

However, the court said they would not hear the matter and suggested that if the defence moved it again after the vacation, a regular bench could hear it.

The investigators found that Rana got approval for a six-storey building, and later, violating the related law, illegally obtained approval for four more floors. The building was first a commercial one, and then it was approved as an industrial structure.

Rana rented out the floors to the factories to install big and heavy machines. The building thus became more vulnerable. The Savar municipality helped his illegal activities by providing trade licenses to the five garment factories in the commercial building.

Lawyers say the cases were not strong enough to ensure the highest punishment. The case filed by the Rajuk was bailable and the court could award Rana a maximum of seven years imprisonment in this case.

In the other case filed by the police for negligence, the accused could not be convicted for directing or planning the killings. l

Members of a BSTI mobile court check food standards at a bakery in Dhanmondi yesterday. The bakery was later fined for selling unhealthy food

Minister: Probe on for two extra-judicial killings n Nazmus Sakib

Law Minister Anisul Huq yesterday said two persons had become victims to extra-judicial killings recently and that steps would be taken against those responsible upon investigation.

“I have been informed by law enforcement agencies that only two persons faced extra-judicial deaths recently. I have instructed the authorities concerned to investigate the incidents and take action against those responsible if found guilty,” he said while addressing his first meet-the-press event at Dhaka Reporters Unity, arranged by Law Reporters’ Forum.

However, human rights groups including Ain O Salish Kendra, say more than 45 people were subject to such killings in January and February.

During the around 45 minute session, he spoke on a number of issues

raised by the newsmen.

On the lawsuit against Bangladeshi diplomat in the US, he said the government would first try to get all the relevant information. “If the allegation is false, the government will protect the diplomat,” the minister said. “But my personal opinion is that if it is proven to be true, we will tell the [US] government that we will bring him back for trial.”

The minister thinks that the Contempt of Court Act 1926 is revived after the annulment of the Contempt Law of 2013 last year.

When the reporters said journalist Mizanur Rahman Khan had been convicted and penalised under a provision of the constitution, the minister replied: “We do not live in jungle. If there is no specific punishment mentioned in the law [of parliament], then a convict can only be reprimanded but not punished as an accused has the right to

know what are the minimum and the maximum punishments for a crime.”

The court also could make rules specifying punishment for contempt, he said.

On the “grouping” of prosecutors of the war crimes tribunal, the minister said he called a meeting for tomorrow to resolve the “misunderstanding” as it was a demand of the people that the trial proceedings should be fair.

In reply to another question, he said it was not easy to bring the fugitive convicts of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman murder case and three convicted war criminals back.

The minister also criticised the proBNP lawyers for attempting to assault the judge who framed charges against former premier Khaleda Zia on March 19 saying that it was a “conspiracy to foil rule of law.” Their conduct was not familiar in civilised societies, he said.

On the demand of banning Jamaat-e-Islami through an executive order, he said as the party’s registration case was pending with the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court, the government would not take any step.

A separate secretariat for the judiciary, which is a key issue to ensure independence of the judiciary, was under process, the minister said. During the tenure of the present government, “we will at least frame the outlines of separate secretariat.” Currently the secretarial jobs of the judiciary are conducted through the secretariat of the law ministry.

Regarding the guidelines for appointing judges of the Supreme Court, he said the matter was under process.

In response to another question, Anisul said: “I without hesitation can say I do not believe that journalists are writing reports taking bribes.” l

Three killed in railing collapse n Our Correspondent, Narayanganj Three people were killed and two others sustained injuries as the railing of a readymade garment factory collapsed on an auto-rickshaw during a nor’wester in Katherpul area of Narayanganj on Saturday night.

Two of the dead were identified as Azharul Islam, driver of the auto rickshaw and Khokon, 28.

Local people said railing of an under-construction floor of Kadtrex Garments had collapsed on the auto-rickshaw. Soon after the incident, an angry mob started vandalising the garment. Later, police rushed to the spot and brought the situation under control. l

A group of Dhaka University students performs dance moves during a flashmob staged in front of the TSC on the university campus yesterday, celebrating the ICC T20 World Cup 2014 SYED ZAKIR HOSSAIN

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Malaysian jet search widens on new images of ‘debris’ n AFP The search for missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 was set to resume Sunday with greater resources and boosted by a new satellite image of unidentified floating debris.

Coordinating the hunt in the vast southern Indian Ocean, the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) said overnight “further attempts will be made to establish whether the objects sighted are related to MH370,” on Sunday.

A grainy March 18 photo released

by China’s State Administration of Science Technology and Industry showed an object measuring 22.5 metres by 13 metres (74 by 43 feet) in the southern Indian Ocean.

The location was just 120 kilometres (75 miles) distant from where March 16 satellite images -- released by Australia on Thursday -- had detected two pieces of possible wreckage in the remote ocean about 2,500 kilometres (1,500 miles) southwest of Perth.

“AMSA has plotted the position and it falls within Saturday’s search area,” the statement said.

“The object was not sighted on Saturday. AMSA will take this information into account in tomorrow’s (Sunday’s) search plans.

The Royal Australian Navy’s HMAS Success arrived late Saturday in the search area where two merchant ships were also taking part in the effort that turned up sightings of other objects during good weather conditions on Saturday.

“A civil aircraft... reported sighting a number of small objects with the naked

eye, including a wooden pallet, within a radius of five kilometres,” AMSA said.

“A Royal New Zealand Air Force P3 Orion aircraft with specialist electro-optic observation equipment was diverted to the location, arriving after the first aircraft left but only reported sighting clumps of seaweed.”

The Orion dropped a marker buoy to track the movement of the material and a merchant ship in the 36,000-square-kilometre area was tasked with relocating and seeking to identify the material.

Chinese and British naval ships are also steaming to join the search and the new image offered welcome support for the decision to deploy so many resources without confirmation that the objects are pieces of wreckage.

Australian media have reported that two Chinese aircraft and a Japanese plane were also due to take part in the coming days.

Australian Deputy Prime Minister Warren Truss vowed Saturday there would be no let up in the search.

The operation has seen already 15 sorties flown and more than 150 hours of air time logged, AMSA said.

Six planes, including four Orion anti-submarine aircraft packed with state-of-the-art surveillance equipment, scoured the area for a third straight day Saturday.

MH370, carrying 239 people, dropped off civilian radar on March 8 en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing, and two weeks later Malaysian investigators still believe it was “deliberately diverted” by someone on board. l

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H1 budget spending accelerates 80% Japanese companies operating in Bangladesh plan to expand business

Muhith may revise GDP growth target at 6.5% n Asif Showkat Kallol Budgetary expenditure has accelerated during the first half of the current fiscal year as compared to the same period of the previous fiscal year.

The overall expenditure in the H1 of 2013-14 stood at 40.41% or Tk89,906 crore of the total budget of Tk222,491 crore, according to the budget execution report Dhaka Tribune obtained yesterday.

The expenditure was 33.32% or Tk63,903 crore of the total budget for the previous fiscal year.

The budget implementation expedited during the period due to some unexpected expenditure in providing dearness allowance to public servants, increased subsidy to agriculture and increased spending on security ahead of national election held on January 5, officials said.

Budget deficit during the first half of the last fiscal year was only Tk3,991 crore, but this year it increased to Tk11,425 crore, which is about 21% of the total deficit Tk55,032 crore budgeted for the current fiscal year.

As a result, borrowing from the banking system stood at Tk8,730 crore in the H1 this fiscal year as compared to only Tk8,333 crore in the last fiscal year.

The finance minister is scheduled to place the second quarter progress report of budget implementation of the fiscal year before the parliament today.

It may downsize the GDP growth target to 6.5% from 7.2%.

Meanwhile, the government could not yet revise the Annual Development Programme (ADP) for fiscal 2013-14 due to difference between two ministers.

Finance Minister AMA Muhith wants to revise the ADP down while Planning Minister AFM Mostafa Kamal

Finance Minister AMA Muhith is against the move.

Although the planning commission has already been convinced to curtail TK12,000 crore from the ADP of Tk65,872 crore, Planning Minister AFM Mostafa Kamal, however, sought Prime Minister’s intervention to resolve the crisis.

The planning minister has taken the rigid stance on excuse that it might squeeze the GDP growth. However, finance ministry officials think a sustainable growth rate may not be achievable from the development projects.

Private sector will help maintain GDP growth rate only if the government lowered the bank’s interest rates.

Besides, enhancement of private credit flow will also help maintain the GDP growth rate as per the target.

Meanwhile, around 20 ministers have already asked the finance ministry to increase the revised ADP by Tk4,000 crore.

The planning minister does not want to see the revised budget below Tk58,000 crore while the finance min-

n Tribune Report

DHAKA TRIBUNE

istry officials want to fix the revised ADP at Tk56,000 crore. He accused the finance division of slashing the amount of the revised ADP Tk12,000 crore in the name of political unrest and shortfall in revenue earnings.

Only three months were spoiled due to political unrest and under such circumstance the ADP amount should be fixed in between Tk60,000 crore toTk62,000 crore, he opined.

The planning minister also said it is possible to spend Tk60,000 crore to Tk62,000 crore in the rest of the fiscal year deadline. However, the National Economic Council will hold a meeting on April 3 to fix the revised ADP. At the end of half of the fiscal, fund disbursement was 27.45% or Tk18,083 crore of the current fiscal year’s ADP worth Tk65,872 crore, which was also 20.11% of the total budget implementation. During the last fiscal year, it was 23.33% or Tk12,815 crore of the total ADP amount of Tk55,000 crore, according to the half-yearly budget implementation report. l

Some 80% of Japanese companies are planning to expand their business activities in Bangladesh in next two years, availing the opportunity of lower production costs.

A survey conducted by JETRO (Japan External Trade Organisation) came up with the disclosure. Currently, 34 Japanese companies are engaged in business in Bangladesh.

Myanmar is the top choice of Japanese entrepreneurs as more than 84% of the companies plan to invest in Myanmar, followed by Pakistan, Cambodia, Bangladesh and India, according to survey on Japanese Business, FDI Policy and MEIT ( Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry) in South Asia.

The survey was presented by Ichiro Abe, director and industry researcher, JETRO of New Delhi and special advisor to MEIT, government of Japan, at a seminar on ‘Business Climate in Asia and Bangladesh Position’ which was jointly organised by Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI) and JETRO at DCCI in the city yesterday.

Abe in his paper said: Operating profits of Japanese firms is estimated to increase 67.6% in next year from almost 56% in 2013, according to sales forecasts of JETRO. After Pakistan and Cambodia, Japanese firms will have the highest profits from Bangladesh.

The survey identified some operational problems for Japanese firms in Bangladesh. “Various issues, including wage increase, growing market share of competitors, lack of employee performance, quality of employees, difficulty in quality control and inadequate logistics infrastructure, on employment are major concerns for Japanese in Bangladesh,” said the survey.

Draft insurance policy goes to cabinet today

Biman MD to quit in April n Muhammad Zahidul Islam Kevin John Steele, managing director of Biman Bangladesh Airlines, has resigned from his post with effect from May. He submitted resignation in December last year citing medical reasons, where he mentioned would continue to work till April 2014.

“I resigned on medical grounds in December giving a four-month notice,” Kevin Steele, a Briton, told the Dhaka Tribune last evening.

It, however, could not be confirmed if the Board of Directors had accepted the resignation. Biman’s first foreign MD and CEO joined the national flag carrier on March 18 last year on a twoyear contract.

Steele’s salary figure became a subject of controversy in Biman as he was receiving Tk18.3 lakh per month along with a flat in Dhaka’s posh area, transport facility and 12 business class air tickets annually.

But no previous MD of the organisation received more than Tk3 lakh.

After joining, Kevin Steele announced that he would work to make Biman a profitable company in two years.

With an aim to make Biman one of the world’s best airlines, he placed focus on reducing cost and revenue earning. But in first year of his service, the national carrier incurred Tk200 crore loss. l

The report also said difficulty in local procurement of materials or parts in Bangladesh is almost 54%, much lower than Myanmar, Cambodia, Vietnam, Philippines and India but higher than Sri-Lanka, Pakistan, Thailand, China and Malaysia.

Difficulty in recruiting executive staff is more than 48%, higher than Vietnam, Malaysia and Pakistan and Sri-Lanka but lower than Laos, Cambodia, Myanmar, Indonesia and Thailand, it said.

It said cost of production is the lowest than any other countries in the world. Production cost includes the costs of all resources consumed in producing an item, such as materials, labor, and others.

A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was also signed at the seminar between DCCI and JETRO, Dhaka to facilitate business between these two friendly countries.

According to the MoU, both the parties will provide relevant market infor-

mation and support government to formulate more business friendly policies.

DCCI President Mohammad Shahjahan Khan and JETRO, Dhaka Representative Kei Kawano signed the MoU on behalf of their respective organisations.

Planning secretary Bhuiyan Shafiqul Islam, senior research fellow, JETRO Bangkok, Hiroshito Ito, other DCCI members and officials were present at the seminar.

Shafiqul Islam sought Japan’s cooperation in the economic development of Bangladesh. He also said JETRO could come forward to collaborate with our private sector to make Bangladesh an attractive investment destination.

He also sought cooperation from Japan in building international standard export processing or economic zones in Bangladesh.

Shahjahan Khan said recently, Bangladesh government has established a Task Force comprising of business leaders and government officials for the purpose of eliminating impediments for Japanese investors to Bangladesh.

The Task Force also aimed to explore the prospective areas of Japanese investment in Bangladesh, identify problems in attracting investment from the world’s third largest economy.

Bangladesh exports nearly 70 items to Japan but only seven or eight items constitute 90% shares of the total export in Japan.

DCCI President urged Japanese firms to invest in gas exploration, power generation, communication network, infrastructure and agro-based industries in Bangladesh.

Kei Kawano said JETRO is closely working with Bangladesh to strengthen bilateral relation between Bangladesh and Japan. He said Bangladesh is a nice investment destination and Japanese investors are keen to invest in this country. l

n Asif Showkat Kallol The proposed national insurance policy is likely to be placed before the cabinet meeting scheduled for today.

The policy is to expand insurance business through ensuring transparence and accountability, said a senior official yesterday.

Biman gets fourth Boeing n Muhammad Zahidul Islam

Another brand new Boeing 777-300ER has been added to the national flag carrier’s fleet.

The aircraft named “Ranga Provath” arrived at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airpor at 2:15PM yesterday, Biman Bangladesh Airlines CEO Kevin Steele told the Dhaka Tribune.

The aircraft with twin engines and 419 seats including 35 business classes is expected to help further improve the national airlines’ punctuality in flight operation. The punctuality is now around 65%, according to the Biman which has three other such Boeing planes.

Civil Aviation Minister Rashed Khan Menon, Secretary Khurshed Alam and

Biman CEO Kevin Steele came with the aircraft from the US city Seattle after a 16-hour long journey. They were accompanied by an expert team.

Apart from the four Boeing 777300ERs, Biman has an agreement with the US company for four Boeing 737800s and two Boeing 787-8s. They will be added to the fleet by 2019.

Of them, two planes of Boeing 737800 will be received by the end of 2015, said Debabrata Banik, chief engineer of Biman. The last caretaker government signed a contract with the Boeing authorities to buy 10 brand new aircrafts for the national carrier.

The previous three Boeing 777-300ER are Akash Pradip, Palki and Arun Alo. Biman will hold an inaugural func-

tion on Thursday at the Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is expected to be present there.

A senior Biman official said some technical and procedural works would be necessary before the start of carrying passengers by the new craft.

Boeing 777-300ER, powered by General Electric GE90-115BLs, is 19% lighter than its closest competitor, greatly reducing its fuel requirement, the Biman authorities said. According to them, it produces 22% less carbon dioxide per seat and the cost is also 20% less.

At present, Biman operates flights in 19 international routes while two new routes are likely to be included in next couple of months. l

'The country’s farm land remains vulnerable because of the adverse impact of global warming. The temperature may rise by 2% to 4% to flood the cultivable lands' Insurance Development and Regulatory Authority had sent the draft of the policy to Cabinet Division for consideration by the cabinet, said the official at the Banking and Financial Institutions Division.

As per the proposal, the policy includes insurance of public assets like Bangladesh Railway. Several accidents took place in railways, but the sufferer passengers were not entitled to any

insurance benefit. The proposed policy would consider the issue, said the official.

The country’s key installments like Bangladesh Secretariat, Bangladesh Bank, Sangsad Bhaban and airports across the country will be covered by the government insurance companies, according to the draft national insurance policy.

The policy, if adopted, would also remove disparity between the premiums for men and women, who have to pay more premium than men.

The policy, entitled the National Insurance Policy – 2014, will have short, medium and long term objectives. The policy, if adopted, will come into effect from the middle of 2014 and will expire in 2021.

The draft policy says crop insurance would protect the farmers while other new and innovative products will be encouraged under the policy.

It said the country’s farm land remains vulnerable because of the adverse impact of global warming. The temperature may rise by 2% to 4% to flood the cultivable lands.

The draft noted that there was lack of planning in combating such type of natural disasters in Bangladesh – a country that tops the list of the most vulnerable countries to the climate change. l

Tofail assures incentives to boost furniture export n Tribune Report

Commerce Minister Tofail Ahmed yesterday assured the country’s furniture industry of providing incentives to help increase exports to the global market.

“We do not want to confine ourselves to limited products for exports,” he said, inaugurating a three-day Bangladesh Furniture and Interior Decoration (BFID) Expo – 2014 at Bangabandhu International Conference Centre (BICC) in Dhaka.

The minister said the government is giving priority to diversify products and explore new markets to boost export basket. At present, the country exports 737 products.

The labour-intensive furniture industry can serve as a foundation for building a bridge between Bangladeshi

manufacturers of furniture and home furnishing products, and the global marketing players.

Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) of Bangladesh, Bangladesh Furniture Exporters Association (BFEA), Bangladesh Handicrafts Manufacturers and Exporters Association (Banglacraft), Bangladesh Jute Diversified Products Manufactures and Exporters Association (BJDPMEA) and Bangladesh Furniture Industries Owners Association in collaboration with Jute Diversification Promotion Centre (JDPC) are jointly orgainsing the fair.

Tofail said Bangladesh has competitive edge in producing furniture and home furnishing products due to her inherent skills and cost competitiveness, which could obviously open up new avenues both for producers and

buyers of these products.

Export Promotion Bureau Vice President Shubhashish Bose said foreign furniture buyers are looking for new sourcing country due to rising labour cost in China. “We have to grab this opportunity to boost furniture exports.”

BFEA President KM Akhtaruzzaman said the competitive advantage due to low-labour cost could play a vital role to compete in international market.

He said Bangladesh’s hourly furniture wage rate is $0.06-0.04, which is less than China –the largest furniture exporter. “We have competitive advantages that can be harvested easily.”

He requested setting up of a furniture institute to develop skilled manpower to help develop the sector like RMG. A total of 51 furniture makers are

taking part in the fair to display their furniture products. The fair with no entry fee will remain open from 10 am to 8 pm everyday for the visitors.

Earnings from furniture export have seen a 32% rise to over $25m in the first eight months of the current fiscal due to increased demands in the global markets, according to EPB. The government has set a furniture export target of about $38m with 20% growth for the current financial year while the total export target set at $30.5bn.

At present, the country exports office furniture, metal furniture, seats with metal frames, bedroom furniture, wooden furniture, and furniture of plastic, parts of furniture, mattress supports, sleeping bag and lamp and light fittings to various destinations of the world. l

Commerce Minister Tofail Ahmed seen visiting a stall at the furniture fair in Dhaka yesterday NASHIRUL ISLAM

B2

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Stocks fell yesterday with turnover sinking further to more than fivemonth low.

Market picked up in the morning, but failed to create enough hype to sustain its positive momentum and ultimately gave in to selling pressure.

The benchmark DSEX was down 40 points or 0.9% to close at 4,519, after rally in the previous session.

'It was a down day throughout the trading session as bears are smacking on index rolling out heavyweights sectors to lower price' Shariah Index DSES lost 11 points or 1% to 978. The blue-chip comprising DS30 declined 20 points or 1% to end at 1,615.

Chittagong Stock Exchange Selective Category Index, CSCX, shed 57 points to 8,802.

The total turnover at DSE deteriorated further by 12% to Tk243 crore, which is the lowest since October 27, 2013.

IDLC Investments in its market analysis said having single session’s

2,434.23

Turnover (Volume)

47,142,514

Number of Contract

70,970

Traded Issues

294

Issue Gain (Avg. Price Basis)

142

Issue Loss (Avg. Price Basis)

143

Unchanged Issue (Avg. Price Basis)

9

Market Capital Equity (Billion. Tk.)

2,240.54

Market Capital Equity (Billion US$)

2.7.16

CSE key features March 23, 2014 Turnover (Million Taka)

256.98

Turnover (Volume)

Daily capital market highlights DSE Broad Index :

Company

Turnover (Million Taka)

break, market retracted again as sentiment remained shaky, keeping panic active among investors.

“The resultant impact was further shed-offs in indices. Coupled with these, the ongoing pessimism kept investors staying mostly inactive, bringing turnover to a year low.”

Non-banking financial institution was the only sector that ended in green with a rise of over 1%.

Pharmaceuticals, and food and allied sectors lost 1.6% each. They were followed by banks – the largest cap sector – which shed 1.5%.

Telecommunications and power edged down by over 1% each.

“It was a down day throughout the trading session as bears are smacking on index rolling out heavyweights sectors to lower price,” said Lanka Bangla Securities in its daily market analysis. It said continuation of heavy selloff has tapered the resilience in market.

Zenith Investment said traders must have shed stocks during the early hours of the day, in order to realise some gains when the market was positive, and this selling pressure changed the scenario of the market, as the day drifted along.

Top turnover leaders included Bangladesh Shipping Corporation, Square Pharmaceuticals, Padma Oil, Emerald Oil, Bangladesh Submarine Cable Company Ltd, Meghna Petroleum, National Tubes and Bangladesh Building. l

5,711,177

Number of Contract

10,439

4519.54975

(-) 0.86%

▼

Traded Issues

218

978.74490

(-) 1.08%

▼

Issue Gain (Avg. Price Basis)

100

DSE - 30 Index :

1615.19732

(-) 1.23%

▼

Issue Loss (Avg. Price Basis)

108

CSE All Share Index:

14001.4779

(-) 0.63%

▼

Unchanged Issue (Avg. Price Basis)

9

CSE - 30 Index :

11751.4339

(-) 0.68%

▼

Market Capital Equity (Billion. Tk.)

2,142.35

8802.5422

(-) 0.64%

▼

Market Capital Equity (Billion US$)

25.97

DSE Shariah Index :

CSE Selected Index : DSE LOSERS Company Safko Spinning-A MutualTrust Bank-A Kay & Que (BD) -Z Rahima Food -Z IFIC Bank - A LR Global BD MF1-A Marico BD Ltd-A Mercantile Bank -A

ICB AMCL IslamicMF-A GlaxoSK (BD) -A

-10.07 -8.05 -7.10 -6.82 -4.79 -4.17 -3.97 -3.37

Average (% change) -9.90 -9.63 -6.94 -5.92 -2.30 -3.03 -3.69 -1.31

-3.37 -3.32

-3.17 -2.56

Closing (% change)

CSE LOSERS Company

Closing (% change)

Rahima Food -Z Safko Spinning-A Rupali Life Insur.-A Phoenix Insur -A Eastland Insur -A National Life I -A Apex SpinningA Reliance Insur -A

-9.28 -7.69 -7.56 -7.33 -7.16 -6.71 -6.56 -6.49

Average (% change) -9.20 -8.93 -7.57 -7.33 -6.89 -6.72 -4.80 -6.49

Marico BD Ltd-A Prime Bank 1st MF-A

-6.24 -5.08

-6.44 -1.58

ANALYST

Closing average

Closing

Bank NBFI Investment Engineering Food & Allied Fuel & Power Jute Textile Pharma & Chemical Paper & Packaging Service Leather Ceramic Cement Information Technology General Insurance Life Insurance Telecom Travel & Leisure Miscellaneous Debenture

DSE Million Taka 241.14 97.87 42.37 349.26 200.35 257.75 4.20 254.42 265.06 0.69 13.79 61.63 12.04 116.41 16.95 50.33 83.55 129.05 24.65 211.83 0.89

Turnover in million

Daily low

Latest EPS

Latest PE

25.20 15.77 17.03 48.61 30.12 7.03 1101.62 17.38

25.00 16.00 17.00 47.80 29.80 6.90 1096.20 17.20

26.40 16.60 18.50 51.00 31.80 7.20 1122.00 17.70

24.90 15.00 17.00 47.50 28.00 6.90 1086.00 16.20

5.633 1.888 0.104 4.302 17.446 0.879 4.076 11.123

1.04 1.86 -0.89 -1.00 3.60 1.52 46.53 1.61

24.2 8.5 -ve -ve 8.4 4.6 23.7 10.8

20.14 1308.29

20.10 1298.40

20.30 1330.00

20.10 1292.00

0.141 4.579

2.56 45.35

7.9 28.8

Closing average

Closing

Daily high

Turnover in million

Daily low

Latest EPS

Desh Garments -B Samata LeatheR -Z Anwar Galvanizing-B Renwick Jajneswar-A Northern Jute -Z Paramount Textile Ltd.-A GeminiSeaFood-Z Al-Haj Textile -A Atlas BD-A Mozaffar H.Spinning-N

47.90 25.20 115.00 43.00 48.00 310.00 102.60 72.00

48.10 25.20 115.00 43.00 49.00 310.00 99.00 72.00

47.60 25.10 115.00 43.00 48.00 310.00 100.00 72.00

0.096 0.063 0.058 0.009 0.462 0.013 0.534 0.072

-1.00 1.04 5.33 3.81 3.60 12.46 1.85 4.63

-ve 24.2 21.6 11.3 13.4 24.9 55.5 15.6

1,083.00 5.60

1,083.00 5.60

1,083.00 5.60

1,083.00 5.60

0.054 0.022

46.53 0.62

23.3 9.0

The resultant impact was further shed-offs in indices. Coupled with these, the ongoing pessimism kept investors staying mostly inactive, bringing turnover to a year low

% change 9.91 4.02 1.74 14.35 8.23 10.59 0.17 10.45 10.89 0.03 0.57 2.53 0.49 4.78 0.70 2.07 3.43 5.30 1.01 8.70 0.04

Million Taka 21.45 6.48 2.52 32.75 46.85 48.89 67.66 19.97 75.65 0.97 77.80 1.13 12.08 2.87 2.82 4.72 13.16 6.19 39.88 0.01

% change 4.43 1.34 0.52 6.77 9.68 10.10 0.00 13.98 4.13 15.64 0.20 16.08 0.23 2.50 0.59 0.58 0.98 2.72 1.28 8.24 0.00

Million Taka 262.59 104.35 44.88 382.00 247.20 306.63 4.20 322.08 285.03 76.34 14.76 139.43 13.17 128.49 19.82 53.16 88.27 142.21 30.83 251.71 0.90

Total

9.99 9.94 9.71 8.69 8.69 6.55 6.16 6.01 5.78 5.73

CSE GAINERS Company Samata LeatheR -Z Imam Button -Z Hakkani P& Paper -B Northern G Insur-A City G Insu.-A Paramount Textile Ltd.-A Anwar Galvanizing-B Mozaffar H.Spinning-N ICB -A AramitCementA

Closing (% change) 9.09 8.64 8.04 7.80 7.57 7.07 6.97 6.05 5.71 4.95

Average (% change) 6.75 7.78 7.45 10.42 10.58 6.72 5.39 3.45 4.50 5.49 Average (% change) 9.06 8.64 8.11 7.80 7.57 6.46 7.42 5.79 5.73 2.52

Closing average

Closing

116.59 34.64 30.01 330.53 70.00 43.82 189.71 118.65 195.82 33.27

Closing average

118.90 35.40 30.50 335.10 68.80 43.90 191.30 119.90 199.60 33.20

Closing

35.99 8.80 33.60 45.60 27.00 43.66 30.11 33.28 1846.67 57.01

36.00 8.80 33.60 45.60 27.00 43.90 30.70 33.30 1850.00 57.20

Daily high 118.90 35.40 30.50 335.20 69.60 44.90 192.80 121.80 201.80 34.10

Daily high 36.30 8.80 33.60 46.50 27.00 45.00 31.00 34.00 1850.00 57.50

Daily low 111.00 32.70 28.10 314.90 68.00 38.00 184.00 112.00 180.00 31.40

Daily low 35.50 8.80 33.60 44.70 27.00 42.00 28.70 32.30 1840.00 56.40

Turnover in million 10.901 5.040 11.132 6.842 0.028 36.597 0.996 19.192 45.869 15.720

Turnover in million 0.252 0.009 0.034 0.046 0.027 10.412 1.310 3.644 0.277 0.257

Latest EPS 1.18 -0.04 0.02 5.32 -10.24 2.80 6.44 2.06 3.72 2.16

Latest EPS -0.04 -2.58 0.28 3.04 1.99 2.80 0.02 2.16 40.46 2.56

Latest PE 98.8 -ve 1500.5 62.1 -ve 15.7 29.5 57.6 52.6 15.4

Latest PE -ve -ve 120.0 15.0 13.6 15.6 1505.5 15.4 45.6 22.3

News, analysis and recent disclosers From TradeServers:

IFIC: The Board of Directors has recommended 15% Stock dividend for the year ended on December 31, 2013. The Board has also decided to issue 'Subordinated Debt (Bond)' for Tk. 3,000.00 million for raising Tier-II Capital to meet future Capital Adequacy Requirement of the Bank as per Basel-II subject to approval of the concerned Regulatory Authorities and the shareholders. Date of AGM: 01.06.2014, Time: 11:00 AM, Venue: Bashundhara Convention Center-2, Block #C, Umme Kulsum Road, Bashundhara R/A, Baridhara, Dhaka. Record Date: 24.04.2014. The Company has also reported consolidated Net Profit after Tax of Tk. 1,370.93 million, consolidated EPS of Tk. 3.60, consolidated NAV per share of Tk. 24.29 and consolidated NOCFPS of Tk. 37.47 for the year ended on December 31, 2013.

IBBLPBOND: The Board of Directors has recommended annual profit rate of 12.80% for IBBL Mudaraba Perpetual Bond (IBBLPBOND) for the year ended on December 31, 2013. Record Date for entitlement of profit of the Bond: 03.04.2014. Date of profit distribution: Within 30 (thirty) days from holding of AGM of Islami Bank Bangladesh Ltd. which is scheduled to be held on 31.05.2014.

DSE TURNOVER LEADERS Company BSC-A Square Pharma -A Padma Oil Co. -A Emerald Oil Ind. -N BD Submarine Cable-A Meghna Petroleum -A National Tubes -A

CSE

Closing (% change)

ISLAMIBANK: The Board of Directors has recommended 8% cash dividend and 10% stock dividend for the year ended on December 31, 2013. Date of AGM: 31.05.2014, Time: 10:00 AM, Venue: Bangabandhu International Conference Centre (BICC), Agargaon, Sher-E-Bangla Nagar, Dhaka.

Record date: 03.04.2014. The Company has also reported consolidated EPS of Tk. 3.45, consolidated NAV per Share of Tk. 29.92 and consolidated NOCFPS of Tk. 23.09 for the year ended on December 31, 2013.

Board Meeting: ICBIBANK on March 24, 2014 at 2:30 PM , EASTLAND on March 25, 2014 at 3:30 PM, CITYBANK on March 25, 2014 at 4:30 PM.

From BIASL Desk:

Impact after declaration: IFIC price dropped up by 4.73%, close at taka 29.80 with PE 8.28. ISLAMIBANK price dropped up by 2.89%, close at taka 33.60 with PE 9.74.

Price Correction after Record Day: MTB’s price correction was 8.04% (taka 1.40) against 10% stock Dividend (taka 1.74 per share approx.). After record day restated EPS is taka 1.86 and NAV per share is taka 17.71. SAFKOSPIN price correction was 10.07% (taka 2.80) against 10% stock Dividend (taka 2.78 per share approx.).

After record day restated EPS is taka 1.04 and NAV per share is taka 20.80.

RIGHT SHARE: ARAMITCEM: Subscription 23.03.2014 to 17.04.2014. RD for entitlement of rights share: 09.01.2014.

RUPALILIFE- Subscription 06.04.2014 to 05.05.2014. RD for entitlement of rights share: 16.01.2014. BRACBANK: Subscription 20.04.2014 to 15.05.2014. RD for entitlement of rights share: 10.02.2014.

GENNEXT: Subscription 18.03.2014 to 09.04.2014, RD: 25.02.2014.

IPO Subscription: Far Chemical Industries Limited subscription date 10-16 February 2014, NRB upto 25 March 2014. At per, face value taka 10 and market lot 500. The Peninsula Chittagong Limited subscription date 30 March-03 April 2014, NRB upto 12 April 2014. @ taka 30, face value taka 10 and market lot 200. Shahjibazar Power Co. Limited subscription date 06-04 April 2014, NRB upto 19 April 2014. @ taka 25, face value taka 10 and market lot 200.

Dividend/AGM

PIONEERINS: 10% cash & 20% stock, AGM: 18.05.2014, RD: 31.03.2014.

GLOBALINS: 10% stock, Date of AGM: 17.05.2014, RD: 07.04.2014.

REPUBLIC: 12.50% stock, AGM: 16.04.2014, RD: 31.03.2014.

Latest PE

47.95 25.18 115.00 43.00 48.14 310.00 102.64 72.00

SECTORAL TURNOVER SUMMARY Sector

Daily high

Monday, March 24, 2014

DSE GAINERS

DSE key features March 23, 2014

Turnover sinks to 5-month low n Tribune Report

Stock

% change 9.00 3.58 1.54 13.09 8.47 10.51 0.14 11.04 9.77 2.62 0.51 4.78 0.45 4.40 0.68 1.82 3.03 4.87 1.06 8.63 0.03

Prepared exclusively for Dhaka Tribune by Business Information Automation Service Line (BIASL), on the basis of information collected from daily stock quotations and audited reports of the listed companies. High level of caution has been taken to collect and present the above information and data. The publisher will not take any responsibility if any body uses this information and data for his/her investment decision. For any query please email to biasl@bol-online.com or call 01552153562 or go to www.biasl.net

BD Building Systems -A Grameenphone-A LafargeS Cement-Z

Atlas BD-A Pubali Bank - A Apex Footwear-A Paramount Textile Ltd.-A Jamuna Oil -A CSE TURNOVER LEADERS Company BSC-A

Paramount Textile Ltd.-A Appollo Ispat CL -N BD Submarine Cable-A LafargeS Cement-Z BD Building Systems -A Padma Oil Co. -A UNITED AIR-A Square Pharma -A UCBL - A Bengal Windsor-A Mozaffar H.Spinning-N Generation Next-A Delta Life Insu. -A BEXIMCO Ltd. -A

Volume shares 262,015 406,086 255,149 1,333,000 329,586 231,996 384,348 854,000 285,400 1,070,500

234,237 1,426,646 81,600 835,080 159,462

Volume shares

51,420 238,490 368,600 48,629 206,500 89,100 16,766 376,205 19,460 200,135 81,016 109,500 165,000 14,400 99,682

Value in million 176.95 107.71 85.60 75.57 69.03 64.15 62.54 61.19 60.02 52.12

45.87 45.28 42.42 36.60 36.35

Value in million

34.61 10.41 10.34 10.18 10.09 6.36 5.63 5.53 5.17 4.84 4.43 3.64 3.55 3.53 3.09

% of total turnover 7.27 4.42 3.52 3.10 2.84 2.64 2.57 2.51 2.47 2.14

1.88 1.86 1.74 1.50 1.49

% of total turnover

15.79 4.75 4.72 4.65 4.60 2.90 2.57 2.52 2.36 2.21 2.02 1.66 1.62 1.61 1.41

Daily closing 685.50 264.40 333.90 54.50 207.90 275.40 164.20 71.40 209.30 48.50

199.60 30.60 516.40 43.90 226.80

Daily closing

685.50 43.90 28.30 207.80 48.70 70.60 335.00 14.70 264.60 24.00 54.90 33.30 21.30 243.60 30.90

Price change 1.59 -1.08 -1.15 -1.27 -1.66 -1.15 3.53 1.13 -1.13 -0.41

Daily opening 674.75 267.30 337.80 55.20 211.40 278.60 158.60 70.60 211.70 48.70

Price change

Daily opening

5.78 2.00 -2.34 6.55 -1.35

1.89 7.07 4.43 -1.98 -0.61 -0.14 -0.80 -0.68 -0.82 -2.83 2.62 6.05 0.47 -1.46 -0.32

188.70 30.00 528.80 41.20 229.90

672.80 41.00 27.10 212.00 49.00 70.70 337.70 14.80 266.80 24.70 53.50 31.40 21.20 247.20 31.00

Daily high 690.00 270.00 339.50 58.90 213.70 279.10 165.30 72.80 212.40 49.00

201.80 32.40 534.00 44.90 231.00

Daily low 663.00 244.90 322.00 53.00 193.00 255.00 143.90 70.20 208.60 48.40

180.00 27.00 514.10 38.00 216.00

Daily average 675.33 265.25 335.51 56.69 209.43 276.52 162.70 71.65 210.30 48.69

Daily high

Daily low

Daily average

690.00 45.00 28.50 212.10 49.00 73.50 339.00 14.90 268.90 25.20 55.00 34.00 22.10 249.00 31.30

662.30 42.00 27.30 207.00 48.50 70.00 333.60 14.60 263.50 23.90 54.00 32.30 21.20 242.90 30.80

195.82 31.74 519.83 43.82 227.93

673.08 43.66 28.05 209.36 48.87 71.42 335.72 14.70 265.52 24.18 54.64 33.28 21.50 245.08 31.02

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Business

Monday, March 24, 2014

B3

IMF chief: US support integral to reforms n Reuters, Beijing International Monetary Fund chief Christine Lagarde said on Sunday that there was not much she should could to push reform at her organization and give emerging economies a bigger say without the support of the United States.

China in January called on IMF member nations to stick to a commitment to give emerging markets more power at the global lender after US lawmakers set back historic reforms that would give developing countries a greater say.

The remarks by China’s foreign ministry were an indirect criticism of the United States, the biggest and most powerful IMF member, where lawmakers that month failed to agree on funding measures needed for the reforms to move forward.

The US Congress must sign off on the IMF funding to complete 2010 reforms that would make China the IMF’s third-largest member and revamp the IMF board to reduce the dominance of Western Europe.

Speaking at Beijing’s elite Tsinghua

University, Lagarde said this was a matter for the United States to complete the process and ensure that the relevant legislation can be passed.

“This is not something I can do much about,” she told students.

The US Congress must sign off on the IMF funding to complete 2010 reforms that would make China the IMF’s third-largest member and revamp the IMF board to reduce the dominance of Western Europe She added that she hoped emerging economies could have a bigger voice within the institution. The reform of the voting shares, known as quotas, cannot proceed without the United States, which holds the only controlling share of IMF votes.

After putting off the request in 2012 because of the US presidential election, the US Treasury has sought to tuck the provision into several bills since March of last year. The administration’s requests, however, have been met with skepticism from some Republicans, who see them as tantamount to approving fresh funding in a tight budget environment.

Some US lawmakers have also raised concerns about how well the IMF is helping struggling economies in Europe and the risks attached to IMF loans, suggesting Congress is in no hurry to approve any changes.

Developing nations have long viewed the IMF with suspicion for promoting disastrous privatisations that complicated the transition from communism for some emerging nations in the early 1990s, and for pushing budget cuts that exacerbated debt crises in Asia and Latin America a few years later.

That suspicion has been compounded by a power structure that dates to IMF’s founding in 1944. The structure was shaped by the victors of World War Two - the United States and other Allied nations. l

Nazi past overshadows Putin looks to Asia as west threatens to isolate Russia n genius of Porsche Reuters, Moscow

n AFP, Vratislavice The name Porsche has long made sports car enthusiasts swoon but the Nazi past of the famous brand’s founder has left his Czech hometown sorely divided over his legacy.

In 2010, Vratislavice opened an ultra-modern, million-dollar memorial to Ferdinand Porsche, who invented the Volkswagen Beetle - among the world’s top selling cars - and in 1898, the first gasoline-electric hybrid.

The German-headquartered Porsche AG loaned cars to the facility, right next to town hall, to help show off their founder’s engineering genius.

Town officials, meanwhile, put up signs reading “welcome to Vratislavice, the birthplace of Ferdinand Porsche”.

Not all in this modest locality of nearly 8,000 residents northeast of the capital Prague felt comfortable trumpeting their native son, however.

Last year, a new team voted into city hall could no longer ignore growing protests that Vratislavice - in an area annexed by Nazi Germany in the late 1930s - was “memorializing” a man who had worked for Adolf Hitler.

Anti-Nazi war veterans and the Jewish community objected to the fact that the facility never mentioned Porsche’s Nazi connections, Mayor Ales Preisler told AFP. They condemned Porsche for joining the Nazi SS paramilitary group before the war, and deplored that prisoners of war were used as slave labour at the Volkswagen car plant in Wolfsburg, Germany when Porsche was general manager.

To calm matters, the town hall late last year renamed the memorial an “exhibition” and added a text saying Porsche had been a Nazi.

Porsche AG, meanwhile, took back its

cars but would not talk about the controversy, saying it was a “local issue”.

“All vehicles in our collection are rotated on a regular basis,” was the only explanation given by Porsche AG spokesman Dieter Landenberger who declined further comment.

The facility has been empty ever since.

Unwelcome

About the same time, the town hall removed the signs proclaiming Vratislavice was Porsche’s birthplace.

“These things should not be financed using municipal cash,” Mayor Preisler told AFP, adding Porsche “was a Nazi all right.”

Porsche was born in 1875 into the predominantly ethnic German community in Vratislavice, when it was known as Maffersdorf and part of the Habsburg’s Austro-Hungarian empire.

He left at age 18, moving first to Vienna then later to Germany.

His talent in designing cutting-edge engines and cars saw him climb company ranks at renowned auto-makers including Austro-Daimler and Mercedes.

When Hitler took power in Germany in 1933, he was quick to ask Porsche to design a “people’s car”, the predecessor of the VW Beetle.

“Porsche was an active Nazi who was on very good terms with Hitler and used this relationship to push his projects,” said Jan Vajskebr, a historian at the Czech Terezin Memorial located in a World War II ghetto and prison. The Nazis set up the site, often known by its German name Theresienstadt, from where tens of thousands of Jews were sent to Auschwitz.

Encouraged by Hitler, Porsche gave up his Czechoslovak citizenship in 1935, four years before his country was occupied by Nazi Germany. l

Shwapno, a super store retail-chain in the country introduced its 45th outlet at Monipuri Para in Dhaka recently. Sabbir Hasan Nasir, executive director of ACI Logistics Ltd and other high officials of the organisation inaugurated the new outlet

Partners Convention 2014 of X Ceramics Limited, an enterprise of Index Companies was held on March 18 at a local hotel where State Minister Nasrul Hamid, Ministry of Power, Entergy and Mineral Resources was the chief guest

When President Vladimir Putin signed a treaty this week annexing Crimea to great fanfare in the Kremlin and anger in the West, a trusted lieutenant was making his way to Asia to shore up ties with Russia’s eastern allies.

Forcing home the symbolism of his trip, Igor Sechin gathered media in Tokyo the next day to warn Western governments that more sanctions over Moscow’s seizure of the Black Sea peninsula from Ukraine would be counterproductive.

The underlying message from the head of Russia’s biggest oil company, Rosneft, was clear: If Europe and the United States isolate Russia, Moscow will look East for new business, energy deals, military contracts and political alliances.

The Holy Grail for Moscow is a natural gas supply deal with China that is apparently now close after years of negotiations. If it can be signed when Putin visits China in May, he will be able to hold it up to show that global power has shifted eastwards and he does not need the West.

“The worse Russia’s relations are with the West, the closer Russia will want to be to China. If China supports you, no one can say you’re isolated,” said Vasily Kashin, a China expert at the Analysis of Strategies and Technologies (CAST) think thank.

Some of the signs are encouraging for Putin. Last Saturday China abstained in a UN Security Council vote on a draft resolution declaring invalid the referendum in which Crimea went on to back union with Russia.

Although China is nervous about referendums in restive regions of other countries which might serve as a precedent for Tibet and Taiwan, it has refused to criticise Moscow.

The support of Beijing is vital for Putin. Not only is China a fellow per-

manent member of the UN Security Council with whom Russia thinks alike, it is also the world’s second biggest economy and it opposes the spread of Western-style democracy.

Little wonder, then, that Putin thanked China for its understanding over Ukraine in a Kremlin speech on Tuesday before signing the treaty claiming back Crimea, 60 years after it was handed to Ukraine by Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev.

It does not recognise the referendum on Crimea’s union with Russia and has threatened to suspend talks on an investment pact and relaxation of visa requirements as part of sanctions Chinese President Xi Jinping showed how much he values ties with Moscow, and Putin in particular, by making Russia his first foreign visit as China’s leader last year and attending the opening of the Winter Olympics in Sochi last month.

Many Western leaders did not go to the Games after criticism of Russia’s record on human rights. By contrast, when Putin and Xi discussed Ukraine by telephone on March 4, the Kremlin said their positions were “close”.

A strong alliance would suit both countries as a counterbalance to the United States.

Warm embrace, but no bear hug

But despite the positive signs from Beijing, Putin may find China’s embrace is not quite the bear hug he would like.

There is still some wariness between Beijing and Moscow, who almost went

to war over a border dispute in the 1960s, when Russia was part of the Communist Soviet Union.

State-owned Russian gas firm Gazprom hopes to pump 38 billion cubic metres (bcm) of natural gas per year to China from 2018 via the first pipeline between the world’s largest producer of conventional gas to the largest consumer.

“May is in our plans,” a Gazprom spokesman said, when asked about the timing of an agreement.

A company source said: “It would be logical to expect the deal during Putin’s visit to China.”

But the two sides are still wrangling over pricing and Russia’s cooling relations with the West could make China toughen its stance. Russian industry sources say Beijing targets a lower price than Europe, where Gazprom generates around half of its revenues, pays.

Upheaval at China National Petroleum Corp, at the centre of a corruption investigation, could cause also delays, and Valery Nesterov, an analyst with Sberbank CIB in Moscow, said China also needs time to review its energy strategy and take into account shale gas and liquefied natural gas (LNG).

“The bottom line is that the threat of sanctions on energy supplies from Russia has indirectly strengthened China’s position in the negotiations,” Nesterov said.

Boosting business

Russia meets almost a third of Europe’s gas needs and supplies to the European Union and Turkey last year exceeded 162 bcm, a record high.

However, China overtook Germany as Russia’s biggest buyer of crude oil this year thanks to Rosneft securing deals to boost eastward oil supplies via the East Siberia-Pacific Ocean pipeline and another crossing Kazakhstan.

If Russia is isolated by a new round of Western sanctions - those so far af-

fect only a few officials’ assets abroad and have not been aimed at companies - Russia and China could also step up cooperation in areas apart from energy.

CAST’s Kashin said the prospects of Russia delivering Sukhoi SU-35 fighter jets to China, which has been under discussion since 2010, would grow.

China is very interested in investing in infrastructure, energy and commodities in Russia, and a decline in business with the West could force Moscow to drop some of its reservations about Chinese investment in strategic industries.

“With Western sanctions, the atmosphere could change quickly in favour of China,” said Brian Zimbler Managing Partner of Morgan Lewis international law firm’s Moscow office.

Russia-China trade turnover grew by 8.2% in 2013 to $8.1bn but Russia was still only China’s seventh largest export partner in 2013, and was not in the top 10 countries for imported goods. The EU is Russia’s biggest trade partner, accounting for almost half of all its trade turnover.

Dilemma for japan, support in india

Sechin, whose visit also included India, Vietnam and South Korea, is a close Putin ally who worked with him in the St Petersburg city authorities and then the Kremlin administration, before serving as a deputy prime minister.

In Tokyo, he offered Japanese investors more cooperation in the development of Russian oil and gas.

Rosneft already has some joint projects with companies from Japan, the world’s largest consumer of LNG, and Tokyo has been working hard under Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to improve ties with Moscow, despite a territorial dispute dating from World War Two. But Japan faces a dilemma over Crimea because it is under pressure to impose sanctions on Moscow as a member of the Group of Seven advanced economies. l

Md Ahsan-uz Zaman, AMD of MTB and Santosh Kumar Nair, CEO and country head of UAE Exchange Malaysia are seen exchanging a remittance drawing agreement on behalf of their respective organisations. Under this agreement, the Bangladeshi Diaspora in Malaysia would be able to send their hard earned money to Bangladesh through the official channel Bangladesh Bank Governor Dr Atiur Rahman visited the Dhaka Bank stall after inauguration of the Women Entrepreneurs’ Conference and Product Display 2014 recently. Managing director of Dhaka Bank Niaz Habib seen showing the products made by the Dhaka Bank financed women entrepreneurs at its stall

Mercantile Bank Limited donated 3td and final installment of Tk10 lakh to the 'Society for the Welfare of the Autistic Children (SWAC)' for development of the underprivileged children with intellectual and mental disabilities as part of its corporate social responsibility on March 20. The bank’s chairperson M Amanullah handed over the cheque to Anowar Hossain, chairperson of SWAC

Daffodil – Japan Institute of Technology (DJIT) has been inaugurated at BDBL Bhaban at Karwan Bazar recently. Md Sabur Khan, the chairperson of Daffodil Group, inaugurated the institute to train Bangladeshi young talents at the international level and to make them capable for working in Japan and other international ICT sector

B4

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Online news attracts star power and big money n AFP, Washington The news media is generating some big news of its own, as a growing number of star US journalists move online, bringing followers and financial backers with them.

Online news sites have been around for years, but in recent months the trend has gained momentum, defying predictions of a troubled media industry.

The latest was the relaunch of FiveThirtyEight, headed by Nate Silver, a statistician and journalist who made his own headlines with his accurate prediction of the 2012 presidential election.

The site, which covers a range of news with a statistician’s eye, is backed by the sports broadcaster ESPN, after Silver left The New York Times with his blog.

Also joining the fray was The Intercept, a news site backed by tech entrepreneur Pierre Omidyar with an editorial team led by Glenn Greenwald, the former Guardian reporter who broke news with documents leaked by former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden.

'I am more bullish about the future of the news industry over the next 20 years than almost anyone I know' Omidyar has pledged to invest $250 million in his First Look Media, which includes a not-for-profit news operation and a separate technology arm for new media. The Washington Post’s popular “Wonkblog” columnist Ezra Klein meanwhile left the newspaper to start a news website backed by Vox Media.

Yahoo wooed television news star Katie Couric and former New York Times tech writer David Pogue. And journalists at The Wall Street Journal-backed tech blog AllThingsD broke off in January to create Re/code, a separate website with support from Comcast’s NBCUniversal.

The new energy in Internet news comes as the entrenched news industry faces deepening financial woes, and the model for online profits remains unclear.

Dying or reviving?

So is the news business dying or being reborn?

Alan Mutter, a former Chicago newspaper editor who consults for journalism and technology ventures, said that while traditional newspapers are withering, online news sites may be working.

But the digital news business is likely to be “vertical,” covering a segment such as technology, sports or politics, unlike a newspaper, which aims to cov-

Back Page SEEING IN 3D

er all sectors. Online news can get money from subscriptions, premium content or links to shopping, for example.

“The future of digital publishing is the antithesis of traditional publishing,” Mutter told AFP. Newspapers try to get a broad audience by offering comics, coupons and recipes, while covering news ranging from local crime to politics to walks on the moon, and online sites are changing that model. The shift is similar to what happened in retailing, with multi-sector department stores hammered by specialty apparel, housewares or electronics stores.

“Newspapers are basically following a publishing-model mindset that is locked in 1958,” Mutter said.

“They take the same content and put it on a website or put it on mobile and they say they have a digital strategy.”

Low cost of entry

Ken Doctor, a media analyst with Outsell who writes the Newsonomics blog, said it has become easier to launch news sites. “The technology has gotten much better and cheaper in the past few years,” Doctor said.

“And once you create the content, the social world is able to find new audiences at practically no incremental cost.”

News startups can expand internationally and gain a far larger audience than they would with a local or even national US newspaper, he noted. “You can ramp up one of these businesses and create a national or international brand for $5m to $10m,” Doctor said.

Without the legacy costs of newspapers like printing, distribution and longstanding pensions, websites can become profitable relatively quickly.

While not all ventures will succeed, they are attracting venture capital because “you could double or triple your money if you pick a winner,” Doctor said.

The startups are often personality driven - Klein has 441,000 Twitter followers and Silver 680,000. Former Daily Beast journalist Andrew Sullivan got 35,000 paid subscribers for his “The Dish” blog. ‘Golden age of journalism’?

One of Silicon Valley’s most prominent venture capitalists, Marc Andreessen, sees huge potential.

“I am more bullish about the future of the news industry over the next 20 years than almost anyone I know,” said a blog post by Andreessen, who founded the early Internet group Netscape Communications.

“Maybe we are entering into a new golden age of journalism, and we just haven’t recognized it yet.”

Andreessen said the news business is breaking free of the “monopolies and oligopolies” that controled it for much of the post-World War II era and that the Internet is allowing new businesses to get to a scale where they can support high-quality journalism. l

A model wears Japanese electronics company Sony's head mount display (HMD), the 'HMZ-T3', with a gyro sensor equipped with a head-tracking device to enjoy 3D animation images, at the AnimeJapan event in Tokyo. The newly develped goggles-styled display detects a user's head movements and then offers a 360 degree display of virtual images AFP

Sidelined investors behind remarkable market calm n Reuters, London

The remarkable calm in global financial markets in the face of tensions over Crimea and the prospect of an early US rate hike may reflect investors’ lack of appetite for deploying their cash, rather than their complacency.

Geopolitical risks have moved to the top of investors’ worry list as the West extended sanctions on Russia. Federal Reserve chief Janet Yellen also dampened risk sentiment by suggesting the first rate hike could come in the first half of 2015.

But investors have barely blinked.

The MSCI world equity index is trading not so far away from a recent six-year peak while the S&P 500 index is also near a recent record high. Various volatility gauges in equity, fixed income and FX markets also show no sign of distress.

At the same time, however, investors are reluctant to commit their money in markets, so they are keeping unusually high cash balances in their portfolio. Hedge fund managers’ lever-

age level also stands at a 19-month low.

This neutral stance also stems from their optimism that the US economic recovery will accelerate into mid-2014 after a harsh winter.

“The market may be a little bit complacent about the tail risk but there’s an awful lot of cash in the balance sheet...

They are simply holding back on fully investing their portfolios today,” said John Bilton, head of European investment strategy at Bank of America Merrill Lynch.

“Ultimately the big axis of growth comes from the United States ... They are assuming the US will have quite a strong bounce back. That overall is helpful.”

Fund managers polled by Bank of America Merrill Lynch had 4.8% of their holdings in cash in March, the highest since July 2012.

Hedge fund managers in the same survey pushed their leverage ratio - the weighted average ratio of gross assets to capital - down to 1.34 this month from 1.49 in February.

Some 31% of hedge funds have a

Bitcoin’s promise: A financial revolution the web’s been waiting for n Reuters Bitcoin may not be the messiah of a new currency its hardcore fans yearn for, but it may herald the deeper financial revolution the internet has been waiting for.

While computers and smartphones have brought the web to more than a third of the world’s population, online commerce still largely depends on a banking system that has changed little

Monday, March 24, 2014

over recent decades, some of it relying on computer code written before the web was born.

The growing interest in bitcoin, a digital currency that requires no centralized body to handle transactions, is beginning to change all that.

“The rise of bitcoin has changed everyone’s idea of what a good payment system should be,” says Manu Sporny, CEO of web payments company Digital Bazaar, who is spearheading an effort to get the

industry together to agree on standards for handling online transactions. “Bitcoin raised the bar, so everyone’s got to come in and match that in some way.”

A key moment, Sporny and others say, will be a meeting in Paris next week hosted by the World Wide Web Consortium, or W3C, one of the key bodies for setting internet standards.

Gathering for the first time to discuss web payment standards will be telecom operators such as Deutsche

Telekom, Telefonica and AT&T, payment companies including SWIFT, PayPal and Gemalto, as well as the U.S. Federal Reserve.

Bitcoin can claim some credit for this buzz of activity.

Much of the focus on bitcoin has been on its meteoric rise in value soaring from $30 a year ago to above $1,000 late in the year - which has been only slightly dented by the collapse last month of Mt Gox, a leading bitcoin exchange, with half a billion dollars’ worth of bitcoins missing. But bitcoin as a currency might be a distraction.

Underpinning the digital currency is a combination of key computing principles - decentralized timestamping, public key cryptography and a proof of work system - that promise to revolutionize transactions.

Says Peter Vessenes, CEO of bitcoin start-up CoinLab and chairman of the Bitcoin Foundation, an advocacy group promoting its adoption: “Those three could be turned into money, but they could also do a lot of other things.”

Cheaper deals

A person uses a bitcoin ATM machine in a restaurant in The Hague. The restaurant is part of a project ten restaurants joined, the 'Bitcoin Boulevard'. The restaurants accept the digital currency to pay for meals and drinks. The aim of the project is to get positive attention for bitcoins after, according to the initiators, recent negative news AFP

What interests some, and worries others, among those due to attend the Paris meeting is the promise bitcoin offers in cutting the cost of moving money around.

“If they can have it cheaper, they will make it cheaper,” said Marcus Swanepoel of Switchless, a Singaporebased company offering to integrate bitcoin processes into traditional banks and telecom companies. l

leverage ratio of less than 1 in March, compared with 19% of funds in January.

No Panic

US government bond prices plunged this week after Yellen’s rate hike signal, with the 2-year US Treasury yield hitting a six-month high of 0.432%.

In the week ended March 12, foreign central banks dumped a record amount of the Treasuries they had parked at the Fed, underscoring the appetite of emerging countries like Russia for holding cash to defend their currencies.

Yet BofA’s MOVE index, which measures implied one-month volatility in Treasuries, is holding calm at 66.8, near a historic low around 50 and compared with a crisis peak of 217.

Wall Street’s Volatility Index dubbed the ‘fear gauge’ - and onemonth euro/dollar volatility also remain at relatively low levels.

Even as the Fed withdraws monetary stimulus, global aggregate liquidity remains above average levels.

CrossBorder Capital’s monthly Global Liquidity Index ticked up to 52.4 at

end-February from 47.9 in the previous month, although it stayed below its recent 61.9 peak in June.

The index measures liquidity data from central banks, the private sector, crossborder flows and financial conditions.

Excluding emerging economies, where much of the tightening has taken place, the liquidity picture improved, with the index rebounding to 75.3, close to December 2012 peak.

Dirk Wiedmann, head of investments at Rothschild Wealth Management, says ample liquidity creates buying opportunities.

“Over the past two years, any equity market corrections have been rare and limited in their magnitude. Notably, they were followed closely by a rebound, which often pushed up indices to new highs. As a result, investors that followed a disciplined strategy of buying on the dips were well rewarded,” he said.

“Financial repression has been behind this pattern and continues to encourage investors into risky asset classes because the yields available from safer investments remain depressed.” l

US eyes bankruptcy link in GM ignition defect probe n Reuters, Washington Federal authorities are investigating whether General Motors hid an ignition switch defect when it filed for bankruptcy in 2009, The New York Times reported on Saturday.

The Justice Department’s investigation of the automaker includes a probe of whether GM committed bankruptcy fraud by not disclosing the ignition problem, a person briefed on the inquiry told the Times on Friday, the paper said.

Authorities are also investigating whether GM understated the defect to federal safety regulators, the Times said. The ignition switch problems led to the recall of 1.6 million vehicles last month.

GM has handed over documents to federal investigators in New York, the person, who was not identified, told the Times. The automaker cannot comment specifically on the Justice Department investigation, spokesman Greg Martin said in an email on Saturday.

“We are cooperating fully with authori-

DILBERT

ties on several fronts and we will continue to do so,” he said.

The investigation is being run by FBI agents and federal prosecutors who worked on the fraud case against Toyota that ended in a $1.2bn settlement last week, the paper said.

On Wednesday, GM was hit with a lawsuit demanding that the company be held liable for allegedly concealing ignition problems before its 2009 bankruptcy. GM is a different legal entity than the one that filed the 2009 bankruptcy that shook the US economy.

The so-called new GM is not responsible under the terms of its bankruptcy exit for legal claims relating to incidents that took place before July 2009.

Those claims must be brought against what remains of the “old” or pre-bankruptcy GM. But the proposed class action, filed in federal court in California, said plaintiffs should be allowed to sue over the pre-bankruptcy actions “because of the active concealment by Old GM and GM.” l