02 Sep, 2014

Bhadro 18, 1421 Zilqad 6, 1435 Regd No DA 6238 Vol 2, No 151

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 2, 2014 | www.dhakatribune.com | SECOND EDITION

20 pages | Price: Tk12

7 | LONG FORM

8 | WORLD

11 | OP-ED

13 | SPORT

IS BEIJING CONSIDERING A POLICY CHANGE IN XINJIANG?

SYRIAN ARMY, REBELS FIGHT ON GOLAN

KILL FIRST

MAMUNUL SET FOR ATLETICO DE KOLKATA

Police care about only some arson attack cases

Fakhrul sued for calling PM a killer n Md Sanaul Islam Tipu

scores of vehicles were set on fire and properties vandalised during the yearlong street protests staged by the opposition parties last year.

In October and November alone, at least 136 arson attack cases were filed with various police stations in the capital in which more than 2,000 people were accused. However, so far, only about 25 people have been arrested.

Police records show that from October 25 to December 3 last year, at least 344 vehicles were torched and 388 were vandalised in the capital. Of these, 81 belonged to police.

As of yesterday, charge sheets were given in only 56 of these cases and final reports in only 14. The remaining 66 cases are all under investigation.

In 2012, a total of 128 cases were filed in connection with street violence. But police have failed to provide detailed information about these cases either.

Nearly 2,800 named and more than 24,000 unnamed people were made

A defamation case was filed yesterday against BNP acting secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir for branding Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina as “a killer” and her party Awami League “a party of killers.”

SM Nur-e-Alam Siddique, vice-president of Bangladesh Awami Motshojibi League – the ruling party’s fishermen wing, lodged the case with Dhaka’s Metropolitan Magistrate Court.

After recording the complainant’s deposition, Magistrate Snigdha Rani Chakrabarti ordered the officer-incharge of Paltan police station to submit a report following an investigation before the court on September 15.

Fakhrul made the comments while addressing a press conference at BNP’s Nayapaltan headquarters on August 24.

The plaintiff said the BNP leader had defamed the premier and the ruling party through his comments. “I saw reports on Fakhrul’s remarks on different dailies on August 25. His speech tarnished the image of the prime minister at home and abroad,” Nur said.

Fakhrul at the press briefing said: “The Awami League president [Sheikh Hasina] herself is a killer. Her party is a party of killers. Her hands are stained with the bloods of hundreds of young people.”

He made the comment three days after Hasina had termed the Zia family,

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Charge sheets given in only 56 of 136 cases and probe reports in only 14 Hundreds of crude bombs were Jamil Khan and n Mohammad blasted, many people were killed, Tazlina Zamila Khan Nasiruddin and Polash were accused in one of the political violence cases filed with the Ramna police station last year.

They were arrested on October 29 last year while running away after allegedly blasting crude bombs at Shantinagar in the capital. In December, both of them secured bail from court.

The case statement includes the name of 40 people, including BNP’s acting secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir and senior leaders Mirza Abbas, Moudud Ahmed, Abdullah Al Noman, Barkatullah Bulu, Syed Moazzem Hossain Alal, and others.

The Dhaka Tribune has learned that Nasiruddin made the crude bomb and Polash exploded it in exchange for money. They now sell marijuana and phensidyl.

Polash told the Dhaka Tribune: “Getting arrested is common for us, especially as we sell drugs. In most cases, we manage the law enforcers by giving them a share of the drugs or our incomes.”

Tarique’s wife Zubaida sacked n Tribune Report BNP Senior Vi c e - C h a i r m a n Tarique Rahman’s wife Dr Zubaida Rahman has been dismissed from her job as she remains absent from her work station without any official permission for too long.

The issue came to light as Health Minister Mohammad Nasim replied to a supplementary query of Awami League MP Talukder Md Yunus in parliament yesterday.

Yunus asked if any action had been taken about Zubaida who has been living abroad being absent from job for so long. Nasim laughingly replied: “Law is equal for all and we have taken action about this. She has been dismissed.”

The Section 34 of the country’s service rules provides for any person to be terminated from their job if they remain absent from workplace without any official permission.

Zubaida’s leave ended on October 11, 2011.

Since then, she had applied for extending her leave several times, but was refused.

The ministry rejected her applications, saying that they could not be satisfied with the grounds she was showing.

She is staying in the UK with her husband.

Daughter of former navy chief MA Khan, Zubaida came to the limelight in 2007 when the then government arrested Khaleda and her two sons Tarique Rahman and Arafat Rahman Koko – the latter also charged with corruption and money laundering in five cases. Koko has been in Bangkok on parole.

Tarique was arrested during the  PAGE 2 COLUMN 6

Pakistani protesters clash with police, soldiers; state TV secured

Anti-government protesters clash with riot police during the Revolution March in Islamabad yesterday REUTERS

Bodies of couple found in Banani house

n Agencies

n Mohammad Jamil Khan

Pakistani soldiers and paramilitary forces secured the state television headquarters in Islamabad yesterday after a crowd of anti-government protesters stormed the building and took the channel off the air, Reuters reported.

Protesters led by cricket-legend-turned-politician Imran Khan and firebrand Muslim cleric Tahir ul-Qadri are trying to bring down the government of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.

Clashes broke out early yesterday and continued sporadically throughout the day. The state PTV channel and its English-language PTV World service were taken off the air for 45 minutes after protesters stormed its headquarters.

A PTV source told Reuters the protesters had occupied the main control room. Soldiers later secured the building and the station later came back on the air.

Police station secretariat in Islamabad has registered a case under an anti-terrorism act against politician Imran Khan, religious leader Tahir-ul-Qadri and hundreds of their supporters for organising riots, damaging state buildings and attacking security forces, Al Jazeera reported.

Police recovered the bullet-hit body of an industrialist and his wife from their house in the capital’s Banani area last night.

Deceased Abdur Rauf, chairman of Afsar Group, and his wife Roksana Parvin resided in house no 60/2/A on road 5 of Banani DOHS. Their children were out of home at the time of incident.

Locals informed police hearing screaming and sounds of gunshots after 7pm. The relation of Rauf and Roksana had not been well for the last couple of days, they said.

Iqbal Hossain, a friend of Rauf, told the Dhaka Tribune that the businessman had been was going through tense situation for the last couple of days about his business since it was not going well.

Kudrat-e-Khuda, an assistant commissioner of police, told the Dhaka Tribune that police had recovered the bodies around 8:30pm. “Our team is working on it while members of the crime scene unit of the CID have collected samples from the spot,” he added.

Rauf has three sons and one daughter. His elder two sons live in Gulshan while the youngest son and the daughter used to live with them. During the

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n Kamran Reza Chowdhury Islam stipulates that Hajj should be performed by only those who can afford it; but the government every year sponsors a team to Mecca for performing the pilgrimage and also serve the Bangladeshi hajjis in Saudi Arabia.

However, there are allegations that

instead of carrying out their duties, some members of the team waste time and spend the state coffer’s money for sightseeing and shopping.

The team selected for “state-sponsored” Hajj this year includes cooks, chauffeurs, caretakers, motor cleaners, office attendants, members of parliament and their spouses, bureaucrats,

political activists and journalists.

“Islam has made Hajj mandatory for the rich and economically solvent people, not for the poor. Therefore, Hajj with government funding is not acceptable,” Muhammad Yousuf, professor of Islamic studies at Dhaka University, told the Dhaka Tribune.

Every year, the government sends

three teams to Mecca. The government Hajj delegation includes minister, parliamentarians, secretaries and other high officials. The second team is made up of associates including cooks, chauffeurs, etc. The third is a team of doctors who serve the Hajjis in case medical emergencies.

Officials say there are two reasons

6 | Nation

9 | World

12 | Entertainment

14 | Sport

B1 | Business

A change in the foreign exchange policy to attract foreign investment is feared to widen further the scope of money laundering as Bangladesh Bank relaxed the repatriation rules.

Lack of skilled manpower, technology and equipment are the main barriers in utilising the marine resources in Bangladesh, says Maritime Affairs Unit Secretary M Khurshed Alam.

‘We are assuming that Rauf first killed his wife and then committed suicide’ there between his parents over selling a property. His father was facing losses in business.

“They often locked in clashes since father wanted to sell the property while mother did not.”

Sources in police said the body of Roksana was found on the bed while Rauf’s body on a chair in front of the bed. A licensed firearm was also recovered from the spot.

In primary assessment, the law  PAGE 2 COLUMN 6

Personal staff of MPs and bureaucrats on state-sponsored hajj lists

INSIDE

4 | News

time of incident, daughter Hanifa, 15, was out of home for tuition. The younger son was also outside. They both came back after 7pm and found the bodies.

Only a female domestic help, aged between 20 and 30, was in the house during the incident. The police are interrogating her.

Nayeem Ahmed, elder son of the deceased, went to the spot. He told the Dhaka Tribune that tension was

Sweetmeat traders in Sherpur district town called an indefinite strike protesting a mobile court drive against sweetmeat shops in the market yesterday.

Japan, India agree to strengthen defence ties as Asia’s second and third biggest economies keep a wary eye on a rising China, with Modi lashing out at the ‘expansionism’ of some nations.

Model-cum-actor Dilruba Yasmin Ruhee is going to tie the knot with Monsur Ali, the director of recently released ‘71-er Shongram’ in which she played a lead role.

Real Sociedad produced a stunning fightback from 2-0 down to beat European champions Real Madrid 4-2 on Sunday. Madrid were without the injured Cristiano Ronaldo.

behind sending the team of associates – they are to serve the Bangladeshi Hajjis and perform the Hajj for themselves simultaneously.

The government bears the airplane fares and accommodation costs in Saudi Arabia and gives at least Tk1 lakh cash to each of the members of  PAGE 2 COLUMN 4

2

DHAKA TRIBUNE

News

Tuesday, September 2, 2014

BNP says court cases will not deter movement n Mohammad Al-Masum Molla The BNP yesterday said filing false cases against its leaders would not deter the party from pressing ahead with its movement.

“Today a defamatory case was filed against me. Cases have been filed against more or less all the party leaders and activists. There are leaders who are even facing 140 cases. If the government thinks they can keep us away from our movement by filing false cases, they are living in a fool’s paradise,” Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, the BNP acting secretary general, said.

The Awami League filed a defamatory case against Fakhrul because he called Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina a killer and her party a killer party.

Fakhrul made the statement while addressing a discussion at the Institution of Engineers, Bangladesh, to mark the 36th anniversary of the founding of BNP. A documentary about the party was screened. Khaleda Zia was scheduled to be present at the programme but did not attend.

Pointing a finger at the government, Fakhrul said: “They use abusive words to humiliate the opposition. But they never say counter attacks are welcome. When we reply, cases are filed against us.”

Regarding the rise of militancy, the spokesperson of the party said: “Many political leaders including Siraj Sikdar were killed during the period between 1972-75 and militancy rose at that time.”

Fakhrul said the BNP had overcome many difficulties in its 36 year journey and there had been many errors and failures but the party was never erased from public consciousness.

“Conspiracy against the party will

Journalist assaulted by ruling party cadres in Barisal n Our Correspondent, Barisal A journalist was allegedly beaten by cadres of Wazirpur upazila Awami League organising secretary in Barisal yesterday.

The victim is Abdur Rahim Sardar, upazila correspondent of regional daily Barisal Protidin.

Victim’s relatives said cadres of Wazirpur upazila Awami League Organising Secretary Raisul Islam Rion and upazila Sramik League Joint Convener Rafiqul Islam Shipon Molla attacked Rahim while he was crossing road in front of the land office around 12noon.

The attackers charged Rahim for publishing a report against them and their organisations and threatened to kill him if he wrote against the ruling party further.

Rahim wrote a report on extortion of the cadres in the locality which was published in Barisal Protidin last week.

Locals rescued the injured journalist and admitted him to Barisal Sher-eBangla Medical College Hospital.

Contacted over phone, Rafiqul Islam Shipon Molla denied his involvement in the attack. The other alleged were not reachable despite several attempts.

Wazirpur police station Officer-inCharge Anwar Hossain said hearing the news of attack on the journalist, police was sent to the spot. However, no one was detained as the attackers fled the scene before the law enforcers had reached.

One relative of the victim said a case would be lodged against the attackers. l

not bring results. Some journalists asked me whether the party was passing through a critical time, I told them that it is not the BNP but rather Bangladesh that was passing through a critical time,” he said.

BNP standing committee member Moudud Ahmed said the party did not launch the movement to attain power but to protect the democracy of the country.

“Now we must be united under Khaleda Zia to lead the movement. We all have to be united and then victory will be certain,” Moudud said.

BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia, together with party colleagues, earlier placed flower wreaths at party founder Ziaur Rahman’s grave in the capital.

A blood donation camp was organised beside the grave site.

After placing wreaths, the party’s acting secretary general said people had vowed today to protect their voting rights and to restore democracy to the country.

“Bangladesh has been passing through a critical time. We will overcome the situation and compel the government to hold elections under a non-partisan interim government. We will go for an all-out movement,” he said.

When asked about whether the party was in crisis, the spokesperson of the party said, “The BNP is stronger than at any other time. We do not have any crisis, but the country is in crisis.”

The BNP leader said the party is now organisationally strong and the main aim is to restore democracy to the country.

Fakhrul said the prime minister’s comments were polluting the country’s politics. l

UK visa now from India n Tribune Report

BNP activists engage in a clash over paying respects to party founder Ziaur Rahman at his grave in the capital yesterday

Constitution amendment bill to be passed in parliament's current session n Kamran Reza Chowdhury

The Business Advisory Committee, the highest body of the parliament, decided that the 16th constitution amendment bill would be passed in the current session that started yesterday.

According to the decision of the committee, having both Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and Leader of the Opposition Rawshan Ershad as its members, the current third session will continue till September 18 with 14 working days.

The committee always fixes the tenure of every session of the legislature.

“We have decided to enact all the 10 bills awaiting passage. More bills, including the 16th constitution amend-

accused in those cases. Police could not give any information about their whereabouts either.

Sources said most of the arson attack cases were filed under the speedy trial act. Someone arrested in connection with these cases generally cannot get bail from a magistrate court. But there are other ways to get bail.

Anwarul Kabir Babul, public prosecutor of the Chief Judicial Magistrate’s Court of Dhaka, said: “For cases filed under the speedy trial act, charge sheets have to be placed within six days of filing of a case. And over the next 46 days, the prosecution will have to produce the witnesses. Charge sheets were given in many [of these arson attack] cases but the investigators could not produce witnesses.”

Moreover, when a magistrate denies bail, the accused can appeal to a higher court and seek bail citing any kind of personal reason.

On December 30 last year, when political unrest in the country was at its peak, a Dhaka Tribune journalist helped police arrest a young man for blasting three crude bombs on Panthapath.

The journalist, who witnessed Toriqul hurling the bombs, followed him to the Kathalbagan area, found out that he worked in a mobile phone repairing shop and informed the Kalabagan police station.

The law enforcers were really prompt in picking up the young man from the shop. A few days later, when the journalist tried to learn about the progress in the matter, he was told from the police station that Toriqul had been sent to jail by a Dhaka court.

On several occasions in the subse-

quent months, he was told again and again that the Detective Branch of Police was looking into the matter. But since the DB had been dealing with many other similar cases, solving the one that Toriqul was shown arrested in, was taking time.

On Thursday, the Dhaka Tribune contacted the Kalabagan police station again and learned that Sub-Inspector Jalaluddin Ahmed, who was investigating the case, had been transferred to the Chawkbazar police station in the capital.

When contacted, SI Jalaluddin told the Dhaka Tribune that he was sure that the charge sheet in the case was not yet given.

Md Iqbal, officer-in-charge of the Kalabagan police station, said since it was a months-old case, he would have to check the documents to tell more about the current status of the case.

He could neither tell the name of the current investigation officer nor the whereabouts of Toriqul without checking documents.

According to DMP sources, at least one top or mid-level leader of the BNPJamaat-led 20 party alliance was implicated in around 30 of those 56 charge sheets. There are allegations that these 56 cases have made progress because they could be used to harass the opposition leaders.

In many cases, instead of trying to find out the actual culprits behind the arson attacks, vandalism and bombing, police have made opposition leaders the prime accused without any proper investigation.

On April 29 last year, a group of nearly 40 people torched some 10 buses in the capital’s Shantinagar area. At that time, Abu Bakar Siddique, the driver of

Pakistani protesters clash with police  PAGE 1 COLUMN 4

In the nuclear-armed nation where power has often changed hands through military coups rather than elections, the army is likely to play a key role in how the conflict unfolds.

Army chief General Raheel Sharif met Prime Minister Sharif on Monday, but it was unclear what they discussed.

Defence Minister Khawaja Asif told Reuters the government was preparing to launch a selective crackdown against protesters yesterday, and warned demonstrators against storming government buildings.

“The writ of the state must be enforced. We hope to make a decisive move sometime later today [Monday],” he said.

“I personally feel that the next few hours will determine the course of coming events,” he said.

Protests turned violent over the

ment bill, will come to this session. If comes, the constitution amendment bill will be passed in the current session,” Speaker Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury told the Dhaka Tribune after the meeting held at the parliament building.

She said the 16th constitution amendment bill, which would empower the legislature to impeach the judges of the Supreme Court dropping the current provision of the Supreme Judicial Council, would be discussed at the parliamentary standing committee on law ministry, not at any special committee as it happened for the 15th constitution amendment act.

Standing Committee Chairman Suranjit Sengupta told the Dhaka Tribune

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weekend. Three people were killed.

How the crisis ends will be ultimately decided by the army. If the protests get out of hand, the military could step in decisively, imposing a curfew or even martial law.

Alternatively, the army could side with the protesters and put pressure on Sharif to resign, in which case an interim government would have be put in place and early parliamentary elections held to elect a new government. However, few observers believe the army is bent on seizing power again.

Some ruling party officials have accused elements within the military of orchestrating the protests to weaken the government.

Khan and Qadri have instructed their supporters to avoid any confrontation with the armed forces and strictly follow their orders. As soldiers

DHAKA TRIBUNE

The British High Commission in New Delhi is going to assess the necessary papers and issue visas to Bangladeshi applicants from October 1.

However, no Bangladeshi applicants will need to visit India, nor should they notice any difference in the quality or speed of the services provided. The UK Visa Application Centres of the Dhaka and Sylhet offices will make the arrangements, says a press release of the British High Commission to Dhaka.

Two of three phases, Decisions on Settlement (phase 1) and Points Based System (phase 2) applications are already being assessed in New Delhi. The final phase of all other visa application categories submitted from September 7 would be scrutinised from the deadline.

“The cost of the service will stay the same and we will continue to operate within the existing service standards of 15 working days for non-settlement cases, and 60 working days for settlement cases,” the release added. l

entered the PTV building, many protesters smiled and shook hands with them.

Yesterday morning, despite heavy rain, crowds of protesters fought running battles with retreating police after breaking the main gate into the Pakistan Secretariat area which houses government ministries as well as Sharif’s official residence.

After a brief lull during the day, protesters once again charged towards police lines in the so-called Red zone - home to the prime minister’s house, parliament and foreign embassies - as they sought to reach the prime minister’s house.

Sharif, who was toppled by the army in a 1999 coup but staged a comeback with a big election win in May last year, has refused to quit while protest leaders have rejected his offers of talks, creating a dangerous deadlock. l

one of those buses, said he had stopped the bus beside the road because a tyre had punctured and a group of miscreants had come and torched it. He also said he had not seen the face of any of the attackers. Police later made some BNP leaders, including Goyeshwar Chandra Roy and Shahid Uddin Chowdhury Anee, the main accused in a case filed in connection with the incident.

On November 28, 2013, police caught 18-year-old Al Amin red-handed in Uttara in the act of exploding crude bombs. Al Amin later said a local BNP leader named Billal had given him Tk200 for doing the job. He is now serving a one-year jail term but police have not yet managed to get hold of Billal.

Mohammad Rafiqul Islam, OC of the Uttara west police station, told the Dhaka Tribune: “Billal is still to be caught. I cannot tell you anything more because I have come here recently.”

Last year, several other BNP leaders were arrested in different parts of the capital in connection with various street violence cases, but the law enforcers are still completely clueless about the whereabouts of these people.

The Dhaka Tribune has also learned that investigators have a list of 450 bomb-makers whose products had been blasted during the year-long political violence last year. However, not a single one from that list has so far been arrested.

When asked why they had been giving chargesheets against the opposition leaders instead of finding the actual criminals, police have always said the leaders were the real masterminds behind the street violence.

Records show that Mirza Fakhrul

that he would invite all the stakeholders before preparing its recommendations on the bill.

According to the parliamentary rules, the bill will go to the parliamentary standing committee on law ministry for further vetting before passage.

The House went into session around 5:15 pm after the Business Advisory Committee meeting was held with Speaker Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury in the chair.

At the outset, the House adopted a condolence motion, expressing shock at the death of the passengers of the Pinak 6 launch that sank near Mawa ghat in Munshiganj on August 4.

In addition to holding the regular question-answer hours for the minis-

ters, the House saw unscheduled discussions initiated by Opposition Leader Rawshan Ershad, Nazibul Bashar Maizbhandari and Rustum Ali Farazi.

Finance Minister AMA Muhith tabled the Investment Corporation of Bangladesh Bill 2014. The minister moved the bill to replace the similar law that was passed by the military government of General Ziaur Rahman.

While taking part in the unscheduled debate, Nazibul Bashar Maizbhandari demanded that the House hold a special discussion on the Israeli attacks and massacre of the Palestinians.

“Yes, honourable member, we will hold the discussion tomorrow (Tuesday),” Shirin Sharmin told the House. l

Bodies of couple Islam Alamgir and Ruhul Kabir Rizvi are the main accused in three charge sheets submitted with the Ramna division of police.

Shahid Uddin Chowdhury Anee, Sadeque Hossain Khoka and Goyeshwar Chandra Roy were shown as accused in two charge sheets under the Lalbagh division.

At least 12 charge sheets under the Wari division show Anee, Mirza Fakhrul, Alal and Aman as main accused.

Data provided by the Crime Cell of DMP shows that a total of 20 cases have been filed with the Motijheel divison. Charge sheets were given in only four of them, final investigation report in just one and the remaining 15 cases were under investigation.

However, when contacted, Ashrafuzzaman, deputy commission of the Motijheel division, failed to give specific information about the number of people arrested and the current statuses of any of the cases.

“We are working on them [the cases]. Completing investigation will take time,” he told the Dhaka Tribune.

A total of 17 street violence related cases are currently under the investigation of the Detective Branch (DB) of DMP. At least 14 of those investigations are led by Monirul Islam, a joint commissioner of DB. He told the Dhaka Tribune: “We are at the last stage of investigation. We will solve all of the cases very soon.”

DMP Assistant Deputy Commissioner (Media) Saidur Rahman also said something very similar. “Everything takes time. Many factors have to be considered while investigating a case. We are continuously working on them.” l

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enforcers suspected that Rauf might have killed his wife first and later shot himself at a point of arguments.

Col Ziaul Ahsan, the additional director general of Rapid Action Battalion, said the woman’s body was found on the bed with her face down while Rauf’s head had a bullet injury. Examining the spot, “we are assuming that Rauf first killed his wife and then committed suicide,” he said.

Meer Rezaul Alam, joint commissioner (crime) of police, said a pistol and two rounds of bullets were recovered from the spot. l

Fakhrul sued  PAGE 1 COLUMN 6

a family of killers. She said BNP founder Ziaur Rahman had been involved in the killing of Bangabandhu while Khaleda Zia, her son Tarique Rahman and her cabinet members in the August 21 grenade attack.

The BNP spokesperson said the primer's remarks were tantamount to contempt of court. l

Tarique’s wife  PAGE 1 COLUMN 1

army-backed caretaker government in 2007. He left the country, on parole, for treatment in London on September 11, 2008. Despite facing a corruption case filed by the Anti-Corruption Commission, Zubaida has a “good image” among the party’s rank and file.

The BNP’s Standing Committee on April 10 last year discussed Zubaida’s probable induction into politics, but did not make any decision on the issue. l

Personal staff of MPs  PAGE 1 COLUMN 6

the team of associates.

But in most cases, the team members spend time and money for sightseeing and shopping. Sometimes members of the delegation do not even return home after the assignment.

For instance, in 2012, two members of the associate delegation did not return home with the Hajjis.

The Hajj is the biggest global religious congregation of the Muslims that is performed by millions from across the world every year.

It is one of the five pillars of Islam, and a religious duty which must be carried out at least once in a lifetime by every adult Muslim who is physically fit and financially capable of undertaking the journey and supporting his family during his absence.

According to former religious affairs secretary Abdur Rab Howlader, the

government has been sending the team of associates since the mid-1980s.

Mizanur Rahman, officer at the Hajj camp in Uttara, told the Dhaka Tribune: “It is true that although some members of the associate Hajj delegation are dedicated for serving the Hajjis, many of them do not perform their duties.”

He also said they are supposed to work under the supervision of the officials of the Bangladesh mission in Saudi Arabia.

This year, the Religious Affairs Ministry has prepared a list of 125 people as the associate delegation. The list has names of at least 21 people from Mymensingh, the home of district Religious Affairs Minister Matiur Rahman.

At least 17 people, mostly fourth class government employees who work in the office and residence of the Prime minister, have also been includ-

ed in the list.

For instance, Md Siddiqur Rahman, a motor cleaner at the Prime Minister’s Office, is on the list. Md Mosharaf Hossain Gazi, a cook who works at the prime minister’s residence, Ganabhaban, is also in the list. Azad Hossain Mintu, a cook who works at the president’s office and residence Bangabhaban, will also perform Hajj this year.

Begum Hasina Shirin, an assistant secretary of the Religious Affairs Ministry, told the Dhaka Tribune that the ministry had sought the names of people from the PMO and Bangabhaban.

“We also entertain requests from the MPs, members of the parliamentary standing committees and government officials. Moreover, the religious affairs minister has some preferences. After accommodating all the names, we send the final list to the PMO, which gives the final nod,” Begum Hasina said. l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

News

3

Tuesday, September 2, 2014

ACC to quiz Partex chief, two sons n Tribune Report The Anti-Corruption Commission is set to record statements of Partex Group Chairman MA Hashem and his two sons in regard to an inquiry into the embezzlement of Tk150 crore from the Sonali Bank through the import of unrefined sugar.

ACC Deputy Director Mir Jainul Abedin Shibly yesterday served notices to Hashem and his two sons – Shawkat Aziz, managing director of Partex Sugar Mills Limited, and Rubel Aziz, a director – asking them to appear before the ACC headquarters today.

The commission last year initiated the inquiry into the alleged embezzlement of public money. But the probe was moving slowly as the officials were busy with investigating into the Hall-Mark Group scam, a probe team official said.

The ACC last year only questioned some high officials of the state-owned bank and reviewed documents received from the bank. Now the ACC has launched a detailed inquiry over the allegation.

According to the allegation, Sonali Bank’s former deputy general manager of Bangabandhu Avenue branch Mejbah Uddin (now DGM, international trade finance department), in connivance with some other people allegedly misappropriated Tk150 crore by importing unrefined sugar.

It is alleged that Partex Sugar Mills, a concern of Partex Group, imported the sugar through opening a letters of credit (LC) with the bank, but did not deposit any money against the LC, even after importing and selling the sugar.

The commission has already analysed documents related to information on Mejbah Uddin and shipment.

An internal probe jointly conducted

by Bangladesh Bank and Sonali Bank found that the branch had issued four deferred LCs worth Tk150 crore for 180 days at a reduced rate of commission and margin against applications from Partex Sugar Mills in 2011. As per the bank’s rule, any company seeking to import something must deposit a minimum of 5% cash against the four LCs. But instead of depositing the cash, the company had opened a Fixed Deposit Receipt (FDR) account against the LCs while the bank officials allegedly helped them in the process.

In addition, the profit from an FDR always went to the client’s account. As a result, the company received profits from their LCs, whereas Sonali Bank got nothing, incurring a loss to the bank.

Moreover, the company did not deposit any money from the sales of sugar which is indicative of money embezzlement. After analysing the payments, the company now owes Sonali Bank Tk136crore. l

A graveyard is being build just under the Army’s supervision beside the Martyred Intellectuals’ Memorial at Rayerbazar in the city

Minister: Pinak 6 operation failed due to foul weather n Emran Hossain Shaikh Salvage of the Pinak 6 launch resulted in failure due to foul weather and strong river currents, claimed Shipping Minister Shajahan Khan yesterday.

“The rescue operation did not succeed due to inclement weather and strong current of the river,” he told parliament while replying to a question from ruling party lawmaker Selina Jahan Lita during the question-answer session.

The double-decker launch carrying more than 250 passengers capsized in the Padma River on August 4 near Mawa. Later, the bodies of 48 passengers were recovered while 58 passengers remain missing. Rescuers called

off the operation after an eight-day search.

Shajahan said the accident occurred “due to greed for earning more profits” by the launch owner.

He said the BIWTA, Navy, Fire Service, Chittagong Port Authority, district administration, law enforcement agencies and local representatives jointly carried out the rescue operation.

“We continued the rescue operation for seven days and on the eighth day, it was declared abandoned as per the decision of the rescue team,” the minister said.

Responding to a supplementary question, he said the government had taken action against the persons re-

sponsible for the incident. A probe committee was formed to investigate the incident and a case was filed in this regard, he added.

In response to another supplementary question from Jatiya Party lawmaker Peer Fazlur Rahman, the minister said it was not true that maritime accidents had increased after 2009, rather decreased due to various measures taken by the incumbent government.

In reply to a question from Awami League lawmaker Israfil Alam, the minister said 558 maritime accidents took place in the country since 1976 in which a total of 4,500 people were killed and 500 injured while more or less 450 went missing. l

Two ex-Teletalk officials to face graft case n Adil Sakhawat The Anti Corruption Commission (ACC) is set to sue two suspended Teletalk Bangladesh Limited officials for their alleged involvement in embezzling around Tk10 crore.

The commission, at a regular meeting yesterday, approved the filing of the case against the two suspended assistant managers of Teletalk, as a primary inquiry found their involvement with the embezzlement, ACC Public Relation Officer Pranab Kumar Bhattacharya told reporters.

“The case will be filed within a day or two under the sections of money laundering prevention act,” he added.

The accused were SM Tarek Rah-

Another remanded in Faruqi murder case n Md Sanaul Islam Tipu A Dhaka court yesterday placed Yusuf Majumder, held in connection with Shaikh Nurul Islam Faruqi murder case, on a two-day remand.

Metropolitan Magistrate Waez Kuruni Khan Chowdhury passed the order after DB Inspector Julhas Uddin Akand, also investigation officer of the case, produced him before the court.

The same court on Sunday granted police two days to question two other suspects – Mahmuda Khatun and Shariful Islam. Yusuf was arrested in Comilla.

Faruqi, 60, was slaughtered at his east Rajabazar house on August 24. His son Faysal Faruqi filed the case against eight to nine unnamed persons. l

Rawshan sees sudden slide in law and order

WHO ministers meet on September 9 n Moniruzzaman Uzzal Dhaka is set to host a major international health event this month, with health ministers from 11 member countries of World Health Organisation’s South-East Asia Region (WHO-SEAR) scheduled to hold talks from September 9-12 on health challenges faced by the region.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is set to inaugurate the 32nd meeting of regional health ministers, which would also be attended by WHO Director-General Dr Margaret Chan and WHO Regional Director for southeast Asia Dr Poonam Khetrapal Singh. More than 150 foreign delegates including health ministers and secretaries of the 11 member countries are expected to join the event.

Roxana Qauder, additional secretary (public health and WHO) of Health Ministry, said a five-member national organising committee headed by Health Secretary MM Niazuddin was formed. l

man, former assistant manager (system operations) and Sabibur Rahman Siplu, former assistant manager (market development).

During the primary inquiry, the ACC investigator found that both the accused misappropriated Tk97,415,306 from the state-owned mobile operator by converting Teletalk prepaid connections into postpaid, violating the billing system of the company.

The money was embezzled between October, 2010 to June, 2011, ACC sources added. An ACC official said the embezzled amount was transferred to personal bank accounts of the accused and was used for investments at the share market, purchasing apartments and procuring land. l

SYED ZAKIR HOSSAIN

Reza Chowdhury and n Kamran Emran Hossain Shaikh

Dhaka Metropolitan Police yesterday recovers a dead body from inside a wooden cabinet in the capital’s Hatkhola Lane. However, no other information regarding the matter could not be known immediately MAHMUD HOSSAIN OPU

Voter list updating begins slow n Rafe Sadnan Adel

Two witnesses testify in SB inspector murder case

The Election Commission began updating voter list in the capital yesterday.

But as most officials were not enthusiastic and supervisors absent, work went on at a snail’s pace.

Gulshan Thana Election Officer ARM Deluarul Haque told the Dhaka Tribune that an official was being paid Tk20 for updating the information of one voter, which is too low. Moreover, most supervisors are schoolteachers, who could not work during office hours.

Delwar also said updating the voter list would continue till September 10.

To speed things up, they were trying to make people aware using loud speakers, announcement at mosques, temples, churches, etc.

The Election Commission will begin taking photographs of new voters from September 18. l

n Md Sanaul Islam Tipu Two more witnesses yesterday gave depositions in a case filed over the sensational murders of SB Inspector Mahfuzur Rahman and his wife in the capital last year.

Seizure list witnesses Rakib Hasan and Jony testified before the Dhaka’s Metropolitan Sessions Judge Md Jahrul Haque.

The court later fixed September 3 for the next hearing.

With this, a total of three witnesses have given depositions in the case.

Police produced Oishee and her two friends Asaduzzman Jony and Mizanur Rahman Rony before the court during the deposition.

On July 8, plaintiff Mashiur Rahman, also uncle of prime accused

Oishee, in his deposition claimed that Oishee had not been involved in the murder.

“I strongly believe that my niece did not kill my brother and his wife. As my brother used to work for the police’s Special Branch (political wing), miscreants might have killed the couple over previous feud.”

Bodies of the couple were recovered from their house on August 16 last year. The court on May 6 framed the charges against Oishee, her friends Jony and Rony in connection with the murder of her parents.

One charge sheet was pressed against Oishee and her two friends, while the other against domestic help Sumi who is under the age of 18 and her trial proceeding is going in a juvenile court in Dhaka. l

Defence argues on compensation in Azhar case n Udisa Islam The defence counsel for alleged war criminal ATM Azharul Islam continued placing arguments for the second day yesterday.

The three-member International Crimes Tribunal 1 later adjourned the hearing until today leaving it incomplete.

Counsel Shishir Mohammad Munir claimed that the prosecution could not provide “sufficient evidence” to prove command responsibility of Jamaat-e-Islami leader Azhar.

Shishir claimed his client should not be compelled to pay fines arguing that if Azhar had been given “capital punishment or imprisonment,” then the fine would not be applicable.

The prosecution side demanded the compensation during arguments. l

Leader of the Opposition in parliament Rawshan Ershad yesterday criticised the government for the deterioration of law and order and suggested that it should not term the murders “stray incidents.”

During an unscheduled discussion, the senior Jatiya Party leader said the people were not safe inside their homes, referring to the killing of Maulana Shaikh Nurul Islam Faruqi and triple murders in Moghbazar last week.

“People think their houses to be the safest places. But where will they go if they are killed inside the houses?

“Suddenly law and order has been deteriorating. High Court mosque Imam Maulana Nurul Islam was killed inside his house. The next day, three people were killed in Moghbazar,” Rawshan said, asking for special measures to improve the situation.

Soon after the murders, several ruling party leaders and the home state minister termed the incidents isolated and not serious.

On Saturday, Rawshan's husband and JaPa chief HM Ershad at a discussion in Narayanganj said there was no rule of law in the country. “This government has no right to stay in power even for a single day,” said the former military dictator, who holds the post of the special envoy to the prime minister.

Ershad also said the BNP and the Awami League were busy gaining their interests. “On the other hand, Jatiya Party has been active in parliament as well as in the streets.”

Rawshan alleged that dead bodies were seen in different places. “Corpses are found in ditches; again, hanging bodies of young women are found.”

“The criminals would have thought twice [before committing such crimes] had the perpetrators been punished. The people are not taking these events easily…We want to know when it will stop.”

She said only rule of law could stop such events. “We want to find out the

perpetrators and ensure exemplary punishment.”

Rawshan also criticised the government's initiative to formulate the national broadcast policy. She suggested formation of a commission in consultation with the stakeholders to prepare the policy. “The information minister is an experienced person. It will be acceptable if [the policy] is formulated through consultation,” said Rawshan.

Expressing frustration over the repeated incidents of accidents of water vessels, the opposition leader said: “Launch accidents take place ahead of every Eid festivals. Since independence, over 500 probe bodies have been formed. But reports on only three incidents have been made public.

“The recent incident [Pinak 6 capisize] took place as the government did not take the issue seriously. This Eid season, so many people died; who will take the responsibility of their deaths?” she asked.

Rawshan also talked on the arrest of a fake army official on parliament premises. “How can a fake major maintain office on parliament premises for one year? I want to ask through the honourable speaker, who harboured the fake major for so long?

“The culprits should be punished; otherwise, the security regime will be disrupted,” she said.

Around half an hour after Rawshan's speech, Shipping Minister Shajahan Khan issued a statement on the Pinak 6 launch disaster.

He said the Mawa launch disaster had not been the result of a single factor, suggesting that the launch owner and his son allowed passengers more than the capacity of the vessel, disregarding protests of the people.

He said the government had already taken many measures to ensure safety the river routes.

The minister said the rotation system, introduced by BNP leader Tarique Rahman and his brother Arafat Rahman Koko, would be cancelled, allowing more launches to operate. l

4

DHAKA TRIBUNE

News

Tuesday, September 2, 2014

Workshop: Ample scopes to exploit marine resources n Sheikh Shahariar Zaman

Lack of skilled manpower, technology and equipment are the main barriers in utilising the marine resources in Bangladesh.

“We need data about our marine resources. But how can we get it if we do not have [necessary] human resources and technology,” Maritime Affairs Unit Secretary M Khurshed Alam told the Dhaka Tribune yesterday.

Citing an example, he said Bangladesh would procure survey vessel, but it is a big challenge to utilise it properly.

“Do we have people to operate it and utilise it in the proper way? It is a big problem,” he pointed out.

Khurshed is of the view that Bangladesh should conduct its own survey and research to assess the gas and oil reserves in the Bay of Bengal.

“We need to do our own survey. We should not depend on other’s survey to determine if we have gas resources or not,” he said in response to a comment

by German scientist Herman Kudrass who claimed that he had conducted seismic survey in the Bay and found no gas reserves.

Kudrass claimed that he had conducted three seismic surveys on behalf of German Research Agency in the first

half of ‘90s and covered all the areas of former economic zone.

Kudrass came to Dhaka to attend the two-day international workshop on blue economy inaugurated yesterday.

A total of 32 experts from 19 countries are taking part in the workshop.

Six presentations were made in two sessions yesterday while three more presentations scheduled for today’s lone session.

Additional Director General of Food and Agriculture Organisation Arni M Mathiesen in his presentation focused on fisheries in the Bay. Mathiesen said there was ample scope for fisheries exploitation in the Bay since it was not over exploited.

He, however, cautioned that ecosystem should be protected, and unregulated and unreported fishing should be stopped.

The FAO is willing to help develop the fishing sector in Bangladesh as the country acquires only 70,000 tonnes of fishes from the Bay. Sri Lanka, Thailand and India catch about 80 hundred thousand tonnes of fish every year from the Bay. Johannes Gille of the Netherlands said the total output of blue economy in the European Union was 500bn euros a year.

Gille said developing countries like

Bangladesh should focus on the marine sectors where research work is available.

There are ample studies on shipping or gas and oil sectors, and Bangladesh should focus on those instead of going for minerals like cobalt, copper or manganese on the seabed, he suggested.

He also stressed that the marine resources should be protected and preserved for keeping the environment sustainable.

Lei Bo of China said Beijing was willing to help Bangladesh in developing the marine sector.

China has undertaken 908 projects on different sectors in the marine economy and allocated 2.5bn Chinese renminbi, 500 vessels, 30000 people and 100 research institutes.

Wenxi Zhu of the Unesco said the knowledge about the sea was very low level.

He said science, technology and innovation capacity need to be increased for having a sustainable blue economy.

Joacim Johannesson of Sweden said marine spatial planning (MSP) was needed for tapping ocean resources.

The MSP should be integrated and multi-objective, strategic and future oriented, and continuous and adaptive, he said.

In the inaugural session, Prime Min-

ister Sheikh Hasina said Bangladesh needed to utilise the potential of ocean resources for sustainable development.

She admitted that there was a deficit in planning, proper knowledge and technology about the blue economy in Bangladesh.

The premier hoped that the workshop would provide a set of recommendations which would help the socio-economic development of Bangladesh.

Foreign Minister AH Mahmood Ali said it was evident that blue economy demands a balance of conservation-utilisation-exploitation.

He said Bangladesh was engaged in a global debate on Post-2015 Development Agenda in UN to reach consensus on a stand-alone sustainable development goals on “conservation and sustainable use of oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development.”

There is a broad agreement on several targets under the goal such as preventing and reducing all kinds of marine pollution and sustainably manage and protect marine and coastal ecosystems, the minister said.

In the concluding session today, an outcome document, Way Forward, will be presented for adoption in the workshop. l

n Mohosinul Karim Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina yesterday ordered the Railway Ministry officials to prepare a list of its properties in order to recover properties from illegal occupiers.

The instruction came at a cabinet meeting held at the secretariat yesterday where the ministry tabled drafts of

Both the drafts were prepared to legitimate the Railway Nirapotta Bahini Ordinance, 1976 and Railway Properties (Illegal Possession) Ordinance, 1979 the Railway Nirapotta Bahini (RNB) Act and the Railway Properties (Illegal Possession Recover) Act. With Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in the chair, the cabinet approved the Security Force Act on condition of vetting of the Law Ministry while the Illegal Possession Recover Act was ap-

proved in principle.

Cabinet Secretary M Musharraf Hossain Bhuiyan said before sending to the parliament the Illegal Possession Recover Act would be tabled again after incorporating the observations of the cabinet while the draft of the RNB Act would be sent to the parliament upon vetting of the Law Ministry.

Both the drafts were prepared to legitimate the Railway Nirapotta Bahini Ordinance, 1976 and Railway Properties (Illegal Possession) Ordinance, 1979 that became invalid after the Supreme Court declared the two military regime in Bangladesh illegal.

The drafts specified definitions of railway assets, work distribution, passengers and passenger areas.

Primary and Mass Education Minister Mostafizur Rahman who was present at the cabinet meeting, told the Dhaka Tribune that the premier had asked the ministers and officials of the railway ministry to find out the amount of illegally occupied properties.

The government would take necessary steps to recover the illegally occupied properties of the railway after getting the report. A task force might be formed to recover the properties from illegal occupants, he added. l

High Court summons DMP commissioner, two others

Crude bombs hurled at CU shuttle train, 2 injured n CU Correspondent At least two students were injured when crude bombs were hurled at a Chittagong University (CU)-bound shuttle train in Chowdhury Haat railway station of Hathazari upazila in Chittagong yesterday morning.

The victims – Pritom Shuvo, a thirdyear philosophy student and activist of Udichi’s CU unit, and Sourav Saha Joy, a marine science and fisheries student and activist of a left-wing student organisation – were treated at Chittagong Medical College Hospital (CMCH).

There was another crude bomb attack earlier in the morning at Sholoshohor railway station, from where the shuttle train started towards the CU, said Md Shahabuddin, station master of Sholoshohor railway station.

“Activists of General Students of CU (GSCU), a section of students staging a strike on the campus demanding the reopening of two dormitories, interrupted the shuttle train scheduled to start towards the university at 7:50am and demanded suspension of the service,” said the station master.

However, after remaining suspended for half an hour, the station authorities tried to resume the service. But when the train was being prepared for the journey, at least three crude bombs were hurled at it at the Forest Gate area around 8:30am, he said.

Later, when the train left Sholoshohor and stopped at Chowdhury Haat around 9:30am, around seven to eight crude bombs were thrown at the train, which left the two students injured, witnesses said.

“Both the attacks were launched by the GSCU activists who had demanded to suspend the shuttle train service,” claimed the station master.

On information, the Railway Police went to the scene and fired around 20 blank rounds to bring the situation under control, said Arab Ali, in-charge of Railway Police’s Sholoshohor outpost.

The schedules of the shuttle train service were delayed by an hour due to the attacks, the station master said.

CU Proctor Siraj Ud Dowla said Shibir men had carried out the attacks, adding that the university authorities had given directives to the law enforcement agencies to take necessary steps in this regard.

Additional police has also been deployed on the campus to avoid further unrest, he said.

Ashiqur Rahman, spokesperson for the GSCU, brushed off the allegations and said they were trying to divert attention from the issue at hand.

The Shibir leaders at the university also denied the allegation of being involved in the attacks, but said they morally supported the GSCU’s cause.

GSCU was formed by the resident students of the two dormitories, which were shut down after a recent clash between Chhatra League and Shibir activists.

Before shutting down, the dormitories were under the stronghold of Shibir, said campus sources.

The classes and examinations in different departments took place at the scheduled time despite the attacks, the sources added. l

Hasina asks Railways Ministry to make list of properties

n Ahmed Zayeef

Advanced technologies in printing have turned typewriters, once a vital instrument for producing written documents, into a medieval instrument. Thus, those who earned their living using typewriters are now having a hard time to make ends meet.

This picture was taken yesterday from the capital’s Dainik Bangla intersection SYED ZAKIR HOSSAIN

Cabinet approves MoU with India on rescuing victims of human trafficking

RMG workers block road for wages n FM Mizanur Rahaman

n Mohosinul Karim

Around 400 workers of a readymade garment (RMG) factory blocked a road in Bandartila area in Chittagong yesterday demanding the payment of their wages and dues.

Sub-Inspector Kajol Babu of EPZ police said around 350 to 400 workers of Siraj and Sons, took to the streets in front of Bahadurshah Colony of Bandartila around 4:30pm demanding their wages and overtime payment.

The owner of the garment could not pay the workers their wages for two months following which they held the blockade, he said.

Police went to the spot and pursued the agitating workers to withdraw their blockade after half an hour.

The SI said after a meeting with the owner he was asked to pay the salaries within two days. l

The cabinet yesterday approved a proposal for signing a Memorandum of Understanding between Bangladesh and India on bilateral cooperation for rescue, repatriation and rehabilitation of victims of human trafficking especially women and children.

The approval was given in a regular cabinet meeting held at the secretariat with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in the chair.

The MoU would be signed during the home secretary-level meeting between the two countries scheduled to be held in Dhaka from September 2-4.

After the meeting, Cabinet Secretary M Musharraf Hossain Bhuiyan told reporters that the cabinet had approved the proposal for signing the MoU with the neighbouring country. “It will be signed at the home secretary-level meeting between the two countries.”

He said, “It’s true that people especially women and children are being trafficked from Bangladesh. Most of them are being trafficked to India.

Some are also being trafficked into Ban-

gladesh from India.”

“Both the countries are aware of the human trafficking and trying to address the issue. A joint task force formed earlier is also working to address the issue,” he added.

Bhuiyan said the draft of the MoU was prepared and finalised by the task force in its two meetings held in Bangladesh and India earlier. India had already given its consent to the MoU. According to the MoU, people under 18 would be considered as minors.

Both the countries would work as per Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) set by Bangladesh and India.

“Legal action can be taken against human traffickers as per the laws of the two countries. The border security forces and agencies concerned will help enforce the terms and conditions of the MoU. It will work under a coordinated border management plan,” the cabinet secretary said.

The two countries would exchange information on human trafficking and rehabilitate the victims of human trafficking within the shortest possible time, he added. l

IUBDC champion in BRACU debate tournament

n Tribune Report

Winning team members Fardeen Ameen and Christopher Sangma receive the champion’s trophy of the Brac University English Debate Tournament in the capital yesterday DHAKA TRIBUNE

IUB Debate Club has become the Champion at the Brac University English Debate Tournament held from August 28-30. The winning team members Fardeen Ameen and Christopher Sangma defeated DU and IUT in the grand finale held at Brac University campus in capital’s Mohakhali.

IUB reached the grand finale by defeating IBA, DU and NSU in the semi-finals and quarter finals respectively. l

The High Court has summoned three police officials, including Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) Commissioner Benzir Ahmed, for not complying with its previous order regarding the construction of boundary walls of Azimpur graveyard in the capital.

An HC bench comprising of justices Farah Mahbub and Kazi Md Ejarul Haque Akondo passed the order yesterday following an explanation of contempt of court by Dhaka South City Corporation.

The other police officials are Lalbagh Zone Deputy Commissioner Harun-ur-Rashid and Lalbagh police station officer-in-charge. The court ordered them to appear before it on September 10.

The petition was filed by Jakir Hossain,

an Azimpur resident, seeking directives to stop the construction of a street by the DSCC upon his fathers’ grave at the graveyard.

Following the writ on August 1, 2013, the same HC bench directed the DSCC authorities to construct the boundary wall of the graveyard within three months of the petition, while the police force was also asked to assist the authorities concerned in this regard.

Md Asadullah, who moved for the contempt petitioner, told the Dhaka Tribune: “The DSCC authorities did not take any action according to the HC order.

“However, the DSCC authorities told the court that they gave 17 letters to the DMP, seeking assistance in this regard, but they did not respond. The DSCC also urged the court to ask the police officials why they did not comply with the HC order.” l

CAREER OPPORTUNITY The Canadian International School Bangladesh is looking for an experienced teacher urgently for its existing vacancy with following qualifications and experiences: Position: One (1) Teacher (History/Social Studies) Qualifications: Masters of Arts, BA (Honors), M ED/B ED any other diploma General Qualification for the position .

1. Certified by the Education Ministry of Canada.

2. Minimum Five (5) years of experience in Canadian Curriculum Teaching.

3. Good command in English Spoken and additional language (French/German) competency will be given preference.

4. Computer Literacy (MS APP, PowerPoint, Web page design etc).

Salary and other Terms and conditions will discuss during the selection process.

Interested candidates are requested to submit their CV with photograph by 07 September 2014.

Canadian International School Bangladesh 200 Gulshan Avenue North, Gulshan-2, Dhaka-1212 Bangladesh Email: info@canadaeducationbd.com www.canadaeducationbd.com

DHAKA TRIBUNE

News

5

Tuesday, September 2, 2014

Tk256 crore spent on DSCC roads is money down the drain n Abu Hayat Mahmud Dhaka South City Corporation’s (DSCC) thoroughfares and streets resemble a mess of potholed and muddy canals because of a lack of proper monitoring and maintenance.

Although the DSCC engineering department spent Tk256 crore on maintaining roads, drains and traffic systems over the last two fiscal years, a large number of DSCC roads, streets and drains were seriously run-down.

In spite of the large outlay of public money, DSCC engineering department officials said they weren’t bound to answer questions posed by the media, while the corporation’s high-ups said repair work on dilapidated roads and streets had been delayed due to a lack of sufficient funds.

Residents of Shukrabad, Panthopath, Kathalbagan, parts of Kalabagan, Lalbagh, Azimpur, Jhigatala and Hazaribagh said the maintenance of thoroughfares and lanes in those areas had not been done properly.

Shafiqul Islam, a resident of Shukrabad, said city personnel had turned a blind eye to long-standing issues such as potholes and a lack of proper drainage in the area.

“The terrible condition of the streets inside residential areas makes it difficult to drive on them. Most vehicles use the main road, running from Panthopath signal to Russel Square, resulting in traffic jams,” he said.

Shafiqul said conditions worsened

n Md Habibur Rahman, Rajshahi

At least three people were killed in separate road accidents in the capital yesterday.

Ali Akkas, a newspaper seller, was hit by a BRTC bus in front of Al-Razi Hospital in Farmgate area around 7am.

He died on spot.

Hailing from Jadobpur area under Kobirhaat upazila of Noakhali, Akkas was living in Purano Tejturi Bazaar.

Locals said his body was stuck under the bus for few hours. Later, police recovered the body by a wrecker.

Sub Inspector of Tejgaon police station Saiful Bashar said: “The bus driver lost control over the steering wheel and went over the footpath breaking the iron railing.”

The body was sent to Dhaka Medical Collage Hospital’s (DMCH) morgue.

Amena Begum, 55, was killed as a CNG-run auto rickshaw they were traveling in flipped over after being hit by a bus in Shahbagh area. Her sonin-law Iqbal, 32, was also injured in the accident.

Assistant Superintendent of Ramna police station Sumon Kanti De said: “Amena was going to Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University.”

In Darus Salam area of Mirpur, Sattar Molla, 55, was hit by a human haulier around 8:30am and died on spot. l

WEATHER

DRIZZLE TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 2 DHAKA TODAY TOMORROW SUN SETS 6:17PM SUN RISES 5:40AM FORECAST FOR TODAY Dhaka

32

26

Chittagong

31

25

Rajshahi

31

25

Rangpur

31

25

Khulna

30

25

Barisal

30

25

Sylhet

34

24

Cox’s Bazar

30

25

YESTERDAY’S HIGH AND LOW

23.3ºC Dinajpur

Source: Accuweather/UNB

PRAYER TIMES Fajar Sunrise Zohr Asr Magrib Esha

Like many roads of the capital a road at Sukrabad area lies in sorry state for lack of proper monitoring and maintenance of the Dhaka South City Corporation

Pond filling plagues Rajshahi city

City road accidents take lives of three n Tribune Report

33.5ºC Sylhet

during the monsoon season when the entire area goes under knee-deep water as rain water collects because there isn’t an adequate drainage system.

The sentiment was echoed by Nahid Akhter, resident of West Panthopath, who added: “Some streets in the area are so waterlogged they are unusable.”

Streets in Shukrabad and parts of West Rajabazar and Tolabagh and the adjoining area of Sobhanbagh Government Staff Colony resembled muddy rural dirt paths.

Road work across Lalbagh and Azimpur in old Dhaka, leaving roads dug-up or drilled into, was left unfinished for months.

Akbar Ali, a resident of Kazi Riaz Uddin road in Lalbagh, said: “Most internal streets in Lalbagh are flooded during most of monsoon.”

During a recent visit to the Lalbagh and its adjoining areas, the Dhaka Tribune found most drains open and uncovered.

When contacted, DSCC Chief Engineer Md Zahangir Alam refused to answer questions put by the Dhaka Tribune about the issue.

“I am not bound to explain everything to the press. You write what you think... do not disturb me any more,” he said angrily.

Md Ansar Ali Khan, chief executive officer of DSCC, said: “We do not have sufficient funds to repair and reconstruct all the roads.”

“We will see to repairs if there are sufficient funds,” he said. l

4:23am 5:39am 11:59am 4:29pm 6:17pm 7:34pm SourceL IslamicFinder.org

As the High Court has given a directive to stop the filling of all kinds of wetland in and around the city Rajshahi, a vested-interested group is using a new tactic to fill ponds.

Numerous ponds are being filled by dumping waste so that the water there would be contaminated.

During a visit to different parts of the city, this correspondent found that pond owners were filling their water bodies in this way to dodge the authorities concerned.

Residents of Horgram area in the city said Azizul Islam started filling his pond with sand, later he stopped the filling in the wake of local protests. But now he was filling the pond again by dumping waste and consequently local people could not bathe in the pond as well as use water for household chores as water of the water body has been polluted.

Habibur Rahman, a resident of Hetem Kha area, in the city said they could not use the water from a pond as its owner filled it by dumping waste.

Ponds located in Shalbagan area and Sultanbad area are being filled by dumping rubble and waste.

In the last five decades, a total of 4,000 ponds have been filled because of the indiscriminate earth-dumping

and unplanned urbanisation.

In 1961, there were 4,238 ponds, canals, wetlands in the city, in 1981 the number was 2,271, in 2000 the number stood at 729 and now city has only 214 water bodies which showed that the authorities concerned do not have any control over the vested interested groups’ activities, according to Rajshahi Development Authority (RDA).

In the last five decades, a total of 4,000 ponds have been filled because of the indiscriminate earth-dumping and unplanned urbanisation The High Court gave a directive to stop filling of all kinds of wetland in and around the city on December 13, 2010 following a writ petition.

In many cases, the RDA as well as Rajshahi City Corporation could not take strict action against land grabbers as a section of the public servants with institutions help facilitate such illegal occupation by preparing fake documents and being reluctant to take any action, said city dwellers.

Although the Rajshahi City Corporation had taken a project involving Tk206.24 crore to conserve 53 natural water bodies in and around the city to retain its surface water resources for protecting the environment from further environmental degradation, the city authority might not implement its project for unknown reason.

The project was supposed to preserve 53 ponds and construct embankments along the ponds and excavate and re-excavation those water bodies.

Urban Planner of the RCC Ajmeri Ashrafi said they had taken a 20-year plan to conserve 65 ponds of the city in 2004.

Asked about the output of the plan, he said at least four cases had been filed since then for filling those ponds, he said adding that verdict of one case has been announces and three cases were under trial.

He said they normally issued notice against those people who tried to fill water bodies.

He claimed that they had stoppedthe filling of 17 ponds by serving notices.

He also said not only the RCC, but the district administration and police have duty to conserve water bodies.

President of Rajshahi Mahbub Siddiqi told the Dhaka Tribune that everybody should come forward to save water bodies of the city. l

Fresh case filed in RMG unrest at Jamgora n Our Correspondent, Savar Tension was renewed at the Designer Jeans garment factory in Ashulia’s Jamgora yesterday as factory authorities filed a fresh case against workers, a move that followed several days of unrest there.

The case was filed with Ashulia police station against 14 people – eight of them named – in connection with an alleged assault on the factory’s Chief Security Officer Altaf Hossain.

Altaf claimed that he fell victim to a sudden attack by several workers of the factory when he visited the nearby Beron area to assess the situation of the protesting workers yesterday morning.

Last Wednesday, workers of the Designer Jeans factory staged a work abstention programme, protesting the dismissal of two of their colleagues – a line chief and an operator both named Jahangir. The demonstrations became more intense after the factory was closed sine die on Thursday; the police had to step in to remove the protesting workers from in front of the factory.

As punitive action following the protests, the factory authorities further sacked 125 more workers on the grounds of violating discipline. The

Land grabbers occupy public graveyard n Our correspondent, Noakhali

A group of land grabbers have allegedly occupied a public graveyard and a cremation ground at Sagoria Bazar of Burir Char Union under Hatiya Upazila in Noakhali by building a commercial market there.

The illegal occupation has outraged both Muslim and Hindu communities in the area.

According to locals, the 34 decimal state-owned land was being used as a final resting ground for around half a century. Some 50 years ago, 20 decimals of the land were allocated by the government as public graveyard for Muslims and the rest for a cremation ground for Hindus.

The land was also recorded as same in a subsequent zonal survey in favour of the deputy commissioner.

However, a group of land grabbers, led by local Md Fakrul Islam, Md Fazlul Hoque Khokan and Md Idris Mia, have constructed buildings and tin-shed shops at the site by occupying the land illegally.

When asked, Khokan claimed that the land was his ancestral property which was wrongly recorded as government land. He also said a case in this regard was pending with the Noakhali District Judge court.

Besides, state-owned Sonali Bank has leased a portion of the building to set up a branch there, despite being aware of the land’s status.

“My maternal grandfather, my father and my elder brother are now underneath the building where Sonali Bank will open its branch,” said Kartik Chan-

Some illegal structures have been built in and around of Sagoria graveyard in Noakhali by local influential people. The photo was taken yesterday DHAKA TRIBUNE dra Das, who earlier sent letters to the bank’s officials in Noakhali, Chittagong, Comilla and Dhaka hoping that they would respect the government’s land demarcation as a state-owned entity.

He, however, was yet to receive a response from Sonali Bank authorities in this regard. The branch is expected to open next month.

When asked, Hatiya upazila’s assistant

commissioner for land said after receiving an allegation of illegal occupation of the graveyard two and a half months ago, he ordered one of his staff members to visit the respective site and submit a report immediately. However, the report is yet to be submitted.

Speaking to the Dhaka Tribune, locals said several noted individuals of their area, such as Saint Dula Mia

ABU HAYAT MAHMUD

Darbesh, Roy Mohan Saha, Sanatan Chandra Das and Durga Mohan Karmakar, among other, have been resting at the graveyard.

Being an island on river Meghna, Hatiya faces river erosion every rainy season and loses its lands to the river and the Bay of Bengal. Thousands of people also lost their ancestral lands and houses every year due to river erosion. l

factory’s Administrative Officer Sharif Hossain also filed a case with the Ashulia police station against 260 workers, including 110 named individuals, accusing them of vandalising and looting the factory.

Following the filing of the case, 108 of the named accused secured bail on Sunday morning; the police later detained the two Jahangirs – who were fired last Tuesday – as they did not get bail.

Several workers of the factory told the Dhaka Tribune that two of their colleagues were initially fired from their jobs because of protesting different irregularities and injustice done by factory authorities. They also argued that it was not possible for the workers to have carried out any vandalism or looting inside the factory as the police had not allowed them near the factory gates on Thursday. The cases filed against them were false, the workers claimed.

Ashulia Industrial Police Director Mostafizur Rahman confirmed the incidents and said the factory was closed for the moment. Additional police personnel have also been deployed in front of the factory to avoid any untoward incident, he added. l

Indefinite transport strike called again in Thakurgaon n Our Correspondent, Thakurgaon Demanding ban on the plying of shallow engine-driven vehicles like nosimon, korimon and bhatbhati on highways, Thakurgoan Bus Owners’ Association, Motor Transport Workers’ Union and Truck-Tank-Lorry-Covered van Workers’ Association have again called an indefinite transport strike yesterday.

The strike has called off movements of motor vehicles including Dhaka bound coaches on different routes in five upazilas under the district causing immense sufferings to passengers particularly the Hajj pilgrims.

Yesterday morning 30 Hajj pilgrims set out for the Dhaka Hajj camp.

Hundreds more are waiting to start for the Hajj camp.

On August 27, Thakurgoan District Motor Owners’ Association and Sramik Union called an indefinite bus strike and gave a 72-hour ultimatum to presshome their demand by that day.

The transport unions yesterday reinforced the strike by including trucks and tank-lorries.

Road communications from the upazilas to the capital and other towns have been cut off.

During a visit to bus stand of the district this correspondent found that a good number people were waiting for transport.

No buses outside of the district entered the town nor any bus left the city, put people in misery. l

6 Students block Dhaka-Mawa highway n Our Correspondent, Munshiganj High school students blockaded the Dhaka-Mawa highway for an hour yesterday after a female student was allegedly harassed by a staff of a bus in the morning.

Abdur Rahim, headmaster of Shamashpur High School, said: “Ira, a class X student of the school was verbally harassed by a Gangchil Paribahan bus staff while she was on her way here.”

“After she reached school, she told her friends about the incident and as the news spread throughout the school. Infuriated students went to Shamashpur bus stand and staged protests around 2pm,” he added.

The blockade caused a four kilometre long congestion in each side of the highway.

Informed, Officer-in-Charge of Sreenagar police station Mahbubur Rahman went to the spot and assured the protesting students that necessary steps would be taken against the accused staff after which the blockade was withdrawn by the students. l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Nation

Tuesday, September 2, 2014

Managing committee pockets Swarnakali High School fund

They misused Tk50 lakh in the construction of a building on the school premises since they used low quality materials the banner of Students-Guardi- above, have been noted in the com- broiled in a heated argument. n Our Correspondent, Gopalganj under The school authorities called up poans Anti-Corruption Committee, filed plaint.

Students of a high school boycotted classes and staged demonstrations in protest against the school’s managing committee on charges of corruption at Kashiani upazila in Gopalganj on Sunday.

They threw bamboo and bricks on the Gopalganj-Tungipara road around 10am while chanting slogans against the managing committee demanding its cancellation immediately.

Police rushed to the spot around 11am and were able to clear them off the road and also talked the students into entering their campus. As soon as they entered the campus, the students again began chanting slogans against the managing committee.

Swarnakali High School’s Class X student Md Badrul Alam said they had,

a complaint with the deputy commissioner against the managing committee on July 13.

According to the complaint, the managing committee took extra admission fees, monthly payments and exam fees by deceiving them. They had also pocketed all the money that came from selling off 14 trees on the campus.

They made the students buy sub-standard English grammar and other guide books from one of their colleague’s library just for the sake of pocketing commission on sale The committee also misused Tk50 lakh in the construction of a building on the school premises since they used low-quality construction materials in it.

A total of 16 corruptions and irregularities, including those mentioned

The deputy commissioner assigned Kashiani Upazila Secondary Education Officer Md Abdur Rahim to investigate the matter.

Denying the allegations, Managing Committee Chairman Sheikh Lutfar Rahman Bachchu said: “A vested quarter is trying to create unrest on the campus in the name of such complaints.”

Investigation officer Rahim on Tuesday last went to the school and talked to one of the five complainant students and a managing committee member at a room of the school in a bid to investigate the allegations stated in the complaint with the deputy commissioner.

The situation soon took a turn for the worse as both the student and the managing committee member got em-

Traders protest mobile court drive n Our Correspondent, Sherpur Sweetmeat traders in Sherpur district town called an indefinite strike protesting a mobile court drive against sweetmeat shops in the market yesterday.

According to sources, the mobile court led by magistrate Taslima Nur Hossain launched a drive against Charu Sweetmeat and Premanada Sweetmeat in Munsi Bazar in the town and fined them Tk29,000 as they had no licence from Bangladesh Standards and Testing Institution. They were also selling the goods in an unhygienic environment.

Protesting the incident, the traders brought out a procession and blockaded the road.

Trader Joy alleged that the court launched the drive without notice and fined them using lame excuses. l

College student killed by stray bullet in Pabna

n Tribune Report

A college student was killed after being hit by a stray bullet fired from the gun of an Awami League leader at Radhanagar in the district town on Sunday night.

The deceased was identified as Masud, 20, a fourth year student of the Accounts Department at Government Edward College and son of Maksed Ali of Solabaria village in Ataikula upazila.

Police and locals said district AL vice-president Abdul Hamid went to say prayer at a nearby mosque keeping his licensed revolver inside his private car.

Masud received a bullet fired from the revolver of the AL leader when the car driver, Shakil, was handling it around 9.00pm.

Critically injured, Masud was rushed to Pabna Medical College Hospital where doctors declared him dead.

Officer-in-charge of Sadar Police Station Qazi Haniful Islam confirming the incident said they arrested the driver, Shakil, from the spot. l

Protesting drive of a mobile court sweetmeat traders in Sherpur district town shut down shops yesterday

DHAKA TRIBUNE

NEWS IN BRIEF Extortionist arrested while collecting money Police arrested an alleged extortionist named Aminur Rahman alias Bishe, 30, red handed from Dharmatola area under Kotwali police station yesterday at the time when he was extorting money. The police station’s SI Shoaib Uddin said Aminur had demanded Tk5 lakh as extortion from a local and they arrested him with a firearms and a round of bullet during handing over the money as the per plan taken by them. At one stage, locals grapped Aminur, son of Abdul Malek, of Arabpur Railline area of the upazila, from police and gave him a good number of beating, to control the situation the SI of police was slightly injured.

There were several cases with the police station against Aminur, the SI continued. – Our Correspondent, Jessore

Kidnapped boy found dead after three days in Narsingdi Police recovered the body of an adolescent body, who was kidnapped allegedly for ransom on Friday, from Sadarchar village in Shibpur upazila here yesterday. The boy is Nasir Uddin, 12, son of Abdur Rahman, of Molakanda village of the upazila. Polive arrested one Tawhid, 18, on charges of having connection with the killing. Police and the family sources said Tawhid and another man

named Nasir called the boy out of his house on the day for playing football and since then he had been missing.

Afterwards, the miscreants demanded Tk2 lakh from the parents to buy Nasir’s freedom and gave a bKash number to send the money. At one stage, Nasir’s father informed the matter to police who arrested Tawhid by using a mobile tracking system and they later recovered the body inside a biogas plant of the village as per information of the arrested. Shibpur police station OC Khandaker Imam Uddin said Tawhid confessed of killing Nasir by strangulation during the questioning and the body was sent to the district hospital morgue for autopsy. – Our Correspondent, Narsingdi

4 shops with Tk50 lakh valuables gutted in Gopalganj

A devastating fire burnt down four shops with valuables worth Tk50 lakh in Boalia bazar of Sadar upazila here on Sunday. Sources said the incident of fire erupted from an electric short circuit in a grocery shop of one Nuruzzaman in the bazar around 9pm and soon spread to nearby three other shops. Being informed, three local fire fighting units rushed to the spot and doused the fire after one and a half hours. However, the businessman claimed the aforesaid loss caused by the fire. – Our Correspondent, Gopalganj

Gazipur road crash kills 2

Correspondent, n Our Gazipur A road accident left two dead on the Dhaka-Kishoreganj highway Sunday night near Targaon under Kapasia upazila in Gazipur district.

The victims were identified as Sultan Miah, 31, son of Lal Miah of Rayed village under Kapasia upazila in Gazipur, and Yakub Ali, 32, son of Khorshed Ali of Borma village under Trishal upazila in Mymensingh.

Yakub Ali was a sales representative of Incepta pharmaceutical company. l

lice who rushed in and arrested four persons, including students, around 11am, prompting hundreds of students to take to the streets. Sensing that the situation might go beyond control, they soon released all the four arrested persons.

The school was announced shut around noon for that day. Even after that, the students continued their demonstrations. Extra police force was then deployed on the school premises.

Investigation Officer Rahim left the school, halting his investigation.

Talking to the Dhaka Tribune yesterday, he said: “I have postponed my investigation work since there was unrest on the day that I went to investigate the allegation. I will soon start investigating the matter.” l

Mystery shrouds newlywed’s death in Savar n Our Correspondent, Savar Local police recovered the hanging body of a newly-married housewife from her residence in Tetuljura area of Hemayetpur of Savar yesterday.

However, since police initially could not confirm whether it was suicide or murder as of filing this report, they arrested the husband on suspicion.

The victim was identified as Farzana Akter, wife of house painter Raihan.

The couple used to live in a rented house in the area and were originally from Naria upazila of Shariatpur.

The victim’s family member sources said the couple got engaged in marriage a couple of months ago, after which they used to quarrel over different family matters all the time.

Afterwards in the morning, the locals spotted Farzana’s hanging body from the beam of her living room with a scarf around her neck, and informed police.

Savar Model police station OC Mostafa Kamal said they body was sent to the DMCH morgue and the victim’s father filed a case against Raihan on charges of forcing her daughter to commit suicide. l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Long Form

7

Tuesday, September 2, 2014

Is Beijing considering a policy change in Xinjiang?

A 2009 file photo showing a large group of Han Chinese walk up a street carrying sticks and shovels on the streets of Urumqi in China’s far west Xinjiang province

I

n Brett Elmer

t is becoming increasingly likely that the situation in Xinjiang has reached a turning point. On June 21, 13 assailants were killed in an attack on a police station in Yecheng County, Kashgar province, in southern Xinjiang.

On July 30, details of a two day old incident also emerged – a bloody clash between Chinese security forces and ethnic Uighurs in the country’s far west – suggesting that dozens of people died when a protest against government policies turned violent.

The official news agency Xinhua described the confrontation, in the Xinjiang region, as a “violent terrorist attack that was organised, premeditated and carefully planned.” But Uighur exile groups, citing sources in the region, said that the police had used excessive force on a crowd of protesters outside government offices in Yarkand County and that rioting had later broken out across several rural townships.

The most important point to remember has always been: The economic, political and cultural integration of Xinjiang with China proper must continue

A government-run website blamed Islamic fundamentalists for the unrest but provided no evidence for the claim. Xinjiang is home to most of China’s 10 million Uighurs, a Turkic-speaking Muslim people who populate the string of ancient oasis towns and cities that were once way stations on the Silk Road.

More recently, on August 4, in the northwestern Xinjiang city of Karamay, authorities announced a ban on people with head coverings including hijabs, niqabs, and burkas, or beards, from taking local buses. The ban would apply for the duration of a sports competition ending on August 20, state media reported.

Sadly, these are no random occurrances, but simply the most recent ones in a series of violent incidents linked to Xinjiang, and its native Uyghur population, since the car bomb

attack in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square on October 31, 2013.

During this period, a number of high profile attacks have taken place, including the March 1 mass stabbing at Kunming train station that left 29 people dead, the April 30 double suicide bombing at Urumqi train station and the May 22 car bombings in a central Urumqi market that killed 31 people and injured another 94. In addition, a number of “low-level” attacks on police stations and security outposts in Xinjiang by suspected Uyghur gangs have taken place.

There has also been a number of instances of police using extreme force to break up Uyghur gatherings and protestors (at least two Uyghurs were shot dead during a protest over alleged officials’ harassment of women wearing headscarves) and even one where a Uyghur teenager was shot dead for running a red light on his motorcycle.

Such an escalation of violence, especially in such a short space of time, must inevitably have prompted Beijing to ask: what to do now in Xinjiang?

Whenever the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has asked this question – and it has asked it a number of times since seizing control of the region in 1949 – the most important point to remember has always been: the economic, political and cultural integration of Xinjiang with China proper must continue.

The region is of vital economic and strategic importance to the Chinese regime. Comprising 18% of the country’s entire land mass, China’s western border province posseses abundant oil and natural gas reserves, is becoming an increasingly important channel for business and political relations between China and the nations of Central Asia and Europe, and the vastness of its territory is considered ideal for helping to alleviate China’s growing problem of overcrowding in its eastern coastal provinces.

Therefore, the answer to the question is, and will always be: whatever is necessary to maintain control of Xinjiang.

This fundamental goal has seen policy in the region vary quite drastically at various points since 1949. Forced assimilation policies during the years of the Great Leap Forward (1958-1962) and the Cultural Revolution (19661976) were relaxed following the death of Mao Zedong in 1976, allowing the Uyghurs greater cultural expression.

However, this also resulted in greater calls for increased Uyghur autonomy in the region.

Thus, since the demise of the Soviet Union in 1991, Chinese policymakers have increasingly relied on the dual-pronged policy approach of the “carrot” (of economic development) and “stick” (of oppression), as part of a more aggressive plan designed to

both boost the economic integration of Xinjiang with the greater Chinese state and close the gap between the culture of the Uyghurs and the culture of the Han Chinese.

In a recent article for the BBC, Dr Michael Clarke of Griffith University, Brisbane, asserted that the recent escalation in Xinjiang-related violence is most likely down to two possible factors: the role of what Beijing terms the “hostile external influences” in Xinjiang, and Chinese policy in the region, which aims for the total integration of the region and its native Uyghur population with China proper via what Clarkes terms “a three-pronged strategy of repression, restriction, and investment.” (BBC, May 23, 2014) These policies have long been sighted as fuelling an increased sentiment amongst Uyghurs of marginalisation.

Beijing has long chosen the convenience of pinning all the blame for Xinjiang and Uyghur-related violence on the former, whilst to the majority of outside observers, it is the latter which is chiefly responsible.

In the immediate aftermath of the recent violence, it appeared that Beijing was content to push ahead with its current strategies in the region. It was vociferous in blaming “hostile external forces” for inciting ethnic divisions and causing the recent upturn in violence, with Xi also pledging China would “deal a crushing blow to terrorists and deploy a ‘strike-first’ strategy” (The Guardian, May 2, 2014). Beijing has also intensified economic reforms, public security measures and initiatives such as bilingual education.

In relation to CCP policies in Xinjiang, in late May, Chinese President Xi Jingping commented, “Practice has proved that our party’s ruling strategy in Xinjiang is correct and must be maintained in the long run” (New York Times, May 30 2014).

For their part, Rebiya Kadeer, president of the Munich based World Uyghur Congress, and outspoken exiled Uyghur commentator Mehmet Tohti have both blamed the upturn in violence on the continuation of existing hardline government policies in the region by Xi. However, despite these immediate measures, the recently concluded second Central Work Forum in Xinjiang (zhongyang Xinjiang gongzuo zuotanhui) suggested that, behind the scenes at least, a significant change in approach by the CCP to ethnic policy in the region might be in the offing.

Attended by the entire Politburo and more than 300 of the Party’s most senior officials in Beijing from May 28-29, the forum saw a new policy direction proposed. Rather than focusing primarily on economic issues, the forum emphasised, according to James Leibold in The Jamestown Foundations’ China brief: “the complex

AFP

‘All ethnic groups are to show mutual understanding, respect, tolerance and appreciation, and to learn and help each other, so they are tightly bound together like the seeds of a pomegranate’

and protracted nature of the “Xinjiang problem,” subtly recalibrating the “general goal” of Xinjiang work towards “safeguarding social stability and achieving an enduring peace.””

(China Brief, vol 14, issue 12).

The forum also asserted: “Xinjiang’s most sustained problem is the problem of ethnic unity” (Xinhua, May 29, 2014). This marks a significant departure from previous rhetoric related to Xinjiang, which asserted that unrest in the region was due primarily to economic issues.

Despite the current absence of concrete policy, this shift towards a focus on interethnic unity will see Beijing attempt to, according to Leibold: “two potentially contradictory courses in Xinjiang over the coming year.

First, it seeks to build a more ethnically integrated labor market by allowing minorities like the Uighurs to migrate into both regional cities like Urumqi as well as coastal centers like Shanghai and Beijing. Second, it will redouble its hold over Xinjiang through a deeper penetration into the daily lives of Xinjiang residents by the Party and its security apparatuses” (China Brief, vol 14, issue 12).

Even if this new attempt to improve ethnic unity in Xinjiang can be seen as a signal of a change of heart, and mind, in Beijing, implementing any new policy initiatives on the ground in Xinjiang is a whole other issue entirely.

Governance in Xinjiang is poor and beset by vested interests, the current hukou (household registration) system prevents large scale migration of ethnic groups, and potential increased competition between Uyghur and Han workers for jobs could only serve to inflame tensions between the two groups. Beijing must tread carefully.

At the forum, Xi Jinping is quoted as urging “all ethnic groups are to show mutual understanding, respect, tolerance and appreciation, and to learn and help each other, so they are tightly bound together like the seeds of a pomegranate.” This may be

simply another way of phrasing the long-lasting CCP idea that the economic, political and cultural integration of Xinjiang, and its native Uyghur population, with China proper, is its number one priority in the region.

However, maybe, just maybe, Beijing has finally realised that taking steps to rectify the genuine Uyghur grievances that exist in Xinjiang, and not solely relying on the carrot (of economic development) and stick (of oppression) approach which has proven so ineffectual for so long, will in fact prove to be the most appropriate solution to what is becoming an increasingly volatile problem. l Brett Elmer is a PhD Candidate at Murdoch University. This article was first published by Alochonaa.com.

8

DHAKA TRIBUNE

World

Tuesday, September 2, 2014

Syrian army, rebels fight on Golan where UN peacekeepers held Fijian peacekeepers held by Islamist group, Syrian war reaches frontier with Israel

Rebel fighters demonstrate with their fake weapons during a military display as part of a graduating ceremony at a camp in eastern alGhouta, near Damascus REUTERS

n Reuters, Golan Heights/Manila Heavy fighting erupted on Monday between the Syrian army and Islamist rebels on the Golan Heights, where 44 peacekeepers from Fiji are being held by militants and scores of their fellow blue helmets from the Philippines escaped after resisting capture.

Syria’s three-year civil war reached the frontier with Israeli-controlled territory last week when Islamist fighters overran a crossing point in the line that

NEWS BITES

Iran convicts Ahmadinejad’s vice president

n Agencies

Mohammad Reza Rahimi, Iran’s first vice president under former president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, has been sentenced to prison and fined.

“I cannot reveal the details because the sentence is not final, but it includes a term of imprisonment and a fine,” Gholamhossein Mohseni-Ejeie, the second-ranking member of Iran’s judiciary, told the AFP news agency on Monday.

Iranian media previously reported that Rahimi, 65, was on trial for corruption. Appointed by Ahmadinejad after a controversial election win in 2009, Rahimi would be the most senior official from that era to be convicted.

Polticians had accused him of heading up an embezzlement scheme.

He was questioned by judicial officials before being placed on bail in December 2013. In March, local Iranian media reported Rahimi had been indicted, though details of the charges were unclear. Rahimi has said he is innocent.

According to Iranian law, the sentence must be confirmed by the Court of Appeal before it becomes final.

The media does not have the right to reveal details of the conviction until that time. l

Turkish foreign ministry summons US envoy over spying report

n Reuters, Ankara

Turkey’s foreign ministry yesterday summoned the US charge d’affaires, currently Washington’s most senior diplomat in Ankara, over a media report that the United States had spied on Turkey, Deputy Prime Minister Bulent Arinc said. German magazine Der Spiegel said in an article on its website on Sunday that the US National Security Agency (NSA) and Britain›s GCHQ eavesdropping agency had carried out «wide-scale spying against Turkey,” citing documents from the archive of former NSA contractor Edward Snowden.

“For the reasons that the United States’ name was mentioned, and such claims were made ... the charge d’affaires has been called to the foreign ministry and information has been received from him,” Arinc told reporters after the first meeting of Turkey’s new cabinet.

Der Spiegel said the US intelligence services had also worked closely to support Ankara in its efforts to battle Kurdish militants, who waged a three-decade insurgency for greater Kurdish rights in the country›s southeast. l

has separated Israelis from Syrians in the Golan Heights since a 1973 war.

The fighters also turned against the UN blue helmets from a peacekeeping force that has patrolled the ceasefire line for 40 years. After the 44 Fijians were captured on Thursday, more than 70 Filipinos were besieged at two locations for two days.

All the Filipinos reached safety over the weekend. Thirty-two were rescued from one outpost on Saturday and 40 escaped from the other position early

on Sunday while rebels were sleeping after a seven-hour firefight.

Fiji says it is negotiating the release of its 44 troops. The United Nations says it is not sure where they are being held. The Nusra Front, Syria’s affiliate of al Qaeda, says it is holding them because the UN force protects Israel.

It was not immediately clear on Monday whether forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad had managed to retake control of the Quneitra crossing from the Nusra Front rebels.

Persistent gunshots and explosions from mortar shells and other munitions could be heard on the Israeli-occupied side of the frontier and combatants could be clearly seen targeting each other with their weapons.

At least one tank belonging to the Syrian army was also involved and some rebels could be seen a few metres (yards) away from the frontier fence.

A large Syrian flag that had been flying for days between the Quneitra crossing and the abandoned town was taken down and a United Nations position in the area, thought to be unmanned, was pounded with mortar shells.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which monitors violence in the Syrian civil war, said the Nusra Front and allied fighters were battling government forces near the Quneitra crossing and in the nearby village of al-Hamiydiah.

The Observatory said there were casualties on both sides. Observatory founder Rami Abdelrahman told Reuters the Nusra Front’s aim appeared to be “to end once and for all the regime’s presence in the area and it also appears that the goal is to expel the international observers.”

The UN peacekeeping force in the area, known as UNDOF, includes 1,223 troops from India, Ireland, Nepal and the Netherlands as well as the Fijians and Filipinos who came under attack last week.

The Filipino blue helmets had been besieged in outposts known as positions 68 and 69 until their rescue from one on Saturday and escape from the other early on Sunday morning. The United Nations said both Syria and Israel helped in the rescue. l

Annoyed by off-hour work emails? They may soon be illegal in Germany n Agencies Labor Day represents the last precious day of summer before getting back to the grind. But that assumes we ever left the grind in the first place.

For many in the US, the ubiquity of email and other forms of e-communication means we’re never really off the job – and we’ll respond to emails from coworkers and bosses at even the most off of hours. How many Americans are even working today, despite it being a national holiday to celebrate the social achievements of the US worker movement?

You might not even consider opening your inbox it if you were German. Despite their reputation as zealots of productivity and industriousness, Germans enjoy a much better work-life balance than their American counterparts.

And now Germany’s labor minister, Andrea Nahles, is considering new “anti-stress” legislation, which could ban companies from contacting employees outside of work hours, reports the Guardian. She told the local press last week: “There is an undeniable relationship between constant availability and the increase of mental illness.”

It’s already illegal in Germany to contact staff on holidays – like Labor Day – and the move announced by the labor minister follows the path blazed by the private sector. Daimler, for example, made news in early August – at the height of vacation season – by offering a program to employees called “Mail on Holiday” that automatically deletes emails when they are on vacation.

“The idea behind it is to give people a break and let them rest,” Daimler spokesman Oliver Wihofszki told Time magazine.

“Then they can come back to work with a

fresh spirit.”

When a similar idea was floated in France among a federation of employees and unions, it led to misleading headlines about the French banning emails after 6pm (not true) and mockery in the foreign press. One reader of the Times of London wrote in: “The French really do appear to be keen on pressing the self destruct button. What business would want to locate in France?”

But even if the Germans are the first to lambast France’s 35-hour work week, their ideas about out-of-office access seem to have resonated – not in mockery of German “laziness” but approval of a certain humanity. In a piece in the German English daily The Local, one writer celebrated Germany’s trend towards human working hours and blasted the “American way” with tongue in cheek. “One day we’ll figure out the key to the uniquely American workplace secrets where massive amounts of overtime=work ethic and taking vacation=slacker. Then and only then will we reach our true potential.”

And Clive Thompson opines in The New York Times that the American workforce has something to learn from the German trend toward limits.

He asks: “If this can happen in precision-mad, high-productivity Germany, could it happen in the United States? Absolutely. It not only could, but it should.” l

Ukraine troops abandon key airport Libyan parliament after clashes reappoints PM as govt n loses grip on ministries Agencies

Ukrainian forces have withdrawn from the airport of the eastern city of Luhansk after all-night clashes with pro-Russian rebels, BBC quoted the military as saying.

Security officials said the Ukrainian troops had come under attack from a column of Russian tanks.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has urged negotiators meeting in the Belarus capital, Minsk, to make an “immediate ceasefire” their priority.

Some 2,600 people have died in eastern Ukraine since fighting began in April. The conflict broke out after Russia’s annexation of Ukraine’s southern Crimea peninsula in March.

The rebels have been gaining ground on Ukrainian forces in recent days, in both the Luhansk and Donetsk regions, and further south around the port of Mariupol.

Ukraine and the West blame Russian military support for the rebel advances, saying armoured columns have crossed the border - allegations rejected by Russia’s President Vladimir Putin.

He has accused European leaders of

ignoring the Ukrainian army “directly targeting civilians.”

On Sunday, he said the issue of “statehood” for eastern Ukraine needed to be discussed to ensure the interests of local people were “definitely upheld.”

‘No military intervention’

Ukraine’s security council confirmed on Monday that its troops had withdrawn from Luhansk airport “in an organised manner.”

Clashes are said to still be taking place near the airport of the city of Donetsk, with separatists claiming that two Ukrainian platoons have surrendered.

Ukrainian news agency UNIAN quoted a senior official as saying that as many as 680 soldiers had been captured in Donetsk region after the recent fighting.

He said “about 80%” of them were captured around Ilovaysk, east of the city of Donetsk, where hundreds of Ukrainian troops have been cut off since the latest rebel advance began.

There were also reports of an attack on a Ukrainian patrol vessel in the Azov Sea on Sunday night. Meanwhile,

Ukrainian and Russian officials are holding talks with separatist rebels and international monitors in Minsk.

The meeting of the so-called Contact Group includes representatives from the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe.

Lavrov said he was counting on the talks to focus on “agreeing an immediate and unconditional ceasefire.”

He also insisted there would be “no military intervention” from Russia in Ukraine.

Last week’s first direct talks between President Putin and his Ukrainian counterpart, Petro Poroshenko, did not lead to any major breakthrough.

Poroshenko on Monday again accused Russia of “direct and open aggression” in eastern Ukraine. But Putin earlier said Russia could not “stand aside when people are being shot at almost at point blank.”

His comments came after the EU gave Russia a one-week ultimatum to reverse course in Ukraine or face more sanctions.

The EU and US have already imposed asset freezes and travel bans on many senior Russian officials and separatist leaders in eastern Ukraine. l

n Reuters, Benghazi, Libya Libya’s House of Representatives reappointed Prime Minister Abdullah al-Thinni yesterday as the government lost control of ministries in the capital where armed groups have taken over and a separate parliament has claimed legitimacy.

The parliament that was elected in June moved to the remote eastern city of Tobruk last month as rival armed groups battled for Tripoli. An alliance led by forces from the western city of Misrata seized control of the capital last week.

The reappointment of Thinni, a former defence minister and career soldier who has been prime minister since March, sets him the challenge of reasserting government control over a country where many fear a descent into full-scale civil war.

Parliamentary spokesman Faraj Hashem said 64 of the 106 representatives present had voted for Thinni and the house had instructed him “to form a crisis government within a period of time not exceeding two weeks.”

US Foreign Minister John Kerry called Thinni before his appointment to give his support, the Libyan government said in a statement. Both stressed the need for national dialogue and reconciliation, it added.

In a stark illustration of the government’s loss of control in Tripoli, a video posted online showed dozens of men, some armed, crowding around a swimming pool at anUS embassy building, with some diving in from a nearby building.

Washington said on Sunday that an armed group had taken over an abandoned annex of the US Embassy but had not broken into the main compound. All embassy staff were evacuated last month.

Late on Sunday, the government released a statement admitting it had lost its grip on many levers of power.

“We announce that most ministries, institutions and state bodies in the capital Tripoli are out of our control,» it said, adding that armed groups had prevented staff from entering some government buildings. l

Iraq retakes more towns from Islamic State n Agencies Iraqi Kurdish forces and Shia armed volunteers have retaken more northern towns from the Islamic State group, killing at least two of its senior fighters, sources have told Al Jazeera.

A day after breaking the siege in the town of Amerli north of Baghdad, government forces retook the town of Sulaiman Bek on Monday, removing another key stronghold of the Islamic State group.

Iraqi officials said they killed, Mussab Mamoud, the town’s Islamic State head, and Mazen Zaki, the military wing commander, along with more than 20 other Sunni rebel fighters.

Iraqi security officials said eight of the fighters were Chechen. They also said the fighters include dozens of nationalities, including experienced Chechen snipers.

Government forces are still trying to clear the town of explosives left by the armed group which was previously known as ISIL. Iraqi security forces backed by Shia

armed volunteers have now begun clearing operations - meant to flush out remaining fighters and detonate bombs laid by the fighters and expected to take several days.

The small farming town became an Islamic State stronghold after it was seized last year by Jaish al-Tariqiyah al-Naqshabandiyah - Baath party loyalists led by Saddam Hussein’s former deputy Izzat Ibrahim al-Duri.

Iraqi security forces took it back and occupied the town, only to lose it in the sweep by Islamic State fighters through vast areas of Iraq’s north and west.

“The town of Suleiman Bek has been liberated from Islamic State by the Iraqi Army and Peshmerga as well as local volunteers including the Peace Brigade, Badr Corps and Asaib Ahel-al-Haq,” General Abdul Amir al-Zaidi, head of the Dijala Operations commander told Al Jazeera.

The Peace Brigade is an offshoot of Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr’s former armed group the Mehdi Army, while Asaib Ahel-al-Haq is an Iranian-backed group that has now entered Iraq’s political mainstream. l

Kurdish peshmerga forces celebrate as they take control of Sulaiman Pek from the Islamist State militants, in the northwest of Tikrit city. Islamist fighters have carried out atrocities on ‘an unimaginable scale’ in months of fighting with Iraqi forces who have also killed detainees and shelled civilian areas, a UN official said in an emergency debate on the conflict yesterday. At least 1,420 people were killed in Iraq in August alone REUTERS

DHAKA TRIBUNE

World

Japan and India vow to boost defence ties during summit Japan eyes first overseas military sale in 50 years, ‘significant progress’ in nuclear energy talks

n Reuters, Tokyo Japan and India agreed yesterday to strengthen defence ties as Asia’s second and third biggest economies keep a wary eye on a rising China, with India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi lashing out at the “expansionism” of some nations.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi also agreed to speed up talks on a so-far elusive deal on nuclear energy cooperation, welcoming what they called “significant progress” in the negotiations.

“From this day on, Prime Minister Modi and I will work hand-in-hand to dramatically strengthen relations in every field and elevate ties to a special, strategic global partnership,” Abe told a joint media event after a summit with Modi.

They also agreed to accelerate talks on the possible sale of an amphibious aircraft to India’s navy - likely to become Japan’s first overseas military sale in nearly 50 years and a result of Abe’s more muscular approach to defence in the face of an assertive China.

Modi, on his first major foreign visit since a landslide election win in May, arrived on Saturday for a five-day trip aimed at capitalising on his personal affinity with Abe to bolster security and business ties.

“We intend to give a new thrust and direction to our defence cooperation, including collaboration in defence technology and equipment, given our shared interest in peace and stability and maritime security,” Modi said.

In a sign of their warmth, the two leaders greeted each other with a bear

India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi (front L) shakes hands with Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe during a signing ceremony at the state guest house in Tokyo REUTERS hug when they met on Saturday in Japan’s ancient capital of Kyoto for an informal dinner. Modi is one of three people that Abe follows on Twitter, while the Indian leader admires Abe’s brand of nationalist politics.

“The 21st century belongs to Asia ... but how the 21st century will be depends on how strong and progressive India-Japan ties are,” Modi told Japanese and Indian business executives earlier in the day.

Modi criticised the 18th-century expansionist ways of some countries that encroach upon the seas and territories of others, in a veiled reference to China, with which India shares a long disputed border.

Sino-Japanese ties have also been chilled by a row over disputed isles, feuds over the wartime past, and mutual mistrust over defence policies as China seeks a bigger regional role and Abe loosens the constraints of Japan’s post-war pacificism.

Abe is keen to expand Japan’s network of security partnerships with countries such as India and Australia to cope with the challenge presented

by China. Modi, for his part, is embarking on an intense month of diplomacy in which he will receive Chinese President Xi Jinping before meeting US President Barack Obama in Washington as he seeks to carve out a stronger role for India as a global player. l

Afghan talks for unity government collapse, crisis deepens n Reuters, Kabul Talks on a power sharing deal between Afghanistan’s rival presidential candidates, Ashraf Ghani and Abdullah Abdullah, have collapsed, a top leader said yesterday, rekindling fears of ethnic unrest over the disputed vote.

Under the terms of a deal brokered

by US Secretary of State John Kerry, the runner-up in the election would name a “chief executive” in a unity government conceived to keep the lid on political tensions.

But Mohammad Mohaqeq, one of Abdullah’s vice presidential running mates, told Reuters the two sides could not agree on the powers of the chief executive, blaming the Ghani camp for hardening its position.

“The talks collapsed two days ago.

The political process is now at a stalemate, we don’t see any way out,” Mohaqeq, a leader of the minority Hazara community, said in an interview in Kabul, as a months-long power struggle for a successor to President Hamid Karzai showed no signs of a resolution.

Abdullah’s team has walked out of a UN audit of votes from a June 2 run-off ballot, saying it was dissatisfied with the way that fraudulent votes were being handled.

While Abdullah won the most votes in a first round in April, he didn’t pass a 50% threshold to win outright. After the country’s election commission announced Ghani the preliminary winner in the second round, Abdullah threatened to form a parallel government, accusing his rival of stealing votes.

On Monday, a spokesman for the Abdullah campaign said it would withdraw from the political process if its demands

were not met by Tuesday. “We are reaching the limit of our patience, we are giving a deadline until tomorrow,” Fazel Sancharika told a news conference.

The United Nations hopes to complete the audit of 8 million votes by around Sept. 10, clearing the way for Afghanistan’s first democratic transfer of power.

The prolonged political transition comes at a time of deep anxiety in Afghanistan as the United States, Kabul’s biggest aid donor, and other Nato nations withdraw their troops after nearly 13 years of fighting Taliban insurgents.

Diplomats fear a breakdown between the presidential candidates, and the power-brokers who have a stake in the process could trigger conflict along ethnic lines Officials and diplomats fear a breakdown between the presidential candidates and the power-brokers who have a stake in the process could trigger conflict along ethnic lines, on top of the deadly insurgency.

Ghani, a former finance minister and World Bank economist, is a member of Afghanistan’s biggest ethnic group, the Pashtuns. Abdullah is part Pashtun and part ethnic Tajik but draws most of his support from Tajiks, the Hazaras and other smaller minorities, largely in the centre and north. l

China anti-dissent playbook may fail in Hong Kong n AP, Hong Kong

China’s Communist leaders have pulled out their usual playbook to suppress resistance to their plans to tightly limit the first direct election of Hong Kong’s leader, but are likely to find that the results are quite different.

Beijing is blaming radicals and foreigners and showing off its military might, all things unlikely to go down well in the freewheeling capitalist bastion where a sizeable middle class accustomed to freedom of speech and the rule of law plans to push back with acts of civil disobedience.

Rowdy protests on Monday against a visiting Beijing official who was explaining the central government’s decision signaled a new stage in Hong Kong’s battle for democracy.

The ruling came after months of reminders from Beijing that it is ultimately in charge of the city despite its substantial autonomy. But the reaction in the former British colony is shaping up to be unlike anything Beijing is used to encountering when quelling dissent on the mainland.

Dozens of pro-democracy lawmakers heckled Li Fei, the deputy secretary general of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress, or legislature, as he explained the election process, a rare occasion on which a Beijing official was exposed to open defiance.

Pro-democracy lawmaker Helena Wong Pik-wan, center, is taken away by security guards after a protest against Li Fei, deputy secretary general of the National People’s Congress’ Standing Committee, during a briefing session in Hong Kong AP They chanted slogans and waved signs accusing China’s central government of “breaking its promise” to let Hong Kong have full democracy. Security officers escorted some out and car-

ried or dragged away others. Outside the venue, a group of activists trying to storm barricades to get inside were pepper-sprayed by police.

Democracy groups reacted with an-

ger after Li’s announcement on Sunday ruling out open nominations for candidates in Hong Kong’s first direct elections in 2017. Students vowed to boycott classes, and leaders of the Occupy

Central movement said the city had entered an “era of civil disobedience,” adding they would go ahead with plans to paralyze the financial district with 10,000 protesters to press for genuine democracy.

Li dismissed the threats, saying “the Chinese central government believes that the Hong Kong government, especially the high-quality police force and law enforcement agencies, with the support of Hong Kong citizens, will be able to handle it.”

China has sought to blame the opposition in Hong Kong on interference by Britain and other unidentified foreign forces, an echo of Beijing’s frequent attacks on “overseas anti-China forces” it blames for encouraging dissidents and fueling instability among its ethnic minorities.

Hong Kong activists operate openly in a way unthinkable on the mainland.

Restrictions seen there are largely absent in Hong Kong. Activists are free to organize large anti-government protest rallies attracting tens of thousands of demonstrators, thanks to guarantees in the city’s mini-constitution ensuring freedom of speech.

Hong Kongers also don’t face politically motivated punishment from the city’s independent courts. A hard line on democracy in Hong Kong will also do nothing to advance China’s courtship of Taiwan, the self-governing island democracy that Beijing is determined to bring under its control. l

Nalanda University reopens after hundreds of years n Agencies The revived Nalanda University, an ancient international centre for learning in Bihar which has attracted over 1,000 applications from around the world, began its first academic session yesterday with 15 students, including five women, and 10 faculty members, its vice-chancellor said.

“We are ready to start the academic session of Nalanda University Monday,” vice-chancellor Gopa Sabhrawal told IANS prior to reopening classes.

Sabhrawal said a three-day student orientation programme for the School of Historical Sciences and the School of Environment and Ecology for the first session 2014-15 commenced on Friday in the makeshift campus at the Buddhist pilgrim town of Rajgir, about 100 km from Patna. The university will come up in Rajgir, 12 km from where the ancient Nalanda Univeristy stood till the 12th century, when it was razed by an invading Turkish army.

The formal inauguration is expected in mid-September, Sabhrawal said. The fully-residential university, to be completed by 2020, will eventually have seven schools, all for post-graduate and doctoral students,

offering courses in science, philosophy and spirituality and social sciences.

“Over 1,000 students from 40 countries have sought admission in Nalanda University. But only 15 students have been selected, including one each from Japan and Bhutan and others from India,” Sabharwal said.

More students will be enrolled in September as the selection process is still under way, she added.

It was initially decided to enrol 40 students — 20 each in the two schools — but after scrutiny and interview only the best students have been selected, Sabharwal said.

Applications have been received from the US, Russia, England, Spain, Germany, Japan, Myanmar, Austria and Sri Lanka, among others, as also from West Asian and Southeast Asian countries.

Those 15 selected students will be housed in Hotel Tathagat, owned by the Bihar State Tourism Development Corporation (BSTDC) in Rajgir. Classes will be held in the nearby convention hall of the state government.

Rajgir attracts thousands of tourists from all over the world every year. It is the second most visited tourist place in the Buddhist cir-

cuit in Bihar after Bodh Gaya, considered as the birthplace of Buddhism, where Gautam Buddha attained enlightenment over 2,500 years ago. Rajgir (then Rajagriha) was the first capital of the Magadha kingdom and one of the favourite places of the Buddha.

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Tuesday, September 2, 2014

The university is an initiative of the Indian government and the 18 East Asia Summit (EAS) countries.

During his trip to Brunei in October 2013, then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had inked agreements with seven EAS countries

— Australia, Cambodia, Singapore, Brunei, New Zealand, Laos and Myanmar — that have pledged their commitment to the project.

China has committed $1m for the project and a MOU on this was signed during Manmohan Singh’s visit to Beijing in November 2013. Singapore has pledged $5-6m and Australia about $1m Australian dollars.

In May 2013, the Nalanda board had approved the architectural plan of the university, proposing a massive lake at the centre of the campus. A library, a huge dome-shaped structure, would come up in the middle of the lake and be half submerged.

The cental government has sanctioned Rs.2,700 crore ($445m) cost for the university, to be spent over 10 years.

Established in the fifth century during the Gupta dynasty, the ancient Nalanda University was once flocked by thousands of scholars and thinkers from across the world.

It was destroyed by the invading Turkish army of Bakhtiyar Khilji, a general of Qutbuddin Aibak and the blaze in the huge library is believed to have raged for several days. l

For Myanmar political predictions, locals look to the stars

n Tribune Desk

For years, Myanmar watchers attributed the odd decisions made by the country’s military rulers to an influential class of government apparatchik: the astrologer bureaucrat.

Take the way the regime moved the capital from Yangon to Naypyidaw in 2005: on Nov. 11, at 11am, 1,100 military trucks ferried 11 military battalions and 11 ministries to a brand-new city carved from the jungle.

Similar advice in 1987, according to a report by The Christian Science Monitor, led the regime to demonetize certain banknotes (causing widespread financial hardship and helping spark the 1988 democracy protests), and to order the mass cultivation of a plant the military believed would sap democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi’s strength.

Sweeping reforms begun in 2011 have edged Myanmar, formerly Burma, closer to democracy; next year it’s expected to hold the freest general elections since 1960. But that hasn’t diminished the political influence of astrologers – it’s just changed their audience. No longer exclusive to a ruling elite, political astrology has been democratized, and is now a fixture of Myanmar’s vibrant new media industry, with astrologer columnists and commentators appearing in newspapers regularly. Call it the rise of the “astrologer pundit.”

Their predictions began appearing with the end of newspaper censorship in 2012, and are a part of the new era of press freedom. Yet the phenomenon also suggests newspaper readers here are willing to accept a form of fatalism inimical to the spirit of democracy: why bother voting if the stars determine what is so?

By far the most famous of these seers are San-Zarni Bo and Zayar Ko, two men with opposite political views.

San-Zarni Bo discovered astrology as a political prisoner. Zayar Ko, attended Myanmar’s version of West Point military academy.

Their forecasts frequently betray their own political sympathies. “People want bad news about the government and good news about the opposition,” says San-Zarni Bo. His office mingles Buddha statuettes with computer equipment that enlarges handprints during palm-reading sessions. He’s developed smart-phone apps that deliver horoscopes to subscribers in Myanmar and Thailand, and has daily broadcast gigs.

He is also a staunch supporter of Ms. Suu Kyi, whose National League for Democracy is expected to do well in next year’s parliamentary elections (he says she politely ignores his advice about lucky dates). Journalists writing for the biggest local newspapers seek him out regularly and quote him with reverence. l

Thai ruler gives top cabinet posts to junta inner circle n Reuters, Bangkok Military ruler General Prayuth Chanocha has named an interim cabinet dominated by members of the security forces to governThailand through at least a year of political reforms before he permits an election.

Prayuth was widely expected to hand the top portfolios to the military as he chooses a government from the small circle that formed the junta that has ruled since a coup on May 22.

Thailand’s army chief has kept an iron grip on power as he extends the government, hand-picking an interim parliament that subsequently nominated him prime minister. The parliament, like the cabinet, is dominated by members of the military.

The Thai king gave royal approval to the interim cabinet on Sunday. The cabinet will have an audience with the monarch in coming days, the last formality before it can begin governing.

The portfolios of transport, defence, commerce and interior ministries will go to members of the armed forces.

Economics and finance go to civilians.

The interior and defence ministers are two army generals that a Reuters report last year showed secretly backed the protests that undermined the government ofYingluck Shinawatra and paved the way for the coup.

The interior ministry goes to General Anupong Paochinda, who was army chief from 2007 to 2010. General Prawit Wongsuwan returns to the defence ministry, and will also be the deputy prime minister.

The two are towering figures in Thailand’s military establishment, have close ties to Prayuth and are staunch monarchists who played a role in the previous coup inThailand in 2006. That coup ousted Yingluck’s brother, Thaksin Shinawatra. l

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DHAKA TRIBUNE

Editorial

Tuesday, September 2, 2014

CODE-CRACKER

Education not intimidation

T

wo recent incidents once again bring to the light the fact that campuses in Bangladesh are often a breeding ground for intimidation and violence.

Five female students were thrown out of a Dhaka University residence hall by thugs for refusing to participate in a BCL rally, while faculty and students at Chittagong University are being held hostage by a handful of activists of the student wing of Islamic Front Bangladesh.

Nobody should have to suffer intimidation and disruption in any walk of life. It is disgraceful that leading academic institutions are regularly blighted in the name of politics, which prevent staff and students from focusing on education.

Student activists should not have so much power that they can control large parts of the student body through coercion and intimidation. It is utterly unacceptable that students can be thrown out of their residences simply for not joining in a rally.

The persistence of such activities at the core of our education system gives our public universities a bad name, and neither helps ordinary students nor wins converts to any political causes.

All political parties must disassociate themselves from such criminal behaviour by their student activists.

University authorities and police must do more to protect ordinary students and staff. If groups cannot conduct political activities in a lawful and peaceful manner, their activities must be curbed. The government should support academic administrations in cracking down hard on any members of the student body who disrupt university life for those around them, regardless of affiliation.

It is disgraceful that leading academic institutions are blighted in the name of politics

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

Re-claim land from Bay of Bengal August 29

Md Ashrafe Hossain Satellite images from the early 1970s showed the water-flow of rivers here carrying huge amounts of silt, doubling the land in the Bay of Bengal and increasing the coastal areas. This nation’s total area is now about 143,998 square kilometres, where 160 million people live. In 1971, when Bangladesh gained independence, its population was about 75 million.

Land is very scarce here. Over-population has led to the active and prudent consideration to utilise the scarce land for agriculture, the establishment of industries, development of communication infrastructure, conservation of forests and wetlands,

How to solve: Each number in our CODE-CRACKER grid represents a different letter of the alphabet. For example, today 9 represents M so fill M every time the figure 9 appears.

You have one letter in the control grid to start you off. Enter it in the appropriate squares in the main grid, then use your knowledge of words to work out which letters go in the missing squares.

Some letters of the alphabet may not be used.

As you get the letters, fill in the other squares with the same number in the main grid, and the control grid. Check off the list of alphabetical letters as you identify them.

ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ

and so on. It is positive thinking no doubt.

Simultaneously, we have to re-claim land from Bay of Bengal where about 200 million metric tons of silt are deposited every year. Bangladesh needs to expedite the reclamation of land from the bay. No doubt, it will be a colossal amount of work, and needs huge investment, but we have to start now. Time is running out.

Over-populated Bangladesh desperately needs more land to keep the pace of development going for its people. The government ought to make a 100-year plan to reclaim another Bangladesh from the bay and begin implementing the plan from now.

SUDOKU Wrath of the Padma August 26

Ahle Sunnat leader Faruqi slaughtered

How to solve: 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.

August 28

Rajan Rayhan Very sad. People are no longer safe in their own houses.

Stop forced disappearances

O

ver 300 people from all walks of life have been victims of enforced disappearances since 2007.

It is a matter of grave concern for all citizens that so many abductions and enforced disappearances can take place in our country.

Whether carried out for the purposes of extortion or other criminality, or to stifle political competition, there must be zero tolerance for this appalling activity.

According to Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK), the number of disappearances is rising, with 74 people falling victim in the first six months of this year. Of these, 39 people have been traced, with 23 of them being found dead.

It is especially concerning when kidnapping and violence is used for political purposes or as an instrument to suppress human rights activists from voicing their concerns. Any allegations of people being abducted into secret detention by law enforcers must be fully investigated, but unfortunately this has not always been the case.

While high-profile incidents this year have seen some follow-up action, with for example the arrest of some RAB members following the Narayanganj-7 murders, the government must do more to reassure the public.

It is the state’s foremost duty to protect all citizens. The government has a fundamental duty to prevent enforced disappearances and act to bring as many victims as possible safely home to their families.

Any persons or groups implicated in disappearances, for whatever reason or purpose, must be apprehended and brought to justice.

Bring perpetrators to justice to prevent disappearances

Mohammed Sanowar Hossain Oh Allah. What is happening in our nation!

Sheikh Jinat Mahmid Isn’t it a great picture?!

Mahmud Hossain Opu Frame within frame. Love it.

Dilapidated Mouchak-Malibagh road turns into dangerous trap for commuters August 27

Pavel Al Mamun “The huge tidal wave of the Padma has destroyed the houses of the people who used to live on the bank of the river. The Mawa Kaurakandi ferry ghat has gone underwater and caused traffic jams. Life in the bank of the Padma has become uncertain.”

The photos are amazing!

CROSSWORD

OC accused of raping maid

August 26 Imtiaz U Khan Raseq And here we have the so-called protectors of our society.

Pakistan cleric warns of 48-hour deadline for Sharif’s resignation August 27

Esha “Tahir-ul-Qadri, leader of Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT), showed protesters a white burial shroud.”

More on drama and thriller.

CALVIN AND HOBBES

Nur Elahee The road as well as the situation itself is terrible, and has been since mid-June this year.

SM “Even a brief spell of rain fills up the big potholes that dot the road. A couple, with a baby in their arms, recovers yesterday after their rickshaw overturns when the rickshaw-puller steered the vehicle into a hidden pothole on the inundated road. Such scenes have become common nowadays.”

Why do they always start the construction work during the monsoon season?!

ACROSS 1 Marsh (6) 6 Corded fabric (3) 9 Combine (5) 10 Polynesian drink (4) 11 Numeral (5) 12 Kitchen utensil (3) 13 Tell tales (6) 15 Young horse (4) 18 Excuse (4) 21 Fault (6) 24 Choler (3) 25 Traffic light (5) 28 First man (4) 29 Bailiff (5) 30 Fate (3) 31 One’s right wits (6)

DOWN 1 Melody (5) 2 United (3) 3 Competitor (5) 4 Consumed (3) 5 Transmitted (4) 6 Deeply engrossed (4) 7 Develop gradually (6) 8 Top of the head (4) 14 Summit (3) 16 Carry too far (6) 17 Digit (3) 19 Roundish projections (5) 20 Land measures (5) 21 Clock face (4) 22 Noteworthy act (4) 23 Biblical weed (4) 26 Adults (3) 27 First woman (3)

Mashrafe named captain for Asian games August 26

Khan Moinuddin Congrats Mashrafe!

3 gunned down in capital August 28

PEANUTS

Humayun Hyder This is a gruesome murder that took place at Shonali Bagh in Moghbazar.

Some goons opened fire and killed the members of a family – a lady and two men – and wounded another who is now fighting for life at Dhaka Medical College Hospital.

It was learned from a relative of the deceased lady, Ranu Begum, that a gang of six or seven hoodlums were pressuring the family for ransom money, but the goons were unable to get a hold of the money. Hence, the leader of that gang, Kalu Babu, just shot them.

I believe the police should immediately arrest the group and give them exemplary punishment for their offence.

Malaysia to compensate 3 Bangladeshi families August 25

Anon “3 Bangladeshis were killed in Malaysia, and the perpetrators were paid RM25,000 each.”

It’s sad to say, but the reality is that life is just so cheap.

YESTERDAY’S SOLUTIONS CODE-CRACKER

CROSSWORD

SUDOKU

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Op-Ed

11

Tuesday, September 2, 2014

Ebola and the failure to respond Nierle and n Thomas Bruno Jochum

D

Ikhtisad Ahmed is a writer and an erstwhile lawyer. He can be contacted on Twitter via @ Ikhtisad.

ead bodies in the streets, families wiped out, dozens of healthcare workers infected, hospitals shut down, and panic and mistrust in the eyes of the people in the streets. This is what Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) usually sees in countries that are ravaged by war, but in Sierra Leone, Liberia, and to a lesser extent, Guinea, it is Ebola that is generating immense public distress.

As of today, more than 1,427 patients have succumbed to the Ebola viral disease, with the care centres established by Médecins Sans Frontières being overwhelmed. On August 8, being far too late, the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared the Ebola epidemic a public health emergency of international concern. However, it had been officially declared in West Africa since March.

The disaster is becoming even more dramatic as the health systems in the affected region have imploded.

Patients are dying not only of Ebola, but also of malaria, diarrhea, or complicated deliveries due to the absence of effective medical care. In Liberia especially, hospitals are deserted, and fear is spreading.

MSF has been responding to the crisis since March. We have opened up more and more isolation centres throughout the affected countries to care for the sick, and we have assisted the communities. For the last three months, we have actively been calling for more hands-on assistance to control the epidemic and to provide the best possible care to patients.

However, the international response has been slow and derisory. It can equally be defined as irresponsible. Today, only a handful of international actors are engaged in the fight against Ebola. But this is nowhere near enough. This is an exceptional crisis, the number of new infections is still on the rise, and the virus has serious potential to spread to other countries.

Promises of funding and political statements are not sufficient – decisive action is needed now. Case-finding must be intensified, more isolation centres have to be set up, epidemiological surveillance and laboratory capacity have to be reinforced, contact tracing and follow-up must be strengthened, communities must be sensitised, experienced staff and training is needed in the field, and general healthcare services must be reopened.

These activities must be properly coordinated inside and beyond the borders of the affected countries. This necessitates a hands-on, operational approach.

The situation can only be reversed if there is a significant commitment of states with available effective disaster response capacity – be it through civil protection mechanisms, the support of military medicine units, or of logistics or medical staff who are used to working with strict infection prevention and control measures.

The successive closure of international borders, including air travel, renders our efforts increasingly difficult. Infected medical personnel cannot be evacuated anymore, anoth-

mega power project in Tripura without charging any duty. India has long been demanding the use of Bangladesh’s land and water to carry goods from the mainland to its seven landlocked

agreement has been signed between the countries in this regard. No discussions have been held in parliament and the people have been divided over the issue for a while now. The crack

Dead in protest

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Kill first

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n Ikhtisad Ahmed police officer shot and killed a man without cause or due process.

The incident took place just over three years ago in the city that was the capital of the empire on which the sun never set. It happened again this year, in the land of the free, a sadistic observance of the third anniversary.

Both victims were young men of African descent – the politically correct term the two hubristic white nations that purport to be the best in the world use when they mean “black.” Deriding that word, of course, is enough to pride oneself in not being racist.

Meanwhile, the police shoot unarmed men that fit that description.

The reason, whether it is said out loud or not, is that these men conform to a prejudicial profile of suspected criminals. The illegal activities they are said to be undertaking are ones that law enforcement officials are actively looking for, and targeting those of a specific physical and ethnic type in the process.

The police was wrong in both cases.

When citizens pointed this out to them peacefully, they retaliated forcefully.

A quick escalation, with the public reaction getting out of hand, led to militarisation of the police. Unlike the disturbed white men who deserve compassion even when they shoot innocent children, the media did not mince words when denouncing these ethnic rascals. Stereotyping, and

that is a euphemism, exists, leading to routine suspicion, rudeness, and belligerence.

Institutional racism not only exists, but is prevalent. It may be a difficult truth to accept – the world is more inclined to believing the feel-good truths spun by Hollywood. People want to believe that those dark days are history. The guilt of those past crimes are acknowledged in popular accounts, ending in redemption, not of the wronged parties, but of the inhumane oppressors.

translates to the Western white man being a god. The rest are animals, barbaric and backwards. Armies are entrusted with the protection of the white man and the propagation of his power, and are, thus, trained in line with the myth.

Positive or affirmative action is a plaster applied to a gangrenous wound, prettied by being painted over in white. It does not stop the authorities from briefing themselves about the young men of African descent who are drug dealers and abusers, and

Positive or affirmative action is a plaster applied to a gangrenous wound, prettied by being painted over in white

However, when politicians acting in their professional capacity, either on the floor of the parliament or in official addresses and statements, coin new terms such as “terrorist murder” that do not exist in statutes because of the perpetrators’ race or religion, and defend privileged citizens who may flagrantly be guilty of wrongdoing, they give a glimpse of the ugly truth.

The ruling class is programmed to believe in its superiority. On a global scale, this self-perpetuating myth

the young men of Middle Eastern and South Asian descent who are terrorists. One black man being the occupant of the White House does not change the way the world works.

Applying Western principles of human rights to countries that are not as developed – development entails social, cultural, and legal strides being made as much as economic ones – is worse than judging the West’s past atrocities, including the heinous crimes of imperialism and slavery, by

today’s standards.

Excusing its barbarism by arguing that it was not developed – indeed, it can be argued with merit that the West was hopelessly behind many of whom it colonised, and remain so in many respects – is as arrogant and unacceptable as imposing its will as universal values.

Confirmation bias of this kind, especially in the face of the West failing to uphold or obey the very same sacred tenets it has prescribed for the rest of the world, needs to be rooted out without exception. Governments should, further, focus their attentions on getting their own houses in order, on the proverbial fingers pointing back at them.

The flashpoints of the London Riots and Ferguson are indicative of a deeper malaise, of the fabric of the respective societies rotting away without being acknowledged or tended to, because their governments are too busy ruining things for everyone else as well to fix their own cancerous problems.

The preference for policies that suppress and bring others down to their lowly levels over those that elevate themselves remains as clear as ever.

They ought to revisit the conscience that spawned the humane values they use as justification for the unjustifiable when it comes to others, and listen to it.

At least then hypocrisy cannot be added to their lengthy charge sheets. l

er layer of collective irresponsibility.

The international community must ensure that those who try to contain the outbreak can enter and leave the affected countries if need be. A functional system of medical evacuation has to be set up urgently.

The closure of international borders, including air travel, renders our efforts increasingly difficult

Why is it that the international community is largely relying on the very fragile health systems in the affected countries to manage an international health crisis of this scope? And why are they entrusting global health security to private organisations that have, by nature, limited capacities to respond to major outbreaks? It is irresponsible to place exclusive management of such a devastating, deadly epidemic on the back of overwhelmed nations such as Sierra Leone and Liberia while praying that the private sector is filling the gaps left by the shortfalls of its heath system.

MSF has accumulated significant experience in dealing with Ebola outbreaks over the last 20 years. During the same period, operational capacities in the United Nations system have been gradually reduced through reforms. For example, the restructuring of the WHO in Geneva has led to the closure of its viral hemorrhagic fever unit. Member states should be held accountable for an unceasing reduction in response capacity.

A destructive spiral has materialised, leading to what we see today: Lack of leadership, deficient coordination and, last but not least, a striking absence of operational capacity. This is compounded by the fact that the international community simply doesn’t feel responsible for responding to what is happening in regions that are not perceived as politically or economically interesting.

Crises that are threatening global health security demand commitment from all states. Once this commitment is ensured, response capacity can be built around either existing or newly established institutions or networks.

It is shortsighted of developed nations to limit their responses to the potential arrival of one infected patient on their territory. If the aim is to avoid further spread of the epidemic, we have to control transmission of the virus. And this is only possible by caring for patients in West Africa.

Today and again, Médecins Sans Frontières asks for more – not more lip service, but more action. l Thomas Nierle is President of MSF Switzerland. Bruno Jochum is General Director of MSF Switzerland. This article was previously published in Le Temps (Switzerland) in French.

Crossing the line n Abdullah Zobair

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he statehood of Bangladesh is at stake as the incumbent government has allowed India to transship goods to its northeastern states through the lands of Bangladesh without taking people’s mandate to give transshipment facilities to the neighbouring country.

The transshipment of goods through the territory of Bangladesh would cut costs on India’s end, but contrarily would suspend Bangladesh’s exports to Tripura permanently, losing huge foreign currency in the process.

Local exporters are in fear of losing their businesses and we fear of losing our sovereignty. We see how the government has been doing everything to help India in abandoning the interests of Bangladesh after assuming power in 2009.

The pro-Indian government in Bangladesh is letting India transship essential goods, including food grains, via Bangladesh’s Tripura, without duties under the river protocol between the two countries, but is getting noth-

ing in return.

Quoting local exporters, a national English daily reported that businessmen in the Akhaura land port would have nothing to export to Tripura if India was allowed to transship on a permanent basis, and consequently the country would be deprived of sizeable foreign exchange. Bangladesh exports over 40 items, including plastic goods, cement, stone, and fish through Akhaura, but hardly imports any Indian products through Agartala on the other side of the border.

The daily reported that India is, for the first time, transporting rice from its southeastern state of Andhra Pradesh to its northeastern state of Tripura through Bangladesh on a “pilot initiative,” which is also affecting export of local goods there as the Indian cargos were getting priority on the narrow passage to the border at Akhaura. India reportedly plans to ship 35,000 tons of food grains annually to its northeastern states through Bangladesh, after the successful completion of the ongoing trial transshipment begun in early August.

Akhaura land port customs officer Md Lutfur Rahman said India had already transshipped around 4,000 tons of rice through 200 vehicles since August 7. Md Tajul Islam, general secretary of the Exporters and Importers’ Association at Akhaura, said there was a huge demand for Bangladeshi products in the seven northeastern states of India, and if India can ferry goods via Bangladesh, we will lose our exports there.

In the first consignment, five ships loaded with 5,000 tons of rice reached the Ashuganj river port in Bangladesh from Kolkata on August 5 for delivery in Agartala. Dhaka is kind enough that it decided to waive the duty on the transshipment of 10,000 tons of rice during the trial phase on “humanitarian grounds.” A truck travels more than 1,650km to carry goods from Kolkata to Agartala through Guwahati – a distance that can be reduced to 350km when the Bangladeshi route is used, according to news reports.

In 2012, Bangladesh allowed India to ferry heavy machinery through Ashuganj port for the 726MW Palatana

Bangladesh is letting India transship essential goods, including food grains, via Bangladesh’s Tripura, without duties

northern states, but not any government, except the Awami League’s in its earlier term, had agreed to allow India to use Bangladesh’s lands and waterways, arguing that it would hamper the existing trade relations between the countries.

Bangladesh has not reached any consensus to give the transit or transshipment facilities to India, no

widened further when the long-hyped Teesta Water Sharing Agreement was cast aside during former Indian premier Manmohan Singh’s Dhaka visit in 2011.

After fulfilling all of India’s demands, Sheikh Hasina on Saturday requested India for signing the long-pending Teesta water sharing deal, facilitating transit with Nepal and

Bhutan through India. The foremost duty of a government in a sovereign state is to protect the national interest and the interests of its people. Is the incumbent government protecting our interests?

The present Bangladeshi government is not like its previous term, as it assumed power in a one-sided, socalled election where 153 lawmakers out of 300 were elected unopposed, and the rest were elected without any contest and participatory elections.

Surely, the government does not truly represent the citizens of Bangladesh and thus it has no right to allow its neighbouring country to use the lands and rivers of a sovereign country, demolishing its own interest. If it happens, the government will be treated as a traitor and the role of the AL will be considered anti-liberation, despite their propagating of pro-liberation sentiments. l Abdullah Zobair is Executive Director of Bangladesh Initiative for Political Development (BIPD). He can be followed at twitter.com/azobair

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DHAKA TRIBUNE

Entertainment

Tuesday, September 2, 2014

RUHEE’s new journey Step Up

M

HBO Defined 8:45pm

odel-cum-actor Dilruba Yasmin Ruhee is going to tie the knot with Monsur Ali, the director of recently released “71-er Shongram” in which she played a lead role. The wedding is slated to be held tomorrow and will be followed by a post-wedding reception on September 5.

In an interview with Dhaka Tribune, the actor talked about the latest phase in her life, her upcoming film “Zero Degree,” a directorial venture of Animesh Aich, and others films including “Mayanagar” and “Glamour.” Below is an excerpt:

REACHES DHAKA

How did you and Mansur Ali get closer?

Tyler is sentenced to 200 hours of community service at the school. During his job, he meets Nora, a dance student. He learns a few steps and later shows his friends the ballet steps while mixing them with break-dance.

While working for “71-er Shongram,” we got the chance to know each other and get closer. I was expecting to find someone like him in my life and I am happy that I finally did.

How do you see your life post-marriage?

I always preferred my family to everything else, my career included. After marriage my first priority will be my new family. The fact is, blood relations and non-blood relations are not similar. You have to put a lot of effort into creating and sustaining the second kind of relations. So I think I’ll have to do the balancing act to keep my marital life and my career in order.

Saving Private Ryan Zee Studio 11:30pm

Tell us something about your Tollywood venture “Glamour”

The acting part of the movie is over. After managing some personal business, I will go to Kolkata for dubbing, a photo-shoot for the film poster and other promotional activities.

What was it like to attend the world premiere of “71-er Shongram” in London?

It was a wonderful experience. International directors and actors watched the film, and it was praised by the audience as well. It felt wonderful that our film was being showcased in cinemas together with Hollywood and internationally acclaimed films. After the London festival, we are getting invitations from film festivals from other parts of the world.

How do you balance between acting and modeling?

I love acting. But I also love modeling, ramp modeling to be specific, because when I do ramp modeling I have an option to get involved in designing and other creative ventures also. Though the modeling industry in Bangladesh is still a fledgling one, I would love to make an imprint on the industry. l

n Entertainment Desk Marvel’s latest flick “Guardians of the Galaxy” which cemented its place as the top-grossing movie of the 2014 of US box office, is going to be sdreened at the Star Cineplex in the capital from September 5.

Giant robot sequel “Transformers: Age of Extinction,” which had a June 27 U.S. opening, reigns as the year’s top-grossing film worldwide with more than $1 billion in sales,

Naked and scantily-clad pictures of Oscar-winning actress Jennifer Lawrence, as well as racy photos of other celebrities, surfaced online, spurring speculation about another celebrity hacking case.

Several of the photos, posted by a user on the 4chan website, show the various hairstyles the 24-year-old “Hunger Games” star has sported over the past three years, reported E! online.

“This is a flagrant violation of privacy. The authorities have been contacted and will prosecute anyone who posts the stolen photos of Jennifer Lawrence,” Lawrence’s representative said.

Another photo showing “Final Destination 3” star Mary Elizabeth Winstead naked was also posted. The actress responded to the leak on Twitter.

“Knowing those photos were deleted long ago, I can only imagine the creepy effort that went into this.

Feeling for everyone who got hacked,” she said.

The actresses have not commented and it is unclear if any of the pictures are authentic.

Many celebrities have been victims of nude photo leaks. In late 2012, a man was sentenced to 10 years in prison for hacking into the online accounts of Scarlett Johansson and Mila Kunis and posting their private pictures online. l

The film is set in the times of World War II. Three of the Ryan brothers are killed while in action and the US Army Chief of Staff finds out that there is a fourth brother, Private James Ryan. He decides to save Mrs. Ryan further grief by ensuring Private Ryan’s safety.

Ananta Jalil poised for new flick THE SPY

Jennifer Lawrence’s naked pictures leak online n Entertainment Desk

including a domestic haul of $244.3 million, according to boxofficemojo.

The big-budget space adventure stars Chris Pratt and Zoe Saldana as leaders of an oddball group of warriors that includes a talking raccoon and a humanoid tree.

Light years from Earth, 26 years after being abducted, Peter Quill finds himself the prime target of a manhunt after discovering an orb wanted by Ronan the Accuser. The film also impressed the critics. l

n Entertainment Desk

Beduin’s Shaon releases solo single

n Entertainment Desk

Mustafa Shaon, a singer and a vocalist of the band Beduin, has recently released a single titled “Na Bola Kotha” online. The lyrics, tune and composition of the track is done by Mustafa Shaon himself. The track is available exclusively at qineticmusic.com.

While talking to the Dhaka Tribune about his single, Shaon said: “I am getting positive feedback from the audience about the single as it’s being aired on radio stations. I worked hard and put my best effort to create the song particularly.”

“I took a different path of releasing online single instead of full physical album because of the dire situation of the music industry. Currently, I am working on another track titled “Onubhuti” and when all the tracks for entire album will be in prompt I will go for a physical album,” he added. A music video of the song “Na Bola Kotha” directed by the artist himself is in the pipeline.

Earlier Mustafa Shaon lent his voice for three tracks in an album titled “Tomay Niye Sajano” along with Sajib Chowdhury and composed music for another album titled “Nobo Anonde Jago,” a Tagore song remake album, by the late singer Abid Shariar. l

Actor-director Ananta Jalil is set to embark on a new directorial project soon. Titled “The Spy: Agrojatrar Mohanayok,” the movie is in its pre-production stage now with shooting likely to begin any day soon, Ali Zaker Sajib, media manager of Ananta, said.

Ananta Jalil is currently on a business tour to Japan where his latest flick “Most Welcome 2” is also being showcased, Sajib added, saying he will begin the project once he returns home.

In “The Spy,” Ananta will be seen as a spy and paired with Barsha, his real-life wife and frequent collaborator in most of his films. Most of the shooting of the film will take place in foreign locations.

The makers are planning to release the film during the next Eid-ul-Fitr vacation. l

TODAY IN DHAKA

n Entertainment Desk

Four biopics in Ranbir’s hands

Looks like Ranbir Kapoor has become the go-to star for biopics being made in Bollywood. Recently, the actor had revealed that he was “in talks” to play actor Sanjay Dutt in a biopic to be made

by Rajkumar Hirani. Now, the latest news is that he wants to do a film on late actor Amrish Puri.

“Ranbir feels his life will make for an interesting story. Biopics also tend to be a little more challenging and he enjoys taking on such roles. Plus, he has always been a fan of Amrishji. But right now, nothing has been confirmed,” says an industry insider.

In the past, reports have also revealed that Ranbir is slated to star in director Anurag Basu’s biopic on Kishore Kumar. Speaking about the project, Anurag had told IANS: “Ranbir and I are certainly doing it… Kishore can’t be made in breaks and spurts.

It has to be done in one, long stretch.”

It doesn’t stop here. Earlier this year, it was also reported that Ranbir was in talks to play the role of hockey wizard Dhyan Chand in an upcoming biopic that was to be produced by Pooja Shetty. Then, a few years ago, rumours claimed that the actor was going to play the role of mathematician Anand Kumar in another biopic, also to be directed by Anurag.

If Ranbir Kapoor’s name has been attached to four biopics, Vidya Balan’s has been associated with six such offers. As per reports, her list includes biopics on Meena Kumari, Kiran Bedi, acclaimed singer Begum Akhtar, India’s first lady doctor Rakmabai, poet Kamala Das, and renowned Carnatic vocalist MS Subbulakshmi. l

Film

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes(3D) Lucy Most Welcome 2 Maleficent Transformers: Age of Extinction (3D) Time: 10am – 10pm Star Cineplex, Level 8, Bashundhara City 13/3 Ka, Panthopath

Exhibition

Ode to Beauty

By Shama Shaiom Time: 3pm – 9pm Alliance Francaise de Dhaka, 26 Mirpur Road Existence Delineated

By Fahmida Urmi Hossain Time: 3pm – 8pm Dhaka Art Centre, Rd No 7 Threads of Testimony

By Dilara Begum Joly Time: 12pm-8pm Bengal Art Lounge, 60, Gulshan Avenue Reality vs Imagination and Illusion

By Samiran Chowdhury Time: 12pm-8pm Gallery Cosmos 2

Did you know?

Since 2009-10, Falcao has scored 104 goals in 139 league apps (for Porto, A.Madrid & Monaco combined)

Sport

Mashrafe admits not playing up to expectations Five national cricketers including Mashrafe bin Mortaza, Taskin Ahmed, Mithun Ali, Abdur Razzak and Sohag Gazi arrived in Dhaka yesterday morning after the conclusion of three ODIs and a T20I in West Indies. Upon arrival, veteran paceman Mashrafe admitted Bangladesh did not play to their potentials in the ODI series.

“Actually we could not play according to our expectations, but we still have two Test matches left and I hope the team will be able to finish the series on a positive note,” said Mashrafe at the Hazrat Shahjalal International airport yesterday.

The 30-year-old bowled well in the ODI series where he picked up five wickets from three matches, and more importantly spearheaded the pace bowling attack with great maturity.

However, he couldn’t finish on a high after being smashed for 69/1 in his ten overs in the last ODI.

n

After a gap of three years, the Walton 12th National Summer Athletics Championship 2014 will be held at the Bangabandhu National Stadium on

General secretary of Bangladesh Athletics Federation Ibrahim Chengish (L) receives check from FM Iqbal Bin Anwar Dawn (2L) yesterday COURTESY

15 Mushfiq, Nasir

in Swiss joy, Sharapova crashes

AFP, Paris

Manchester United swooped from nowhere on Monday to make striker Radamel Falcao the surprise big signing on the last day of Europe’s record-breaking summer transfer window.

British media said the Colombian would have to pass a medical to seal the move from Monaco in a one year loan that pushes United’s spending since the opening of the transfer market on June 9 above £150 million ($250 million).

Teams from the top leagues in England, Spain, Germany, Italy and France have laid out more than $2.1 billion during the transfer window and the frenzied last day is likely to see the figure rise substantially.

Manchester United have been the single biggest spenders, ahead of Spain’s Real Madrid.

The club’s Mexican striker Javier Hernandez joined Real Madrid on a season long loan. United’s England striker Danny Wellbeck was also tipped to move during the day. Their Japanese striker Shinji Kagawa returned to former club Borussia Dortmund on Sunday.

Manchester City’s England defender Micah Richards was in Italy for a medical with Fiorentina, the Italian side said. Chelsea’s Dutch midfielder Marco van Ginkel joined AC Milan.

Italy’s World Cup striker Alessio Cerci moved from Torino to Atletico Madrid, who have signed 10 players for their campaign to defend the Spanish title.

According to FIFA Transfer Matching System, which monitors the global market, the big five leagues have already smashed the $2.02 billion spent on last year’s transfer market.

Spending is dramatically higher this year in England, Spain and to a lesser degree Germany. l

“We couldn’t play as a unit as when one particular department performed well, the other departments failed completely. Sometimes bowlers created chances, sometimes batters scored runs but generally we played very poor cricket,” he acknowledged.

However, there is no injury concern in the Tigers’ camp and the fast bowlers are doing a good job. “Bowlers have done well in the last two series and there are no injury concerns for Taskin, Rubel, Shafiul and Al Amin in the pace bowling department while Shakib al Hasan will be returning in the spin department soon, and if Abdur Razzak can return to his form, it will be good for us,” said Mashrafe.

One of the most experienced and senior cricketers now, Mashrafe was recently named captain for the upcoming Asian Games and he mentioned that the ultimate goal is to win the gold while hoping the players would gain some confidence from the Tests against West Indies. l

September 7-8. Being one of the largest and colourful local sports events of the country, it will feature 64 districts, seven divisions, different universities, physical colleges and services teams.

A total of 700 male and female ath-

15 Bencic, Federer

Chicharito passes Real medical

National Athletics Championship begins on September 7 n Shishir Hoque

have to learn, Casillas fumes

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Falcao joins United on loan

Five national cricketers return home from West Indies n Mazhar Uddin

14 ‘Horrible’ Madrid

letes along with 200 officials will take part in the two-day long meet which will see light for the first time since 2011.

The service teams that will play in the meet are Bangladesh Army, Navy, Air Force, Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB), Ansar & VDP, Jail and Police, BJMC and Bangladesh Railway.

A press conference regarding the tournament was held yesterday where the details were revealed. The organisers claimed that the approximate budget of the meet is Tk1.31m with title sponsor Walton providing Tk0.4m.

General secretary of Bangladesh Athletics Federation Ibrahim Chengish, Walton’s additional director and head of games & sports FM Iqbal Bin Anwar, federation’s joint secretary Milzar Hossain were present on the occasion.

Iqbal Bin Anwar said they will continue their support to organise sports events regularly. He also announced to provide affluence to the athletes creating new records in the meet and pledged to promote talented young players.

State Minister for Youth and Sports Biren Sikder will inaugurate the meet as the chief guest. l

Mamunul set for Atletico de Kolkata n Shishir Hoque

Bangladesh national football captain and Sheikh Jamal Dhanmondi Club midfielder Mamunul Islam is all set to join the newly founded Kolkata based Atletico de Kolkata on a three-month loan deal to play in the inaugural edition of the Indian Super League scheduled to kick off on October 12.

Mamunul confirmed that the Indian Super League side, which is partly owned by former Indian cricket star Sourav Ganguly, approached him earlier and after several talks he is close to seal the deal.

“The registration process is completed with the involvement of Sheikh Jamal. It will be a three-month contract and will officially be informed very soon and I will play for the Athletico De Kolkata in the Indian Super League,” said Mamunul.

He added, “A top official of Atletico will visit Dhaka on September 5 to finalise the deal with me.”

The Sheikh Jamal DC president Manjur Kader also confirmed they have given Mamunul the permission to play in the Indian Super League saying that, “It’s a great opportunity for him [Mamunul].”

Mamunul, who will also represent the Under-23 national team in the upcoming Asian Games in South Korea, is expected to join the Indian club after his national duty.

The midfielder earlier expressed his desire to play in a foreign league while his performance in the 118th IFA Shield in Kolkata earlier this year playing for runners-up Sheikh Jamal also helped him get attention from several I-League clubs.

The Hero Indian Super League, which was founded last year, will feature eight franchise teams from all around India. Atletico de Kolkata, founded May 7 this year, is one of the franchises in the money-splitting Indian Super League. Atletico de Kolkata is partly owned by Spanish La Liga side Atletico Madrid. l

Chittagong – The dysfunctional hub of cricket

Akram Khan

Zahid Razzak

Chittagong to be the breeding ground of producing quality cricketers for the future, but has it been the case?

Thought it was under the leadership of Akram that Bangladesh entered the elite tournament, the World Cup, by beating Kenya in the 1998 ICC Trophy in Malaysia, Chittagong has failed to keep the promise it made in its early days.

The nephews of Akram - Tamim Iqbal and Nafees Iqbal – along with Aftab Ahmed and Nazimuddin are really the only names that made it to the national squad in the last decade and the lack of quality cricketers at present rising from the division could hardly be found too.

Minhajul Abedin

Tamim & Nafees Iqbal

After a thorough search only one youngster from the Under-19s, Yasir Ali, was found to have some chances of walking into the national dressing room – given the right-handed batsman is nurtured well.

So what went wrong at Chittagong which was once a hub of cricket in the country, where everyone used to literally look forward to see cricketers emerge, a place where not only national but renowned international cricketers from Sri Lanka, India and Pakistan like Raman Lamba and Athula Samarasekera appeared to play in the high-voltage tournaments.

Aftab Ahmed

The core issues behind the fall of producing high-caliber cricketers from the division is improper infrastructure while the sports organisers getting offtrack also does not help believes Alhaj Ali Abbas, vice-president of Chittagong Divisional Sports Association (CDSA).

“As far as I remember in 1976 CDSA took the first initiative to organise a top-level cricket tournament. Four years later a tournament called Star Summer Cricket Tournament was launched. That tournament went popular really quick and took place each year for the next 20 years,” said Abbas.

Abbas further informed, the tour-

Nazimuddin

complete century in warm-up

BCB appoint head of Anti Corruption Department n Mazhar Uddin Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) have appointed Abu Mohammad Humayun Morshed as the head of BCB Anti Corruption Department. Nizamuddin Chowdhury the CEO of the board confirmed that the appointment was part of International Cricket Council’s (ICC) guideline while adding further that they were supposed to appoint an anti corruption head earlier.

Morshed recently retired as a Major from Bangladesh Army and his background of serving the nation in defense and security only bodes for him as his new role would require him to monitor all the domestic competitions and rectify the wrongdoings alongside the obvious anti corruption activities. Nizamuddin informed that every cricket board has an anti corruption official of its own.

“This is not a directive from the ICC but it’s a part of its guideline and we were supposed to appoint someone in this position much earlier.”

He also informed that the new head of anti corruption department will be monitoring the upcoming premier league. However he did also mention

This is not a directive from the ICC but it’s a part of its guideline and we were supposed to appoint someone in this position much earlier that they will not be policing all the time. “This is just one of the departments of BCB and manpower will be increased if needed. This department will be monitoring the upcoming league but they will not be policing,” he said.

The new head of the anti corruption department will coordinate with the ICC’s Anti Corruption and Security Unit (Acsu) during international matches and will also provide them with the logistic supports.

Major Morshed will also arrange programmes on a bigger scale regarding corruption issues with the captain and the manager of the clubs in the upcoming DPL. This role will also see him teach general anti corruption rules to the players and club officials.

However, it will be a tough ask for the anti corruption department to take any step against the club officials as most of the club officials are also directors of the board although the CEO affirmed that the disciplinary panel has always been independent.

“If we receive this type of complain, there is disciplinary panel and this disciplinary panel is completely independent.

It worked with full freedom regarding the corruption issues of the Bangladesh Premier League,” he added. l

PART-1

n Minhaz Uddin Khan June 22nd, 1990 – Bangladesh were a win away from booking a place in the ICC World Cup as they faced Zimbabwe in the semi-final of the ICC Trophy at The Hague, Netherlands. The golden ticket slipped through the hands as Bangladesh went down by 84 runs chasing a steep target of 231 in the 60-over game.

A loss was somewhat expected given the difference in experience between the then Zimbabwe and Bangladesh side, but in spite of the defeat it was a proud moment for the country’s port-city Chittagong for two reasons.

One - it’s own, Minhajul Abedin, staged a fightback with 57 after the topfive batsmen gathered 34 in the game, and two - four players represented the national side in the tournament on behalf of the particular division - the first time it happened and the last till date.

Apart from the Abedin brothers – Minhajul (Nannu) and Nurul (Nobel) - Zahid Razzak and Akram Khan were the flag bearers of the port-city. On that moment many had considered

13

Tuesday, September 2, 2014

Nurul Abedin

nament however vanished with the demise of one of its initiator Rashed Asgar Chowdhury in 2000. Meanwhile through another source it occurred, after the death of Asgar a dispute among the organising committee members involving the then under construction MA Aziz Stadium market also broke the enthusiasm which eventually demolished the committee.

There are various tournaments being organised by CDSA at the moment but all of it lacks the charm and the Premier Cricket League of the city has also gone irregular.

“We are organising tournaments like

corporate cricket, U-18 and U-19 but I personally believe these tournaments are not efficient enough to produce quality cricketers as the tournament itself aren’t that big due to the shortage of fields in the city,” said Abbas. The CDSA over and over has urged the concerned authorities for allocating fields in order to better the system but the efforts often went unanswered, said Abbas. “Fields like Jamburi field, outer of the MA Aziz Stadium and few others remain unused.”

“They are not properly maintained and get occupied by the drug addicts once the sun goes down. These things should be taken care of for the betterment of not only cricket but for the whole sports culture. The Prime Minister of the country should intervene and settle these issues if needed,” he added.

There’s a saying that “It’s never too late”. The face of cricket in Chittagong might not look the way it was expected 20 years back, but with proper guidance and instructions it is possible to restore the dream for the betterment of the country before the path completely perishes. l

14

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Sport

Tuesday, September 2, 2014

Sociedad stun Madrid, Barca edge Villarreal n AFP, Madrid Real Sociedad produced a stunning fightback from 2-0 down to beat European champions Real Madrid 4-2 on Sunday.

Meanwhile, bitter rivals Barcelona made it two wins in as many games under Luis Enrique with a late winner at Villarreal.

Madrid were without the injured Cristiano Ronaldo and departed Angel di Maria and Xabi Alonso, but still looked on course for a comfortable evening when they flew into a 2-0 lead inside the opening 11 minutes thanks to goals from Sergio Ramos and Gareth Bale.

However, Inigo Martinez and David Zurutuza levelled for the hosts before the break and Zurutuza and Carlos Vela sealed a much-needed win for under-fire Sociedad boss Jagoba Arrasate.

Sociedad had lost their opening game at newly-promoted Eibar and been dumped out of the Europa League

by Russian side FK Krasnodar in midweek and appeared down on their luck after another slow start.

Ramos rose highest to power home Toni Kroos’ corner to open the scoring before Bale left Gorka Elustondo trailing with a neat nutmeg and slotted into the bottom corner.

But it was the hosts who crucially got the third goal as Martinez slammed home at the far post from Xabi Prieto’s flick on.

‘Horrible’ Madrid have to learn, Casillas fumes n AFP, Madrid

Barca completely dominated possession in the opening 45 minutes, but failed to create clear-cut chances as Sergio Asenjo parried a drive from Pedro before turning a deflected Messi free-kick onto the post.

Barca then upped the pace after Neymar replaced Munir El Haddadi and Asenjo had to be at his best again to turn away a well-struck Messi free-kick.

RESULTS Villarreal Deportivo

0-1 2-2

Rodriguez 7 Cuenca 90+4-pen Real Sociedad

Barcelona

(Sandro 82) Rayo

Bueno 40, 73

4-2

Real Madrid

1-1

Granada

Martinez 35, Ramos 5, Bale 11 Zurutuza 41, 65, Vela 75 Elche

Lomban 90+1

Rico 81

The visitors did finally make the breakthrough eight minutes from time when more fine footwork from Messi provoked another save from Asenjo, but Sandro was on hand to force the ball home from close range.

There was still time for a final scare for Barca as Giovanni dos Santos smashed a volley off the post from a narrow angle, but Enrique’s men held on to go top of the embryonic La Liga table. l

(L-R) Real Madrid forward Karim Benzema, defender Sergio Ramos, goalkeeper and captain Iker Casillas and midfielder Toni Kroos stand after Real Sociedad scored during their Spanish league match at the Anoeta stadium in San Sebastian on Sunday AFP

Coach Inzhagi opens with Milan win n AFP, Rome

Filippo Inzaghi got his tenure as AC Milan coach off to the best possible start with a scintillating 3-1 victory over Lazio at the San Siro on Sunday.

Meanwhile Nemanja Vidic was sentoff on his debut for Inter Milan in their 0-0 draw at Torino.

New Rossoneri signing Fernando Torres was in the stands alongside president Silvio Berlusconi, to watch goals from Keisuke Honda, Sulley Muntari and a Jeremy Menez penalty give Inzaghi’s men three well-earned points.

Initially, Milan looked nervous in defence with Lazio keen to exploit centre back Daniele Bonera, who had lined up in the left back position, but

it wasn’t long before any trepidation was extinguished, as Milan opened the scoring after just seven minutes.

Stephan El Shaarawy latched on to a hopeful long ball on the left, rode the challenge of Stefan de Vrij, before sliding the ball to the in-rushing Honda on the right, who put it through the legs of Etrit Berisha.

Meanwhile, Vidic was having a nightmare in Turin.

He gave away a penalty midway through the first half after pulling down Omar El Kaddouri, but Samir Handanovic saved Marcelo Larrondo’s resulting spot kick.

Nevertheless, Vidic’s debut disaster was compounded as he received a 90th minute red card.

“The referee made a mistake,” Inter coach Walter Mazzarri moaned. l

RESULTS AC Milan

3-1

Lazio

Honda 7, Alex 67-og Muntari 56, Menez 64-pen) Atalanta Cesena

Rodriguez 38 Genoa

Pinilla 40 Palermo

Dybala 7 Sassuolo

Zaza 42 Torino Udinese

Di Natale 57, 62

0-0 1-0 1-2 1-1 1-1 0-0 2-0

Verona Parma Napoli

Callejón 3, De Guzman 90+5 Sampdoria

Gastaldello 90+1 Cagliari

Sau 44 Inter Milan Empoli

Real Madrid captain Iker Casillas slammed his side’s performance after they let a two-goal lead slip to lose 4-2 at Real Sociedad on Sunday.

“What happened was very unusual, especially after the first 15 minutes.

After that everything was negative, we were horrible in every facet,” he said.

“We can’t lose a game in this way. We have to accept the defeat and the criticism and learn from what happened today. We have started the season and it is clear that we need to correct a lot of things,” added Casillas.

“We need to keep going because we are wearing a very important crest on our shirts and that is not the example to show to the world.”

However, boss Carlo Ancelotti refused to blame their absence for the defeat and instead questioned the attitude of his players.

“I didn’t like this defeat because I think sometimes you can play a bad game, but as a team like Real Madrid when you are winning 2-0 you have to show the right attitude and that is my responsibility,” said the Italian.

“I don’t think it is a problem of one or two players. It is the whole team who lost after a very good first half hour.

“The presence of Xabi Alonso when the whole team doesn’t have a good attitude wouldn’t have changed things.”

In contrast to Ancelotti’s post-match comments, Barcelona coach Luis Enrique hailed the attitude of his players as they continued their winning start to the new campaign with a 1-0 victory at Villarreal.

“The attitude of the team satisfied me,” he said.

“We have a lot to improve on but they have great desire and for me it is a priviledge to see. l

Messi to miss WC final rematch n AFP, Madrid

Reds are back to their best, says Rodgers

Argentina captain Lionel Messi will miss his side’s friendly against world champions Germany on Wednesday due to a groin strain, his club side Barcelona confirmed on Monday.

The match offers Argentina an immediate chance for revenge for their agonising 1-0 extra-time defeat to Germany in the World Cup final last month.

“Leo Messi will remain in Barcelona as a precaution due to a strain in his right adductor,” Barca said in a statement on their website.

“Barca’s number 10 will miss the match for peace in Rome this evening and will also not be able to participate in the match between Germany and Argentina.” l

n AFP, London Brendan Rodgers warned Liverpool’s title rivals that his team are back in the groove after they marked Mario Balotelli’s debut with a scintillating 3-0 win at Tottenham.

Balotelli was supposed to steal the spotlight on his return to the Premier League, but the flamboyant Italy striker had to play second fiddle to new teammates Raheem Sterling, Daniel Sturridge and Jordan Henderson on Sunday.

“I thought we were excellent. It was an outstanding performance,” Rodgers said.

“We have risen to every challenge since I’ve been here. It was the same

last year when people wondered if we could keep it up. The beauty of this group is they are very humble.

“We clicked back to where we were last season. That was good to see, I think people will enjoy watching us this season.”

Balotelli offered glimpses of his vast talent with some neat combinations with Sterling and Sturridge during his 61-minute debut, but Rodgers knows the former AC Milan forward has much more to offer once he gets comfortable at Anfield.

“Mario’s a good guy. If you take away some of the circus that surrounds him and treat him like an adult, it’ll bring the best out of him. l

La Masia graduates stealing limelight n Reuters, Barcelona

AC Milan’s Jeremy Menez (C) celebrates with his team mates Stephan El Shaarawy (L) and Andrea Poli after scoring against Lazio during their Italian Serie A match at the San Siro stadium in Milan on Sunday REUTERS

Barcelona’s 1-0 La Liga win at Villarreal on Sunday was engineered by Lionel Messi but it was not the four-times World Player of the Year but yet another promising teenager from the club’s famed academy who scored the winner.

Barca struggled to break down a determined Villarreal side at the Madrigal but got the breakthrough eight minutes from time when 19-year-old substitute Sandro Ramirez, making his official debut, turned a Messi centre into the net from close range.

Ramirez’s effort came after fellow academy graduate Munir el Haddadi, also 19 and also making his first official appearance, struck in the 3-0 opening day victory at home to Elche.

Their success appears to confirm

that new coach Luis Enrique’s strategy of deploying Barca-trained youngsters is working well in the early stages of the campaign.

A former Barca and Spain midfielder, Luis Enrique replaced Argentine Gerardo Martino, who was sacked after the Catalan club ended the 2013-14 season without major silverware.

“It is gratifying seeing that the youngsters are helping us so much,” Luis Enrique told a news conference.

“We are happy for him (Ramirez) and for the dedication of all the young players,” he added.

“We have a lot of room for improvement but the response of the players has been monstrous. It’s still early but there is room for optimism.”

Barca’s “La Masia” soccer school has produced a host of top players in recent decades, including Argentina captain

Pirlo not ready for Italy Ibra nets treble as PSG crush St Etienne n retirement: Conte AFP, Paris

n AFP, Rome Andrea Pirlo may yet don an Italy shirt again despite suggesting after the World Cup he would move aside for younger talent, new national team boss Antonio Conte said Sunday.

“I wanted to be sure that he still had the same old fire,” Conte said on Italian television. “He’s a warrior. He told me he was available and that’s good enough for me.”

Pirlo is currently sidelined until October with a hip injury, which means he will miss Italy’s friendly with the Netherlands in Bari on Friday and the Euro 2016 qualifier against Norway in Oslo the following Tuesday.

Conte coached Pirlo at Juventus for

the last three seasons, in which they won the Serie A title every year, before taking over from Prandelli as national coach.

Although he spoke about Pirlo, Conte refused to be drawn over Mario Balotelli, the new Liverpool striker who he omitted from the squad.

Pirlo is the fourth-most capped player in the history of the Italian national team, along with Dino Zoff, with 112 caps.

He was instrumental in their victory in the 2006 FIFA World Cup, finishing as the top assist provider. He was named man of the match three times, including the final, more than any other player in the tournament, and ultimately won the Bronze Ball (third best player in tournament) also being elected to be part of the Team of the Tournament. l

Champions Paris Saint-Germain thumped Saint-Etienne 5-0 as Bordeaux saw their 100 percent record at the start of the Ligue 1 season ended on Sunday with a 1-1 draw against Bastia.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic, making his injury return, scored a hat-trick and strike partner Edinson Cavani also netted as the big-spending Parisians ran riot in the capital to move up to second.

“It’s normal when you add a very good player that you play better,” said PSG coach Laurent Blanc.

“We are therefore better with him, his presence is important.”

But they were given a huge helping hand by Saint-Etienne goalkeeper

Stephane Ruffier who failed to control a back pass on 24 minutes, turning the ball into his own net as he tried to the steer it on to his right foot but instead pushed it over the line.

RESULTS Bordeaux

Rolan 79 Metz

Ngbakoto 82-pen Falcon 87 Paris SG

1-1 2-1 5-0

SC Bastia

Tallo 18 Lyon

Lacazette 68 Saint-Etienne

Ruffier 24-og Ibrahimovic 41, 62, 72, Cavani 63 Ibrahimovic, making his return from injury, notched his first four minutes before the break with a firm header from Maxwell’s left-wing cross.

He doubled his tally as he ran on to

a wayward back pass on 62 minutes before rounding Ruffier and slotting into the empty net.

A minute later Cavani lashed in an unstoppable drive from distance that left Ruffier rooted to his line.

Ibrahimovic completed his hat-trick on 72 minutes after beating a static offside trap and slotting the ball past Ruffier at his near post.

St Etienne coach Christophe Galthier paid tribute to the Sweden star.

Meanwhile, Lyon’s poor start to the season continued as they threw away a lead to lose 2-1 at promoted Metz.

France striker Alexandre Lacazette tapped in to give Lyon the lead midway through the second half at the Stade Saint-Symphorien, only for Yeni Ngbakoto to equalise with a penalty in the 82nd minute after Jordan Ferri was adjudged to have fouled Bouna Sarr. l

Messi and former player and coach Pep Guardiola.

Luis Enrique is hoping he can create a side with the right mix of homegrown talent and players purchased from other clubs like new arrivals Luis Suarez and Ivan Rakitic and the established Neymar.

The Brazil forward, returning from an injury layoff, came on as a substitute for the final half hour on Sunday and his pace and skill gave Barca an extra attacking edge.

But it was Ramirez who stole the show and he and Munir earned praise from another La Masia graduate, Spain midfielder Sergio Busquets.

“We know what Munir and Sandro can bring to the team and if they continue like this they will have their place in the first team,” Busquets told reporters. “We have to be patient.” l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

QUICK BYTES

Josephites upset VH Josephites pulled a major upset in VH Basketball beating the tournament favorites Vertical Horizon 66-52 at the of Bangladesh Basketball Federation gymnasium, Dhanmondi yesterday.

After the agonizing defeat VH now require a major boost to proceed to the next stage of the tournament. The dramatic day saw another nerve wrecking encounter as GYC edged past Gregorian Aces by just three points in a 55-52 thriller. GYC were applauded for finishing on top in the neck-to-neck game.

– Raihan Mahmood

BD Junior Open begins today The inaugural edition of the Bangladesh Junior Open is all set to tee off at the Kurmitola Golf Club today. A total of 93 junior golfers including 86 boys and seven girls representing 12 clubs will take part in the three-day event. Secretary general of Bangladesh Olympic Association (BOA) Syed Shahed Reza will inaugurate the tournament as chief guest.

– Tribune Desk

School handball rolls tomorrow Viqarunnisa Noon School will face Chittagong Grammar School, Dhaka in the opening match of the Polar Ice Cream 22nd School Handball Tournament (boys and girls) which will get underway at the M Mansur Ali National Handball Stadium in Paltan tomorrow. A total of 32 - 15 girls’ and 17 boys’ - schools will participate in the tournament. In the boys’ section, Scholastica will play Dhanmondi Tutorial, BISC face South Point School, Sunnydale meet Dhanmondi Govt Boys while Shaheed Nobi High School will play against Wari High School on the opening day.

– Tribune Desk

Clarke limps out of triangular series Australia’s dismal day got worse when captain Michael Clarke revealed on Sunday that he would take no further part in the triangular series against Zimbabwe and South Africa. Clarke will head back to Australia after a recurrence of a hamstring injury that ruled him out of the first two games and which will raise questions over his selection for the third. There seemed no need to risk the 33-year-old against Zimbabwe if there was a chance of the injury re-occurring as Australia had scored 677 runs in 100 overs in their two games before Sunday’s defeat.

As it turned out he was the mainstay of his side’s batting effort in the shock three-wicket loss to Zimbabwe, scoring an unbeaten 68 in a paltry total 209 for nine. That score may have been boosted had he not retired hurt in the 43rd over, no longer able to bear the pain. He returned with two balls left in the innings at the fall of the ninth wicket to ensure his side could complete their overs.

“The hamstring is not great, I’ve done it again,” Clarke said at the post-match presentation. He will now work towards being fit for the one-day international series against Pakistan in the United Arab Emirates starting on Oct. 7.

– Reuters

Brazil draft Robinho for friendlies

Sport

Tourists shine with ball after Shiv, Jeffers post tons Hosts St Kitts and Nevis were to 399 allout in their first innings post to lunch on the final day in the practice game against Bangladesh at Warner Park yesterday. This meant a 399 runs lead in reply to Bangladeshis’ first innings as the game neared a draw.

The home side resumed their first innings with an overnight score of 232 runs with six wickets to spare.

Shivnarine Chanderpaul made the lone walk to get the homeside the lead as his partners got dismissed on regular intervals.

The veteran Windies cricketer, who played the practice game for ST Kitts as a guest, survided 315 balls to score 183.

His innings included 20 four and two sixes. Chanderpaul’s effort compliment opening batsman Shane Jeffers who had added 118 runs to the tally earlier.

Spinners Taijul Islam and Shuvagata Hom picked three wickets each for Bangladesh. Pacer Rubel Hossain picked two while Mahmudullah bagged one.

Earlier on Sunday, a century each from Bangladesh skipper Mushfiqur Rahim and middle-order batsman Nasir Hossain guided the Tigers to post a strong first innings total of 377 for 7 (declared).

Nasir and Mushfiqur shared a 191run seventh wicket stand which rescued the tourists from 186/6 and recovered them from a potential collapse.

The big partnership was broken with the dismissal of Nasir in the 104th over which was immediately followed by the innings declaration from skipper Mushfiqur Rahim who was unbeaten on 106.

Nasir, however, was bowled by Willett immediately after reaching his century.

Bangladesh fielded all their batters in the game which is being played with 13 members-per-side. But the Tigers’ innings got the necessary thrust only after the arrival of Mushfiqur at seven and Nasir at eight.

The first Test of the two-match series between Bangladesh and West Indies begins on September 5 at St Vincent. l

n AFP, New York Maria Sharapova crashed out of the US Open Sunday while 17-year-old Belinda Bencic became the youngest women’s quarter-finalist since 1997 giving Switzerland a double boost after Roger Federer had moved into the last-16.

Sharapova’s defeat at the hands of fellow former world number one Caroline Wozniacki meant that only three of the top 10 seeds in the women’s draw were left standing after Bencic had taken care of ninth-ranked Jelena Jankovic.

On a day of shocks at the US Open, China’s Peng Shuai reached her first singles quarter-final at a major by beating experienced Czech Lucie Safarova while, in the men’s draw, fourth-seed David Ferrer was defeated by Gilles Simon of France.

Even the great Federer, a five-time champion, had an early struggle, dropping the first set in his third round tie against Spain’s Marcel Granollers before booking his fourth round spot.

Sharapova, looking to add this year’s US Open title to her French Open win in June, was undone by 43 unforced errors and eight double faults as 10th seed Wozniacki won 6-4, 2-6, 6-2.

She will next face 13th-seeded Italian Sara Errani who ended the magical run of 32-year-old Croatian qualifier Mirjana Lucic-Baroni 6-3, 2-6, 6-0.

Bencic, 17 and ranked 58th, dismissed former world number one Jelena Jankovic 7-6 (8/6), 6-3 to become the youngest US Open quarter-finalist since Martina Hingis won the title in 1997 at the age of 16.

Hingis, whose mother Melanie Molitor is one of Bencic’s coaches, was courtside for the match, lending a little moral support to her young compatriot, who won the 2013 junior title at Wimbledon and Roland Garros but hadn’t made it past the third round in three major main draw appearances this year.

Bencic will now face China’s Peng who clinched a 6-3, 6-4 win over 14th-seeded Safarova with a ninth ace on match point having already defeated fourth-seeded Pole, Agnieszka Radwanska in the second round.

Second-seeded Federer, the champion between 2004-2008, came back from a set down to defeat Granollers 4-6, 6-1, 6-1, 6-1 by racing away with 20 of the last 24 games of the match which had been interrupted due to rain and the threat of lightning.

Federer, bidding to become the oldest Grand Slam champion in more than 40 years, clinched his 70th win at the tournament on the back of 57 winners and 13 aces.

Czech sixth seed Tomas Berdych, a semi-finalist in 2012, beat Georgian-born Russian Teymuraz Gabashvili 6-3, 6-2, 6-4 and next plays Dominic Thiem of Austria, the youngest player in the top 50 at just 20.

Tamim Iqbal c Clarke b Louis 20 Shamsur Rahman c Clarke b Boatswain 10 Imrul Kayes c Berridge b Boatswain 44 Mominul Haque c Ward b Louis 10 Mahmudullah c Ward b Berridge 27 Shuvagata Hom run out (Ward/Louis) 48 Mushfiqur Rahim* not out 106 Nasir Hossain b Willett 100 M. Starc b Williams 3 B. Cutting run out 26 N. Lyon not out 8 Extras (lb 5, w 4, nb 3) 12

Total (7 wickets dec; 103.3 overs) 377 Did not bat Rubel Hossain, Robiul Islam, Shafiul Islam, Taijul Islam, Anamul Haque† Fall of wickets: 1-22 (Shamsur Rahman, 3.5 ov), 2-45 (Tamim Iqbal, 15.2 ov), 3-60 (Mominul Haque, 21.2 ov), 4-92 (Imrul Kayes, 33.6 ov), 5-138 (Mahmudullah, 46.5 ov), 6-186 (Shuvagata Hom, 53.4 ov), 7-377 (Nasir Hossain, 103.3 ov)

St Kitts & Nevis 1st innings S Martina c Mushfiqur b Rubel 9 SM Jeffers c Mahmudullah b Shuvagata 118 J Hodge c Mominul b Taijul 7 S Chanderpaul c (N/A) b Rubel 183 TA Willett c Mominul b M’dullah 21 J Lewis lbw Taijul 35 J Clarke ibw Taijul 0 JDC Taylor b Shuvagata 0 S Berridge b Rubel 15

Total (All out in 127 overs)

399

Fall of wickets: 1-77 (Martina, 18.6 ov), 2-110 (Hodge, 27.5 ov), 3-161 (Jeffers, 45.4 ov), 4-226 (Willett, 69.4 ov)

Bangladesh spinner Taijul Islam (L) is congratulated by teammates after taking a wicket during their three-day warm-up game against St Kitts and Nevis at Warner Park on Sunday WICB

Caroline Wozniacki (R) shakes hands with Maria Sharapova after defeating her at the 2014 US Open in New York, yesterday

Star Sports 1, 3, HD1 3:30PM India tour of England 4th ODI Argentinian former football player Diego Armando Maradona (R) offers Pope Francis a personalized Argentina’s jersey at the Vatican early today during a meeting with organizers, players and guests of the inter religious “match for peace” football game at Rome’s Olympic Stadium AFP

REUTERS

Gasquet, the 12th seed, 6-4, 6-2, 6-2.

He will face Bulgarian seventh seed Grigor Dimitrov who saw off Belgium’s David Goffin, 0-6, 6-3, 6-4, 6-1. l

Thiem, who turns 21 on Wednesday, reached his first Grand Slam last-16 with an impressive 6-4, 6-2, 6-3 win over left-handed serve-and-volleyer Feliciano

Lopez of Spain who is 12 years his senior.

Gael Monfils celebrated his 28th birthday a day early by sweeping past French Davis Cup teammate Richard

India rise to No 1 in ICC ODI rankings n Cricinfo

Zimbabwe humiliation rips open Australian scars

India have risen to No 1 in the ODI rankings, while Australia toppled to fourth place after their defeat to Zimbabwe on Sunday.

However, the situation at the top remains quite fluid. India will retain their place at No. 1 if they beat England in the remaining two matches of the Royal London ODI series and Australia beat South Africa at least once over the coming week - either on Tuesday or, if they make the final, on Saturday. South Africa will move to the top if they win their two remaining league games and the subsequent final, even if India win the fourth and fifth ODIs. l

n Reuters, Melbourne

ICC ODI CHAMPIONSHIP

DAY’S WATCH

1.30PM Tri-Nation ODI series Australia v South Africa

Bangladeshis 1st innings

Bencic, Federer in Swiss joy, Sharapova crashes

New Brazil coach Dunga has called up former Real Madrid, Manchester City and AC Milan forward Robinho in place of injured Hulk for upcoming friendlies with Colombia and Ecuador, the Brazilian Football Confederation said Sunday. Dunga, who unveiled his first squad since embarking on a second spell in charge after succeeding Luiz Felipe Scolari following the World Cup, brought in the 30-yearold who has won 92 caps for the Selecao but whom Scolari left off his World Cup roster. Robinho has just returned to his homeland to play for Santos, where he began his career, after AC Milan loaned him out for a year. Real Madrid’s Marcelo is also back with Porto’s Alex Sandro injured. Dunga, who coached Brazil at the 2010 World Cup before being fired, now heads for Friday’s game against the Colombians in Miami with just ten of the players who featured at this year’s tournament, which ended for the hosts in a 7-1 semi-final thrashing by Germany.

After meeting the Colombians, Brazil take on Ecuador at East Rutherford, New Jersey, on September 9.

– AFP

Ten Cricket

DAY 3, POST LUNCH

St Kitts and Nevis 399 in 1st innings as match headed for draw n Tribune Desk

15

Tuesday, September 2, 2014

Team Matches India 57 South Africa 40 Sri Lanka 65 Australia 38 England 43 Pakistan 50 New Zealand 31 West Indies 43 Bangladesh 28 Zimbabwe 30 Afghanistan 13 Ireland 9

Points Rating 6485 114 4522 113 7245 111 4230 111 4575 106 4998 100 3031 98 4107 96 1940 69 1736 58 550 42 297 33

Australia’s shock one-day international defeat to minnows Zimbabwe has raised alarm bells five months before the country co-hosts the World Cup while exposing the team’s continued struggles to master spin bowling.

Coming off a long break following test series wins against England and South Africa, Australia arrived in Harare for the triangular one-day tournament with South Africa refreshed and optimistic, but the three-wicket loss to Zimbabwe will have done little for the team’s confidence after defeat to the Proteas and an injury to captain Michael Clarke.

Sunday’s loss was Australia’s first in 30 years to Zimbabwe and the nation’s media ranked it highly among the country’s deepest cricketing humiliations.

“There’s one word that’s been used more than any other to describe Australia’s defeat at the hands of Zimbabwe on Sunday,” one critic wrote on a News Ltd website on Monday.

Clarke, who battled to an unbeaten 68 and retired hurt during a paltry innings of 209, was heading home to Australia on Monday for scans on his injured hamstring, leaving his team mates with some harsh parting words.

“It’s a terrible performance, there’s no doubt about it,” he told reporters.

“Forget the opposition, I think we played some average cricket at best throughout the whole game.

“We play like that we’re not going to beat any team so whatever team’s selected we have to perform better than we did today.

“The players will be having a think about their performance as well.”

Since taking over from the sacked Mickey Arthur last year, laid-back Australia coach Darren Lehmann has had little cause to berate his team but was incensed by the bloodless performance at the Harare Sports Club.

“There’s probably not enough expletives in the English language at the moment for the way I’m feeling,” Lehmann said in quotes published by News Ltd media on Monday.

“It’s just embarrassing for everyone involved in the touring party, and I hope they’re hurting.

“They should be.

“We’ve got to learn really quickly because teams are going to see that and they’re going to react to it.”

Repairing dressing room harmony has been a corner-stone of Lehmann’s tenure, but a frustrated Clarke made rare criticism of selectors for omitting middle order batsman Steven Smith. l

16

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Back Page

Tuesday, September 2, 2014

ICT sector suffers from state minister-secretary standoff n Muhammad Zahidul Islam Work at the ICT Division has had to face various setbacks over the last few months because of an alleged power-struggle between the state minister and the secretary.

The internal hostility between the two became visible to the public eye when ICT Secretary Md Nazrul Islam Khan allegedly skipped several major events where State Minister for ICT Zunaid Ahmed Palak had also been invited.

However, the power-struggle inside the division apparently came to an end yesterday, with Nazrul being granted a request for transfer to another ministry.

Sources inside the Information and Communication Technology Division told the Dhaka Tribune that no single programme in the past few months had seen both Palak and Nazrul in attendance together.

In June, the secretary was absent at the ICT Division’s biggest annual programme “Digital World,” even though the prime minister inaugurated the event.

Sources said Nazrul pulled strings to be able to attend a programme in the US instead of going to the Digital World event – where Palak also attended. Although Nazrul was in Dhaka when an official press conference on the event was held on May 10, he did not go to it either.

In August, Nazrul avoided another programme that launched “Puthi,” a Bangla optical character recognition (OCR) software. The event was inaugurated by Finance Minister AMA Muhith and attended by Palak.

Well placed sources in the ICT Division said both the state minister and the secretary had engaged in verbal altercations with each other at different meetings. After the secretary reportedly started skipping meetings because of the disputes, Additional Secretary Kamal Uddin Ahmed filled in Nazrul’s shoes, the sources added.

Four officials reshuffled n Mohosinul Karim Four officials of Primary Education Department, National Housing Authority, Bangladesh Small and Cottage Industries Corporation and ICT Ministry have acquired new offices.

The Public Administration Ministry issued a gazette notification in this regard yesterday.

Shamol Kanti Ghosh, director general of primary education department, was given posting to the Privatisation Commission as an acting member.

Information Communication and Technology (ICT) Division Secretary Nazrul Islam Khan was transferred to Education Ministry as secretary, while Bangladesh Small and Cottage Industries Corporation (BSCIC) Chairman Sham Shundar Sikder was made the acting secretary of ICT Division.

Education Secretary Dr Mohammad Sadik is set to retire on September 18.

National Housing Authority Chairman Shahidullah Khandakar was made the acting secretary of Implementation Monitoring and Evaluation Division. l

A colleague of Nazrul, seeking anonymity, told the Dhaka Tribune that the ICT secretary was disappointed in not being able to receive in his own hands, the “World Summit on Information Society 2014 Prize” which was awarded to Bangladesh for initiating digital services in governance sectors through the innovative use of ICT over the last few years. The award was accepted by Palak at a ceremony in Geneva’s ITU Headquarters on June 10 this year.

Nazrul reportedly held a grudge against Palak as he did not notify the secretary about the award, even though Nazrul claimed of contributing a great deal in steering the country towards a digital direction over the last five years, the colleague added.

Nazrul is also the national programme director of Access to Information Programme (a2i), which has been helping digitalise services in sectors like agriculture, education, health, civil facilities, land management, commerce and government administration.

Following this incident with the state minister, Nazrul met the premier and reportedly expressed his dissatisfaction over the whole issue.

Hinting that there was trouble within the ICT Division ranks, Nazrul told the Dhaka Tribune: “I cannot stay here anymore as lots of people are disturbing me and I also met with the prime minister and asked her to transfer me anywhere else.” Talking to the Dhaka Tribune on August 19, Nazrul, however, did not specify the reason that had prompted his transfer request.

Meanwhile, Palak – the youngest state minister in the cabinet – claimed that he had no problem with anybody in the sector.

“From my side, I can confirm you that I have no problem with anybody in the sector. I want all of their [officials] valuable experiences and good ideas for my doings,” Palak told the Dhaka Tribune over phone.

“I am only 34 years of age; it is a huge responsibility for me to lead a sector and I just want to do my best for

my country’s people. We have lots of things to do for building a digital Bangladesh; there is no time to waste,” Palak added.

Meanwhile, ICT Division sources said there were allegations against Nazrul of awarding different projects to the people and organisations close to him, including NGOs where he acted as an adviser, without proper tender process and by showing single sources.

There are also allegations that Samira Zuberi Himika, the managing director of Team Engine Ltd which developed Puthi, was awarded the work of the OCR project by Nazrul even though her company was blacklisted by the ICT Division.

The disputes surrounding work distribution led to no new initiative being taken in the last eight months, ICT Division sources claimed.

They added that officials who protested decisions by either the secretary or the state minister were often transferred.

When asked about the allegations of nepotism and irregularities, the secretary became agitated and refused to comment on the issue.

Meanwhile, on several occasions, Post, Telecommunication and Information Technology Minister Abdul Latif Siddiqui had also expressed discontent towards the popularity of Palak, who reportedly is in good terms with the prime minister’s son Sajeeb Wazed Joy. At a seminar on April 20, organised

by Asia Foundation and Bangladesh Association of Software and Information Services (BASIS), Latif Siddiqui hinted at the BASIS President Shameem Ahsan, saying: “You people never come to me, you only call the younger one [Palak].”

On June 23, neither Latif Siddiqui nor Nazrul were invited to the event where the government launched a national portal for around 25,000 of its websites. Palak was the only senior-ranked official present from the Ministry of Post, Telecommunication and Information Technology. l

Railways minister to tie the knot at 67 n Mohosinul Karim

Railways Minister Mujibul Huq has decided to draw an end to his bachelor life at the age of 67.

He is likely to get married in December, several of his colleagues in the cabinet said.

“It was discussed informally at today’s cabinet meeting,” a minister said yesterday requesting anonymity.

“We are happy that he, in the end, has decided to get married and we congratulated him,” he said.

Several ministers at the meeting had an informal discussion about the marriage and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina instructed the public works minister to allocate a house for the railways minister on Mintoo Road in the capital, a place where most of the ministers live.

At present, Mujibul is living in a flat in the NAM Bhaban in the capital and it was allocated to him as a parliamentarian.

’He will now get a coach’ The minister said the premier was happy to learn that Mujibul is going to get married.

“She said at the meeting that she was very happy with the railways minister’s decision. She also said that Mujibul was only an engine so far and a coach now would be attached to it,” the minister said.

He, however, did not provide any details about the bride.

Mujibul could not be reached for comment over phone despite repeated attempts. His personal secretary at the ministry also declined to disclose anything about the marriage.

Born in 1947, the lawyer-cum-politician was elected as lawmaker thrice.

Former foreign minister Abdus Samad Azad in 1998 and former law minister Abdul Matin Khasru in late 90s got married while holding office. Both of them married when their previous wives passed away. l

Road accident memorial built at DU n DU Correspondent

A road accident memorial, intended to raise public awareness about road safety issues, has been established at Dhaka University.

DU Vice-Chancellor Prof Dr AAMS Arefin Siddique inaugurated the memorial located between Shamsunnahar Hall and the TSC yesterday.

Tareque Masud Memorial Trust in association with Brac Bank, financed the memorial. The designers of the memorial are sculptor Dali Al Mamun and engineer Salauddin Ahmad. In his speech, the DU VC urged the government to introduce tougher laws and ensure stricter enforcement of traffic rules.

“The violation of traffic rules is the prime cause of road accidents,” he said.

With Sammilito Sangskritik Jote President Nasiruddin Yusuf Bachchu in the chair, the inauguration ceremony was also addressed, among others, by Brac Chairperson Sir Fazle Hasan Abed, Tareque Masud Trust Fund Chairperson Catherine Masud, and human rights activist Khushi Kabir. l

Visitors appreciate the road accident memorial after its unveiling on the Dhaka University campus yesterday NASHIRUL ISLAM

Residents of Chandanbaisha in Bogra’s Sariakandi upazila try to salvage as much personal belongings on boats as they can before seeking shelter from floodwater FOCUS BANGLA

Flood stays, misery compounds n Tribune Report

Nonstop rise in water level has submerged many villages, left thousands of people marooned, and destroyed arable lands in a number of districts across the country.

The flood situation remained unchanged in some areas while getting worse in other places. Relief goods were also distributed in a number of areas.

Kurigram

Although water in Kurigram rivers has receded a bit, the Brahmaputra is still flowing above the danger level, compounding the woes of the flood victims.

The victims, who remain marooned for 16 days, are facing a serious shortage of food and pure drinking water amid the outbreak of many waterborne diseases.

Relief goods were distributed by the local authorities but the majority of the victims are yet to receive any. They are living on boats, bamboo-made raised platforms and rafts made of banana trees. Some have taken shelter in flood protection embankments and educational institutions.

Meanwhile, bus communication of Dhaka with Rajipur and Raumari upazials came to a halt when a 100ft road in Shiberdangi area was heavily damaged.

Local Water Development Board officials said the Brahmaputra is still flowing 1cm above the danger level at Chilmari point.

Jamalpur

The overall flood situation in Jamalpur remained static but the Jamuna was flowing 30cm above the danger level at Bahadurabad point yesterday morning.

Although water receded, almost 2.5 lakh people in seven upazilas still remain marooned. They are suffering from an acute shortage of food, with many losing their jobs.

Waterborne diseases are also spreading.

Deputy Director of Jamalpur Agriculture Extension Department Md Abul

Quasem said nearly 34,000 hectares of land in the district have gone under water, subjecting 2,30,000 farmers to losses.

“The affected farmers will be provided with assistance under the agriculture rehabilitation programme to help them recover the losses they faced,” he added.

District Fisheries Officer Ranjit Kumar Paul said nearly 2,500 ponds in the district were completely submerged by floodwater but the extent of loss is yet to be calculated.

Jamalpur Deputy Commissioner Md Shahabuddin Khan said 202 tonnes of rice and dry food worth Tk15.50 lakh have so far been distributed among the flood victims.

Munshiganj

A 1cm rise in water in the Padma at Bhagyakul point exacerbated the flood situation in Munshiganj, inundating dozens of new areas, including Kamarkhara, Panchgaon, Chitracoat, Kalma, Kumarbhogh and Banglabazar.

The Padma flowed 26cm above the danger level yesterday morning. Arable lands have been inundated and several thousand people in 100 villages remain marooned.

Sixty-seven medical teams are working in the flood-hit areas, which saw the outbreak of a number of diseases.

According to government statistics, the Padma completely destroyed the houses of 49 families while partially damaging abodes of another 823 families.

32 tonnes of rice and Tk2.30 lakh were allocated for the flood-affected people.

The flood did not quite affect academic affairs at the educational institutions except Kamarkhara Barail Government Primary School in Tongibari upazila. The school authorities said they would adopt alternative measures to ensure that classes are not hampered.

Munshiganj Deputy Commissioner Md Saiful Hasan Badol said the local administration is doing its best to mitigate the misery of the flood victims.

Civil surgeon of Munshiganj Dr Kazi Shariful Alam said a medical team has been formed in each union and the team members are supplying necessary medicines to the people.

“We have also adequate stock of medicines for waterborne diseases and everything is now under control,” he added.

Gaibandha

Water levels in all the rivers in the district fell yesterday, improving the overall flood situation.

The Brahmaputra, the Teesta and the Korotoa yesterday flowed 17cm, 12cm and 15cm below the danger level respectively, said local Water Development Board officials.

The flood-hit people, however, are badly suffering as their lives have become plagued by shortage of food, fuel and drinking water.

Extensive erosion of the Brahmaputra and the Jamuna in Haldia, Erendabari and Fazlupur has destroyed more than 600 homes. The affected families have moved to shelters and high lands but now await relief materials.

Meanwhile, Rangpur Divisional Commissioner Md Delwar Bakth visited the flood-hit areas in Haldia union under Saghata upazila yesterday.

He said the government is making an all-out effort to distribute relief materials among the distressed people, adding that rehabilitation measures would be taken to help the victims recover the losses.

Meanwhile, five shops and a 25sqft area of Mawa launch terminal in Munshiganj were eroded by Padma yesterday but launch communication was not disrupted.

The incident happened around 2pm, said Mawa naval outpost in-charge Khandakar Khalid Hossain.

“The Padma is flowing 26cm above the danger level. The high tide and onrush of hill-water caused the erosion,” he said.

Earlier on the night of August 19, number 3 ro-ro ferry terminal at Mawa was entirely eroded away. l

82 students to compete for each JnU seat n Mohammad Jamil Khan

Jagannath University will see an average of 82 students fighting for one seat in this year’s undergraduate admission test.

The registration process for the admission seekers ended on Sunday midnight. Sources said 225,959 students registered for the admission test, amongst whom 61,459 students will compete for 790 seats in the science faculty; 50,551 students for 710 seats in arts faculty; 45,532 applicants for 620 seats in business faculty; 65,961 students for 540 seats in social science faculty; and 2,456 students for 100 seats in law faculty.

Admission test for the business faculty is scheduled to be held on September 5, science faculty on September 12, law faculty on September 13, arts faculty on September 19 and social science faculty on September 26. l

Editor: Zafar Sobhan, Published and Printed by Kazi Anis Ahmed on behalf of 2A Media Limited at Dainik Shakaler Khabar Publications Limited, 153/7, Tejgaon Industrial Area, Dhaka-1208. Editorial, News & Commercial Office: FR Tower, 8/C Panthapath, Shukrabad, Dhaka 1207.

Phone: 9132093-94, Advertising: 9132155, Circulation: 9132282, Fax: News-9132192, e-mail: news@dhakatribune.com, info@dhakatribune.com, Website: www.dhakatribune.com

B3 Japan aims to double

B4 Passive funds an active

India investment in 5 years

threat for Europe’s fund managers

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 2, 2014 www.dhakatribune.com/business

Many fear policy to woo FDI may boomerang Relaxed foreign investment repatriation rule is feared to pose risks of capital flight unless Bangladesh Bank tightens loose ends n Tribune Report A change in the foreign exchange policy to attract foreign investment is feared to widen further the scope of money laundering as Bangladesh Bank relaxed the repatriation rules.

Bangladesh Bank Senior Adviser Allah Malik Kazemi admitted the chance of capital flight still remains though the central bank decided to relax the rules on consideration the country would gain much than what it might lose due to money laundering.

“There is scope of money flight but not much as being feared,” he told the Dhaka Tribune yesterday. “We have more chance of becoming gainer as foreign investment will build fresh industry in the country.”

Bangladesh Bank relaxed the fund repatriation rule when the country is trying to curb money laundering through enacting laws and joining international anti-money laundering bodies.

The central bank on Sunday relaxed the forex policy allowing repatriation of foreign investment from Bangladesh by selling their shares of equity that they owned in unlisted companies.

The valuation of shares would now be estimated through a “fair value” method instead of net asset value.

The fair valuation of shares would be estimated on a combination of three valuation methods – net asset value approach, market value approach and discounted cash flow approach

DSE portfolio investment jolted in August n Kayes Sohel Net foreign investment at the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) took a jolt in August compared to the month of July.

Sharp fall in net foreign investment or portfolio investment on equity continued for the second consecutive month after record rise in the previous months.

Analysts say although net position dropped steeply, they played a role on the both side of fence.

Moreover, the market is now at the middle of the year when foreign investment situation usually remains poor due to realignment of their portfolios, analysts said.

Overseas investors had bought shares worth Tk165 crore in August and sold shares worth Tk152 crore, reducing their total investment turnover at DSE to Tk12.5 crore in the month from Tk79 crore in the previous month, DSE sources said.

Data showed the August net foreign investment figure is over 84% lower than that of the previous month.

In April, 2014, the foreign investors came up with the highest ever fund of Tk572 crore into Bangladesh’s stock market when they bought shares of Tk876 crore and sold Tk304 crore.

“The drop in holdings of foreign portfolio investments does not mean weakening of investors’ sentiment,” said an analyst working at a top brokerage firm in Dhaka. He also cited foreign investment usually remained dull in the middle of a year as they preferred to realign their holdings.

The foreign investment, however, accounts for less than 2% of DSE’s total market capitalisation, which is the lowest among South Asian countries. l

depending on the nature of the company.

Senior executives of Bangladesh Bank considered it to open the exit door of funds foreign investors earned through their business in the country.

Kazemi said the central bank lifted the restriction on fund repatriation in order to encourage the long term foreign investment in the country.

The restriction had, however, been maintained fearing the money flight.

But now, he said, the restriction has been lifted in response to demands by some foreign investors who have already invested in the country.

He said long-term foreign investment has slowed down due to the strict exit policy. But some foreign investors had invested here relying only on Bangladesh Bank’s commitment it would relax the condition for repatriation of funds.

He said the net asset value was not a fair approach as the process might be applicable for a closed company, but not for a running company.

Another senior executive, preferring anonymity, said the foreign investors were earlier allowed to entry in the country for investment, but with strictly restricted repatriation rules the central bank had imposed fearing money laundering.

As a result, foreign investors have been deprived of the income, brand value of the companies, and do not get the real value, making them reluctant to invest for a long time in the country.

He said though the relaxed rule would contribute to increase long term foreign investment in the country, it would also create a great scope of money laundering.

“Capital flight could take place through manipulation of the valuation process of the shares,” he said.

He, however, defended that the central bank has the option to justify the value, but still having the scope of being biased.

“There is a chance of capital flight,” said Mamun Rashid, banker and economic analyst. However, he said the auditors have huge responsibility to protect the capital flight.

On the other hand, he said, private equity investors would be encouraged due to the new rule.

According to the circular, application for repatriation of sale proceeds of shares will have to be submitted to the foreign exchange investment department of the central bank with a valuation certificate, issued by a merchant bank or a chartered accountant.

The valuation certificates will have to be supported by full explanation justifying the fair value. Audited financial statements of the company will also have to be submitted along with the application for remittance approval, the BB said.

The central bank, however, can scrutinise the valuation by another chartered accountant, if it is not satisfied about the appropriateness of the valuation of shares. l

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina addresses a two-day international conference on blue economy in its inaugural ceremony held in Dhaka yesterday DHAKA TRIBUNE

Bangladesh remittance fair in KL on Sep 21 n Tribune Report A two-day Bangladesh remittance and investment fair will be held in Malaysian capital, Kuala Lumpur, on September 21 and 22.

Global Air Tours and Travels will host the programme.

State Minister for Finance and Planning MA Mannan will inaugurate the

fair at Merdeka Square on September 21.

Some 50 stalls will be put up in the fair, which is expected to be attended

by Deputy Governor of Bangladesh Bank SK Sur Chowdhury, Managing Director of Probashi Kallyan Bank CM Koyes Sami and high-ups from different banks and business organisations.

“Along with different beverage and food manufacturing companies, banks,

insurance companies, financial institutions, leather, plastic, real estate, airline and tour companies can take part in the fair,” said Farzana Majumder, MD and CEO of Global Air Tours and Travels.

Participating banks will be able to create awareness among Bangladeshis working in Malaysia for sending their money home through banking channels. l

UK groups want to BTRC: Banglalink fastest of all other advocate for foreign operators in 3G data service investments in DSE, CSE n Muhammad Zahidul Islam

n

Asif Showkat Kallol

A UK-based investment association and a development finance institution also based in UK have expressed interest in initiating global advocacy to bring foreign investment into Bangladesh’s stock markets.

However, they have identified five barriers into attracting foreign investment to the country’s two markets Dhaka and Chittagong stock exchanges.

Emerging Markets Private Equity Association (EMPEA) and CDC Group are willing to take the move.

Commercial Counselor of Bangladesh in the United Kingdom Sharifa Khan sent a letter to Finance Secretary Mahbub Ahemd in this regard.

It said the CDC and EMPEA are keen to invest in the country as well as launch the global advocacy.

The letter mentioned some barriers which include restriction on repatriation of the capital from Bangladesh and three-year lock-in periods following initial public offerings of securities (IPOs).

Business integrity and corporate governance are also of concerns for foreign investors willing to step in the Bangladeshi stock markets.

Besides, Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) has only made a limited adherence to international accounting standards, the letter said.

It said there also exists a lack of private equity regulatory guidelines for

investment in the two stock exchanges.

Commercial counselor said the intention of EMPEA and CDC Group is to highlight the potentials for private equity development within Bangladesh and how regulatory enhancement could attract capital into the country.

EMPEA is a global industry sector association for private capital in emerging markets. It is an independent non-profit organisation.

As EMPEA celebrates its 10th anniversary in 2014, the association has over 300 member firms, comprising institutional investors, fund managers and industry advisers, who together manage more than $1tn of assets and have offices in more than 100 countries across the globe.

The association members share EMPEA’s belief that private capital is a highly suited investment strategy in emerging markets, delivering attractive long-term investment returns and promoting the sustainable growth of companies and economies, the letter cited.

The association supports their members through global authoritative intelligence, conferences and events, networking, education and general and regulatory advocacy.

Last April, the CDC Group invested $28m in private sector lender Ratnakar Bank in India, a transaction that made the British development financial institution picking up a 4.8% stake in the Kohlapur-based and private equity-backed bank. l

The telecom regulator has found Banglalink’s third-generation data service fastest in the country though the mobile company is at the bottom of the pyramid in terms of the fastest data users’ numbers.

According to the regulator, Grameenphone is the most popular mobile operator holding the apex of 3G users’ numbers, but hardly offers better data transfer services.

The GP has more than 19 lakh active 3G subscribers though the company offers less than 1 Mbps (megabyte per second) speed for data transfer on its network.

Grameenphone fixed its 3G data speed at 512 Kbps and 1 Mbps, while Banglalink, Robi and Airtel offer an uncodified speed limit.

The telecom watchdog found Banglalink’s 3G data speed more than 2 Mbps in most areas while Robi’s speed ranges around 1.9 Mbps and Airtel around 1.2 Mbps on an average.

Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) has collected these data through physical monitoring of the 3G mobile data services offered by the four private mobile operators across the country.

We have observed that Grameenphone hardly offers better speedy data services to its clients though its has subscribers higher than those of the other three, a member of BTRC inspection team told the Dhaka Tribune last week.

The market leader, Grameenphone, acquired 10 Megahertz spectrum in the

spectrum auction while the other three got 5 Megahertz each.

BTRC officials travelled all divisional and some district headquarters to oversee the 3G network performance

by Grameenphone, Robi, Airtel and Banglalink; while they also measured the speed and service quality of the operators through their networks.

The inspection team had its field-level observation between July 13 and July 17 as a nine-month grace period for introducing the 3G mobile data services ended in the first week of July.

As per the 3G licence guidelines, the operators have an obligation to roll out their services in all the divisional headquarters within nine months from the licence-awarding date.

The BTRC team, however, found all private mobile operators fulfilled their obligation primarily and covered some district headquarters and growth centres also.

According to the study report, only Grameenphone covers all the 64 district headquarters through its 2,200 sites, which were upgraded to 3G status.

The report also reads: Banglalink has covered only 23 districts including seven divisional headquarters up to July 23, but the mobile company claims that it has covered 64 districts.

Banglalink, the second largest operator in terms of 2G subscribers, has only 4.5 lakh 3G subscribes, said the report.

Earlier, another BTRC report claimed that the number of Banglalink’s 3G subscribers stand at 6.69 lakh till the end of July.

The inspection team observed Robi’s network in the first week of August and found that some 13.05 lakh 3G subscribers enjoy the company’s service.

Robi covers only 23 districts with 7 divisional cities with around 1,300 sites.

Airtel has 5.39 lakh 3G subscribers covering 20 district towns up to Eidul Fitr, the report said, adding that the cellular company developed its 1,100 sites with modern and fastest network equipment.

Seeking anonymity, a senior official, who was also in the BTRC inspection team, said: “Each operator has Tk150 crore Performance Bank Guaranty (PBG) to the regulator and only Grameenphone is eligible to withdraw all its PBG as it has already fulfilled its network obligation.”

He added that the remaining three operators are only eligible to withdraw Tk50 crore as they have met only firstphase of rollout obligation.

The operators also have obligation to cover at least 30% district areas within 18 months after the licence was awarded and they have to cover 64 districts by 36 months, according to the 3G guidelines.

The 3G spectrum auction was held on September 8, 2013 and the operators obtained their licences within a week.

The state-owned operator Teletalk was not included in the BTRC inspection list. As of July, Teletalk’s total 3G subscribers stand at 10.44 lakh. The state-owned operator went into commercial operation in October 2012 and it is yet to obtain 3G licences. l

Amin Jewellers to honour 25 intellectuals n Tribune Report Amin Jewellers will honor 25 distinguished personalities of the country for their contributions to respective fields on the occasion of the industry’s golden jubilee celebration.

Managing Director Quazi Sirazul Islam of Amin Jewellers came up with the announcement at a media briefing in a city ho-

tel of the capital yesterday.

He said the award will go to those that contributed specially to the field of history, tradition, language movement, liberation war, art, literature, culture, politics, economics, business, education, architecture, medical science and so on.

A total of 25 intellectuals will be selected by a jury board comprised of three members.

The distinguished will be honoured with

a cash of Tk3 lakh, a gold medal and a gold crest, Sirajul Islam said.

To celebrate the 50th year Golden Jubilee is out and out a significant achievement for any organisation, he said, adding that it is milestone for Amin Jewellers in the field of the country’s jewelery industry.

“We reached this stage and earned fame because our buyers and clients have trust and confidence in us,” Sirajul said.

He called upon the customers to continue their support to the company.

Kazi Aminul Islam, director of the jewellery industry, said in his written speech the company has decided to award 25 intellectuals who are serving the country with their talent, labour, devotion and patriotism.

The honouring programme will be held on January 1, 2016. l

B2

Stocks inch higher on GP rally n Tribune Report

Turnover (Million Taka)

Comprising blue chips DS30 closed at 1,723, rising 9 points or 0.6%.

weight Grameenphone share prices that gained more than 4%.

The Shariah index, DSES, gained marginally 7 points or 0.8% to 1,065.

The comprising blue chips DS30 closed at 1,723, rising 9 points or 0.6%.

Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) Selective Categories Index, CSCX, was up 13 points to 8,597.

Trading activities still remained sluggish as turnover at DSE stood at Tk500-crore mark, slightly down the previous session’s Tk494 crore.

DSE Broad Index : DSE - 30 Index : CSE All Share Index: CSE - 30 Index : CSE Selected Index : DSE LOSER Closing (% Change)

FAR Chemical-N Jute SpinnersA Alltex Industries -Z Pragati Gen. I -A Pioneer Insur -A Beximco Syn.-Z Eastern Bank - A Popular Life Insu. -A BD Submarine Cable-A Dutch Ban. Bnk- A

-8.38 -7.02 -5.33 -4.15 -3.92 -3.81 -3.62 -2.96 -2.86 -2.83

CSE LOSER Company 8th ICB M F-A FAR Chemical-N Alltex Industries -Z ICB AMCL IslamicMF-A Ambee Pharma -A Rupali InsurA Provati Insur.-A AMCL 2nd MF-A IFIL Islamic M.F.1-A Eastern Bank - A

Closing (% Change) -22.14 -8.01 -7.89 -7.61 -7.55 -7.45 -6.54 -4.17 -3.77 -3.32

4554.97770

(+) 0.12%

1722.68410

(+) 0.52%

14081.76480

(+) 0.30%

11331.91970

(-) 0.77%

8596.83490

(+) 0.15%

Average (% Change) -4.65 -6.44 -6.36 -3.64 -3.18 -3.61 -3.29 -4.51 -3.10 -1.65 Average (% Change) -22.14 -3.72 -6.83 -7.81 -5.71 -5.92 -4.20 -2.94 -2.83 -3.32

ANALYST

ClosingAvg. 55.22 53.33 7.22 41.83 44.45 10.14 26.72 137.92 141.16 83.33

ClosingAvg. 54.50 55.70 7.09 17.00 249.87 23.99 19.82 4.63 5.15 26.20

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 232.89 125.08 14.89 613.44 310.88 555.60 1.14 804.36 778.04 79.01 94.24 52.20 31.65 208.04 197.07 33.34 45.87 420.74 106.11 309.62 0.43

DHIGH 58.70 53.10 7.50 43.00 45.50 10.40 27.00 145.00 145.00 85.00

DHIGH

54.50 54.00 7.00 17.00 245.00 23.60 20.00 4.60 5.10 26.20

54.50 58.00 7.50 17.00 251.00 24.20 20.00 4.70 5.20 26.20

129,575

Traded Issues

288

Issue Gain (Avg. Price Basis)

103

Issue Loss (Avg. Price Basis)

179 6

Market Capital Equity (Billion. Tk.)

2,415.52

Market Capital Equity (Billion US$)

29.28

CSE key features September 1-2014 Turnover (Million Taka)

396.76

Turnover (Volume)

11,889,487

Number of Contract

19,457

Traded Issues

208

Issue Gain (Avg. Price Basis)

65

Issue Loss (Avg. Price Basis)

135

Unchanged Issue (Avg. Price Basis)

7

Market Capital Equity (Billion. Tk.)

2,327.61

Market Capital Equity (Billion US$)

28.21

Turnover in Million

53.30 53.00 7.00 40.00 44.10 10.00 25.00 135.00 129.00 77.00

62.762 0.016 0.708 0.620 1.570 2.398 1.211 1.420 70.457 5.597

Turnover in Million

DLOW 54.50 53.80 6.90 17.00 245.00 23.60 19.50 4.60 5.10 26.20

9.81 9.27 6.58 6.53 6.16 6.15 6.15 5.91 5.15 4.96

CSE GAINER

Unchanged Issue (Avg. Price Basis)

DLOW

Agni Systems -A Fu-Wang Food A Standard Insurance-A BDCOM Online-A Modern Dyeing -Z Shampur Sugar -Z In Tech Online -A Rangpur Dairy-N Orion Infusions -A Sinobangla Indu.-A

Closing (% Change)

Latest EPS 3.92 -43.81 -1.24 2.44 3.12 0.66 3.10 17.00 2.42 9.28

Latest EPS

0.055 2.841 0.223 0.009 0.075 0.278 0.016 0.007 0.093 0.021

7.96 3.92 -1.24 2.33 3.18 2.72 1.52 0.99 1.07 3.10

Latest PE 14.1 -ve -ve 17.1 14.2 15.4 8.6 8.1 58.3 9.0

Latest PE 6.8 14.2 -ve 7.3 78.6 8.8 13.0 4.7 4.8 8.5

Company

Closing (% Change)

Agni Systems -A Fu-Wang Food A In Tech Online -A BD. Thai Alum -B Orion Infusions -A BATBCL -A Fine Foods A Grameenphone-A Rangpur Dairy-N LafargeS Cement-Z

9.85 9.31 7.69 5.95 5.15 4.98 4.88 3.73 3.72 2.84

Average (% Change) 5.98 7.09 6.37 4.70 5.91 8.49 3.62 1.11 3.22 1.02 Average (% Change) 6.04 6.80 4.63 4.52 4.11 4.98 2.43 3.99 1.53 1.39

ClosingAvg. 28.90 21.74 25.88 26.08 76.00 6.90 13.73 19.21 46.47 24.87

ClosingAvg. 28.79 21.66 13.78 26.35 46.59 2677.00 16.89 334.43 19.20 107.25

Closing 29.10 22.40 25.90 26.10 75.80 6.90 13.80 19.70 47.00 25.40

Closing 29.00 22.30 14.00 26.70 47.00 2677.00 17.20 336.30 19.50 108.80

DHIGH 29.10 22.50 26.60 26.70 78.00 6.90 14.00 19.90 47.70 25.60

DHIGH 29.00 22.40 14.00 27.40 47.30 2677.00 17.30 339.00 20.00 110.90

DLOW 24.00 19.00 22.00 22.90 74.00 6.90 12.00 17.00 44.70 24.00

DLOW 25.00 20.00 13.00 25.30 45.70 2677.00 16.20 328.00 18.00 104.30

Turnover in Million 121.837 93.961 0.856 10.291 0.019 0.008 6.140 48.578 28.301 12.499

Turnover in Million 5.625 4.626 1.055 2.205 1.631 0.134 1.030 20.266 3.433 9.331

Latest EPS 1.27 0.96 3.00 1.43 1.61 -61.36 -0.88 1.16 4.81 1.21

Latest EPS 1.27 0.96 -0.88 0.84 4.81 95.74 -1.01 15.70 1.16 2.42

Latest PE 22.8 22.6 8.6 18.2 47.2 -ve -ve 16.6 9.7 20.6

Latest PE 22.7 22.6 -ve 31.4 9.7 28.0 -ve 21.3 16.6 44.3

News, Analysis and Recent Disclosers From TradeServers: NITOLINS: Credit Rating Information and Services Limited (CRISL) has announced the CPA (Claim Paying Ability) Rating of the Company as "A" in consideration of audited financials of the Company up to December 31, 2013 and other relevant quantitative as well as qualitative information up to the date of rating declaration.

HAKKANIPUL: Emerging Credit Rating Limited (ECRL) has assigned the surveillance rating of the Company as "ECRL-2" in the short term along with a stable outlook to the Company based on audited financials of the Company up to June 30, 2013, unaudited financials upto March 31, 2014 and other qualitative information.

APEXTANRY: Credit Rating Information and Services Limited (CRISL) has rated the Company as "AA-" in the long term and "ST-2" in the short term based on audited financial statements of the Company up to June 30, 2013, unaudited financials for July, 2013 to March, 2014 and other relevant quantitative as well as qualitative information up to the date of rating declaration.

PRAGATILIF: (Q1): As per un-audited quarterly accounts for the 1st quarter ended on 31st March 2014 (Jan'14 to March'14), the Company has reported an increase in life revenue account of Tk. 202.01 million with total life insurance fund of Tk. 3,772.44 million as against Tk.

115.83 million and Tk. 3,268.97 million respectively for the same period of the previous year.

TUNGHAI: (Q1): The Company has reported its profit after tax Tk. 12.25 million and basic EPS Tk. 0.27 for the 3 (three) months ended on 31 March 2014 (Jan 2014-March 2014) as against profit after tax of Tk. 11.60 million and basic EPS of Tk. 0.26 for the same period of the previous year. It is to be noted that basic EPS has been calculated based on weighted average Pre-IPO paid-up number of shares i.e. 45,130,000 shares for both periods. However, considering Post-IPO 80,130,000 number of shares the Company's basic EPS for the 3 (three) months ended on 31 March 2014 would be Tk. 0.15 and NAV per share would be Tk. 13.03 as on March 31, 2014.

PRAGATILIF: (H/Y): As per un-audited half yearly accounts as on 30.06.2014 (Jan'14 to June'14), the Company has reported an increase in life insurance fund of Tk. 181.21 million with total life insurance fund of Tk. 3,751.64 million as against Tk. 166.26 million and Tk. 3,319.39 million respectively for the same period of the previous year.

Whereas a decrease in life insurance fund was Tk. 20.80 million for the period of 3 months (Apr'14 to June'14) ended on 30.06.2014 as against an increase of Tk. 50.42 million for the same period of the previous year.

MHSML: As per Regulation 30 of DSE Listing Regulations, the Company has informed that a meeting of the Board of Directors will be held on September 03, 2014 at 3:30 PM to consider, among others, audited financial statements of the Company for the year ended on June 30, 2014.

IPO Subscription: Khan Brothers PP Woven Bag Industries Ltd. subscription date 24-28 August 2014, NRB upto 06 September 2014. @ taka 10, face value taka 10 and market lot 500. Western Marine Shipyard Limited subscription date 10-14 August 2014, NRB upto 23 August 2014. @ taka 35, face value taka 10 and market lot 100.

Right Share: MIDASFIN: Subscription period for rights issue will be from 01.09.2014 to 30.09.2014. Record date for entitlement of rights share: 03.08.2014.

ICB: Subscription period for rights issue will be from 07.12.2014 to 30.12.2014.

Record date for entitlement of rights share: 09.09.2014.

Dividend/AGM SAIHAMCOT: 10% cash, AGM: 23.10.2014, Record date: 17.09.2014.

BSCCL: 10% cash, AGM: 12.10.2014, Record date: 04.09.2014.

PRAGATILIF: No dividend, AGM: 30.09.2014, Record date: 14.09.2014.

GPHISPAT: 15% cash and 5% stock, AGM: 10.11.2014, Record date: 22.09.2014.

Main DSEX index seems to face strong resistance at 4,600 level, for which a strong support from volume is required to break the cluster and make way for the market to edge higher and become more magnetic

SECTORAL TURNOVER SUMMARY Sector

▲ ▲ ▲ ▼ ▲

53.60 53.00 7.10 41.60 44.10 10.10 26.60 137.80 139.20 82.30

Closing

121,357,346

Number of Contract

Weekly capital market highlights

Company

5,014.64

Turnover (Volume)

Tuesday, September 2, 2014

DSE GAINER

DSE key features September 1-2014

Among the large cap sectors, telecommunication, cement, IT and power closed positive.

The other major sectors pharmaceuticals, food and allied, banks and financial institution performed negative.

Lanka Bangla Securities said the market ended in flat green zone with mild increase in turnover compared to the previous day.

Zenith Investments said after moving in a narrow range for the last two days, indexes at Dhaka bourse surged higher from early hours of trade and kept the momentum intact till the last hour.

The main DSEX index seems to face strong resistance at 4,600 level, for which a strong support from volume is required to break the cluster and make way for the market to edge higher and become more magnetic, it said.

Grameenphone was the most traded stocks with shares worth Tk35 crore changing hands, removing Beximco Ltd that came in third after remaining in top turnover chart over the last two weeks.

Tun Hai Knitting, in its first trading day, gained 178% to Tk27.8 on its face value of Tk10 a share, making it second turnover leader.

Other top turnover leaders were Summit Power, Beximco Pharma, Mobil Jamuna Limited Bangladesh and Lafarge Surma Cement Ltd Bangladesh. l

Stocks inched higher amid volatility yesterday, as late selling pressure on profit booking wiped off early higher gains.

The market resumed with positive note but the upswing trend was restrained by fall in share prices of pharmaceuticals, food and allied, banks and financial institutions.

The benchmark DSEX edged 5 points or 0.8% higher to 4,555, pulled up by mainly rally in heavy-

Company

Stock

DHAKA TRIBUNE

% change 4.64 2.49 0.30 12.23 6.20 11.08 0.02 16.04 15.52 1.88 1.04 0.63 4.15 3.93 0.66 0.91 8.39 2.12 6.17 0.01

Million Taka 14.80 5.88 0.47 28.44 18.93 29.83 57.64 37.27 19.34 4.34 5.02 3.33 14.51 25.66 2.19 2.82 28.14 20.04 35.74 0.05

CSE

% change 4.17 1.66 0.13 8.02 5.34 8.41 0.00 16.26 10.52 5.46 1.22 1.42 0.94 4.09 7.24 0.62 0.80 7.94 5.66 10.08 0.01

Million Taka 247.69 130.96 15.36 641.88 329.82 585.43 1.14 862.00 815.31 98.35 98.58 57.21 34.98 222.55 222.73 35.53 48.69 448.88 126.15 345.36 0.47

Total

% change 4.61 2.44 0.29 11.96 6.14 10.90 0.02 16.05 15.19 1.83 1.84 1.07 0.65 4.14 4.15 0.66 0.91 8.36 2.35 6.43 0.01

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

DSE TURNOVER LEADERS Company Grameenphone-A Tung Hai Knitting -N BEXIMCO Ltd. -A Summit Power -A Beximco Pharma -A MJL BD Ltd.-A LafargeS Cement-Z ACI Limited- A Golden Son -A Agni Systems -A CSE TURNOVER LEADERS Company BEXIMCO Ltd. -A FarEast Knitting -N Grameenphone-A Khulna Printing-N UNITED AIR-A LafargeS Cement-Z Summit Power -A Square Pharma -A BD Submarine Cable-A The Peninsula CTG.-N

VolumeShares 1,045,635 9,391,000 5,251,682 3,701,994 2,716,558 1,305,704 1,281,500 367,037 2,487,228 4,216,062

Value in Million 350.28 276.52 219.65 152.05 151.50 149.36 136.99 129.25 122.37 121.84

% of TotalTurnover 6.99 5.51 4.38 3.03 3.02 2.98 2.73 2.58 2.44 2.43

VolumeShares

Value in Million

% of TotalTurnover

714,015 637,200 60,600 449,500 963,427 87,000 201,588 34,792 55,766 187,600

29.89 26.27 20.27 15.63 12.00 9.33 8.28 8.05 7.88 6.33

9.17 8.05 6.21 4.79 3.68 2.86 2.54 2.47 2.42 1.94

ClosingP 337.40 27.80 41.40 40.50 54.70 112.80 108.80 350.70 48.80 29.10

ClosingP

41.50 40.80 336.30 34.10 12.30 108.80 40.80 231.00 139.30 33.60

Change % 4.23 0.00 -0.72 1.76 -1.80 -2.00 3.32 1.98 -1.21 9.81

Change %

-0.95 -0.24 3.73 0.59 0.00 2.84 2.77 -1.53 -3.06 -0.88

ClosingY 323.70 0.00 41.70 39.80 55.70 115.10 105.30 343.90 49.40 26.50

ClosingY

41.90 40.90 324.20 33.90 12.30 105.80 39.70 234.60 143.70 33.90

DHIGH

DLOW

338.60 33.50 43.00 43.70 60.00 118.00 110.00 360.00 50.00 29.10

300.00 27.50 37.60 36.00 50.20 104.00 104.10 313.90 44.50 24.00

DHIGH

DLOW

42.80 42.80 339.00 35.80 13.50 110.90 41.60 237.00 145.00 34.00

41.20 39.50 328.00 33.90 11.10 104.30 40.10 230.00 138.60 33.50

AvgPrice 335.00 29.45 41.82 41.07 55.77 114.39 106.90 352.13 49.20 28.90

AvgPrice

41.86 41.23 334.43 34.78 12.45 107.25 41.06 231.43 141.24 33.72

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Business

B3

Tuesday, September 2, 2014

Japan aims to double India investment n Reuters, Tokyo

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will tell his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi at a summit yesterday that Japan aims to double its direct investment in India in five years from some $2bn last year, the Nikkei business daily reported.

Modi, on his first major foreign visit since a landslide election win in May, arrived on Saturday for a five-day trip aimed at capitalising on a personal affinity with Abe to bolster security and business ties in the face of an assertive China.

The two leaders are also likely to agree to speed up talks on a nuclear energy pact, the Nikkei said, although hopes of striking a similar accord to one reached with the United States in 2008 had faded in the run-up to the visit.

Japan wants explicit guarantees from India, which has not signed the nuclear non-proliferation treaty, to limit atomic tests and allow closer inspection of its facilities to ensure that spent fuel is not used to make bombs. Japanese firms also want clarity on nuclear disaster compensation, especially in the wake of the March 2011 Fukushima catastrophe.

In a sign of their close ties, the two leaders greeted each other with a bear

Oil prices mixed in Asian trade n AFP, Singapore Oil prices were mixed in muted Asian trade yesterday ahead of a public holiday in the United States and as dealers digest downcast Chinese manufacturing data, analysts said.

US benchmark West Texas Intermediate for October delivery eased 14 cents to $95.82 while Brent crude for October rose five cents to $103.24 in afternoon trade.

Floor trading in the United States is closed yesterday for the Labor Day holiday, and electronic transactions will be used to determine the settlement price.

“We are seeing thin trading volumes in Asian trading today ahead of the US Labor Day holiday,” Desmond Chua, market analyst at CMC Markets in Singapore, told AFP. “Oil prices are expected to trade within a lower range as dealers consolidate their positions with no new leads expected today,” he said.

Investors are also scrutinising data released Monday showing Chinese manufacturing growth slowed in August, raising concerns about demand in the world’s top energy consumer, Chua said.

The National Bureau of Statistics said the official purchasing managers index came in at 51.1, down from 51.7 in July, and the first decline since slipping to 50.2 in February.

The index tracks manufacturing activity in China’s factories and workshops and is a closely watched indicator of the health of the economy. A reading above 50 indicates growth, while anything below points to contraction. l

hug when they met on Saturday in Japan’s ancient capital of Kyoto for an informal dinner. Modi is one of three people that Abe follows on Twitter, while the Indian leader admires Abe’s brand of nationalist politics.

Also under discussion will be a proposal to formalise a ‘two-plus-two’ format for talks bringing together the foreign and defence ministers of both countries, and the possible sale of an amphibious aircraft to the India navy.

India and Japan will also likely agree to hold regular joint training exercises in maritime defense, some of which will involve the United States as well, the Nikkei said.

India, Asia’s third-largest economy after China and Japan, needs faster economic growth to create work for the one million young people who enter the workforce every month.

In early steps, Modi has allowed foreign investors to own 100 percent of railway projects with an eye to drumming up interest in building India’s answer to Japan’s high-speed ‘bullet’ trains. He is also courting Japanese investment in an ambitious industrial “corridor” to run between Delhi and Mumbai. l

Prime Minister Narendra Modi (centre) tries to play a soprano recorder before school children at a music class during a visit at Taimei Elementary School in Tokyo

REUTERS

Swatch prefers go-it-alone route Euro at one-year low against dollar in Asia for smartwatch plans n n Reuters

Swatch Group is happy to go it alone with a launch next year of watches with “smart” features to compete with socalled wearable gadgets from the big tech companies, a market potentially worth $93bn.

The world’s biggest watchmaker, which sees the advent of smartwatches as an opportunity rather than a threat, will unveil its new Swatch Touch next summer.

Swatch Chief Executive Nick Hayek said these new watches might allow the wearer to count the number of steps they take and calories they burn. And there will be a few other cool ‘Swatchy’ things on offer via latest Bluetooth technology, he said in an interview at the company’s headquarters in Biel.

“All the big technology firms want to work with us and I don’t rule out that we are or could be collaborating in some areas. But we can also do many things on our own.”

Wearable gadgets, such as smartwatches that allow users to connect to their phone to check emails, make calls or monitor their health, are expected to be the next big thing in the tech world and a potential threat to traditional wristwatch sales.

Apple Inc has just invited media to a “special event” next month, fuelling speculation it might present a muchanticipated “iWatch.”

The possibility of an iWatch launch is partly responsible for Swatch shares losing almost 15 percent so far this year, lagging a 3% rise in the European sector.

“For Swatch, this could mean a 2% hit to revenue and earnings before interest and tax for each 10% share that the iWatch was able to gain in its addressable market,” Bernstein analyst Mario Ortelli said in a study in July. Ortelli has a “market perform” rating on Swatch’s shares.

Other tech companies are working on smartwatches. Google’s Motorola is set to launch a Moto360 smartwatch next week in the United States.

But the spotlight is on Apple after the company poached executives from the fashion, luxury and medtech (medical)industries and registered the trademark “iWatch” in Japan.

Dream team

For many analysts, Swatch and Apple would be the dream team for a smartwatch project, but Swatch has always played down its interest in such a relationship. The argument is that Swatch’s business is selling watches not technology.

“Our first message for customers is the watch. If they like it, they might also be interested in the extra functions,” Hayek said. “It is a problem if you only define a product by its tech-

nology. Technology alone doesn’t sell, not in watches.”

His comments highlight the importance of fashion and branding for the development of the smartwatch business. “(Technology firms) that want to strike partnerships with us also want access to brands. They want (their products) to be more than a commodity,” the CEO said.

Swatch has a well-established list of brands, including its colorful Swatch watches, sporty Tissot and Longines, elegant Omega and hand-decorated Breguet timepieces.

There are already smartwatches on the market from companies like Samsung, Sony Corp and LG Electronics, but these have had mixed reviews.

Experts say even if the technology is cheap and small enough for wearable gadgets, this is not enough for consumers. “Nobody has hit on the right combination of problems a wearable should solve and convinced mainstream consumers,” Avi Greengart, research director at IT research firm Current Analysis, said.

The rewards are potentially huge for whoever comes up with a winning formula. Andrew Sheehy, chief analyst at Generator Research, sees the retail value of wearable Internet-connected devices at $93.1bn by 2018, versus $4.1bn in 2014, with smartwatches accounting for about two thirds of the market’s value in 2018. l

Modhumoti Bank Ltd has recently launched a new product named Modhumoti Priority Banking, for its highly valued customers at a ceremony held in Gulshan, Dhaka. The bank’s chairperson Humayun Kabir inaugurated the launching ceremony as chief guest

Super Star Group, an electrical accessories manufacturing and marketing organization, has recently inaugurated its sales and display centre at the commercial area Bijoynagar in Dhaka. The group’s managing director and CEO, Mohammed Ibrahim launched the electrical lifestyle store

Hafizur Rahman Khan, chairperson of Runner Group and Rezaul Hossain, chief commercial officer at bKash Limited recently signed an agreement under which bKash will collect payments from the motor mechanics who will buy spare parts from the authorised dealers and showrooms of Runner Group

National Bank Limited has recently started a refreshers course for its branch managers at its training institute. The bank’s managing director and CEO, AKM Shafiqur Rahman attended the inaugural session of the course as chief guest

AFP, Tokyo

The euro struggled at a one-year low against the dollar in Asia yesterday, ahead of a European Central Bank (ECB) meeting where policymakers will consider their next move in the face of weak eurozone inflation.

The European single currency slipped to $1.3126, its lowest level since September last year and down from $1.3139 in New York, although it ticked up to 136.77 yen from 136.67 yen in US trade.

The dollar fetched 104.18 yen, its strongest since January and up from 104.06 yen in New York on Friday.

Eurozone inflation eased to 0.3% in August, raising concerns the 18-nation bloc is about to tip into deflation.

The data have put pressure on the ECB to take fresh monetary easing steps at its policy meeting Thursday, a move that would tend to weaken the unit.

“Speculation for the ECB to consider more aggressive policy action this week has increased considerably after (bank chief Mario) Draghi indicated downside risks to long-term inflation expectations last week,” Credit Agricole said.

Despite weak US personal spending data on Friday, the dollar pushed ahead as second-quarter economic growth figures came in strong, with traders looking ahead to key non-farm payroll figures at the end of this week.

Investors were also keeping a close

eye on geopolitical developments, with concerns increasing that Russia and Ukraine are on a collision course.

“Geopolitical risk will likely continue to overshadow the market in the days ahead, especially given the one-week deadline set by the EU for Russia to scale back operations in Ukraine or face more sanctions,” Credit Agricole said.

Markets were also keeping an eye on a two-day Bank of Japan policy meeting this week, after data on Friday showed the world’s number three economy slowed markedly in July as consumer spending dropped and factory output ran out of steam.

The disappointing figures underscored concerns about the state of the country’s recovery, and heap more pressure on the central bank to unleash further easing measures.

The dollar was mixed against other Asia-Pacific currencies.

It strengthened to Sg$1.2496 from Sg$1.2490 on Friday and to 31.97 Thai baht from 31.94 baht.

The greenback eased to 11,697.00 Indonesian rupiah from 11,710.00 rupiah, to 1,013.90 South Korean won from 1,014.77 won, and to 43.58 Philippine pesos from 43.67 pesos.

It also slipped to Tw$29.86 from Tw$29.90 and to 60.49 Indian rupees from 60.51 rupees.

The Australian dollar weakened to 93.40 US cents from 93.49 cents, while the Chinese yuan rose to 16.95 yen against 16.89 yen. l

Islami Bank Bangladesh Limited held a board meeting on Sunday at its boardroom of Islami Bank Tower. The bank’s chairperson Prof Abu Nasser Muhammad Abduz Zaher attended the meeting

The Bangladesh Seed Association has recently held its annual general meeting at Bangabandhu International Conference centre in Dhaka. The association’s president M Anis Ud Dowla presided over the meeting

B4

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Back Page

Tuesday, September 2, 2014

Passive funds an active threat for Europe’s fund managers n Reuters, London Warren Buffett built a fortune of nearly $60bn from astute stock picking, but when the 83-year-old dies, the vast majority of the money he leaves his wife will be parked in a fund that simply moves in step with an index.

The afterlife plans of the man nicknamed the Sage of Omaha, revealed in a letter to his investors earlier this year, underline a sea change afoot in the investment industry.

Fed up with high fees and poor performance, investors are increasingly shunning active fund managers who promise to beat the stock market in favour of cheaper, passive funds, which simply track it.

Such funds account for about a quarter of the money invested in the UK stock market, up from 15% a decade ago. The switch is accelerating, with index funds attracting inflows of $3bn in the first half of this year, while active UK-focused funds saw $4bn leave, a Reuters analysis of data from fund tracker Lipper showed.

The passive wind blows even stronger in the United States due to years of underperformance by active funds, which has led to institutions parking half of their equity allocations in index trackers, according to data from State Street.

And the shift is spreading to other parts of the world, putting at risk revenues earned by money managers, banks and brokerages that service funds and more than half a million jobs related to fund management in Europe alone.

Industry experts expect Europe, where active mutual funds are still the dominant force, making up 80% of allocations, to move more in sync with the United States, following the lead of Britain, the region’s top capital market.

“It’s only a surprise that investors have taken this long to realise that the puffery around long-term outperformance, star managers, etc., is just that ... puffery,” said Peter Douglas, founder of investment consultancy GFIA.

Nice n’ easy, till now

Patchy economic recovery since the 2008 crisis and increased regulation, such as a proposed clampdown on a fund’s activities in times of a crisis to ensure stability, have hampered active managers’ ability to outperform.

Weak gains have already made it harder to justify fees that are some-

Germany runs up surplus of 1.1% of GDP in first half

n AFP, Frankfurt

Germany achieved a surplus in its public finances equivalent to 1.1% of overall economic output in the first six months of this year, official data showed yesterday.

The federal, regional and municipal budgets showed a combined surplus of 16.1bn euros ($21.1bn) in the period from January to June, profiting primarily from a “very favourable employment situation,” the federal statistics office Destatis said in a statement. Measured against overall gross domestic product (GDP) of 1.426tn euros, that represented a ratio of 1.1%.

Under eurozone rules, member states are not allowed to run up deficit ratios of more than 3% and are obliged to bring their budgets into balance or even surplus in the long term.

The federal government alone achieved a surplus of 4bn euros in the January-June period, the first time since 1991 that the federal budget has been in the black in the first half, Destatis said.

The regional states were able to almost balance their books as well, running up a deficit of just 200m euros, compared with a surplus of 1.3bn euros in the same period a year earlier. l

Euro and US dollar banknotes are seen in this picture illustration taken in Prague times 10 times or more than the cost of a passive fund, which in the case of the most liquid exchange-traded funds can be less than 0.1% on a headline level, before factoring in brokerage, transaction and tax costs.

While some active funds have cut their charges or introduced cheaper products in response to the threat, the gap is still large.

Leading index fund providers such as Vanguard, Deutsche Bank and BlackRock have cut fees this year to grab market share, putting further pressure on the active managers to do more.

“You can’t charge what you could in the past,” said Chris Iggo, chief investment officer for fixed income at AXA Investment Managers, which manages 582bn euros.

“In a way it’s a good thing. For many years the fund management industry had it easy ... Return on capital in fund

management has been very nice.”

Vanguard, whose S&P 500 index fund Buffett favoured in his letter to investors, and BlackRock have taken in the bulk of new money to European fund houses since the summer of 2013.

The biggest equity fund investing across Europe, Vanguard European Stock Index Fund, managed $22.4bn at the end of July, more than twice the size of Fidelity Funds-European Growth, the biggest actively managed fund for the region.

The growth in passive funds is reflected in the industry’s net revenues, which have remained flat globally for the last four years, according to the Boston Consulting Group, even as funds under management hit a record $69tn in 2013.

Added value?

The biggest problem for active fund

REUTERS

managers charging more for their services is consistently beating the market.

A study of fund returns in local currency over the last 10 years using data from Lipper shows only 35% of the funds investing in Britain have outperformed the FTSE All Share Total Return index, which includes dividend payouts from constituents.

That percentage declined to 29% in the first half of the year.

Active funds investing across continental Europe, meanwhile, have performed even worse, with just a fifth of them gaining more than the MSCI Europe Total Return index since 2003.

The star managers that do manage to beat the crowd often fail to maintain their outperformance.

Of the 107 top quartile funds, or those ranking among the top 25% by gain from investing in British stocks in 2013, only 18 managed to repeat the

feat through June-end this year.

Two of them held that spot for the previous five years, and none managed to achieve the feat over the last 10 years.

A similar pattern is found when looking at other regions around the world, Reuters data showed.

For Buffett, this meant one thing for the average investor.

“The goal of the non-professional should not be to pick winners – neither he nor his ‘helpers’ can do that – but should rather be to own a cross-section of businesses that in aggregate are bound to do well. A low-cost S&P 500 index fund will achieve this goal,” he said in his letter to investors.

The struggle to pick a winner consistently has led some leading institutional investors to change how they invest, with some of them putting the bulk of their funds, as much as 70% in some cases, in passive investments, said

Laurence Wormald, head of research at Sungard APT. Money managers of all stripes are also developing new products to offer cost-conscious investors a middle ground between the pure passive and active. So-called “smart beta” funds track a bespoke index that has been tweaked to weight it in different ways, using factors such as stocks’ cheapness or price momentum.

Net flows into US-based smart beta equity funds stood at $234bn in the first seven months of the year, already exceeding the total inflows of $208bn recorded last year, according to data from BlackRock.

In spite of the strong demand for low-cost passive funds, active fund managers will continue to play a key role in the global investment industry because the possibility of higher returns is always attractive, particularly in a low yield environment.

In addition, there is only so far the market can go passive before the price of a stock - still the most popular asset class for passive investing - becomes detached from fundamentals, thereby allowing an active manager to profit more handsomely.

The ability to profit in such as manner has been evidenced most recently by firms such as Glaucus Research and Gotham City Research, who have spotted corporate fraud through a deep investigation into company accounts, such as at Gowex.

“Passive investing is obviously at the mercy of these frauds,” said Michele Gesualdi, chief investment officer of hedge fund investor Kairos.

“If you are with a long-only active fund or a hedge fund, then certainly you have a chance to avoid these frauds or maybe finding them as shorts,” he added, referring to short-selling, the ability to sell a borrowed stock and profit when it falls.

Still, some 3,200 money managers in Europe will need to broaden their expertise across asset classes and develop new products to reassure investors they are adding value.

“That’s the acid test,” said Thomas Ross, head of European distribution at US money manager William Blair, which manages $62bn, largely for institutions.

“Can you beat the benchmark after fees? If you can, you’ll fare well, and if not, the market will move against you and you’ll be indexed.” l

RBI chief: Indian banks’ Deflation knocks at ECB’s door, bad loan levels not ‘scary’ markets look for cash boost n Reuters, New Delhi The level of bad loans at Indian banks is a “concern” but is not “scary”, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Raghuram Rajan said in a newspaper interview published on Sunday.

A prolonged economic slowdown has hit Indian banks’ balance sheets, with stressed loans - those categorised as bad and restructured - amounting to about 10% of all loans. Fitch Ratings expects stressed assets to reach 14% of loans by March next year.

The bulk of these bad loans are related to infrastructure projects, which have made banks circumspect over lending.

“Is it of concern? Yes. Is it scary?

No,” Rajan told the Times of India, adding “...the point is there are two or three silver linings in the cloud of distressed assets.”

He said many delayed infrastructure projects were “getting back on stream” as the economy improved, and booming equity markets will also help banks raise the required capital.

He also downplayed concerns that rising bad loans would lead to a liquidity crisis in the Indian banking system similar to the one witnessed globally

after the Lehman Brothers went bust in 2008.

“Unlike the banking crisis in the West, where the worry was who would pony up the money, here there is no uncertainty,” he said. “The government will do it. It has never let any bank it owns go under.”

New Delhi has been injecting funds into state lenders to help them meet minimal capital ratios mandated by Basel III norms. This year it will infuse 112bn rupees. But analysts say more funds will be needed.

With its finances in dire straits, the government plans to sell off a part of its holdings in the banks to help bridge their capital shortfall.

While a sluggish economy is the main reason for a rise in distressed assets, a RBI report last week also blamed lending to certain “excessively leveraged” groups.

The launch of a corruption investigation at state-controlled Syndicate Bank has raised broader concerns about weak oversight, graft and politically directed lending at state banks.

Rajan said a change in the process of appointments at these banks will help address the issue. l

n AFP, Frankfurt Financial markets are looking to the European Central Bank to open the cash floodgates next week after consumer price data showed the 18-country eurozone is flirting with deflation, analysts said.

Speculation is rising that the ECB’s decision-making governing council could signal plans for what is known as “quantitative easing” or “QE” at its regular monthly meeting on Thursday.

This is a radical policy - already used by other central banks such as the US Federal Reserve - of buying securities on a big scale to inject cash into the economy.

The ECB has already cut its key interest rates to record lows and made huge volumes of ultra-cheap cash available to banks in a bid to kick-start lending in the singe currency area.

But the pressure has increased on the ECB to take still more measures after eurozone inflation slowed to a paltry 0.3% in August from 0.4% the previous month.

That is worryingly below the central bank’s target of just under 2% and brings the single currency area perilously close to deflation, a climate of falling prices which can cause businesses and consumers to delay purchases, further reducing demand and prices and pushing up unemployment.

Analysts said they were convinced that the ECB is now planning QE after its president Mario Draghi said recently that the bank is becoming concerned about falling inflation expectations.

The ECB as “ready to adjust (its) policy stance further” and “will use all available instruments needed to ensure price stability over the medium term”, Draghi said.

The remarks sparked a rally on European financial markets early last week.

Facing facts

Visitors look at a BMW Isetta 300 microcar with mini caravan at the expo 'Caravan Salon Duesseldorf' at the fair grounds in Duesseldorf, western Germany, on August 31. 580 Exibitors present 1900 caravans and vehicles during one of the world's largests trade fairs for caravans and mobile homes. The fair is running until September 7 AFP

“The ECB finally seems to be facing facts, with Draghi conceding... that the economy is too weak and that inflation expectations have dropped,” said Capital Economics economist Jennifer McKeown.

The central bank “has put a lot of

A huge euro logo is pictured next to the headquarters of the European Central Bank (ECB) before the bank's monthly news conference in Frankfurt REUTERS emphasis on long-term financial market inflation expectations in recent months, stating that a decline would be the ‘context for’ a broad asset purchase programme”, McKeown said.

“So it seems that the final barrier to quantitative easing has been broken,” she said. Nevertheless, such a move was “still not imminent. The ECB is unlikely to announce QE this month or next,” the expert said.

The central bank would first wait to see the impact of its new liquidityproviding programme or “Targeted Longer-Term Refinancing Operations” (TLTROs), the first of which would be held in mid-September, McKeown said.

The sluggishness of the economic recovery is another argument in favour of action. ECB governing council member and Austrian central bank chief Ewald Nowotny said that he was “worried” about the outlook for eurozone growth, and that eurozone recovery was slower than the ECB had expected.

DILBERT

“Draghi’s warnings against the decline of long-term inflation expectations seem to be motivated by concerns about economic growth,” said Commerzbank economists Joerg Kraemer and Michael Schubert.

Hence, they put the possibility of the ECB launching QE in the coming months at 60 percent, the analysts said.

“The ECB’s optimistic medium-term economic outlook is crumbling. But unless a notable recovery occurs, inflation will not move towards the ECB’s target of 2.0 percent,” they said.

Private QE or ABS

Deutsche Bank economists Mark Wall and Gilles Moec suggested that the ECB might even embark on private QE - in the form of asset-backed securities (ABS) - as early as this week. Such a policy would greatly widen the range of paper assets which the central bank would buy from the balance sheets of financial companies, replacing them with ready cash. l