23 Oct, 2014

Kartik 8, 1421 Zilhajjj 27, 1435 Regd No DA 6238 Vol 2, No 199

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 23, 2014 | www.dhakatribune.com | SECOND EDITION

20 pages plus 16-page T-Mag tabloid | Price: Tk12

TMAG

7 | JURIS

13 | SPORT

B1 | BUSINESS

LEADING BY EXAMPLE

LOOK BEFORE YOU SPEAK

2005 SERIES CAN BE AN INSPIRATION: BASHAR

BANKING SECTOR RETURNS TO SORRY STATE AGAIN

Project for the poor crowded out by the rich

ACC seeks info from Malaysia on judge acquitting Tarique n Tribune Report

The One House One Farm project has failed to encourage people to set up small farms Al-Masum Molla n Mohammad with our district correspondents Five years into existence, the government’s “Ektee Bari Ektee Khamar” project has deviated from one of its primary objectives of poverty alleviation, with the actual poor being ignored in many areas.

The Dhaka Tribune, through its district correspondents, studied the structures of membership and operation of 11 village-level cooperative associations under the project and found evidence that many rich people have been included in the project.

In Kathi Maddha Para village in Gopalganj, one member, who owns nearly 17 acres of arable land, got a loan The 60-member cooperative associations collect Tk200 as monthly member subscription. The money is used to create a fund that is used for disbursing small loans among the members. The government, too, contributes heavily to these funds.

As of August, a total of 38,093 cooperative associations have been set up in the 64 districts around the country under the “one house one farm” project.

These local bodies, together with the government’s contribution, have so far developed around Tk2,000 crore funds. The government is likely to

open a Palli Sanchay Bank – a rural savings – with this fund.

The core aim of the government is alleviating poverty and promoting sustainable development by providing capital formation assistance to poor farming families and sharpening their skills to form associations.

Women, owning from 0.50 acres up to one acre of land, including homestead, are in line to be the primary beneficiaries.

Project officials have, however, admitted that weak monitoring and management have led to many rich people, using political connections, replacing the deserving poor in many villages.

For instance, in the 60-member association in Kathi Maddha Para village in Gopalganj district, one member owns nearly 17 acres of arable land, three members with more than 8 acres each, another possessing nearly 7 acres and three own 5 acres of arable land.

Their monthly incomes range from Tk15,000 to Tk3 lakh.

Our Gopalganj correspondent reports that families with the highest monthly income have one or two members working abroad.

Of the cooperative association’s 60 members in the Bhandaru village of Panchagarh district, there are at least eight who own from 1.67 to 10 acres of arable land, having a monthly income from Tk10,000 to Tk15,000.

In Meergarh village of the same district, the chairman of the cooperatives association, being the local union parishad chairman’s brother, lives in a  PAGE 2 COLUMN 3

Two passenger buses vie dangerously to overtake each other on the narrow Dhaka-Mawa highway forcing smaller vehicles to get off the road. Needless to say, such reckless driving is one of the prime reasons behind frequent fatal accidents on the highways. The photo was taken yesterday DHAKA TRIBUNE

LGED misappropriates money in the name of fake road repair project n Kamran Reza Chowdhury The audit has detected an innovative way of swindling public money by the Local Government Engineering Department (LGED) in Kalihati under Tangail.

The LGED under the local government ministry undertook a project to develop a 10km bituminous road showing it as an unpaved one and swindled around Tk40 lakh.

The Public Works Audit wing has detected 19 other audit objections involving over Tk143 crore and placed the report in parliament through the president.

The audit wing audited the expenditure for 2009-10 fiscal year.

The LGED in the district took the

INSIDE 5 | News

Police have tightened security at land, sea and air ports to evade subversive activities by extremists or miscreants.

6 | Nation

Community Dhan Bank Programme has grained ground among rural people in Panchagarh, letting ultra-poor people take paddy as loan from the paddy bank.

8 | World

Leading drugmakers plan to work together to accelerate development of an Ebola vaccine and produce millions of doses of the most effective experimental product for use next year.

11 | Op-Ed

When the majority of the population lacks proper education, discussions on

religion will hardly be positively stimulating.

12 | Entertainment

Fans have reacted favourably to a fictionalised semi-biopic of controversial Bangladeshi author and social activist Taslima Nasrin, which was premiered at the Mumbai International Film Festival on Monday.

charge of looking after a paved road from Borochauna under Kalihati upzilla to Shakhipur from the Roads and Highway Department in 2005-06.

But in 2009-10, the executive engineer’s office did show a 10-km stretch of the road (9,000 metres to 10,130 metres) as unpaved and awarded the development work to a contractor.

The executive engineer spent Tk39,38,305 on the fake project.

The LGED in its reply claimed that the road was unpaved but the audit wing rejected the claim referring to the technical report of November 12, 2006 that said the road was actually previously paved.

The authorities earlier made a payment to Monir Enterprise that had constructed the road, said the audit report.

Examining the records of the LGED in Sylhet, Noakhali, Khagrachhari, Sunamganj, Norail, Feni and Chapai Nawabganj for the 2009-10 fiscal year, the audit department detected that the LGED had made bills of over Tk88 crore.

The audit wing said the LGED offices in the districts awarded contracts of works to the contractors without having adequate budgetary allocations for the infrastructural projects.

It has suggested realisation of the money from the persons responsible for the alleged misuse of the funds.

According to the parliamentary rule, the 15-member public accounts committee of parliament will discuss the audit objections and give decisions on the matter. l

The Anti-Corruption Commission yesterday requested the Malaysian government to give it all information related to retired special judge Motaher Hossain, now staying in Malaysia, who had acquitted BNP Senior Vice-Chairman Tarique Rahman from a money laundering case.

The ACC sent a Mutual Legal Assistance Request (MLAR) through the attorney general’s office requesting information on the judge as an inquiry against him is under way.

The inquiry was launched on January 20 following specific allegations of amassing illegal wealth, abusing judicial power, earning huge wealth contradictory to his known source of income and amassing movable and immovable property in his and others’ names, Commissioner M Shahabuddin said earlier.

The ACC also imposed a bar on his foreign trips. But the judge had left the country before that.  PAGE 2 COLUMN 6

One abducted by men introducing themselves as DB n Tazlina Zamila Khan A group of unidentified assailants – allegedly introducing themselves as officials of the Detective Branch of police – abducted a person from his office in the capital’s Paltan area yesterday.

Abducted Abdullah Al Mamun, 39, son of Walid Mia, is one of three owners of a travel agency named Silver Sky situated at 183, Sayed Nazrul Islam Avenue.

Mamun was alone in the office yesterday afternoon and had just finished his prayers when six-seven assailants came into the office around 1:30pm and picked him up in the presence of other employees, according to the victim’s brother Emdadul Haque Khokon.

Khokon told the Dhaka Tribune:  PAGE 2 COLUMN 6

2

DHAKA TRIBUNE

News

Thursday, October 23, 2014

MADRASA BOY MURDER

Shah Alam confesses to his involvement n Manik Miazee Cook Shah Alam, who killed 11-yearold boy at a Keraniganj madrasa with a kitchen cleaver, gave confessional statement at the Chief Judicial Magistrate Court yesterday.

He gave the statement in front of Dhaka senior judicial Magistrate Masud Parvez.

The general recording officer of the Chief Judicial Magistrate Court said the court yesterday received confessional statement of Shah Alam. under section 164. He was later sent to Jail.

Court police source said Shah Alam confessed to have killed the boy. He tried to get hold of Abu Rayhan around 1am when the child was on his way to the toilet.

He attempted to rape Abu Rayhan, but the boy resisted and threatened to tell the authorities about what had happened earlier.

Petrobangla gets new chairman n Aminur Rahman Rasel The government yesterday appointed Istiaque Ahmad as the new chairman for Bangladesh Oil, Gas and Mineral Corporation, widely known as Petrobangla.

Public Administration Ministry issued a notice in this regard.

Istiaque Ahmad is an additional secretary of the cabinet division and a graduate of 1984 BCS batch. He will be replacing Hossain Monsur, who was appointed as the chairman in Aug 2010. l

Shah Alam then dragged Abu Rayhan into the kitchen and slit his throat with a razor-sharp cleaver.

Early Monday police recovered the body of the boy from the floor of the madrasa kitchen.

Shah Alam, a 35-year-old cook, at Tahfizul Quran Nurani Hafezi Madrasa, admitted to have raped the same boy a month ago.

Dhaka Police Superintendent Habibur Rahman on Tuesday at a press briefing at the media and community centre of DMP said they had arrested Shah Alam and 10 other madrasa staff.

“After the primary investigation, we found evidence of Shah Alam’s involvement in the killing. We recovered a boti and blood-stained clothes from the madrasa kitchen.”

Victim’s father Md Murad Hossain filed a case against the madrasa administration, Officer-in-Charge Jamaluddin Mir of South Keraniganj police station said. l

Workers of Doreen garments factory yesterday take position in front of its headquarter at capital’s Paribagh area demanding due wages

Khaleda to address rally in Nilphamari today n Tribune Report

BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia will address a public rally in Nilphamari today.

The district unit of the 20-party alliance will arrange the rally in the town.

With her tour, the BNP chief will launch a countrywide mass campaign as planned by the 20-party alliance to pave the way for a decisive movement to force the government to quit.

The aim of the tour is to mobilise

public support in favour of the 20-party alliance’s demand for holding fresh polls under a non-party administration.

The campaign is also meant for mounting pressure on the government to stop extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances and repressive acts and restore the democratic rights of people.

The district unit of the 20-party has already taken all-out preparations to welcome their leader and make the rally successful. l

Islamic parties call hartal for Sunday n Manik Miazee

President to visit China next month

An alliance of the Islamic parties has called a countrywide dawn-to-dusk hartal for Sunday demanding capital punishment for former minister Abdul Latif Siddique for his comments on hajj.

Secretary General of the alliance Mohammad Zafar Ullah announced the hartal yesterday. Earlier, the alliance had threatened to enforce hartal on October 26 if the government did not arrest Latif Siddique by October 22. While addressing a programme in the US on September 28, Latif made derogatory remarks on hajj, Tablighi Jamaat and the prime minister’s son Sajeeb Wazed Joy. His comments on hajj had sparked widespread criticism both at home and abroad. l

n Sheikh Shahariar Zaman President Abdul Hamid is flying to China to attend a dialogue on connectivity in the Asia-Pacific region next month.

“The president will attend the dialogue on November 8, and the next day he will hold a bilateral meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping,” said an official of the Foreign Ministry. He is scheduled to return home on November 11.

Xi Jinping will have dialogue with seven non-APEC countries, including Myanmar, Cambodia and Laos, just before the APEC summit to be held on

Dhaka to host 9th GFMD in 2016 n Tribune Report

Bangladesh is going to host the 9th Global Forum on Migration and Development (GFMD) in 2016.

The decision came at the steering group meeting of the Global Forum on Migration and Development (GFMD) in Geneva yesterday.

The group in the meeting also unanimously accepted Bangladesh’s bid to chair the GFMD in 2016, says a Foreign Ministry press release.

An initiative of the United Nations member states to address the migration and development inter-linkages, GFMD is the biggest forum to discuss migration issues.

During the meeting, Canada strongly supported Bangladesh’s bid, setting

the tone of the group in favourable terms. The US, the Netherlands, Australia, India, Tunisia, Mexico, Mauritius and the Philippines also supported the bid. The Bangladesh delegation at the meeting was led by Foreign Secretary M Shahidul Haque.

The foreign secretary said: “Bangladesh would try its best to uphold the trust bestowed upon the country by taking the forum to a new height during its chairmanship.” He assured that Bangladesh would place the issue of migration and development at its due place in the post-2015 Development Agenda.

Mentionable, Bangladesh has been actively participating in the process since the beginning of the forum in 2007. l

Probe body submits report on Natore accident n Our Correspondent, Natore A three-member probe committee submitted its report on Baraigram road accident to Deputy Commissioner Mashiur Rahman last night.

The seven-page report consists of 17 recommendations to curb road accidents.

Masiur said the probe committee head Additional District Magistrate Mohammad Ali submitted the report in

his office around 9pm.

Among others, assistant director of Bangladesh Road Transport Authority in Natore and Assistant Superintendent of Police (Baraigram circle) Mahfuzzaman were present.

The accident took place as the two buses that collided head on were unfit and secondly one was overtaking the other, he added.

The DC said he would send the report to the ministry concerned. l

November 11, he said.

The APEC summit will also discuss connectivity in the Asia-Pacific region, said the foreign ministry official.

In the bilateral meeting, both the presidents are likely to discuss the outcome of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s visit to China in June, he said.

Hasina during the visit invited the Chinese president and Chinese Premier Li Keqiang to visit Bangladesh and Hamid would reiterate the invitation, he added.

President Hamid will also visit Dubai to attend World Islamic Economic Forum from October 28 to 29. l

RECEPTION FOR SHIRIN, SABER

Speaker: Ebola fear kept many MPs home n Kamran Reza Chowdhury House Speaker Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury yesterday said the Ebola outbreak in West Africa made many of the MPs reluctant to travel to Cameroon, where she was elected Chairperson of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA).

“Although many chose not to fly to Cameroon, I thank those who dared to go there. My chief campaigner Imran Ahmed, whip Shahiduzzaman Sarker, Waresat Hossain Belal and Sagufta Yeasmin were with me in Cameroon,” Shirin said while addressing the reception organised in honour of her winning the CPA elections.

The parliament arranged a joint reception for Shirin and Awami League lawmaker Saber Hossain Chowdhury, who on October 16 was elected President of the Inter Parliamentary Union.

Ministers, parliamentarians, delegates from diplomatic missions and other guests arrived at the South Plaza of the parliament to attend the reception, where Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was the chief guest.

On October 9, the CPA general assembly elected Shirin the first woman chairperson of the commonwealth parliamentary body. She won the election by 3 votes, bagging 70 against her near-

est contender who got 67 votes.

Although the number of voters was 321, many delegates from the CPA member states left Cameroon before the voting took place, resulting in poor turnout.

Shirin said the common question they faced during the IPU campaign in Geneva was why Bangladesh was contesting in both CPA and IPU parliamentary forums.

The prime minister in her speech said Bangladesh had won the “world of democracy”, attributing the successes to women empowerment in the country.

“The speaker is a woman, the opposition leader is a woman, the deputy leader of the house is a woman. So, we have won,” she said.

Saber Hossain in his address said MPs should not be bothered about whether they were inducted to the cabinet. He said a determined lawmaker could win in the global arena, provided he has confidence and tenacity.

“You may lag behind but ultimately, you will win,” he told the lawmakers attending the event.

Deputy Speaker Fazle Rabbi Miah presided over the reception, which was followed by a cultural show.

British High Commissioner Robert Gibson also addressed the reception. l

Project for the poor crowded by the rich  PAGE 1 COLUMN 2

concrete house, owns at least 1.67 acres of arable land with a monthly income not less than Tk10,000. Another member owns more than 3 acres of land. His three sons are government employees.

When contacted, Rezaul Islam, project coordinator of Panchagarh Sadar upazila, said he was not in charge when the associations were formed in 2009.

“I cannot say how solvent people became members. We cannot exclude them right now because they are very influential. They have also taken loans from the association and cannot be removed until the loans are repaid,” he said.

At the upazila level, a local committee, headed by the government’s upazila executive officer, selects the villages to be brought under the project.

At the village level, another local committee, led by another government employee and highly regarded local people, select members for the cooperative association.

The committees are said to select the members on a consensus reached through discussions on the eligibility of the applicants.

After an association is formed, an 11-member managing committee to look after the overall operation of the association is elected.

The Dhaka Tribune correspondents have found some villages where association members have taken loans from the project but have not set up farms at home. These were mainly the families who already had fixed sources

of income and are politically influential in their areas.

For example, in Kaichchabari village of Gazipur district, Abeda Khatun, whose husband is a government employee, Arifa Akhter, whose husband is a migrant worker, and Jyotsna Begum, whose husband owns a grocery store – all housewives – have taken loans, but none have any farm at home.

Our Gazipur correspondent also visited several houses of beneficiaries in Bashbari village and did not find any farms. Maleka Begum, manager of the local association, said only five to seven of the 60 members set up farms with the loans.

Afzal Hossain Molla, project coordinator of Sreepur upazila who looks after 72 associations, said: “There is no denying the fact that there are irregularities, but those are not serious. When an influential person becomes a member, poor people get the confidence to join in.”

Seeking anonymity, a schoolteacher from Kulbaria village, Meherpur, told the Dhaka Tribune that the objective of the project had been hampered because of the favouritism shown by the politically influential people.

Alamgir Kabir, project coordinator of Meherpur Sadar upazila, said: “The local selection committee sat together and scrutinised the credentials of the applications to come up with the final lists of members.”

He also said: “In order to keep everything under control, one or two solvent and influential people must be included in the association. We have already disbursed Tk9 crore as loans in

my upazila and the rate of redemption is nearly 70%.”

Proshanta Kumar Roy, director, Ektee Bari Ektee Khamar project, said they had identified that the ultra-poor were being left out six months ago.

He said they had already launched a pilot project in Kishoreganj and Nilphamari districts to accommodate and rehabilitate the ultra-poor, especially the beggars.

He admitted that there had been a lack of monitoring. “There was no monitoring mechanism in place.

That is why, only about 60% of the beneficiaries successfully utilised the loans. But now we are appointing officers to every union to monitor the actions.”

Proshanta also said: “When the project was first launched, there were political influences and some rich people became members.

“The problem was with the previous criterion which said someone with 0.5 acres of land could become a member. We have changed that provision.

Some people have also tried to make some money at the expense of the project.”

The five-year Ektee Bari Ektee Khamar project was launched in July 2009 with a cost estimation of Tk1,197 crore. Later, the duration of the project was extended by two years and the cost estimation revised to Tk3,163 crore.

Our correspondents from the districts of Panchagarh, Gopalganj, Gazipur, Barisal, Natore, Narail, Meherpur, Faridpur, Kishoreganj, Sunamganj and Bogra collected the data for this report. l

SYED ZAKIR HOSSAIN

ACC seeks info  PAGE 1 COLUMN 1

Motaher left the country on January 8, 53 days after delivering the judgement, ACC Deputy Director Harun-ur-Rashid, also the inquiry officer of the case, said.

“The ACC has questioned a number of people, but cannot proceed further as the inquiry cannot be completed without the judge himself. We need the judge’s statement, and as he is now in Malaysia, the commission has requested the Home Ministry and the Foreign Affairs Ministry to take measures to bring him back,” an ACC official said wishing anonymity.

He also said the Foreign Ministry was taking necessary measures so that the judge could not extend his Malaysian visa after the validity expires.

The ACC has questioned stenographers M Abu Hasan of the Speedy Trial Tribunal 4 and M Nurul Islam of the Special Judge’s Court 3; Motaher’s bodyguard Badal Dewan and driver Shohrab Hossain; and some other people.

According to ACC documents, the judge’s son studies in London where Motaher has a house. He also bought two apartments in Dhanmondi and has a lot of land in his village home in Natore.

Judge Motaher on November 17 acquitted Tarique, now staying London, and sentenced his friend Giasuddin Al Mamun to seven years’ imprisonment and fined him Tk40 crore in a money laundering case involving Tk20.41 crore.

The judgement said Tarique had been acquitted from the charges because he had mentioned the amount in his wealth submitted to the ACC. The ACC filed the case on October 26, 2009 on charge of siphoning off the amount to Singapore between 2003 and 2007, when the BNP-Jamaat-led government was in power. l

One abducted  PAGE 1 COLUMN 6

“The assailants introduced themselves as members of the DB.” The employees did not protest or say anything after learning that they were DB officials, he said.

“They came in a black microbus; its number plate read Dhaka Metro Cha 536754. They took Mamun in the microbus.” Khokon said Mamun had never been threatened by anyone for extortion and they had not yet got any call from the abductors as of filing of this report around 10pm yesterday. An FIR (first information report) was filed with the Paltan police station first, which was later turned into a case.

Officer-in-Charge of the station Morshed Alam told the Dhaka Tribune: “The motive of the abduction is not known yet as the family members did not get any ransom calls. We have the number of the microbus and we are trying to trace it.”

Khokon said: “We talked to DB officials but they claimed that they had not picked up any person named Mamun. I do not know why my brother has been kidnapped.”

OC Morshed said: “I have asked my office to convert the FIR into an abduction case. We are contacting the DB.” Sub-Inspector Anayet Hossain said: “Mamun’s office is in Bijoy Nagar. He was contacted after his brother was allegedly abducted. He did not mention any weapon carried by the abductors.”

DB Deputy Commissioner Krishna Podo Ray (south) told the Dhaka Tribune: “As far as I know, no DB officials have picked any person named Mamun. A case has been filed with Paltan police station, so they will deal with the matter.” l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

News

SI held, OC closed for shooting autorickshaw driver n Mohammad Jamil Khan A sub-inspector of Sher-e-Bangla Nagar police station was finally arrested yesterday on charge of shooting at a CNGrun autorickshaw driver over extramarital affair.

“Sub-Inspector Anwar Hossain was arrested for falsely implicating CNG driver Md Shah Alam in a criminal case and shooting him in the legs,” Wahidul Islam, additional deputy commissioner of Tejgaon division, told the Dhaka Tribune yesterday.

Anwar was shown arrested in an attempt to murder case filed by the victim’s elder brother Md Golam Mostafa, he said.

Abdul Momen, officer-in-charge of the police station, was also closed and transferred to Detective Branch of Police for neglect of duty and siding with the sub-inspector, he added.

The authorities concerned had already appointed Gopal Biswas as an officer-in-charge of Sher-e-Bangla Nagar police station.

“Gopal working with Detective Branch of police as an inspector was transferred to the police station,” Saidur Rahman, additional deputy commissioner of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police (media and publication), said.

On Sunday night, Shah Alam, 27, was shot in the legs in the capital’s Agargaon area and later shown arrested in

Charge sheet filed against Hall-Mark chairman n Md Sanaul Islam Tipu The Anti-Corruption Commission yesterday submitted charge sheet against Hall-Mark Group Chairman Jasmine Islam in a case filed for not submitting a wealth statement within the stipulated time as asked by the anti-graft body.

ACC Deputy Director Monjur Morshed submitted the charge sheet to the general recording officer (GRO) of Dhaka Chief Metropolitan Magistrate’s Court. The GRO, Sub-Inspector Gopal Chandra, confirmed the matter to the Dhaka Tribune.

The ACC on December 12 last year filed a case against Jasmine as she did not submit her wealth statement within due time.

Earlier on November 13, the commission sent a notice to Jasmine asking her to submit a wealth statement including all her properties and sources of income, within seven working days; however, as the deadline passed, her lawyer requested more time for submitting the wealth statement.

The commission extended the deadline by seven more days, which also expired on December 4, according to the case statement. l

an arms case. When contacted, Anwar told the Dhaka Tribune that the police recovered a pistol and three rounds of bullet from his possession at that time.

On Monday, OC Abdul Momen claimed that Anwar did not lead the operation. “As far as I know Shah Alam is a mugger,” he added.

Shah Alam is now undergoing treatment at National Institute of Traumatology & Orthopaedic Rehabilitation (Nitor).

OC Abdul Momen was closed and transferred to Detective Branch of Police for negligence of duty and siding with the sub-inspector “The attempt-to-murder case was lodged under sections 307 and 326 of the Penal Code,” said Biplob Kumar Sarker, deputy commissioner of Tejgaon division.

Mostafa told the Dhaka Tribune that Shah Alam used to work as a driver of a police vehicle. At that time, Anwar had developed an extramarital affair with Alam’s wife named Shanta, he added.

When he came to know the matter, Shah Alam gave up his job and started running autorickshaw.

He barred his wife from maintain-

ing relations with Anwar, said Mostafa, adding that Shanta had filed a case against him under the Women and Children Repression Prevention Act and left Shah Alam’s house on Anwar’s advice. She also took away the autorickshaw from Alam, he said.

Recently Alam got information that Shanta and Anwar were living in Arshinagar of Keraniganj. He went there to get back his autorickshaw which ended in a quarrel, said Mostafa.

Later, Anwar picked up Alam from Mohammadpur area on Sunday night and shot him in the legs.

A three-member committee, headed by an ADC, was formed to investigate the incident.

Syed Moniruzzaman, a sub-inspector of the police station, said Anwar who was leading a civil team on that night filed a case against Shah Alam and mentioned that a pistol and three rounds of bullet were seized from his possession.

“The case filed against Anwar was shifted to Detective Branch of Police. A team of DB took him to the headquarters on Minto Road,” Munshi Shabbir Ahmed, inspector of Sher-e-Bangla Nagar police station, said.

Anwar, who hails from Shariatpur, joined the Bangladesh Police as sub-inspector in 2007. He was working with the police station over a year. Earlier, he worked with Mohammadpur and Adabar police stations. l

Latif to be dropped from AL tomorrow n Emran Hossain Shaikh

The footbridge at capital’s Farmgate area is literally taken over by various vendors making it difficult for the pedestrians to cross it SYED ZAKIR HOSSAIN

The Awami League membership of Abdul Latif Siddique is expected to be scrapped tomorrow, despite the former minister reportedly submitting his reply to a party show-cause notice before its deadline expired yesterday.

The scheduled meeting of the Awami League Central Working Committee is expected to make an official decision as per the party charter and drop Latif from all his posts in the ruling party.

On October 14, the party served a show-cause notice to Latif asking him to explain why he should not be expelled permanently. He was also directed to reply to the letter within seven working days.

Asked about it, party’s Deputy Office Secretary Mrinal Kanti Das said he did not have knowledge on the issue. “Party’s General Secretary Syed Ashraful Islam will inform you [journalists] about the matter,” he told the Dhaka Tribune.

However, seeking anonymity, a source close to the general secretary told the Dhaka Tribune that Syed Ashraf had received the reply on Tuesday, in which the former minister defended himself against the allegations.

Presidium member Kazi Zafrullah told the Dhaka Tribune that the party had already finalised the decision to remove Latif from all posts of the party.

“Now we are just following the procedures of the party charter to finally expel him,” the leader said, adding that Latif was expected to be formally expelled on Friday through the cancellation of his party membership. l

Ghulam Azam’s appeals case deferred Prosecution stumbles n in Hassan’s case Tribune Report

The Supreme Court yesterday fixed December 2 to begin hearing of two appeals filed by convicted war criminal Ghulam Azam, and the government challenging the tribunal verdict upon a defence plea.

Arguing on behalf of the Jamaat guru, Khandaker Mahbub Hossain said there was no hurry to begin the case since the convict had been ill and the court had many important pending cases to deal with.

“If the court starts hearing in this case, it will take a long time. There is no need to start the hearing so quickly,” said Mahbub, also an adviser to the BNP chairperson.

“Ghulam Azam is 92 years old and

got 90 years’ imprisonment. He is now dying at the CCU of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU),” he added.

On the other hand, Attorney General Mahbubey Alam said: “If the hearing is deferred, the other appeals cases will also be delayed.”

Suffering from diabetes and lung complications, the former Jamaat chief has been treated at BSMMU’s cardiac ICU since October 9.

The same bench has so far disposed off appeals cases of Kamaruzzaman, Delawar Hossain Sayedee and Abdul Quader Molla. Of these, the case against death row convict Kamaruzzaman, a senior Jamaat leader, is awaiting verdict.

Ghulam Azam was sentenced to 90

years’ jail term on July 15 last year by the International Crimes Tribunal 1 on charges of committing crimes against humanity during the 1971 Liberation War. On August 5, the Jamaat supremo filed an appeal against the verdict seeking acquittal while the government challenged the verdict on August 12 pleading for death penalty and a ban on the anti-liberation political party, Jamaat-e-Islami.

After the hearing, the attorney general told reporters: “Though Ghulam Azam’s counsel filed the appeal first, the government will begin their hearing first.

“During the hearing, we will place arguments to award him capital punishment.” l

ACC to scrutinise nine officials’ FF certificates n Tribune Report The Anti-Corruption Commission is set to scrutinise the freedom fighter certificates of its nine officials, including a director general, in the wake of forgery by the government officials in obtaining such certificates.

The ACC came up with the decision at its monthly meeting held on Tuesday, an official told reporters. A a two-member committee, headed

by Deputy Director Julfikar Ali, was formed yesterday to investigate the allegations. The other member is Assistant Director Rafiqul Islam.

The nine are Director General (legal and prosecution) Kamrul Hasan Molla, directors Golam Yahia and Abdul Aziz Bhuiyan, deputy directors Dhali Abdus Samad and SM Golam Mawla Siddique, former deputy director Ranjan Kumar Majumder, Assistant Inspector Abdus Sobhan, and court assistants Nurul Islam and Ishak Fakir.

The commission primarily found that the certificates of Kamrul and Yahia were forged. Yahia has already extended his tenure.

Meanwhile, the commission on Monday started process to investigate the allegations of obtaining freedom fighter certificates against five secretaries, an additional secretary and two joint secretaries. The government last month cancelled the certificates of five officials including Privatisation Commission Chairman Molla Waheduzzaman, Health Secretary Neaz Uddin Mia and PSC Secretary AKM Amir Hossain. l

3

Thursday, October 23, 2014

A mobile court seizes large amount of contaminated drugs after a drive at Chittagong city’s wholesale medicine market yesterday. Three persons were also arrested in this connection FOCUS BANGLA

Terrible condition of rivers raises concern n Rafe Sadnan Adel Condition of rivers as well as the coastal people in the country is getting terrible gradually, said speakers at a seminar yesterday.

Despite being a riverine country with the highest length of river network in the world, Bangladesh is devoid of long-term strategies and laws pertaining to river, they said. The seminar organised by ActionAid was held at Shishu Academy in the capital.

Keynote speaker Dr Imtiaz Ahmed, a professor at Dhaka University, said negligence in river management not only made some people refugees in their own country but also adversely affected the coastal people’s culture, education and professions.

“People affected by riverbank erosion move to the capital where they actually become a burden. Some of

those who choose to stay in the coastal regions become bandits. This paints a bleak picture if one thinks in terms of development,” he said.

Chairman of the Water and Environment Institute M Inamul Haque said the natural flow of rivers was obstructed as “India is constructing more and more dams to have their own needs served.”

General Secretary of Bangladesh Poribesh Andolon Abdul Matin said when India is set to build 16 more dams, the Bangladesh government keeps mum on this.

Water Resources Minister Anisul Haque Mahmud refuted the allegation.

“We are continuously communicating with Indian officials regarding the issue.

Farah Kabir, country director of ActionAid, said the organisation would would help the government regarding river issues by carrying out research and awareness programmes. l

n Udisa Islam

Judges of the International Crimes Tribunal 1 yesterday again criticised the prosecution and the investigation team in the trial against Syed Hassan Ali alias Hachhen Ali for their inability to answer queries during the indictment hearing.

The tribunal set November 11 for passing an order on whether to frame charges of crimes against humanity against Jabbar, the alleged razakar commander from Tarail in Kishoreganj during the 1971 Liberation War. Regarding submission of irrelevant paper clippings, prosecutor Mohammad Ali said they wanted to show that the accused had inherited the post of razakar leadership from his father.

Justice M Enayetur Rahim, chairman of the two-member panel, then asked whether a son could be held responsible for his father’s crimes or vice versa.

Like the first day of charge framing hearing, on September 22, the tribunal yesterday too expressed dissatisfaction as the prosecution had failed to submit any document on the case lodged against Hassan in 1972 with Tarail police station.

Ali yesterday said the investigation officer had searched for the documents in Kishoreganj courts but did not find anything.

The tribunal then said he should have looked for the documents in Mymensingh Sessions Judge’s Court instead of the Kishoreganj court since the Kishoreganj Mahkuma became a district in 80’s.

“It is a fact that your investigation officer does not have any idea about it

Two separate Dhaka courts yesterday placed a security official of Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) and a youth on two-day remand each on charges of posting indecent remarks about Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Facebook.

Metropolitan Magistrate Yunus Khan granted a two-day remand for BCB official Mainul Islam after Mirpur police station SI Rafiqul Islam sought a five-day remand.

Meanwhile, Metropolitan Magistrate Shahriar Mahmud Adnan granted a two-day remand for 24-year-old Haider Ali Mizi, after Shahbagh SI Anwarul Islam produced him before the court seeking a seven-day remand.

Both of them were arrested on Tuesday: Mainul from near Mirpur’s Sher-e-Bangla Stadium and Haider from the Dhaka University campus. l

‘It is a fact that your investigation officer does not have any idea about it and they carry out their work sitting in Dhaka, nowadays’ Earlier prosecutor Ali, conducting on behalf of Abul Kalam, was criticised by the tribunal as he had not been prepared enough to take part in the hearing. Ali said the prosecution would not place much documentary evidence in the case since it could be proved by oral evidence only.

The tribunal yesterday also expressed discontent as it found that the list of victims’ families of 1971 submitted by the prosecution had been prepared by some people from Muktijuddho Chetona Bastobayon Moncho.

After the prosecution submission, state-appointed defence counsel Abdus Shukur Khan took the floor and only pleaded for discharging his client.

“My client is not responsible for any of the offences that the prosecution brought against him.”

The tribunal took the six charges into cognisance on September 15 and decided to try Hassan in absentia. l

Martyr’s relative testifies against Jabbar

Two placed on remand for indecent n Udisa Islam remarks against PM A new prosecution in the trial against

n Md Sanaul Islam Tipu

and they carry out their work sitting in Dhaka, nowadays,” Justice Rahim said in a frustrating voice.

While adjourning the case for a month on September 22, the tribunal mentioned: “You have taken this case lightly as the accused is absconding.”

war crimes accused engineer Abdul Jabbar yesterday said collaborators upon order of the accused had abducted her in-laws during the 1971 War of Independence and killed them along with 20 others.

Bokuli Rani Halder, 62, from Mothbaria in Pirojpur, testified against the former Jatiya Party lawmaker as the 15th prosecution witness.

“Following the order of Jabbar, a group of razakars raided our house in the midnight of October 6, 1971. They looted the house and dragged my father-in-law Modhushudan Halder and brother-in-law Prionath Halder out of the house and started beating them up after tying their hands.

“When my father-in-law asked them why they were behaving like that, the razakars said Jabbar asked them to do so.”

The witness said the razakars had

taken the duo away, and the next day she heard from her husband that they were shot dead along with 20 others in nearby Surjomoni village.

At the end of her deposition, the witness pleaded to the tribunal for justice.

Later Mohammad Abul Hasan, state-appointed counsel for the fugitive accused, cross examined her. In response to a question, Bokuli said a total of 37 people had been abducted that night from different villages.

The tribunal adjourned the case until Sunday.

Earlier in the day, the defence concluded the cross-examination of 14th prosecution witness Mahendra Adhikari who testified on Tuesday claiming that Jabbar and his cohorts had converted him along with 150 to 200 other Hindus of Phuljhuri and forced them to eat beef and say prayers.

Jabbar, the alleged chairman of Mothbaria unit Peace Committee, was indicted on August 14. l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

News

5

Thursday, October 23, 2014

Security beefed up in country’s land, sea and air ports n Tarek Mahmud, Chittagong Police have tightened security at all land, sea and airports to evade any kind of subversive and destructive activities by extremist outfits or miscreants and to keep law and order in the country.

The security measures were taken up since the Special Branch (SB), which provides immigration services, on October 9 issued a letter, signed by its Special Superintendent of Police (Land and Sea-port Immigration), instructing them about this.

Police high officials said that though they routinely get such type of instructions but this time instruction has been taken due to recent bomb blast at neighbouring country India’s State of West Bengal and intelligence reports over militant activities in country.

The letter instructed the increasing of security measures at every immigration check post and the vigilant checking of all immigration passengers and vehicles there to avoid any kind of sabotage and to keep law and order in the country.

The letter also gave directives for increasing intelligence and detective watch in the areas and for taking neces-

sary security and preventive measures by collecting advance intelligence information.

The letter further instructed that extra security measures be taken up at all important establishments, risky establishments and Key Point Installations (KPI) of the country.

It also gave instructions to increase intelligence watch upon the activities of suspected persons including all banned militant outfits as well as increasing security for all important persons including VVIP, VIP and diplomats.

Seeking anonymity, an SB official said: “The measures have been taken as a precautionary step of national security,” said a SB high official, seeking anonymity.

The Special Branch of Chittagong Metropolitan Police (CMP) on October 18 received the letter.

“We are on alert an international airport, a sea port and 46 KPIs, which fall under the jurisdiction of CMP,” said CMP Additional Commissioner (Crime and Operation) Banaz Kumar Majumder.

Bangladesh has 16 land ports, two sea ports, three international airports, six domestic airports and 394 KPIs. l

Film star and Nirapad Sarak Chai Chairman Ilias Kanchan brings out a rally from the capital’s Segun Bagicha area to raise awareness on road safety yesterday

Drivers responsible for Natore road accident: Obaidul

WORLD FOOD DAY OBSERVED

Food, water, land security stressed for sustainable development n Afrose Jahan Chaity Speakers at a seminar yesterday emphasized small farming, family farming, co-operative farming, acknowledgement of women farmers, and protecting farming land to ensure food and land security of the country.

The seminar titled ‘To protect people’s right on food, water and land” was organised by Pani Odhikar Forum (Water Rights Forum) and Association for Land Reform and Development (ALRD), in association with International Land Coalition (ILC) to mark

City Bank opens branch at Halisahar n Tribune Report City Bank opened its new online branch at Halisahar in Chittagong yesterday.

Rubel Aziz, chairman of the bank, inaugurated the branch in presence of MD and CEO Sohail RK Hussain, DMDs Mashrur Arefin and Badrudduza Choudhury, and other high officials.

The chairman said opening the Halisahar branch was part of the bank’s vision to take its services to clients' doorsteps. The branch will provide retail loans, deposits, customer care, remittances and other ancillary services. l

WEATHER

SUNNY THURSDAY, OCTOBER 23 DHAKA TODAY TOMORROW SUN SETS 5:26PM SUN RISES 6:00AM FORECAST FOR TODAY 32 31 31 32 32 32 32 32

Dhaka Chittagong Rajshahi Rangpur Khulna Barisal Sylhet Cox’s Bazar

21 22 20 19 19 19 19 23

YESTERDAY’S HIGH AND LOW

34.2ºC Srimangal

19.8ºC Jessore

Source: Accuweather/UNB

PRAYER TIMES Fajr Sunrise Zohr Asr Magrib Esha

4:43am 5:57am 11:43am 3:51pm 5:28pm 6:44 pm SourceL IslamicFinder.org

World Food Day 2014, at the auditorium of Kochi-Kacha central building in the capital.

Rowshan Jahan Moni, deputy executive director of ILC in her opening speech said: “2014 has been declared as the year of family farming. We must make proper use of the unused land for the purpose of agriculture. We have to work for saving the small farmers and the whole agricultural system.”

The report presented by AKM Masud Ali, executive director of Incidin Bangladesh, focused on food security, right and sovereignty. “Farming is losing

n Our Correspondent, Gazipur

its contribution to GDP. Women farmers’ contribution is overlooked. They also need to be recognised as farmers.

Land and water sources play vital role in farming, which is at the gun point of commercialisation.”

Also present in the event, Bela Chief Executive Syeda Rizwana Hasan, criticised government’s efforts to make buildings and industries on agricultural land.

Shamsul Huda, executive director of ALRD, emphasised recovering the occupied land from grabbers and use those land only for agriculture purpose. l

Road Transport and Bridge Minister Obaidul Quader yesterday said drivers were responsible for the tragic road accident which took place at Baraigram village in Natore.

The minister said a three-member probe committee had been formed to find out the reason behind the road accident in which 36 people have been killed.

“Although the probe committee is yet to submit its report, we came to know from local sources that the road accident took place because of reckless driving.”

The minister made the remark while

Three females, including a minor domestic help, commit suicide in the capital n Tazlina Zamila Khan Police on Tuesday night recovered the hanging body of a domestic help from Chairman Bari area of Banani in the capital. However, the family of the deceased claimed it as a preplanned murder and brought out a procession yesterday.

The deceased was identified as Jesmin Akhter, 14, daughter of Enamul Haque of Netrokona.

Sub-Inspector of Banani police station Ashraful Islam said, they had recovered the body around 9.30pm from a house at road 1/A. The body was hanging from the ceiling fan by a scarf in the servant room.

According to the girl’s family, Jesmin had been working at the flat of Mizanur Rahman for the last two and half months. “The employer did not give her food properly and used to torture a lot. Previous-

ly, three domestic workers were murdered at the same house. The employer might have strangled her and later hanged the body to show it as a suicide case,” said the girl’s aunt Noorjahan.

However, the employer Mizanur Rahman said, Jesmin had committed suicide due to family conflict.

Investigation officer of the case Ashraful said: “The employer did not permit her to meet anyone. We heard that she used to love a boy named Rafiq. She could have committed suicide due to this issue.”

He added that no signs of killing were found and police was investigating the matter.

In another incident, Salma Khatun, 22, wife of Md Milon Hossain, a CNG auto-rickshaw driver, committed suicide in the West Bhasantek area at 8.15am yesterday.

Sub-Inspector of Bhasantek

police station Shafiqul Islam said: “Salma used to work as a help at CRP hospital. Her husband claimed that he had found Salma’s body hanging from the ceiling after waking up in the morning.”

“We came to know that Milon was a drug addict. Milon used to beat Salma if she tried to stop him.

She could have committed suicide due to this reason,” he added.

Another incident of suicide was reported at Bordhonbari of Darus Salam area of the capital yesterday.

Johora Khatun, 30, wife of Asar Ali of Sherpur district committed suicide by hanging herself from the ceiling by a scarf. Police recovered the body at around 9am.

Sub-Inspector Khokon Chandra Debnath of Darus Salam police station said, they had suspected the suicide to be caused by family conflict. l

Ex-Marine cadets seek prime minister’s intervention to protect marine sector Mizanur Rahaman, n FM Chittagong Around hundred ex-cadets of Bangladesh Marine Academy yesterday formed a human chain in Chittagong city’s Agrabad area, protesting the alleged irregularities and corruptions in marine sector of the country.

The protesters also sought Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s intervention in protecting the country’s brightest marine sectors and demanded a solution to the ongoing visa related problems of marine cadets aspiring to go abroad.

The ex-cadets formed a human chain in front of the city’s Agrabad CGA Building 1 around 10:30am.

Speakers at the programme alleged that despite a number of cadets successfully graduate every year from 17 marine academies of the country, both private and gov-

ernment, there were no job opportunities in the local market.

And the marine officers who do manage to get a job in a renowned foreign company, they fail to join their voyage because of visa related issues, the speakers added.

Private marine academies also fail to offer any job to the graduates though the institutions claim of 100% job placement during admission Saiful Islam, a junior officer of 45th batch of Bangladesh Marine Academy, said marines who aspire for a job in UAE, India and Singapore mainly faces the visa related is-

sues, eventually losing a good opportunity abroad.

He alleged that a section of officials and staff had recruited ineligible marine officers in foreign ships by forging certificates (COC and CDC) which was tarnishing the country’s image aboard.

According to the protesters, private marine academies also fail to offer any job to the graduates though the institutions claim of 100% job placement during admission.

The marine cadets demanded that the government should form a visa academy to fix the ongoing problem immediately and identify the corrupt officials in the sector.

The protesters also demanded a government monitored maritime council in concerned maritime countries and urged the authorities concerned to stop admissions in all marine academies until jobs for unemployed ex-cadets were ensured. l

visiting an under-construction road in Mouchak area in Gazipur city. The minister visited the project site while returning from Natore yesterday.

The minister said everybody should be more careful and obey traffic rules to stop fatal road accidents which are a common phenomenon in the country.

He said it was impossible to stop road accidents without creating awareness among the people, alongside their eagerness to follow the traffic rules.

Road accidents have reduced to a great extent because of government’s initiative. The government has identified 144 accident-prone spots and started a Tk165 crore project to curb road accidents. l

MAHMUD HOSSAIN OPU

Three held with contrabands n Our Correspondent, Chittagong Police captured three men from Reaz Uddin Bazar area of Chittagong for illegal possession of imported cigarettes.

According to Kotwali police, the arrested men are Mohammad Belal, 24, Joynal Abedin, 27 and Khairul Amin, 22.

Kotwali police station inspector Nezam Uddin said acting on a tip-off the police conducted a drive on the several shops located at Reaz Uddin Bazar on Tuesday.

During the drive, the three men were found in possession of 1,600 packets of imported cigarettes in 160 cartons worth Tk 300,000 without any legal documents. l

Two illegal blood banks sealed off in Sylhet n Our Correspondent, Sylhet A mobile court led by Executive Magistrate Masiur Rahman sealed off two illegal blood banks and arrested two people for their alleged involved in illegal blood trading yesterday.

Mollik Ahsan Uddin Sami, assistant commissioner of the detective branch (DB), said the blood banks were Trust Blood Bank located in the Kajol Shah area adjacent to Osmani Medical College Hospital and Red Blood Bank situated in the Rekabi Bazar area in the city.

Nirmolendu Chowdhury, inspector of the DB police said: “Masuk Ahmed, 32, was arrested from his residence in Bagbari Nursing Tila area in the city from where we recovered four bags of blood from his refrigerator.”

He said Masuk is an attendant of a physician and was operating illegal blood business from his residence.

Police also arrested another trader Shaheed Ahmed, 30, from Kajol Shah area in the city, he added. The mobile court also found blood

banks were conducting its operations without performing five compulsory tests for AIDS, Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C, Syphilis and Malaria.

At least 16 blood banks are conducting operation in Sylhet city without taking permission from the Health Ministry.

Md Azharul Islam, civil surgeon of Sylhet, told the Dhaka Tribune that the Health Ministry had given permission to two blood banks – Crescent Blood Bank and Green Life Blood Bank – to operate activities in the city.

The civil surgeon said they would take actions against the blood banks which were carrying out activities without doctors and skilled technicians in an unhygienic environment.

Some of the blood banks collect blood from drug addicts which could pose a health hazard for a patient.

The blood from these blood banks is reportedly rarely screened for blood-borne infections.

The assistant commissioner of the DB said they had collected a list of 16 illegal blood banks. l

6

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Nation

Thursday, October 23, 2014

Community Dhan Bank a food People suffer for lack of a bridge over Laghata river security steps for poor n Our Correspondent, Moulvibazar

n Our Correspondent, Panchagarh Community Dhan Bank Programme has already grained ground among rural people in Panchagarh.

Under the programme, ultra-poor people can take paddy as loan from the Dhan Bank (paddy bank) to get relief from starving or half-fed situation during the lean season (August-November). Rural people are happy as they do not need to take loan from local money launders in high interest during the lean season.

The poor people who are unable to manage their bread during the lean period can get 40kg paddy from the bank as loan. After harvesting of Aman paddy they can repay the amount adding additional 5kg as per decision of bank management committee.

Assistant Agriculture Officer of Panchagarh RDRS Bangladesh MA Akthar said five Community Dhan Bank had been set up at Shipaipara village under Atowari upazila, Mondalarhat in Boda upazila and Paikani village under Panchagarh Sadar upazila in 2012.

Five more paddy banks have been set up at Radhanagar in Atowari upazila, Satmera, Gorinabari, Paikani, Hafizabad and Dhakkamara under Sadar upazila of the district this year.

The Rangpur Dinajpur Rural Service Bangladesh, an NGO, is implementing the programme in association with the Finn Church Aid, the Dan Church Aid, the Church of Sweden, the Norwegian Church Aid and the European Union.

A total of 25-30 hardcore poor and seasonal unemployment rural women

under coverage area of a Union Welfare Federation have been enlisted as beneficiaries in each paddy bank. Extreme poor, widows, divorcees and physically challenged women have been preferred first to enlist with the beneficiary group.

President of Radhanagar Community Dhan Bank Kamini Chandra Roy said: “Before setting up the bank we took paddy from our landlords during the lean period and we had to repay double amount just after about two months of receiving the loan, said Shanti Rani, a beneficiary of Radhanagar Community Dhan Bank.

Saiful Haque, chairman of Gorinabari Social Welfare Federation said: “The demand of the Dhan Bank service was increasing day by day. We will set up more banks in the locality to meet rural poor people’s demand.” l

Extremist killed n Our Correspondent, Chuadanga

Students of Comilla Victoria College form a human chain in front of the institution yesterday demanding arrest of killers of student Nazrul Islam DHAKA TRIBUNE

Clash between transport workers leaves 15 injured n Our Correspondent, Bhola At least 15 people were injured in a clash between the easy bike drivers and bus staff at Charfashion bus stand in Bhola yesterday. The transport workers announced a bus strike from yesterday afternoon protesting the attack.

The auto drivers also vandalised eight buses during the clash. Nine of the injured men were admitted to Charfashion Upazila Health Complex.

Police sources said the transport workers and easy bike drivers got involved in a clash following an alterca-

Nephew kills uncle Correspondent, n Our Gazipur

A man was allegedly killed by his nephew in Mathkhola area under Sreepur Municipality in the Gazipur following an altercation over road construction. The deceased’s name was Imran Hossain, 40.

Sub-inspector of Sreepur police station Ziaul Haque confirmed the Dhaka Tribune.

Imran’s son-in-law Jubayer Hossain said Sultan Uddin was constructing a road on the land which belogs to his younger brother Imran Hossain at 3pm on Tuesday, when an altercation erupted, said. l

One to die for killing wife Correspondent, n Our Netrakona A man was handed down death sentence by Netrakona Additional District Judge’s Court yesterday for killing his wife and child in 2003.

The name of the convict’s name was Hashem, from Saita village in Netrakona Sadar upazila. Judge Abdul Hamid of Additional District Judge’s Court gave the death sentence around 11am yesterday.

According to the court sources Hashem killed his wife Aisha Khatun and child Tarikul, aged 11 months, on November 6 in 2003. l

Body of rape victim recovered Correspondent, n Our Noakhali Police recovered the body of a minor girl hanging from the ceiling yesterday morning at Kabilpur village under Sonaimuri upazila in Noakhali.

The victim, 14 and student of class nine, was allegedly killed after being raped. l

tion over attracting passengers to their vehicles. Secretary of Bhola Bus Owners’ Cooperative society Abul Kalam said some easy bike drivers, led by one Kutub Jahangir, attacked the bus depot, injured workers and vandalised buses.

The bus owners’ association called strike in the district for an indefinite period of time demanding arrest of Jahangir, Abul Kalam added. Kutub could not be contacted by our correspondent till filing of this report. Mahfuzur Rahman, assistant police super of Bhola, said the situation is under control now and additional forces were deployed to the area. l

Unknown miscreants on Tuesday night shot dead a member of extremist outfit Purba Banglar Communist Party at Charulia of Damurhuda upazila in Chuadanga. The victim, Saiful Islam, 35, was a resident of Ramnagar village and son of Nazrul Islam.

Officer in-Charge of Damurhuda Model police station Kamruzzaman said, farmers had informed police seeing the body lying in a mango grove yesterday morning. Police recovered the body and sent it to Chuadanga Sadar Hospital for autopsy.

OC further said Saiful Islam was an active member of the extremist group.

There had been a number of cases against him with Damurhuda and Meherpur Mujibnagar police station. Efforts were on to arrest the perpetrators, police added. l

Two held with yaba n Our Correspondent, Gazipur Two youths were held with 1,100 yaba tablets in Keranirtek area of Tongi under Gazipur city corporation yesterday.

SI Aminur Rahman of Tongi model police station said on a tip-off, police conducted a raid in the area around 7.30 am and arrested Shah Alam,26,son of Abul Hossain Bhuiyan of Uttarkhan area in Uttara and Khokon Miah,38, son of late Shaohor Ali of Kotwali area of Mymensingh district while they were selling the contraband. l

Thousands of people of Kamarchak union under the Kamalganj upazila in Moulvibazar have been risking their lives everyday to cross the Laghata River by a make-shift bridge of bamboo.

Construction of a concrete bridge over the river has been a long standing need of the people of this union.

The Laghata River originating from a hill of Tripura enters Bangladesh through Kamalganj and separates Kamarchak union into two parts. People of the 15 villages situated in two parts of the union either have to take the longer detour to travel to other parts of the upazila or use the rickety bamboo bridge to cross the river.

Nurul Islam of Teghori village said, having no other alternative, they had to use the bamboo bridge amid much

fear. “Villagers are scared to send their children to the school or go the upazila or to the town for necessary work.”

He added that the government officials took measurement several times to construct the bridge, but there had been no real progress.

“If a bridge is constructed over the river, the communication system of the whole union will change contributing to the development and betterment of people’s lives.”

Md Nazmul Haque Selim, chairman of Kamarchak union parishad said, he had been trying to get fund allocation for the bridge since he took office.

Rubayet Hussain, the upazila engineer said, construction of Laghata bridge was truly important and they had discussed the issue with the social welfare minister and hoped that the minister would do something in this regard soon. l

Robbers held with firearms in Pirojpur n Our Correspondent, Pirojpur Police arrested two alleged robbers in possession of firearms and bullets at Sadar upazila in Pirojpur on Tuesday.

They were identified as Sohrab, 40, son of Rustom Hawlader of Chhotoharzi village and Abdur Rahim, 35, son of Tujam Ali of another village of Mathbaria upazila. Confirming this, Sadar police station Officer-in-Charge (OC) Abdur Razzak Molla said they recovered two single-barreled guns, 49 bullets and a machete and other materials used in the act of robbery from them.

Assistant Superintendent of Police Md Abdul Kader Begh said fisherman Jamal Mia of Kakchira village in Barguna’s Patharghata upazila had his trawler stolen five to six days before Eid-ul-Azha. OC Razzak said a robbery case and an arms case were underway against them, he said. l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Juris

Look before you speak

Rights and duties of a taxpayer

Freedom of expression and speech is not an absolute right

n Juris Desk

T

he income tax season is on and all eligible taxpayers, existing or potential, are looking forward to submitting their income tax return for fiscal year 2013-14. We believe that for consistent national development, every eligible person should pay out their income tax in appropriate time.

Here are the rights and obligations of a taxpayer:

Rights of a taxpayer 









 

  MAHMUD HOSSAIN OPU

F

n Md Nasir Shikder

reedom of expression and speech is one of the inalienable human rights. It is important in order to maintain a democratic society. Free flow of ideas promotes the growth of knowledge and encourages a citizenry to exercise its voting rights more intelligently. Free expression is also thought to be an antidote to dangerous and noxious doctrine because its opens their true nature to the public.

The preamble to the constitution of Bangladesh resolves to secure for it’s citizens, fundamental human rights of freedom of expression and speech. Article 39(2) of Bangladesh constitution, more particularly guarantees to every citizen of Bangladesh the freedom of speech and expression subject to the limitation that reasonable restrictions may be imposed by law in the interest of the security of the state, friendly relations with foreign states, public order, decency and morality or in relation to contempt of court, defamation or incitement to an offence.

According to George Bernard Shaw, “liberty means responsibility” and that is why the liberty to express one’s own ideas must be associated with responsible utterance. However, when a person deliberately tries to generate instability in the society by his/her words, restriction as well as penalty is inevitable. Dissemination of opinion can be ensured but the same should not be such which would pose a clear violation of the personal faith and belief of others. Freedom of expression does not mean freedom to disregard religious faith and belief of others. It does not carry the right to insult or hurt one’s religious feelings. Guarantee of religious liberty is inevitably found in the constitutional provision of Bangladesh under Article 41.

The recent sleazy statement made by a minister of the present govern-

ment has rendered the “freedom of speech” and “freedom of religion” a chatty issue. When the liberty to freely express oneself is at odds with the right to freedom of religion of others, we are confronted with the classic dilemma of choosing between two equally fundamental, constitutionally, and internationally protected rights.

Dispute arising from the clash between two fundamental rights have led to bitter tensions between freedom of expression and concerns to protect and respect religious sentiments. The protection of the freedom of religion or belief is a legitimate ground for

of speech and expression is not an absolute freedom and government can impose reasonable restriction on various ground. However, some restrictions on this freedom can be found in section 295A and 298 of the Penal Code, 1860.

Section 295 maintains that “whoever, with deliberate and malicious intention of outraging the religious feelings of any class of the citizens of Bangladesh, by words, either spoken or written, or by visible representations insults or attempts to insult the religion or the religious beliefs of that class, shall be punished with impris-

Freedom of speech under the constitutional framework does not apply to any speech which insults the religious feelings of others limiting freedom of speech. Respect for religious beliefs and symbols is fundamental to and part and parcel of the freedom of religion as enshrined in Article 41 of the Constitution of Bangladesh and therefore, freedom of expression, although equally fundamental, is not without its limits.

In the case of Chaplinsky v New Hampshire (1942), Justice Murphy said: Utterance of words which inflict injury or tend to incite an immediate breach of peace are no essential part of any idea and are of such slight social value. In this case he also emphasised that the right of freedom of speech is not absolute at all time and under all circumstances. There are certain well defined and narrowly limited classes of speech, the prevention and punishment of which have never been thought to raise any constitutional problem.

Restrictions on freedom of speech

As we have discussed earlier, freedom

onment of either description for a term which may extend to two years, or with fine, or with both.”

Similarly, Section 298 of the penal code provides that “whoever, with the deliberate intention of wounding the religious feelings of any person, utters any word or makes any sound in the hearing of that person or makes any gesture in the sight of that person or places any object in the sight of that person, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to one year, or with fine, or with both.”

Thus, an utterance, when it is intended or has a reasonable tendency to create disorder or disturbance of public order by resorting to violence, a reasonable restriction may be imposed by law in the interest of public order. The expression “in the interest of” in the constitution enables the government to make laws to curb the tendency to break the peace, even

though no breach of the peace has actually be taken place. Since the free exercise of religion is inextricably tied to one’s willingness to associate oneself (whether by practice, belief or participation) with a particular religion based on its value in the greater community, this willingness stands to be threatened if certain speech vilifying or ridiculing particular religions is not curbed.

Freedom of speech under the constitutional framework does not apply to any speech which insults the religious feelings of others. In the interest of public order such speech can be restricted and the speaker should be brought to book. Freedom of speech assured by Article 39 is expressly made subject to public order and morality.

Therefore, it cannot be said that freedom of speech can have no bearing whatever on the maintenance of public order. However, whether in a particular case an utterance would have a tendency to create breach of public order is to be determined objectively from the circumstances in which the utterance is made, the nature of the audience and the like.

Therefore, it is the duty of the political leaders as well as all the citizens to make every possible effort to maintain a balance between freedom of speech and misusing or abusing that freedom as because the freedom of speech is not an unrestricted one.

Every person ought to understand that the religious and cultural traditions of others should be respected. Article 39 of the Constitution must not be used as an excuse to offend the religious faith of the Muslims and that of other religions. It is not impossible to strike the right balance between freedom of speech and the right of adherents of various religious groups not to be offended.

Md Nasir Shikder is a lecturer, Department of Law & Justice, Southeast University.

JURIS QUOTE Justice is the insurance which we have on our lives and property. Obedience is the premium which we pay for it.

William Penn

English real estate entrepreneur and philosopher October 14, 1644 – July 30, 1718

Send us queries for

Consult your counsel

and also your articles on any legal issues at: law@dhakatribune.com

Dhaka Tribune Visit our website at: www.dhakatribune.com Join our Facebook community https://www.facebook.com/DhakaTribune RIO SHUVO

7

Thursday, October 23, 2014







A taxpayer is entitled to receive professional service and assistance from the tax office including supply of forms and brochures.

Taxpayer may either represent himself for any of his tax matters or, engage an authorised representative as provided in the law.

A taxpayer is entitled to have access to his own tax records held by the Taxes office.

The tax authorities are required to act impartially and use their powers in a fair and professional manner.

Burden of proof is shifted to the tax authority in figuring admissible deductions.

A taxpayer has a right to be heard before a tax or penalty is imposed.

A taxpayer has the right to appeal against decision passed by the tax authority.

A taxpayer is entitled to refund as soon as it becomes due.

Collection cannot be enforced on the disputed amount of tax of a taxpayer so long as his appeal is not disposed of.

A taxpayer has the right to appeal against decision passed by the tax authority.

A taxpayer enjoys a confidentiality privilege [protection of information].

A taxpayer applying for a Taxpayer

Identification Number (TIN) in a prescribed manner becomes entitled to be registered with the tax office.  A taxpayer is protected from unilateral authoritarian action of the Revenue under a specific law enacted for the purpose.  Taxpayers performing as withholding agents are indemnified for deduction or retention or payment of tax on behalf of other taxpayers.

Obligations of a taxpayer 

















A taxpayer is required to file a correct return by disclosing all his income and wealth, provide supporting documents and pay due tax within the time limit specified by law.

A taxpayer is required to pay advance tax on a four quarterly basis if his latest assessed income exceeded Tk400,000.

An individual taxpayer is obliged to provide details of his assets and liabilities as well as particulars of his lifestyle in the return.

A taxpayer is required to comply with statutory notices issued by the tax authority.

A taxpayer is required to furnish to the tax authority correct and accurate particulars of his income.

A taxpayer having commercial transaction is required to maintain accounts in the prescribed manner.

A taxpayer is obliged to furnish certificate, statement, accounts and information as required by the law.

A taxpayer having income from business or profession is obliged to display TIN certificate at a conspicuous location of his business premises.

A taxpayer owning a property is obliged not to the transfer or otherwise deal with the said property following the receipt of notice of attachment issued by tax recovery officer. 

Talking taboo Prostitution and its legality in Bangladesh

n Raihanatul Jannat

P

ractices that deviate from our established social norms are considered taboo. Taboo can be any subject that has been forbidden, prohibited or excluded and constitutes the belief that such a practice will instigate supernatural punishment. One of such a taboo subject is prostitution, a profession which is as old as history itself.

The laws against prostitution varies from one country to another. Article 18(2) of the Constitution of Bangladesh provides that the “state shall take effective preventive measures against prostitution and gambling” and the Suppression of Immoral Traffic Act, 1933 prohibits prostitution of underage girls (girls under the age of 18) and brothel keeping. It is also an offence for third parties to import, export, sell, or hire a woman for prostitution under Oppression of Women and Children (Special Enactment) Act, 1995. Section 290 of the Penal Code of 1860 categorises prostitution under public nuisance and Section 74 of DMP Ordinance, 1976 defines it in the frames of public nuisance as an attempt to attract attention, solicit, or molest in a public place for the purposes of prostitution.

However, there is no concrete law which bans prostitution as a profession. The legality of prostitution in Bangladesh was challenged by 100 sex workers in a land mark case called Bangladesh Society for the Enforcement of Human Rights (BSEHR) and Ors vs Government of Bangladesh and Ors reported in 53 DLR (2001), and a High Court division bench delivered the verdict – that the trade for a living is legal.

Therefore, Bangladesh is one of the few Muslim countries which does not make prostitution illegal.

Bangladesh as of now has 18 registered brothels and around 200,000 active sex workers. However, almost every sex worker in Bangladesh does not come to the trade by choice.

They are either born into it or sold into it – be it because hardship or coercion. Once they are in the trade, there is no looking back. Even when the trade is conducted in private, the crushing social stigma does not let them live the life worthy of a human.

For generations, sex workers in several brothels around the country were forbidden to wear shoes in public and were fined if they breached the rule. To this date, brothels always

have their private burial grounds, as the society considers them impure and refuses to bury or perform the last rites of a sex worker.

However, these registered brothels are also being systematically closed down by the police and local authorities, and the residents receive only a few hours notice.

Such closures stem from tremendous social pressures, however, more often than not it can be a case of land grabbing under the guise of piety. This was recently done in Kandapara, Tangail on July 14, 2014 and about 1,500 sex workers were evicted as a result.

Though they have been promised rehabilitation, all the sex workers are on the streets and facing a life of danger and uncertainty. They have now lost their only safe haven, which may have been rife with disease and discomfort but still was a place where they found home. Such an eviction by the authorities is also illegal and unconstitutional according to the above mentioned case law.

The authorities need to realise that such evictions without any rehabilitation will put the sex workers on the streets where they will either breaks laws by soliciting in public or resort to begging to feed themselves. These consequences in turn will increase the crime rate of the country, the streets will be rampant with sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), and most important above all – Bangladesh will breach the basic right of its citizen as provided in Article 27 of the Constitution of Bangladesh which talks of equality before the law. In order to combat the issue and uphold the basic rights of sex workers, UN released a development report titled “Sex Work and the Law in Asia and the Pacific.”

This report seeks to discuss the national laws surrounding sex work, the effect of these laws and policy recommendation. The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), Bangladesh can take into account such recommendations and implement them into a legal framework which will formulate a national policy for sex workers to ensure their social and constitutional rights, and to recognise sex work as a profession. Furthermore, in order to restrict the blatant breach of the constitution, the High Court can also be requested to clarify Article 18(2) regarding prostitution.

Raihanatul Jannat is a Barrister from The Honourable Society of Lincoln’s Inn, UK.

8

DHAKA TRIBUNE

World

Thursday, October 23, 2014

Pledges to UN Ebola fund double to $50m

Red Cross official: 6 months to contain Ebola n AP, Beijing A top Red Cross official said yesterday that he is confident the Ebola epidemic that has killed thousands of people in West Africa can be contained within four to six months.

Elhadj As Sy, secretary general of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, told a news conference in Beijing that the time frame is possible if there is “good isolation, good treatment of the cases which are confirmed,” and “safe burials” of those who die from the disease.

The Ebola outbreak has killed more than 4,500 people since it emerged 10 months ago, with Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone the worst-affected countries.

The Red Cross is holding its Asia-Pacific regional conference, held every four years, in the Chinese capital.

Sy praised China for contributing relief items, laboratory equipment and protective gear to help in the fight against Ebola at a time when “many people were coming out and running away and others were very hesitant to send people.”

The World Food Program announced Monday that China has donated $6m to help stave off food shortages in the three worst-affected countries.

With the world’s second-largest economy and a permanent seat on the UN Security Council, China is beginning to make larger contributions to international aid efforts.

China is also Africa’s largest trading partner.

“As some said it when I was in Sierra Leone and Guinea, it is only at this time that you know who your friends are, and definitely they see China as their friend,” Sy said. l

n Reuters, United Nations

Health workers carry the body of an Ebola virus victim in the Waterloo district of Freetown, Sierra Leone

Pledges to a United Nations trust fund calling for nearly $1bn to fight Ebola in West Africa have more than doubled to almost $50m, days after it was disclosed that only one $100,000 donation had been deposited.

The United Nations said in September that $988m would be needed to try to halt the spread of the deadly virus over the next six months. Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea in West Africa have been hardest hit by Ebola, but cases have also been reported in Nigeria, Senegal, Spain and the United States.

Donors can contribute directly to UN agencies such as the World Health Organization and aid groups working in REUTERS

Ebola ‘czar’ starts work Drugmakers to make millions US n of Ebola vaccine doses Reuters, Washington

n Reuters, London

Leading drugmakers plan to work together to accelerate development of an Ebola vaccine and produce millions of doses of the most effective experimental product for use next year.

Johnson & Johnson said yesterday that it aims to produce at least 1 million doses of its two-step vaccine next year and has already discussed collaboration with Britain’s GlaxoSmithKline, which is working on a rival vaccine.

The US group’s head of research Paul Stoffels said the two companies would support each other’s work and could combine their vaccines if that

made sense, while other companies without an Ebola treatment are ready to provide production capacity.

There is currently no proven vaccine against the deadly disease but several companies are racing to develop products. Clinical tests on GSK’s vaccine and another from NewLink Genetics are under way, while human tests on J&J’s vaccine will start in January.

The World Health Organization (WHO) hopes that tens of thousands of people in West Africa, including frontline healthcare workers, can start receiving Ebola vaccines from January as part of large-scale clinical trials.

“I have spoken with (GSK chief executive) Andrew Witty over the past few days several times as colleagues on how we are going to solve this,” Stoffels told reporters. “It might even be that we have to combine their vaccine with ours.”

J&J said the accelerated work on its Ebola vaccine, which has been helped by recent advances in technology, would yield 250,000 doses by May. The company plans to test its vaccine for safety and immune response in healthy volunteers in Europe, the United States and Africa from early January, having committed up to $200m to accelerate the programme. l

The new US Ebola “czar” started work yesterday and a military medical team began training as the Obama administration ramps up its response to the potential spread of the virus in the United States.

The Pentagon’s 30-member emergency team, including 5 doctors, 20 critical care nurses and 5 trainers who are experts in infectious disease protocols, were scheduled yesterday to gather at Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio, Texas.

US Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel ordered the creation of the rapid-response team to support civilian medical personnel after three people were infected in the United States with the virus that has killed more than 4,500 people, mostly in West Africa.

Blogs, videos and verse Air strikes kills around 25 Islamic - an Iraqi poet’s quest to State fighters in Iraq heal her homeland n

Reuters, London

Iraqi-born poet Amal al-Jubouri may not have the Hollywood recognition of Angelina Jolie, but both women are artists who have decided to use their talents and profile to help the victims of war.

When al-Jubouri, one of foremost poets writing in Arabic, met Jolie this year, she urged the actress and UN humanitarian envoy to go with her and see the worsening hardships in her homeland. Jolie has already visited Iraq in previous years.

“I said: ‘Iraq is burning, Angelina.’ She told me she would love to go to Iraq,” al-Jubouri said of her meeting with Jolie, a special envoy for the refugee agency UNHCR. “I would love to join her on a trip to Iraq - not as an official visitor where they would not let her see the reality - but as a woman and mother whose voice would be crucial in this dramatic moment of historical displacement,” al-Jubouri told Reuters at a cafe in London, the city that is now her home.

Al-Jubouri, 47, who fled Saddam Hussein and took political asylum in Germany in 1998, was one of the first exiled writers to return to Iraq after his fall.

Her anthology “Hagar before the Occupation, Hagar after the Occupation,” about the aftermath of the US-led invasion of Iraq, has received awards for both its Arabic and English language versions.

Today, in addition to poetry, she uses blogging and video to help traumatised Iraqis cope with the horrors they still face, founding an online TV station to show what is happening inside the country, aiming to overcome sectarian divisions which threaten to break the country apart.

Soutuna (www.soutuna.com), Arabic for “our voice,” posts videos from disparate groups that show their experiences of the conflict and document the life and culture of minorities, which otherwise go

unreported.

“Soutuna has come up as a way to empower the people and build hope for a new society,” al-Jubouri said.

She also posts testimonies from Iraqis on a Facebook blog (http://on.fb.me/ ZEymfy) which include accounts from a massacre at the former US Camp Speicher in June, where, according to a UN report, about 1,500 Iraqi soldiers and security officers were captured and killed by Islamic State.

The rapid rise of the al Qaeda offshoot that has declared a caliphate straddling Iraq and neighbouring Syria has been well documented, including the group’s policy of killing anyone not conforming to its strict version of Sunni Islam.

What has been less reported are the stories of ordinary Iraqis who have risen above the sectarian violence, something al-Jubouri hopes to put right.

n Reuters, Baghdad

Coalition air strikes killed around 25 Islamic State fighters yesterday near the northern Iraqi city of Baiji, residents told Reuters.

They said a series of bombings beginning in the early hours hit the town of al-Siniya, west of Baiji, a strategic city adjacent to the country’s largest refinery, part of a multinational effort to check the group’s progress.

Iraqi army tanks and armoured vehicles on Wednesday also fought off an advance by Islamic State militants on the town of Amiriya Fallujah, west of

the Iraqi capital Baghdad, army sources said. The sources added that around 400 fighters amassed in the nearby towns of Fallujah and Karma the day before, piling pressure on the capital’s western flank.

Government forces fought back Islamic State outside Amiriya Fallujah - which faced a siege by the militants for much of this month and is the last government-controlled town before the key provincial city of Fallujah.

Soldiers destroyed five of the fighters’ vehicles, a security source said.

There were no immediate reports on the number of casualties from the fighting there, but the militant advance

appears to have been halted.

Another battle between the two sides raged in the area around Hit town, also in western Anbar province, but the outcome remained unclear.

Hit is a walled market town located some 130 km (80 miles) west of the Iraqi capital Baghdad seized by Islamic State militants at the beginning of October.

Anbar’s largest airbase Ain al-Asad, the Haditha Dam - a critical piece of infrastructure - and surrounding towns are encircled by Islamic State to the west from the Syrian border and to the east from militant-controlled sections of Ramadi. l

Different story “I was in Erbil when I met people from Tikrit who told me the stories of how Sunnis hid fellow Shias despite the prospect of death at the hands of Daesh (the Arabic acronym for Islamic State) if they were found out during the Speicher massacre.

There is a different story,” she said.

“Daesh is a global movement beyond Iraq and the Sunni-Shia conflict. The Iraqi people want to get beyond this and also beyond the sectarianism, which has caused so much suffering.”

Even for a poet, some of what al-Jubouri has heard - such as the experiences of the ethnic Yazidis who fled from Islamic State fighters - has left her lost for words.

“Daesh kidnapped one young man’s children and wife and they called him and said they had slaughtered them. All I could do was hug the man. We were both crying and he hugged me like his own sister,” she said. l

NEWS BITES Saudi convicts 13 for plotting attack on US forces

n AP, Riyadh A Saudi court has sentenced 13 people to prison for planning a series of attacks against US forces in Qatar and Kuwait.

The Saudi Press Agency says the group includes 11 Saudis, a Qatari and an Afghan national. They were given varying sentences of between 18 months to 30 years in prison.

The verdict, which was carried late Tuesday, says the 41-person cell planned to attack US troops in Qatar with grenades, rockets and mortar fire.

The US conducts missions over Iraq from al-Udeid air base in Qatar.

The court says the group planned to send someone to Iraq for training on how make car bombs to target foreigners in Qatar and Kuwait. They were also found guilty of planning to carry out directives of al-Qaida’s branch in Iraq. l

n AFP, Cairo A bomb exploded outside the gates of Cairo University yesterday, an Egyptian police official said, wounding at least nine people including policemen.

Police cordoned off the area and scoured it with sniffer dogs. An official said five of the nine wounded were policemen stationed outside the campus to quell protests. The blast took place near the site of a bombing in April that killed a police general, and where the riot policemen are now stationed on foot and in armoured vehicles to confront the frequent protests by pro-Islamist students.

The police official said the explosion came after policemen had clashed with student protesters earlier in the day. l Turkish Kurdish women mourn during the funeral of Kurdish fighters killed during clashes against Islamic State in Kobane, at a cemetery in the southeastern town of Suruc, Sanliurfa province REUTERS

Catalans: Independence drive will intensify unless Madrid negotiates

n Agencies

n Reuters, London

The Pentagon said it was investigating the claim but admitted that one of its airdrops had gone missing. If confirmed, it would be an embarrassment for the US, given the advanced precision technology available to its air force.

The seemingly bungled airdrop comes against a steady stream of US-supplied weapons being lost to Isis forces, mainly from the dysfunctional Iraqi army. Isis is reported to have stolen seven American M1 Abrams tanks from three Iraqi army bases in Anbar province last week. l

The administration has ratcheted up its response but has so far stopped short of a travel ban from West Africa, demanded by some lawmakers.

The Department of Homeland Security said on Tuesday that travelers from three countries at the center of the epidemic would be funneled to one of five major US airports conducting enhanced screening for the virus. Restrictions on passengers whose trips originated in Liberia, Sierra Leone or Guinea were due to go into effect on Wednesday.

Affected travelers will have their temperatures checked for signs of a fever that may indicate Ebola infection, among other protocols, at New York’s John F. Kennedy, New Jersey’s Newark, Washington Dulles, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta, and Chicago’s O’Hare International airports, officials said. l

Police: Bomb outside Cairo University wounds nine

IS claims it has US airdrop of weapons A US airdrop of arms to besieged Kurds in Kobane appears to have missed its target and ended up in the hands of Islamic State (IS/Isis) militants, The Guardian reported.

Video footage released by Isis shows what appears to be one of its fighters for in desert scrubland with a stack of boxes attached to a parachute. The boxes are opened to show an array of weapons, some rusty, some new. A canister is broken out to reveal a hand grenade.

West Africa or to the trust fund created

by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to allow for rapid, flexible funding of urgent needs. By Oct. 16, donors had committed $365m, but nearly all of that money was directed to UN agencies and aid groups. Only $100,000 from Colombia was deposited in the trust fund, which has received pledges totaling $19m from Chile, Australia, Estonia, India and Romania.

According to the trust fund website on Tuesday, Australia has deposited $8.7m and Venezuela has committed $5m. New non-binding pledges have also been received from Finland, New Zealand, Norway, South Korea and Kazakhstan, taking the total promised money to nearly $35m. l

After scuppering a referendum, Spain risks intensifying Catalonia’s push for independence unless it negotiates over transferring more powers, the region’s economy minister said.

Spain’s government asked the constitutional court last month to declare a referendum planned for Nov. 9 illegal on the grounds it breached the constitution. The court suspended the vote until it ruled on the case, which could take years.

In response, Catalan President Artur Mas has dropped plans for a binding vote and will instead hold a “consultation of citizens” which he said would be within the law. “Sooner or later there will have to be dialogue or negotiation,” Catalan Economy Minister Andreu Mas-Colell told Reuters in an interview in London. “We are not going to retire.”

He hoped the Catalan government would see out its term until late 2016 but said clamor for early elections would grow if the Spanish government

refused to discuss greater autonomy for one of its wealthiest regions, with its own language and culture. “If the possibility of consultations is denied to us, the pressure to call elections...will naturally increase,” he said.

About half of Catalans want more independence from Spain and a vast majority want a say on their future, opinion polls show. Some want Mas to call early elections as a proxy vote on secession, a move likely to benefit the more radical independence party ERC, a coalition partner of Mas’s CiU. l

Slain Ferguson teen’s autopsy shows closerange gunshot

n Reuters, Missouri A newly disclosed autopsy of the unarmed black teenager whose killing by a white police officer set off months of protests in Ferguson, Missouri, USA, suggests he suffered a gunshot to the hand from close range, the St. Louis Post Dispatch reported. The St. Louis County medical examiner’s autopsy of 18-year-old Michael Brown said a microscopic examination of his hand tissue showed particles “consistent with products that are discharged from the barrel of a firearm.”

Forensic experts interviewed by the newspaper said the material indicated Brown’s hand was close to officer Darren Wilson’s weapon when Brown was shot Aug. 9. l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

World

Fears for tough penalties grow as India cleans up business Cleaning up India’s grubby business climate is top of govt agenda

n Reuters, Mumbai An unprecedented ban on India’s largest property developer from tapping capital markets has fuelled expectations of tougher penalties ahead, as the country’s regulators feel emboldened to take on even companies long sheltered by political connections.

The result has been a slide over the past week in shares of firms known to be under investigation – adding to what was already a year-long weakness in the stocks of companies seen as tied to the Congress party, which was ousted from power in May. Cleaning up India’s grubby business climate is top of the agenda for both regulators and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government, which was elected in May partly on a promise to do just that. India ranks 94th among 177 nations in the global corruption index published

by Transparency International.

“If you are in a business which depends on government largesse, then questions will be asked,” said Avinash Vazirani, a London-based manager with the Jupiter India Fund.

Shares in Jindal Steel and Power Ltd, for example, have dropped 8.6 percent since Oct. 13, when regulator SEBI announced its bar on the country’s largest listed property developer DLF Ltd. Local media also reported that po-

lice are investigating the firm over accusations it paid bribes to secure coal blocks. Jindal’s chairman is a former member of the Congress party.

Politics and business have long been closely connected, especially in sectors such as coal and telecoms, which depend on large government contracts “JSPL (Jindal Steel) reiterates that all its actions are in keeping with the legal framework of the country and that it complies with the law in letter and in spirit,” the company said in a statement.

“JSPL continues to cooperate with all the authorities in a responsive manner.”

Other investigations of companies with ties to Congress include one into whether a former minister allowed Malaysia’s Maxis Group to take over an Indian mobile carrier in exchange for investments in Sun Group companies belonging to the brother of the minister.

Companies belonging to the Sun Group have fallen. Sun TV Network Ltd has dropped 5 percent since SEBI’s rul-

ing on DLF, while the broader index has been flat. Sun Group did not immediately respond to requests for comments.

DLF itself has slumped 17.4 percent since the SEBI ruling.

The punishment doled out to DLF - for failing to provide key information on subsidiaries and pending legal cases at the time of its initial public offering in 2007 - showed how painful the clean-up process could be, even for heavyweights with political ties.

It came weeks after the Supreme Court cancelled more than 200 coal mining licenses, citing the arbitrary and illegal allocation process of the previous government, which threw billions of dollars of investment into question.

The new government says it will auction the cancelled blocks, spurring hopes of more transparent allocations.

DLF - whose founder has traced his success back to a chance encounter with the Congress party’s Rajiv Gandhi before he became prime minister - was already fighting India’s antitrust regulator in court. It is now appealing last week’s SEBI ban.

Politics and business have long been closely connected in India, especially in sectors such as coal and telecoms, which depend on large government contracts and are often funded by state-owned banks. Political funding remains opaque at best. l

A man installs a light next to a Sadhu or a Hindu holyman watching widows, who have been abandoned by their families, offering prayers as part of Diwali celebrations organised by non-governmental organisation Sulabh International in Vrindavan, Uttar Pradesh. Hundreds of the widows who live in various ashrams run by the Sulabh International participated in the celebrations for the first time this year, according to the organisers. Diwali, the annual festival of lights will be celebrated across the country today REUTERS

In Afghan north, Taliban gains ground and courts local support n Reuters, Afghanistan Sardar, a 23-year-old working in his brother’s barber shop in the northern Afghan province of Kunduz, said local officials had asked for bribes to resolve a long-running family dispute over land.

When the backhanders failed to have their desired effect, he turned to the Taliban, the austere Islamist movement that has been fighting foreign forces since it was ousted from power 13 years ago.

“They came to our home in Chahar Darah and took two days to solve the problem,” he said.

The case of Sardar and others like him may prove sobering reading for US, Nato and Afghan governments who spent billions of dollars, and thousands of lives, to overcome the Taliban insurgency and turn a war-torn nation into a peaceful democracy before foreign combat troops leave at the end of the year.

According to local officials, the Taliban controls virtually all of two out of seven districts in Kunduz - Chahar Darah and Dasht-i-Archi. It is gaining influence elsewhere, and residents say it has been able to because what little state authority exists is viewed with deep mistrust.

On a national level, the Taliban takeover of two districts is a worrying harbinger more than a strategic shift, and US-led forces believe that Taliban

advances will be temporary.

“The Taliban may take over a district centre or something, but only temporarily,” General John Campbell, commander of the coalition forces in Afghanistan, told reporters this month.

‘The Taliban are (even) sending their girls to school to learn and to monitor classes. But they have removed English as a subject’ “There’s nowhere that we have Afghan security forces that the Taliban can get the terrain and hold the terrain.”

Yet the gains, and efforts by the Taliban to win over locals with a somewhat softer form of rule than their previous hardline regime, come as foreign combat troops prepare to withdraw and hand over to relatively inexperienced Afghan forces and an inefficient government.

People in Chahar Darah speak of a drive by insurgents to impose the rule of law, allow some freedoms like television and Western clothes, and, significantly, let girls attend school - something unthinkable when they were in government.

Hong Kong protesters march after fruitless talks n Reuters, Hong Kong About 200 Hong Kong protesters marched to the home of the city’s Beijing-backed leader yesterday to push their case for greater democracy a day after talks between student leaders and senior officials failed to break the deadlock.

Others continued to occupy main streets in the Chinese-controlled city, where they have camped for nearly a month in protest against a central government plan that would give Hong Kong people the chance to vote for their own leader in 2017 but tightly restrict the candidates to Beijing loyalists.

A wide chasm separates the protesters and the government, which has labelled their actions illegal and repeatedly said their demand for open nominations is impossible under the laws of the former British colony.

“I’m here hoping the government will listen. If they don’t listen we will come out again and again to fight for our basic, grassroots nomination right,” said protester Wing Chan, who took part in the march.

Expectations had been low for a breakthrough in Tuesday’s cordial, televised talks which pitted five of the city’s most senior officials against five tenacious but poised student leaders wearing black T-shirts. Protesters were unhappy about what they felt was a lack of substantive concessions. Andy Lau, a 19-year-old college student, said now was the time to step things up. l

Indian girl, 3, ‘raped’ in school n Agencies

U N D E R T H E WATC H O F G O D M A N

That said, extensive classroom restrictions apply.

“When they check the subjects being taught at school and see they are in accordance with sharia (Islamic law), they trust the system,” said Badal Bibi, chief of women’s affairs in Kunduz.

“The Taliban are (even) sending their girls to school to learn and to monitor classes. But they have removed English as a subject,” she said, adding that classes had an increasingly religious focus and no male teachers were allowed after girls had reach puberty.

Interpretations of sharia vary widely, but for the Taliban it requires teaching religious subjects, strictly segregating classes and females wearing all-covering clothes.

The Taliban is seeking to distinguish itself from unpopular local authorities through a network of informal “courts” that focus on Afghanistan’s backlog of land disputes.

One Taliban judge interviewed by Reuters in Kunduz said mobile “special justice commissions” had been deployed across Afghanistan to fill gaps left by the chaotic and sometimes corrupt legal framework.

Calling himself Mullah Abdul Bakhi, the judge said he had been in Kunduz province for six months, having previously been deployed elsewhere in the country since joining the insurgency three years ago. l

9

Thursday, October 23, 2014

Indian police are investigating the alleged rape of a three-year-old girl in her school in the city of Bangalore, BBC reported.

The child returned from school on Tuesday and complained of pain that had been caused by “an uncle in school,” her parents told the police.

Police say they are questioning school staff and are waiting for a report on the child’s medical condition.

The incident comes three months after a six-year-old was raped by a staff member in another Bangalore school.

That led to street protests by parents and activists, with many accusing the school of not handling the allegations properly.

“We have registered cases for rape and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act,” Bangalore Police Commissioner MN Reddi told BBC Hindi.

He said police were looking at security cameras for any leads. There have been no arrests yet.

The alleged assault on the threeyear-old is the latest in a series of brutal gender-related crimes that have caused outrage in India.

Scrutiny of sexual violence has grown since the 2012 gang rape and murder of a 23-year-old student on a Delhi bus. l

Kenny G riles Chinese government with appearance at HK protest n Agencies Kenny G has earned himself a rebuke from the Chinese government after paying a visit to one of the pro-democracy protest sites in Hong Kong yesterday.

According to the South China Morning Post, the celebrated American smooth jazz saxophonist visited the epicentre of the protests and spent time taking pictures with star struck demonstrators.

He also tweeted from the site, wishing for a peaceful and positive conclusion to the protests.

News of Kenny G’s visit quickly spread across Chinese social media, and the issue was even raised at a government press conference.

The SCMP reported that at a regular press conference, China’s foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying told reporters: “Kenny G’s musical works are widely popular in China, but China’s position on the illegal Occupy Central activities in Hong Kong is very clear. We hope that foreign governments and individuals speak and act cautiously and not support the Occupy Central and other illegal activities in any form.”

Kenny G is very popular in China, with millions having watched his videos on video site Youku. His hit “Going Home” is particularly popular and has become a closing-time song for bars, train stations, shopping malls and other public buildings

Kenny G in Hong Kong across China. Some pro-democracy protesters joked on social media that Kenny G’s appearance was the Chinese government’s final attempt to get everybody to “go home.”

Despite his popularity, Kenny G has left himself open to a backlash from the Chinese public. The SCMP reports that some Hong Kong and Taiwanese musicians and actors who have publicly approved of the protests have faced widespread criticism on Chinese social media, with some users calling for these artists to be blacklisted from working in China. l

Qadri supporters end Islamabad sit-in n Agencies Supporters of a leading anti-government cleric in Pakistan are ending a two-month sit-in in Islamabad after failing to force PM Nawaz Sharif to resign.

Tahirul Qadri said his party was taking the protest to other cities instead, BBC reported.

He launched his campaign in August, saying he wanted revolutionary change in how Pakistan was run.

Another opposition leader, former cricketer Imran Khan, said his supporters would keep protesting in the capital until Sharif stepped down.

Qadri has provided the bulk of the crowds in Islamabad but numbers have been thinning since September.

Imran Khan has already expanded his protest by holding huge anti-government rallies in Karachi and other major cities of Punjab province.

Struggling to sustain his sit-in, it seems Qadri had little choice but to follow suit, the BBC’s Shahzeb Jillani reports.

There were emotional scenes at Qadri’s sit-in on Tuesday night after he asked his followers to pack up and leave the capital.

“I advise all supporters that they

continue to work hard to spread the revolutionary movement around the country,” he said, adding that they had achieved their aim.

Dejected by the announcement, many of his supporters were seen weeping and consoling each other.

They had arrived in Islamabad hoping to overthrow what their leader says is a flawed political system and bring about a revolution.

But in the end, they were being asked to go home without having achieved any of their objectives, our correspondent says.

Qadri’s aides insist he is not giving up the fight - just changing tactics.

One of his supporters, Naveed Ahmed from the UK, told the BBC: “If I say that we wanted a sudden result, in that way yes, it’s a bit sad. But on the other hand the revolution is not like a one-day process - it takes time.”

Fellow supporter Farhat Khan said she thought it had been for a good cause.

“Now that we are leaving I am a bit glum,” she told the Associated Press news agency. “We’ve had good co-ordination among people who were here from different cities. We all came together to represent Pakistan as one nation.” l

D O G -WO R S H I P P I N G I N N E PA L FO R S EC U R I T Y

10

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Editorial

Thursday, October 23, 2014

CODE-CRACKER

Prisoner transfer agreement should help workers in UAE

W

e welcome the cabinet’s decision to approve proposals to sign agreements with the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait aimed at boosting cooperation on controlling crimes.

The agreement with the UAE is of particular importance as it is an urgent priority for the country to see the UAE lift the ban it imposed in 2012 on work visas for Bangladeshis.

With the prime minister due to visit the UAE on October 27, this deal, titled an “agreement on transfer of sentenced persons,” will provide a timely boost to help cement better relations.

Under the agreement, Bangladesh and the UAE will enable exchanges of convicted persons from our respective countries.

Reportedly, there are about 1,000 convicted Bangladeshi prisoners currently serving sentences in UAE prisons. While these people represent only a tiny fraction of the up to one million Bangladeshis working in the state, the inconvenience and security concerns caused by them has been a factor behind the visa ban.

The UAE does not feel that it should accept the responsibility of maintaining Bangladeshi prisoners who have committed crimes in the UAE, and wants them to be transferred to Bangladesh at the expense of the Bangladeshi government.

We hope this deal will pave the way forward for better relations and the lifting of the visa ban.

The proposed agreements also cover broader issues to do with security, such as co-operation on money laundering. It is vital the government continue to be pro-active in cultivating and improving relations with labour-importing nations, to help maintain and build remittance flows.

We hope this deal will pave a way forward for better relations and the lifting of the visa ban

Open pit mining not our best bet

T

he government should reconsider its decision to commence open-pit mining in the Barapukuria area.

An open-pit coal mine in Barapukuria would have a very severe effect on agriculture in the Barapukuria area, as tube wells would be unusable as long as the mine is in operation.

This negative environmental impact could last even longer, depending on how long the aquifer takes to revive.

As the surrounding region in Dinajpur grows a large volume of food, and relies at least part of the year on clean groundwater for irrigation, the government needs to be more certain that the planned benefits from this mine outweigh its negative environmental and social consequences.

Open-pit mining should not commence in Barapukuria at the very least until farmers in the area are given a guarantee that they will be compensated for the value of their lost agricultural output. Consideration should also be given to alternative methods of extraction to see if this resource can be exploited more cleanly.

The government has a responsibility to balance the nation’s needs for power with the long-term social, economic, and environmental impacts of the planned mining project. If there is any doubt about whether it will do more harm than good, than caution is definitely the best policy.

More broadly, although Bangladesh has very low per capita emissions of greenhouse gases, the government needs to be looking more to cleaner forms of energy to satiate our electricity demands.

Directing investment to more clean and renewable energy is the safer and more sustainable option.

Long-term social, economic, and environmental impacts matter.

Renewable energy is a better option

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

Lessons to be learned from Korea October 15

Momoaswan “Bangladesh needs vision and rapid improvements to its education system.”

The vision thing really matters. Korea did not stay still; it kept investing and businesses/ government were not content with just being a sweatshop/military base. That’s how you get Samsung.

Lalon Shah It looks like Bangladeshi leadership – past and present – are seriously lacking in the vision department. We had so many countries to emulate over the years. You mentioned Korea, but even in the days preceding the liberation war, our per capita income was on par or higher

How to solve: Each number in our CODE-CRACKER grid represents a different letter of the alphabet. For example, today 12 represents P so fill P every time the figure 12 appears.

You have two letters in the control grid to start you off. Enter them 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

than Malaysia’s and Thailand’s. And, not so long ago, both Indonesia and Vietnam were at a comparable level to ours. They have all surpassed us. Yet there’s no evidence on the ground that Bangladeshis are less enterprising or less hard working.

That leaves the issue of governance (or lack thereof), our abysmal failure in statecraft as an obvious culprit (practitioners of dismal science would have other explanations no doubt). You see, we have had dictatorships and democracies of various shades, but they all miserably failed to establish rule of law and contain the everspiralling corruption. These twin curses have and are eating into the vitals of our nation. Address these two, and me thinks we can catch up.

SUDOKU World’s first flying car coming soon October 15

Increasing electricity prices is the right move

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.

October 15 Osmania No issue is more important than getting energy policy right. Stop all subsidies on fossil fuels and support global taxes on fossil fuels. mi2 Increasing the price of electricity will save vital public funds, which can be better given to the quick-rental power-plant businessmen by increasing the buying price, so that they can get richer and richer.

PB I need one, at least for a test drive!

Mukto Habib Wow! Tanveer Rohan I need one just to get around Dhaka city. :-) Tuhin Parvej No limits in flying.

Lalon Shah If this rise can be complemented with a drive to contain the endemic corruption, reduce the pervasive system loss, and the like, then perhaps the quantum of rise could have been lower, eh.

Doctors Without Borders loses 9 medics to Ebola October 14

Teenager attempts suicide for Indian actor Dev October 15 Mukto Habib Sick people. :-/ Farah Fahrin Alam There’s nothing more to say!

PDB to set up 400mw power plant with own financing

October 15

Rafiqul Islam “According to the Power Division officials, nearly 38% of Bangladesh’s population is still out of the electricity coverage.”

Does coverage refer to only coverage or the supply? The situation is as if we have a bus, passengers, roads, but no fuel.

CALVIN AND HOBBES

Vikram Khan Very sad indeed! Many people working for INGOs are highly motivated individuals ready to risk their live to help others!

Abdul Latif Siddique’s return to Bangladesh uncertain

CROSSWORD ACROSS 1 Molten rock (4) 5 Reduce to carbon (4) 10 Passport endorsement (4) 11 Flightless bird (3) 12 Postal receipt (5) 13 Liable (3) 14 Bird of prey (5) 16 Sovereigns (6) 18 Pollen-bearing organ (6) 21 Card game (5) 23 Obscure (3) 24 Dialect (5) 26 Metal-bearing rock (3) 27 Biblical garden (4) 28 Look after (4) 29 Water pitcher (4)

DOWN 2 Be of use (5) 3 Vigour (3) 4 Slander (7) 6 Restore to soundness (4) 7 Electrical unit (6) 8 Groove (3) 9 Consumer (4) 15 Straddling (7) 17 Games arbiter (6) 19 American state (5) 20 Nominate (4) 22 Augury (4) 23 Small spot (3) 25 Early freshness (3)

October 14

SamKQBoro “BBC: Will you stay in India?

“Latif: I cannot live in Europe-America. That is why I have come to Kolkata. I want to live close to the soil. I love the wet smell of soil.”

The soil refers to American or European soil?

Allegations against DB of torturing to death a young boy October 15

PEANUTS

Nazmul Khair “A police official allegedly intimidated a family to sell land by staging a ‘shootout.’”

Many members of law enforcement have been seemingly doing licensed terrorism in our country since the beginning, but nowadays, the situation has turned worse.

We cannot see any proper judgment being carried out; only temporary layoffs from their job, and later on, all the alleged perpetrators again rejoin the forces and set off to settle their debts. Such situations make them invincible, and make the public vulnerable.

The government can’t act against them, as political leaders use them as a sort of private army or as goons. It’s a horrible situation we live in.

Australia’s Flanagan wins Man Booker with war story October 15

Anon “Flanagan, 53, is ranked among Australia’s finest novelists and also worked as a writer with director Baz Luhrmann on the 2008 film ‘Australia.’”

In Australia, the Man Booker is sometimes seen as something of a chicken raffle.

YESTERDAY’S SOLUTIONS CODE-CRACKER

CROSSWORD

SUDOKU

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Op-Ed

11

Thursday, October 23, 2014

Nawaz Sharif’s water torture n FS Aijazuddin

T

BIGSTOCK

Chatty Cathy

J

n Dwitiya Jawher Neethi awaharlal Nehru famously said: “The spectacle of what is called religion – or at any rate, organised religion – in India and elsewhere has filled me with horror, and I have frequently condemned it and wished to make a clean sweep of it. Almost always, it seems to stand for blind belief and reaction, dogma and bigotry, superstition and exploitation, and the preservation of vested interests.”

Dr Ambedkar converted from Hinduism to Buddhism and critiqued the Hindu caste system at his historical speech “What Path to Salvation?” at the Bombay Presidency Mahar Conference in 1936. Salman Rushdie wrote The Satanic Verses and gracefully accepted that his strongest opponents could not understand two sentences from his book. Many Sufi mystics also challenged orthodox traditions.

Talking about, against, and for religion is not new in South Asia.

However, Latif Siddique is not a part of this league.

He went to meet Bangladeshis based in New York, and suddenly decided to go Chatty Cathy on them

T

H

about Hajj and Tablighi Jamaat. A sudden temper tantrum followed where Latif was extremely rude to a journalist and said that the journalist was not invited since he was not from Tangail.

tangent about Hajj is another. This is called being an imbecile.

The scenario would have been different had he been a writer. Zero-calibre writers like Taslima Nasrin thank

When the majority of the population lacks proper education, discussions on religion will hardly be positively stimulating

Critical citizens would have raised questions about the conduct of politicians after this incident, but the protests that followed were about hurt religious sentiments. Some other not-so-sentimental people were also hurt. These people do not think all Bangladeshi politicians are crooks.

They are aware that some are also thieves, imposters, and hooligans.

They were shocked when they realised that one was also plain stupid. Offering intellectual insight and criticism is one thing. Going off on an irrelevant

brittle religious sentiments everyday for the career boost it provides. It is not the same for politicians in Bangladesh. I personally have a problem with Latif Siddique only because, now, Taslima Nasrin thinks we need to know how she feels about this. She also tried to irritate Mamata with some of her tweets and wrote an article that starts with: “What is this?” In that article, as usual, she whined and forgot that her opinions were not important.

The government has rightly acted by showing him the door, especially

I

R

because arrogant Chatty Cathy refused to apologise. This was a good political decision to remain in power and bring a halt to the protests. The prime minister must also be enjoying a pawky moment because now, Latif is Mamata’s problem. Meanwhile, the BNP thought this could be used to bring the government down. Everyone laughed.

But how does such an incident influence the evolution of freedom of thought and conscience, and of speech? While it was done in poor taste, is there room for Muslims (politicians or otherwise) in Bangladesh to raise questions about Islam or offer reformations? In the present, definitely not. In the future, maybe, since everything (except BTV background props) is susceptible to change.

But such sensitive discussions can only be lead by intellectuals and in a system that works. When the majority of the population lacks proper education and access to basic amenities, discussions on religion will hardly be positively stimulating. And definitely, cannot be done the Latif way. l Dwitiya Jawher Neethi works in the development sector.

D

he history of relations between India and Pakistan is being re-written – this time in vitriol.

Their acrimonious separation 67 years ago must qualify as the most protracted divorce on record.

No two nations – addicted as its citizens are to television serials – could have, for so long, provided their viewing public with such a riveting soap opera. It has all the necessary ingredients: Confrontation, conflict, conciliation, suspicion, and suspense.

Sadly, Indo-Pak relations are now reduced to single episodes connected by a flimsy story-line. And like most soap-operas, it is limited only by the ingenuity of the script-writers and by the stamina of the performers.

As a Pakistani attending the Khushwant Singh LitFest in Kasauli from October 10-12, I was prepared for the slurry of resentment shovelled by my Indian counterparts. Their attitudes ranged from an obsession to reverse the partition of the Punjab in 1947, through a determination to avenge Kargil, the attack on the Lok Sabha, 26/11 in Mumbai, to the more recent firing across the J & K Line of Control.

What did catch me off-guard were the strident attempts by an educated audience to stifle the opinions of Indians once regarded as “friends” of Pakistan and now reviled as “enemies” of India.

Pro-Pakistani Indians were personified by Khushwant Singh, whose humane advocacy post-1971 for the return of 73,908 Pakistani military POWs and 16,413 civilian CUPCs so irked Mrs Indira Gandhi. In time, Khushwant’s pennant passed to Kuldip Nayar who anticipated the Gujral doctrine with his book Distant Neighbours. The latest bête noire is Mani Shankar Aiyar.

I was saddened to see him, now unprotected by the shield of a Congress Party in government, being hounded into silence by BJP supporters. Had there been a tree in the auditorium, they would have lynched him.

The BJP followers in that audience were placated only after being reminded that two of their own leaders had been casualties to their firebrand extremism – LK Advani for describing MA Jinnah as “a secularist,” and Jaswant Singh for writing a book that praised Jinnah with too faint damns.

These three “friends of Pakistan” had one thing in common – they were all born in areas that are now Pakistan: Khushwant Singh in Hadali (now Pakistan’s Punjab) in 1915, Kuldip Nayar in Sialkot in 1927, Mani Shankar Aiyar in 1941 in Lahore. Of them, only Mani has lived in a post-1947 Pakistan, when he served as the Indian Consul General in Karachi.

Unlike them, Narendra Modi was born in 1950. He is a post-Midnight’s Child. Unlike Atal Bihari Vajpayee, who visited the North-West and Lahore first as a student, then as foreign minister, and finally as prime minister, Modi has never come to Pakistan. He can be forgiven, therefore, for viewing

E

Pakistan through the prism of unfamiliarity, tinctured by a patina of political prejudice.

Imran Khan’s PTI poses a growing threat to Nawaz Sharif, not now but in the future

Since his knee-jerk cancellation of the Indo-Pak talks at the foreign secretary level, Mr Modi has been more circumspect in his utterances. He refers to the “invisible enemy” now, rather than berating Pakistan by name. He is absorbing, gradually, the dictum of the Israeli leader General Moshe Dayan: “If you want to make peace, you don’t talk to your friends. You talk to your enemies.”

And who is the “enemy” that Prime Minister Modi needs to talk to across his western border?

Until the next general elections (or any premature snap general elections), there is no one else in Pakistan Mr Modi can talk to other than Pakistan’s prime minister, Mian Nawaz Sharif.

As a reward for almost a decade of “tapasya” in exile, Mr Sharif has been granted rare boons. He has been able to choose his own chief of army staff (General Raheel Shareef), who hopefully will be more loyal to him than his earlier choice General Pervez Musharraf was. Nawaz has anointed a new head of ISI – Lt General Rizwan Akhtar. And four senior corps commanders are due for retirement before the year is out.

Nawaz Sharif knows that he cannot extinguish the fires of ambition in his military. However he must have felt comforted when General Raheel Shareef demonstrated by his abstention during the Imran Khan/Tahirul Qadri “dharnas” in Islamabad that the army would not threaten an incumbent lawfully elected government. It was as meaningful an endorsement of civilian democracy as Field Marshal Manekshaw’s refusal to oust Mrs Indira Gandhi during her Emergency in the 1970s.

For the time being, Sharif is fortified in parliament by the support of Asif Zardari’s PPP-P. However, Imran Khan’s PTI poses a growing threat to Nawaz Sharif, not now but in the future. Imran’s PTI recently won a crucial seat in Multan, vacated in a pique by Javed Hashmi, once president of Imran’s PTI. Imran Khan’s tsunami has converted into a slow water torture, drip by drip, by-election by by-election. l FS Aijazuddin lives in Lahore and is a columnist for Dawn, Pakistan’s main Englishlanguage newspaper. This article was first published in The Tribune, Chandigarh.

Y

E

How to play doctor n Mamun Rashid

I

n order to maintain the highest grades, we had to read a lot of stuff – both necessary and unnecessary.

We didn’t have a fair understanding of the question papers, or even good answers to the questions, in public examinations. It was almost established: In order to get good marks, you have to write page after page worth of answers. We also used to memorise a lot. After almost 40 years, I can finally admit that I had almost memorised a “mathematics made easy” book in order to retain full marks.

These days, be it IGCSE or O level, you have plenty of books, plenty of solution publications, and modes of questions, or possible questions, simplified with answers. Regular questions gave way to MCQs, so that answers could be precise and to-thepoint. More importantly, examiners are quite liberal these days – if your answers are right, or if you can reflect a good understanding of the subject at hand, you get full marks. But most importantly, for a good student, apart from good teachers, there is the In-

ternet, and so many other facilities or support are available now.

However, one thing is common between generations both old and new: Only the best ones, or those who want to teach or delve into research and innovation, will go for a PhD. There are many PhDs among my family and friends; in fact, not only did they have to ensure very good grades in their Master’s, they had to work really hard to get there and seek out a distinguished professor who would not only have to accept his or her research subject, but also had to accept to be their supervisor.

Then, reviewing existing literature is a nightmare – you read, read, read, shift your reading to another vast subject, and read again to come up with something unique and useful in the future. Defending your findings or thesis in front of a specialist of that subject, or professors with authority on the subject, is another big challenge. Even then, the quality of the thesis or PhD would vary from university-to-university, or even from country-to-country.

However, no matter whether you are a PhD from Russia, Bulgaria,

Poland, India, Malaysia, Bangladesh, Australia, Canada, the UK, or the USA, whether the thesis is relevant to your country or environment, everyone has had to work hard to choose the subject for higher research, get the executive summary or proposal sponsored by a senior professor, do intensive literature review, and come up with a huge book or publication.

understanding the research methodology, and of course, extreme hard work needed to finally earn a PhD. When I joined as a professor at a leading private university, my very caring vice chancellor, some of my senior colleagues, a few well-wishing teachers and friends, and even some junior PhDs wanted to help me obtain my PhD. I was extremely grateful

They either had their thesis done by someone else, or simply managed one somehow

I have seen many PhD theses, none of them were less than 1,000 typed pages or so. For most, it is an ability to think beyond the box, to possess a fair visibility about what is happening around them, sponsoring a new idea and obtaining endorsement for it,

for their kind gesture and helping attitude. However, I really wanted to “earn” that degree, like so many others; but I didn’t have enough time to do any sort of literature review or research into the chosen subject, and come up with solid recommendations

or observations that were less-travelled or unheard of in the past, at the age of 50.

To my utter surprise, I see many PhDs among my retired or retiring civil servant and banking friends.

I tried asking one of them what his PhD thesis was based on, who his supervisor was, how many years he took to complete his thesis, and how many years of leave he took to study – whether overseas or at Dhaka University – to complete his PhD. Most of them changed the subject, and a few of them simply smiled.

The simple answer is that most, if not all, never really “earned” their PhD degrees. They either had their thesis done by someone else, or simply managed one somehow, and are now happily moving around with their head held high and utilising their socalled “PhD” into getting promotions or to earn “social visibility” and “respect.”

They have not earned it, like their friends who didn’t earn their “freedom fighter certificate” as they never fought in our war for liberation. They obtained their PhDs by abusing their

powers as civil servants or as bosses in the organisation. Sometimes money does speak.

Grace Mugabe, the wife of Zimbabwean president Robert Mugabe, made headlines by obtaining a PhD within two months. Famous poet and novelist Chenjerai Hove has urged Grace Mugabe to return her PhD. The Norway-based writer thought this to be an insult to the University of Zimbabwe and other students who have to work hard to obtain a PhD. “The lady who received her PhD degree in sociology from her husband has made a joke out of this PhD, and downgraded the image of the university” the writer said. He had graduated from this university, and was a member of its faculty.

What should Bangladesh do about these innumerable “unearned” PhDs? Should the Rapid Action Battalion get into action? Should the High Court issue a rule? Or should the citizenry rise? I don’t have any answers ready.

Sorry. l Mamun Rashid is a business professor and financial sector entrepreneur.

12

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Entertainment

Thursday, October 23, 2014

Konjus sees 650th staging today

Shesh Drishsho

Maasranga TV, 7:50pm

n Entertainment Desk Loko Natyadal will stage its popular production “Konjus” (The Miser) for the 650th time at the National Theatre Hall of the Shilpakala Academy today, at 7pm.

Based on playwright Molière’s world famous satirical comedy, “Konjus” has been adapted and scripted by Tariq Anam Khan while Liaquat Ali Lucky has been directing the play since its première in 1988.

The story of Konjus is about a 60-year-old miserly person, Haider Ali, who does not wish to spend even for his own son Kazim and daughter Laili. He has a huge amount of money hidden in a pot in his garden. Kazim is in love with neighbour Marjina, while Laili is in a relationship with Bodiuzzaman, son of Haider’s friend Aslam Beg. The plot of the play reaches a climax when Haider Ali plans to marry Marjina himself. Meanwhile, another dramatic situation is created when Haider Ali’s hidden money gets stolen and Kala Mia, Haider’s cook and rickshaw-puller, puts false blame on Bodiuzzaman.

The course of event leads Haider Ali to yield to his children’s choices. However, he only surrenders when Aslam Beg agrees to pay all the expenditure of the marriages. l

Exhibition

The Macabre World’

By Subrata Das Time: 9:30am – 8:00pm EMK Centre, MIDAS Center House 5, Road 16 Solo Painting Exhibition

By Gopal Ghoshe Time: 12pm – 8pm Bengal Shilpalaya House 42, Road 27 (old) Dhanmondi

Rehan pretends in love with three girls, Rini, Maria and Simi. In returns the three girls also showed their affectionate to him. But Rehan disappears after borrowing money amount of five lakhs from each girl.

The Hangover Part III HBO Defined, 10:30pm

Fans react favourably to Taslima Nasrin semi-biopic

The guys, Phil, Stu and Doug, have very nearly recovered from their nights, shot at, and chased by drug- dealing mobsters in Bangkok.

n

Star Movies, 4:30pm

Entertainment Desk

Fans have reacted favourably to a fictionalised semi-biopic of controversial Bangladeshi author and social activist Taslima Nasrin, which was premiered at the Mumbai International Film Festival on Monday.

After many snuffed-out attempts by filmmakers, Indian actor-turned-director Churni Ganguly successfully brought the life of the former physician, living in exile since 1994, on screen. The film – “Nirbashito” alternatively called “Banished” – is inspired

by Taslima and her pet cat, Minu.

“Great news!” one fan exclaimed, after Taslima shared a link to the film’s trailer via Facebook. “This is an amazing (piece of) work done by Churni Ganguly,” said another.

Yet another reacted to the “punishment” hitherto received by the author for her bold remarks. “That the punishment of telling the truth can be so severe is evidenced by the life of Nasreen Taslima,” she said.

In the film, directed by Churni Ganguly, Minu is called Baghini (tigress).

The author is, however, not named

Inspiration Time: 3pm – 8pm Drik Gallery, House 58, Road 15A

Film

Annabelle, Into The Storm Hercules 3D Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 3D Valkyrie, The Maze Runner Amra Korbo Joy Kistimaat, Jack Ryan Blockbuster Cinemas, Ka- 244, Pragati Avenue, Kuril

anywhere in the film. That did not dampen Taslima’s joy. Speaking to Times of India from New York, she said, “I feel relieved the film was finished and released in India. It is a victory for me. It’s a political success.” “‘Nirbashito’ is more than a film to me. It is an assertion of freedom of expression and human rights. My heartfelt love for Churni and her director-husband Kaushik Ganguly, who first approached me for the film in 2009-10,” said Taslima.

Churni Ganguly debuted as a director with “Nirbashito,” a bilingual film in Bengali and English shot in Kolkata and Sweden. The cast comprises reputable Bengali and Swedish actors.

Churni admitted there was apprehension for about a year and a half while she wrote the script, but her conviction saw her through.

“I don’t want to sell a controversy. The film is not a biopic. It is about tolerance, love and commitment to a belief. I am so glad Taslima Nasrin agreed to the film,” she said.

Taslima’s character is played by Churni Ganguly in the film — a character that does not have a name. “She is

everywoman anyone can relate to. She is a woman punished for speaking her mind, for thinking differently,” said Churni.

The film is a satirical and fictionalised take on Taslima’s difficult trek through life. It is told through her “painful separation” from her pet cat when she was forced to leave Kolkata in November 2007 after a daylong mayhem on the city’s streets demanding her ouster.

“It is a story of a mother and her child separated over an unknown span of time. This is an allegory of living out the constant fear of homelessness, craving for motherland and mother tongue and the undying hope of returning home one day,” said Churni.

Taslima has been living in exile for the last 20 years trailed by threats and controversy. Several attempts to make films or television serials on her life were shelved as producers backtracked out of fear. Last year, the West Bengal state government had stopped telecast of a TV serial scripted by Taslima even before the first episode was aired.

The film could be released in Kolkata in 2015. l

n Entertainment Desk

Members of the Padatik Natya Sangsad (TSC) theatre troupe perform during its 36th staging of ‘Macbeth’ at the National Theatre Hall of Shilpakala Academy on Tuesday. The Shakespearean tragedy was adapted by Syed Shamsul Haq and directed

by Sudip Chakraborty KHAN HASAN MD RAFI

Bengal Foundation has arranged a monthly series of lectures and demonstration programmes “Understanding Classical Dance” which has been curated and presented by celebrated artist, choreographer and educator, Sharmila Banerjee.

The first programme in this series took place on October 21 in the capital. The subject of the programme was Manipuri Dance.

The event featured audio-visual content, spoken explanations, and practical demonstrations including steps, gestures and costumes. Banerjee talked about the origin and history of Manipuri dance and demonstrated essential steps and gestures with the assistance of a team of young dancers. The demonstration also featured two “mridanga” players from Kamolganj, Sylhet, who travelled to Dhaka especially for the demonstration event. l

SALMAN KHAN graces AAMIR’s Satyamev Jayate n Entertainment Desk Many of Salman’s friends grace his TV show “Bigg Boss.” However, this time it was Salman’s turn to visit friend Aamir Khan’s much talked about show “Satyamev Jayate.”

In an upcoming episode of the show, Salman will be seen interacting with a fan of his. Apparently, Aamir had in his audience, a Salman fan or rather a man who was indebted to Salman in many ways. Aamir therefore welcomed Salman to the show so that the guest could thank Salman personally. l

MATTHEW MCCONAUGHEY is honoured with an American Cinematheque Award n Entertainment Desk The 28th American Cinematheque Award has been given to Matthew McConaughey. The award aims to recognise those who have made extraordinary contributions to the world of motion pictures.

The chairman of American Cinematheque Rick Nicita said that Matthew received the award for being the epitome of what a Hollywood star should be, an adventurous, joyous and ever-growing talent combined with matinee-idol

looks and an unshakeable sense of who he is and what he stands for.”

The evening took place at The Beverly Hilton Hotel and saw Matthew’s former co-stars and fellow Hollywood friends come to the evening to celebrate with him. McConaughey’s stunning wife Camila Alves was by the actor’s side for this special moment in his career.

Jimmy Kimmel hosted the ceremony which saw the likes of Reese Witherspoon and Kate Hudson impersonate McConaughey.

Despicable Me 2

Gru’s calm and unexciting new life takes an unexpected turn when he is recruited by Lucy Wilde and Silas Ramsbottom and is taken to the headquarters of the Anti-Villain League.

The Fighter

Zee Studio, 11:30pm

Based on a true story, two brothers against all odds come together to train a historic title bout that has the power to reunite their fractured family.

Sharmila Banerjee lectures on MANIPURI dance

ANUSHKA ready to roll with her second production n

Entertainment Desk

Even before her maiden production “NH10” hit the theatres, Anushka Sharma is getting ready to roll out her second venture.

Anushka, who became one of the youngest actresses to turn producer when she and her brother Karnesh Sharma signed on Navdeep Singh to helm their debut project in November 2013. Navdeep has been asked to direct the next film too which will be entirely shot abroad.

The actress has also gone back to Sudip Sharma who has scripted her action thriller about a road trip gone wrong. The second film will roll sometime next year. Anushka and Navdeep are still debating if she should topline the cast.

Anushka said: “I’ve always taken risks, and having my own production house allows me to push the envelope. I wish to continue collaborating with young, fresh minds and create cinema that truly excites me, both as a producer and as a viewer.” l

Did you know?

Chelsea’s Petr Cech saved the last four penalties he faced in the Champions League (excluding shootouts)

Sport

Thursday, October 23, 2014

14 Bayern, Shakhtar,

Chelsea enter record books

Zimbabweans 241 all out & 201/5 (Ervine 85 not out, Sabbir 2/17) BCB XI 297 all out (Shuvagata 75 not out, Shamsur 69, M’shangwe 4/109)

n Mazhar Uddin

ZImbabwean Craig Ervine bats in their second innings on the last day of their three-day tour game against BCB XI at the Fatullah stadium yesterday

Three more records in third day Mahfuza Khatun Shila set a new national record in the 50m breaststroke event in the third day of the RMM Group 27th National Swimming Championship at the Gopalganj Swimming Complex yesterday.

Through a press release, the Bangladesh Swimming Federation claimed that it was a record among the South Asian nations and the timing indeed broke the previous record but it will not be accepted by Fina because it was conducted by hand-timing.

Fina, the international governing body of swimming, clearly stated in their rules and regulations that no hand-timing record will be accepted.

The controversy surrounding the hand-timing of the ongoing tournament continued to raise more questions as a total of 13 national records have been set so far in the first three days of the event, including three that were created yesterday.

There are ten more events to be held in the fourth and final day today while only nine records were set in the previous Bangladesh Games last year.

The most controversial one was Shi-

hat-trick for Luiz Adriano

13

15 Younus leads

fightback with 25th century

Shuvagata, Ervine shine in drawn match

BRIEF SCORE, DAY 3

n Shishir Hoque

14 Third-quickest

DHAKA TRIBUNE

la’s record yesterday when the Bangladesh Navy swimmer clocked 34.85s to touch the finishing line in the women’s 50m breaststroke breaking Doly Akter’s record set in 2010. Shila’s previous best timing was 36.035s in the last year’s Bangladesh Games.

“It is a national record but I am not sure whether it breaks the South Asian record. I personally believe if it is not

It is a national record but I am not sure whether it breaks the South Asian record conducted by electronic timing it will not be accepted officially by Fina,” said the federation’s joint secretary Amirul Islam yesterday.

Meanwhile, Nazma Khatun set another record in the women’s 50m butterfly event. Her timing was 31.73s which is 0.23s less than the previous record set by Papia Akter last year.

Following the conclusion of the third day, Navy continued their domination at the top of medal list with 20 gold, eight silver and 11 bronze medals.l

MUMIT M

The lone three-day tour game for the Zimbabweans ended in a draw at the Fatullah stadium yesterday. BCB XI, despite being in an advantageous position at the start of the day, could only manage a 56-run first innings lead with Shuvagata Hom scoring a patient 75.

The Zimbabweans later batted for 50 overs and scored 201 for five before the match was called off as a draw.

The visitors shuffled their opening pair and sent in Sikander Raza alongside Vusi Sibanda as the combination finally clicked. The pair added 68 before Sibanda (22) was cleaned up an inswinger from pacer Dewan Sabbir.

The dismissal triggered a mini collapse as the set Raza (45) and incoming batsman Brian Chari (zero) were returned with the score on 72 allowing the home side to get back in the game.

However, BCB XI skipper Naeem Islam, after an attacking first session, took his regular bowlers off allowing Craig Ervine and Hamilton Masakadza pull their side out of danger with an 89-run fourth wicket stand.

Asif Ahmed, Sadman Islam, Rony Talukder, Marshal Ayub and even wicket-keeper Jashimuddin were used for the last 30 overs as left-handed Ervine remained unbeaten on 85 while Masakadza made 31.

Earlier, BCB XI resumed the ultimate day on 252 for six and managed to gather 49 more runs before getting all out on 297. Overnight batsman Shuvagata showed immense temperament in his 176-ball innings and was unlucky to run out of partners in the end. He

struck seven boundaries in his unbeaten knock.

The two Zimbabwean leg spinners Natsai M’Shangwe and Tafadzwa Kamungozi were the pick of the bowlers picking four and three wickets respectively.

Shuvagata, who will turn 28 years old in three weeks time, expressed confidence after playing the innings and urged his national teammates for a calm approach during batting in the Test matches.

“Obviously this innings ahead of the Test will certainly boost my confidence and it will help me in the Test match,” said Shuvagata. “I think we should bat with patience and bat according to the situation of the match.”

Shuvagata played just one Test match where he made 16 and zero against West Indies. He also offers handy off-spin bowling to his captain and he looks forward to contribute with the ball too. He believes the wickets here are not bouncy like in West Indies and they will have the advantage over their opponents.

Meanwhile, Zimbabwe skipper Brendan Taylor was satisfied with their batting effort in the second innings and said, “The batting (in the second innings) was better. It will help us ahead of the first Test.”

The wicketkeeper-batsman also shed light on the young spinners in his side and said, “We know Bangladesh plays spin good and they are strong at home. But I believe most of us have played them in the past and though the most spinners we have are young and inexperienced I still believe they will perform.” l

2005 series can be an inspiration: Bashar n Minhaz Uddin Khan With Zimbabwe touring Bangladesh for the first time in nearly a decade, the country’s cricketing arena is buzzing at the thought of a rare Test series win. After all, it was against Zimbabwe in that very home series in 2005 Bangladesh recorded their maiden Test series win ever since their introduction to five-day cricket in 2000. Among Bangladesh’s four Test wins in 85 matches, that was also the first time the Tigers won a Test match in their 35th attempt so in many ways the 2005 home series against Zimbabwe was a cause for many celebrations.

Moving forward to 2014, one can easily find similarities between the current Test side and the team that had been victorious in 2005. Bangladesh are going through a horrible year having failed to master a single win in Tests or ODIs in 2014. The 2005 Bangladesh Test side were also experiencing a rough patch prior to their inaugural Test series win. Let it be a lack of motivation or a bad run of results, the two sides share a common ground. However, just like nine years ago, Bangladesh have the opportunity to set the record straight in the upcoming three-match Test series and bury the memories of the wretched year that was 2014.

The Bangladesh captain from that

2005 series, Habibul Bashar, took a trip down memory lane and informed that the team’s sheer will to perform enabled them to achieve the epic series victory.

Bashar, now a member of the national selection panel, shared his memories with Dhaka Tribune yesterday.

“We were really determined for the win and as far as I remember no one in the team looked for an excuse to escape for a failure. Rather we tried to deliver the best possible result. So it is really important to play as a team, more so in the international stage. Nothing is easy here. You have to work hard for every wicket, for every run,” said Bashar at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium.

The 42-year old justified his statement saying as a captain all he wanted from that series was to win. “I was literally tired of hearing that ‘Bangladesh are yet to win a Test’,” said the former captain from Kushtia.

“So it had actually pushed not only me but I think all the members of the team to do something in that series for Bangladesh – as a country and for its cricket. I always had a good feeling in that series to be honest and I believe I was able to spread that feeling among the other members as a captain,” he added.

Bashar stated that it was a total team effort. “For example in the first Test, Enamul (Haque Jr) did not bowl well so we had (Mohammed) Rafique step

Chief selector Faruk Ahmed (L), Habibul Bashar (C) and Minhajul Abedin (standing) share a light moment with Athar Ali Khan at SBNS (File Photo)

up to the fore. In the second innings of that game the opposite happened.

Enamul took wickets along with the pacers which helped us a lot.”

The former middle-order batsman advised that the only way Bangladesh can handle the pressure and expectations of the home supporters is by gelling as a team.

“We played as a team and all the members tried to be with each other as much as possible. I remember that we literally did everything together for around a month and that helped us

on field. There were a few occasions when we were under immense pressure during the game like in the first Test, Zimbabwe played very well. So it becomes easy to overcome pressure when the team is gelling well,” he said.

It will do a world of good if the current players of the Bangladesh side, not usually known for taking suggestions from the former cricketers, come out of their shell and take a leaf out of the book of the triumphant 2005 team in order to overcome the recent tide of bad results. l

Curtains fall on AFC U16 Women’s Qualifiers today

BCB satisfied with Sheikh Abu Naser Stadium

n Raihan Mahmood

n Minhaz Uddin Khan

The curtains will fall down on the AFC Under-16 Women’s Championship 2015 Qualifiers today with Iran all set to grab top spot in Group B and earn a ticket to the final round scheduled for next year in China.

Hosts Bangladesh will be standing in the way of Iran in the clash which will kick off at 5pm. A draw will be enough for Iran to top the group. The Iranians have won all three of their matches and piled up nine points in the process, not to forget a handsome goal difference of 15+.

Bangladesh on the other hand have six points from the same number of matches and boast a goal difference of 6+.

If Bangladesh are to progress at the expense of Iran, the home side will not only need to win but win by an unreal-

istic margin of 10 goals or more.

The first match of the day at the same venue will pit India against Jordan at 2pm. India have six points from three matches with a goal difference of 12+. If they win 4-0 against Jordan, it will increase their goal difference to 16+. However, India will also need a favour from Bangladesh. If India win 4-0 and Iran go down to a defeat it will be the former who will go through to the final round.

Jordan, meanwhile, are not harbouring any hopes of progression as they only have three points in as many matches.

The United Arab Emirates are the bottom side of the five-team tournament having failed to register a single point and conceding 35 goals from their quota of four matches. l

Bangladesh coach Saiful Bari Titu (C) discusses strategy with skipper Mamunul Islam (R), ahead of their international friendly against Sri Lanka, at Jessore stadium yesterday BFF

The five-member Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) inspection team were satisfied with the preparation of Khulna’s Sheikh Abu Naser Stadium (SANS). The BCB delegates led by CEO Nizamuddin Chowdhury visited the venue yesterday in order to ensure its in proper shape to host the Test match between Bangladesh and Zimbabwe from November 3.

The BCB delegates inspected the pitch, outfield, players dressing rooms, media center, galleries and other necessities of the venue.

The BCB CEO while interacting with the media expressed satisfaction over the preparation. The Test at SANS means the city, the third-largest urban area in the country, will be braced with international cricket after two years.

SANS was awarded international status on November 21, 2012 through the Test match between Bangladesh and the West Indies and it was the only time the venue hosted a Test match.

The Bangladesh and Zimbabwe Test will be the second time Khulna hosts a Test match Later on December 2 in the same year, an ODI between the two teams was played at the venue. However, the venue did not stage any international cricket in the last two years despite the fact that Bangladesh participated in several international games at home during that period including the Asia Cup and the ICC World Twenty20 this year.l

14

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Sport

Thursday, October 23, 2014

Bayern 7 - 1 Roma

RESULTS CSKA Moscow

2-2

Doumbia 64, Natcho 86-P

1-7

AS Roma Gervinho 66

Bayern Munich

Robben 8, 30, Goetze 23, Lewandowski 25, Mueller 36-P, Ribery 78, Shaqiri 80

3-1

Barcelona Neymar 7, Messi 24, Ramírez 90+4

APOEL Nicosia

Man City Aguero 29, Milner 37

Ajax El-Ghazi 88

0-1

PSG Cavani 87

Chelsea

6-0

Maribor

Remy 13, Drogba 23-P, Terry 31, Viler 54-og, Hazard 77-P, 90

4-3

Sporting Lisbon

Chinedu Obasi Ogbuke 34, Huntelaar 51, Howedes 60, Choupo Moting 90+3-P

Nani 16, A Silva 64-P, 78

0-7

Shakhtar Donetsk

Schalke 04

BATE Borisov

Teixeira 11, Costa 35 Adriano 28-P, 36, 40, 44, 82-P,

FC Porto Herrera 45, Quaresma 75

2-1

Athletic Bilbao Guillermo 58

BIGGEST WINNING MARGINS IN THE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE

Roma’s Konstantinos Manolas (R) walks on the pitch dejectedly as Bayern’s Thomas Mueller (C) is cheered by teammates after scoring in their Group E Champions League match at the Olympic stadium in Rome on Tuesday

AP

8-0 0-7 7-0 7-0 0-7 7-0 7-0 1-7 7-1 7-1 1-7 7-1 6-0 6-0 6-0 6-0 6-0 6-0

Liverpool-Besiktas 06/11/2007 BATE Borisov-Shakhtar 21/10/2014 Juventus-Olympiakos 10/12/2003 Arsenal-Slavia Prague 23/10/2007 Zilina-Marseille 03/11/2010 Valencia-Genk 23/11/2011 Bayern-Basel 13/03/2012 Roma-Bayern Munich 21/10/2014 Man United-Roma 10/04/2007 Bayern-Sp Lisbon 10/03/2009 Dinamo Zagreb-Lyon 07/12/2011 Barcelona-Leverkusen 07/03/2012 Chelsea-Maribor 21/10/2014 Marseille-CSKA Moscow 17/03/1993 Leeds United-Besiktas 26/09/2000 Real Madrid-Genk 25/09/2002, Arsenal-Braga 15/09/2010 Porto-BATE Borisov 17/09/2014

Bayern, Shakhtar, Chelsea enter record books as goals rain down n AFP, Paris Bayern Munich produced a stunning display to demolish Roma 7-1 on Tuesday but they were not the biggest winners on the most prolific evening in Champions League history.

A record 40 goals were scored in just eight group games as Shakhtar Donetsk destroyed BATE Borisov 7-0 in Belarus and Chelsea recorded their biggest win in the competition, thumping Maribor 6-0 at Stamford Bridge.

Bayern Munich, Shakhtar Donetsk and Chelsea all entered the list of biggest wins in the Champions League era on Tuesday night.

There were also wins for Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germain, Schalke and Porto while Manchester City drew 2-2 away to CSKA Moscow, but it was Bayern who stole the show.

Pep Guardiola’s side underlined their status as one of the contenders to win the Champions League as they took apart a Roma outfit who had enjoyed a fine start to the campaign.

An Arjen Robben brace, Mario Goe-

tze, Robert Lewandowski and a Thomas Mueller penalty made it 5-0 at the break in the Group E game.

Gervinho got one back for Roma in the second half before substitutes Franck Ribery and Xherdan Shaqiri added further goals in a performance reminiscent of Germany’s 7-1 win over

A battle of Belgian strikers will enliven Everton’s Europa League clash at Lille on Thursday, while Tottenham Hotspur need a boost against high-flying Greeks Asteras Tripolis and Celtic welcome pointless Romanians Astra Giurgiu.

Everton top Group H on four points ahead of the third round of group games, two points ahead of borth FC Krasnodar and Lille and three above German side Wolfsburg.

A win in Lille would see the Toffees close in on a place in the knockout stage, but the main threat for the blue half of Merseyside could come from Lille’s 19-year-old Belgian starlet Divock Origi.

The youngster shot to fame when he scored the winner for Belgium against Russia at the World Cup in Brazil in June and was snapped up by Everton’s neighbours Liverpool soon after before being loaned back to Lille for the season.

Meanwhile, Everton, who are languishing in 13th place in the Premier League, have their own Belgian World Cup star in their ranks in the shape of battering-ram centre-forward Romelu Lukaku.

“I admit I look up at him,” Origi, who replaced Lukaku in that game against Russia, told UEFA.com. “I admire what

came only the second player to score five goals in a Champions League game after Lionel Messi, with his tally including four goals in the space of 16 firsthalf minutes.

His compatriots Alex Teixeira and Douglas Costa were also on target as Shakhtar ended BATE’s unbeaten

Bayern get papal blessing after Roma thrashing n AFP A day after thrashing local club Roma 7-1, Bayern Munich staff and players Wednesday paid a visit to the Bishop of Rome, otherwise known as Pope Francis.

Club captains Philipp Lahm and Manuel Neuer and coach Pep Guardiola presented the football-loving pontiff with a Bayern shirt signed by all the players.

Francis, an Argentinian who follows Buenos Aires club San Lorenzo, praised the Bayern squad for their Champions League demolition job in the Olympic stadium.

Origi and Lukaku clash in Europa League n AFP, Paris

Brazil in the World Cup semi-final in July, a game in which five of Bayern’s line-up against Roma featured.

However, Bayern’s performance was outdone by Shakhtar, as the Ukrainians romped to a remarkable victory away to BATE in Group H. Brazilian forward Luiz Adriano be-

he has done in English football so far.”

Origi has scored three goals so far this season but otherwise Lille have struggled to put the ball in the net and lost 2-1 at home to Guingamp at the weekend. l

FIXTURES M’gladbach Villarreal Club Brugge Torino Partizan Tottenham Salzburg Celtic PSV Eindhoven Estoril Dnipro Inter Milan Standard Liege Rijeka FC Krasnodar Lille Young Boys Bratislava Steaua Aalborg PAOK Dinamo Minsk Trabzonspor Metalist

v v v v v v v v v v v v v v v v v v v v v v v v

Limassol FC Zurich FC Copenhagen HJK Helsinki Besiktas Asteras Tripolis Dinamo Zagreb Astra Giurgiu Panathinaikos D Moscow Qarabag Saint-Etienne Sevilla Feyenoord VfL Wolfsburg Everton Napoli Sparta Prague Rio Ave Dynamo Kiev Fiorentina Guingamp Lokeren Legia Warsaw

“You played a wonderful game yesterday,” he was quoted as saying on Bayern’s website, adding: “Football is good and healthy, and a good role model for children as a team sport.”

Bayern chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, who spent three seasons in Italy with Internazionale, chatted with the pontiff in Italian, telling him that the audience had been a “great honour”.

Rummenigge also announced that the club would be donating one million euros in proceeds from an upcoming friendly match for Francis to pass on to a charity or charities of his choice. l

home record stretching back over a year in emphatic fashion.

Bayern and Shakhtar’s feat in each scoring seven goals away from home on the same night is all the more remarkable given that only two teams had ever previously done so in the Champions League - Marseille in 2010 and Lyon in 2011.

Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea fell just short of that mark against Slovenian champions Maribor in Group G, with Loic Remy, a Didier Drogba penalty and John Terry putting them three up at the break.

Eden Hazard took centre stage in the second half, forcing Mitja Viler into scoring an own goal before netting a penalty and getting his second of the night at the death, while Agim Ibraimi missed a penalty for the visitors.

Yet that match was not the most prolific in the group, as Schalke stayed within two points of Chelsea by beating Sporting - who played for almost an hour with just 10 men - 4-3 in Gelsenkirchen.

Chinedu Obasi, Klaas-Jan Huntelaar and Benedikt Hoewedes scored to have Schalke in control after Nani had put Sporting ahead, but an Adrien Silva

brace made it 3-3 and it looked as if the Portuguese side would return home with a draw.

However, substitute Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting converted a stoppage-time penalty to hand new Schalke coach Roberto di Matteo a second win from as many games in charge.

Manchester City’s stumbling start in Group E continued as they threw away a 2-0 lead to draw with CSKA in a game played behind closed doors in sub-zero temperatures.

Sergio Aguero and James Milner netted in the first half for the English champions only for Seydou Doumbia to pull one back before a late Bebras Natcho penalty earned the Russians a point, and left City third in their section.

PSG remain top of Group F after a 1-0 win at APOEL, secured thanks to a late Edinson Cavani goal, while Barcelona dismissed Ajax 3-1 to stay a point behind in second.

Neymar and Sandro Ramirez netted for the Catalans either side of a strike from Lionel Messi, who is now level with Cristiano Ronaldo on 69 Champions League goals, two behind Raul’s all-time record of 71. Anwar El Ghazi scored for the visitors. l

Third-quickest hat-trick for Adriano

Beating Madrid matters more than Liga record: Messi n AFP, Paris Shakhtar Donetsk’s Brazilian forward n AFP, Barcelona Luiz Adriano netted the third quickest Four-time World Player of the Year Lionel Messi has said victory in the season’s first El Clasico against Real Madrid on Saturday is more important than the personal glory of becoming La Liga’s all-time leading goalscorer.

Messi is just one short of Telmo Zarra’s 251-goal record which has stood since 1955 and could enter the record books once more on rival territory as Barca look to consolidate their fourpoint lead over Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu.

However, the Argentine joined coach Luis Enrique in playing down the importance of the match in the title race with just eight games of the season played.

“It is a Clasico and it is always nice to play in it, but it won’t decide anything.

“There is still a long way to go, but we will play to win as always. The record is less important. The important thing is that we play well and win.”

Messi was substituted along with Neymar and Andres Iniesta during the second-half of Barca’s 3-1 win over Ajax on Tuesday as coach Luis Enrique looked ahead to his first visit to the Bernabeu as Barca boss.

Controversy ensued when Messi appeared to dismiss Enrique’s pleas to come off during Saturday’s 3-0 win over Eibar, but Messi insisted it is always Enrique who has the final say on substitutions.l

hat-trick in Champions League history to help his side into a record 6-0 halftime lead away to BATE Borisov in Group H on Tuesday.

The 27-year-old opened the scoring in the 28th minute with a penalty at the Borisov Arena and required just 12 minutes to complete his hat-trick, before getting his fourth of the game four minutes later. No player had ever scored four goals in the first half of a Champions League game, and Shakhtar became the first team ever to score six away from home in the first half in the competition.

Luiz Adriano then added his fifth to put Shakhtar 7-0 up with a penalty. l

QUICKEST CHAMPIONS LEAGUE HAT-TRICKS Bafétimbi Gomis, 8 minutes, (Dinamo Zagreb 1 Lyon 7), 07/12/2011 Mike Newell, 9 mins, (Blackburn Rovers 4 Rosenborg 1), 06/12/1995 Luiz Adriano, 12 mins, (Bate Borisov 0 Shakhtar Donetsk 6 at half-time), 21/10/2014 Neymar, 14 mins, (Barcelona 6 Celtic 1), 11/12/2013 Claudio Pizarro, 15 mins, (Bayern Munich 6 Lille 1), 07/11/2012 Joseba Llorente, 17 mins, (Villarreal 6 Aalborg BK 3) 21/10/2008

Shakhtar Donetsk’s Luiz Adriano (L) is being challenged by BATE Borisov’s Nemanja Tubic during their Champions League match at the Borisov Arena on Tuesday REUTERS

DHAKA TRIBUNE

QUICK BYTES

David Villa to leave Melbourne next month Former Spain striker David Villa’s loan spell at Melbourne City is to come to an end next month after just four A-League matches, the club said on Wednesday. Villa was loaned to the club from Major League Soccer (MLS) club New York City, who are also owned by English champions Manchester City, and it had been hoped he would play the full 10 matches allowed to a guest player under league rules.

The club confirmed on Wednesday, however, that Villa would leave Australia in early November to fulfill marketing and commercial obligations in New York. The club is hoping Villa could return to play more matches for Melbourne after he has settled his family in the United States. “We would obviously want a player of his calibre to represent the club in as many games of the guest allowance as possible between now and the commencement of MLS pre-season training in January,” a club spokesman said.

–Reuters

Djokovic announces birth of son World number one Novak Djokovic announced on Wednesday that his wife Jelena had given birth to the couple’s first child, a boy named Stefan. “We are delighted to announce that Jelena Djokovic gave birth to a wonderful, healthy and a lovely boy, called Stefan.

The birth went in the best possible manner, baby and the mother feel well,” the Serb announced on his website.

The Wimbledon champion added that he would spend “several days with the baby and wife Jelena” before travelling to Paris for next week’s final Masters Series event of the year. Djokovic is the defending champion in the French capital and a strong tournament will increase his chances of ending the year at the head of the rankings, resisting the challenge of Roger Federer.

–AFP

Cannavaro probed over tax fraud Italian World Cup winning captain Fabio Cannavaro is under investigation for a suspected major tax fraud, the country’s financial police announced on Wednesday. The former centreback, who led Italy to glory in Germany in 2006, has had assets worth 900,000 euros seized in connection with an investigation into a luxury boat rental business that Cannavaro ran with his wife.

–AFP

Malaysian nat’l icon Lee failed dope test Malaysians expressed shock and disbelief Wednesday after reports claimed national icon and badminton world number one Lee Chong Wei had failed a drugs test. “Still hope this is not true... Whatever the outcome, we still with you!” one user posted on Twitter.

“Oh no, say it isn’t so!” another wrote among numerous comments posted on social media sites. Malaysia’s Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin confirmed late Tuesday that an athlete had tested positive for a banned substance but refused to name the athlete. However Malaysia’s Star newspaper and other media reported that Lee, who turned 32 on Tuesday, had failed a random test at the World Badminton Championships in Denmark in late August.

–AFP

n Reuters, Dubai Younus Khan led Pakistan’s fightback with a dogged century after the hosts made a terrible start to the first test against Australia in Dubai on Wednesday.

After opting to bat first, Pakistan reached 219 for four wickets at stumps on the first day with captain Misbah-ulhaq (34) and Asad Shafiq (nine) at the crease.

The 36-year-old Younus fell on 106, leg before to Australia pace spearhead Mitchell Johnson’s second delivery with the second new ball.

Younus walked in at number four with Pakistan having lost both their openers before the total had reached double figures.

The stylish right-hander propped his side up with a 108-run stand for the third wicket with Azhar Ali (53) and then added 83 for the next with Misbah.

He hit 10 fours during his 223-ball knock and got to his 25th test hundred with a huge six off spinner Nathan Lyon over mid-wicket.

Azhar gave his senior batsman able support before he drove Johnson in the air and was caught by Alex Doolan at cover for Australia’s only success in the second session.

Australia captain Michael Clarke used Johnson (three for 22) in short spells and the left-armer bowled with pace and venom to trouble the batsmen on the slow pitch at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium.

AFC Under-16 Women’s Championship 2015 Qualifiers 2:00PM India v Jordan 5:00PM Bangladesh v Iran

Ten Cricket 12:00PM Pakistan v Australia 1st Test Day 2 UEFA Europa League

Ten Action 11:00PM Lille v Everton 1:00AM Tottenham v Asteras

Ten Sports 11:30PM Standard Liege v Sevilla

Ten HD 11:00PM Young Boys v Napoli 1:00AM PSV Eindhoven v Panathinaikos

Star Sports 2, 3 Indian Super League 7:30PM Goa v Kolkata

ICC ‘concerned’

by India-West Indies dispute n Reuters, New Delhi

Johnson also struck in the first over of the match -- hitting the toe of Mohammad Hafeez with a fast, inswinging yorker to dismiss the right-handed batsman for a duck.

Hafeez, returning from a hand injury that ruled him out of the one-day international series against the same opponents, reviewed the umpire’s decision but was unsuccessful.

Peter Siddle, back in the Australian team after being dropped in South Africa earlier this year, then struck with the first delivery of his second over, and the fourth of the morning, when he bowled out Ahmed Shehzad for three.

Shehzad walked too far across his stumps as the ball crashed into his leg stump, reducing Pakistan to seven for two before Azhar and Younis started the recovery . l

FIRST TEST, DAY 1 Pakistan 1st Innings Ahmed Shehzad b Siddle 3 Mohammad Hafeez lbw b Johnson 0 Azhar Ali c Doolan b Johnson 53 Younis Khan lbw b Johnson 106 Misbah-ul-Haq not out 34 Asad Shafiq not out 9 Extras (2b, 12lb) 14 Total: (for 4 wickets, Overs: 90) 219 Fall of wickets 1-1, 2-7, 3-115, 4-198 Bowling Johnson 20-13-22-3, Siddle 17-8-27-1, O’Keefe 15-2-49-0, Marsh 11-4-18-0, Lyon 24-3-78-0, Smith 3-0-11-0.

15

Thursday, October 23, 2014

Younus leads fightback with 25th century

Pakistani batsman Younus Khan celebrates his 25th Test century during day one of the first cricket Test against Australia in Dubai yesterday CRICINFO

The International Cricket Council (ICC) has expressed its concern about the dispute between the Indian and West Indian cricket boards but says it is powerless to intervene.

The ICC released a statement on Wednesday saying it was closely following the case and would discuss the dispute next month but did not have the authority to take action after West Indies aborted their tour of India.

“The ICC hopes that the matter will be resolved amicably, but clarified that, unless the matter is otherwise referred to it, it does not have the power to intervene in disputes resulting from a bilateral FTP tour,” the ICC said.

“The ICC added that the matter will be discussed at the ICC Board meeting, which is scheduled for 10 November in Dubai. Until then, the ICC will make no further comment on this matter.”

West Indies cricket was plunged into a major crisis after the tourists abandoned their series in India over a protracted payment dispute between the players and their board.

The Indian cricket board (BCCI), the richest in the sport, responded by suspending all future tours with the Caribbean team as well as taking legal action against the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) -- moves that could have a devastating financial impact on the Caribbean team.

The WICB held a seven-hour emergency meeting in Barbados on Tuesday before apologising to the BCCI and asking for further talks.

“The West Indies Cricket Board regrets, and is deeply embarrassed, by the premature and unfortunate end to the recent tour of India,” the WICB said in a statement. l

‘We don’t want revenge’ against Ferguson defends Moyes Pistorius: Steenkamp’s mother appointment procedure n AFP, Londres The mother of Oscar Pistorius’s girlfriend insisted she did not want “revenge” Wednesday, the day after the disgraced South African athlete was handed a five-year jail term for shooting her daughter dead.

June Steenkamp told British broadcaster ITV that she was “settled” with Pistorius’s sentence for killing Reeva Steenkamp, even though it could mean he is out of prison and under house ar-

DAY’S WATCH Channel 9

Sport

Fifa happy with Russia’s WC plans n AFP, Moscow The head of a FIFA inspectors commission on Wednesday said they were satisfied with the results of their first tour of stadiums in Russia and the progress of preparations for the 2018 World Cup. Christian Unger said that at the end of this summer’s World Cup in Brazil governing body FIFA became totally focused on preparations for the next finals to be held in Russia.

“Brazil is now in the past,” Unger told a news conference. “Our full focus now is on Russia 2018. And every time we start a new project our main goal is to make it the best event in history. And we’re currently in the process of doing that.”

The head of FIFA commission added that he was pleased with the pace of work in Russia.

“So far it seems that we’re on a good pace,” Unger said. “We have some stadiums that are already finished and it helped us a lot in working out our operational plans.

“But we still have a lot of work to do to adapt the stadiums to the FIFA demands for the World Cup venues.l

rest after 10 months.

Looking pale and holding her husband Barry’s hand, she added: “We don’t want revenge, we want a fair punishment under the circumstances on his disabilities.

“We wouldn’t have wanted him to go to jail and be abused and I feel that he will realise that he can’t go around doing that, he can’t kill someone like that.”

Pistorius, the first double amputee Paralympian to compete against able-bodied athletes at the 2012 Lon-

don Olympics, was ordered to serve a maximum five years in prison for culpable homicide Tuesday after a seven-month trial.

Pistorius had testified that he shot Reeva Steenkamp four times through a locked bathroom door at his Pretoria home after he mistakenly believed she was an intruder.

Prosecutors had argued that he murdered her in a fit of rage after an argument.

June Steenkamp said the family accepted the decision, despite indicating that some members were not “entirely happy”.

“We’re very settled with the sentence,” she added.

“We may not feel that justice has been done, but we have just got to accept what the judge decided.

“Not everyone is entirely happy... the facts that she (the judge) had before her maybe weren’t enough. But we have to live.”

Her husband Barry also said the family had to go along with what Judge Thokozile Masipa had decided.

“Only Oscar knows whether that sentence is acceptable to him,” he said.

“I’ve got my feelings to the whole thing. But we do accept what the judge handed down. l

n AFP, London

Sir Alex Ferguson has insisted Manchester United went about appointing David Moyes in the right way when they chose his fellow Scot to replace him as manager of the English giants.

The widespread view leading up to the former Everton manager’s appointment at Old Trafford following Ferguson’s retirement in 2013 was that he was the hand-picked successor of British football’s most successful manager of all time.

Indeed Moyes was nicknamed ‘The Chosen One’ by some United fans in recognition of what they thought was Ferguson’s key role in the decision to bring him from Liverpool-based Everton to Manchester.

However, the cheers quickly turned to jeers and just months after his appointment, in April this year, Moyes was sacked after it became impossible for United to qualify for the Champions League.

Some pundits questioned the wisdom of allowing Ferguson to have, as they saw it such a big influence in the choice of his successor but in extracts from his updated autobiography, published in the Guardian on Tuesday, Ferguson insisted hiring Moyes had been a decision taken by the whole of the Old Trafford hierarchy.

Williams suffers humbling defeat n Reuters, Singapore Ecstasy and euphoria are the usual emotions world number one Serena Williams experiences on a tennis court.

On Wednesday, she encountered a different one - embarrassment.

One of the game’s all-time greats, a winner of 18-grand slam singles crowns, 63 WTA titles, the owner of four Olympic gold medals, Williams has become accustomed to success.

But on Singapore’s purple indoor hard court on Wednesday, Simona Halep took her back 16 years to a time when, as a teenager, she was trying to make a name for herself.

Halep’s 6-0 6-2 success in their Red Group clash at the WTA Finals was the worst defeat Williams had experienced since she was crushed 6-1 6-1 by Joannette Kruger in the quarter-finals at Oklahoma City in 1998.

Halep served well, pushed her opponent around the court and went for her shots, but Williams, by her own admission, was woeful.

“Yeah, my forehand was off today again. I guess it went on an early vaca-

tion,” a sombre and downbeat Williams told reporters.

“Lord knows my serve was as well.

My serve, I don’t even know. My serve was at best in the 10 and under division in juniors.

“Yeah, it was actually embarrassing I think describes the way I played. Yeah, very embarrassing.”

Williams had shown no sign of what was to come on Wednesday as she held of the feisty challenge of Ana Ivanovic to start her campaign on Monday with a 6-4 6-4 victory, her 16th consecutive win in the season-ending championships she has won the last two years.

That was her first action since pulling out of the Wuhan Open because of illness then the China Open with a knee complaint earlier this month. Characteristically, she didn’t blame the knee ailment, which had required extensive rest, for Wednesday’s meltdown.

“I’m definitely not 100 percent okay.

I’m just here playing, but I’m not nowhere near 100 percent,” she said.

“That has nothing to do with today’s match. I think Simona played really well and the best match of her career. l

“There appears to be an accepted view out there that there was no process. Nonsense,” Ferguson wrote.

Ferguson added he felt the “walls squeezing in” upon Moyes, whose struggles reminded him of his own early problems at Old Trafford following his arrival from Aberdeen in 1986 prior to United winning the 1990 FA Cup. “As the results deteriorated, each defeat was a hammer blow to him,” Ferguson recalled.

“I could see that in his demeanour.

In January we bought Juan Mata and that gave everyone a lift but I could see the walls squeezing in, leaving David with less and less room to breathe. I know that feeling from 1989, when we went through a terrible spell.l

Sunderland players offer fans refund n AFP, London Sunderland’s embarrassed players have offered to refund the cost of tickets for supporters who made the long journey to the south coast only to see their side thrashed 8-0 by Southampton in the Premier League.

More than 2,500 Sunderland fans travelled from the north-east to St Mary’s for Saturday’s match.

But they will now be able to claim back the £24 ($39, 30 euros) they paid for their tickets or have that sum donated to the Grace House children’s hospice in Sunderland instead.

“We win and lose as a team, players, staff and fans,” said Sunderland captain John O’Shea.

“However we wanted to acknowledge and thank the supporters who travelled such a long way to give us their backing and despite everything, stayed with us until the final whistle.”

Sunderland goalkeeper Vito Mannone first suggested the idea of players refunding fans after repeatedly picking the ball out of the net, twice as a result of own-goals. l

16

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Back Page

Thursday, October 23, 2014

Minister: Shooting on Limon’s leg mere accident n Tribune Report

Terming it unfortunate, State Minister for Home Asaduzzaman Khan yesterday claimed that Limon Hossain had been shot in the leg accidentally when the members of Rapid Action Battalion were conducting a raid to nab a notorious criminal in Jhalakathi in 2011.

The charges against Limon were withdrawn as “it is proved that he was not involved in criminal activities,” the state minister said in response to a query.

Citing RAB’s version, he said the accident had taken place when Limon was staying close to the notorious criminal. “He was not shot intentionally.”

During operation of the law enforcers, “some innocent people become victims, and Limon is like one of them,” Asaduzzaman added.

On the seven murders in Narayanganj and bringing the responsible RAB members to book, the state minister said: “The law is not above any one.

Steps will be taken as per the law whoever is responsible, no matter if they are from RAB police.”

Limon was shot allegedly at pointblank range on March 23 near his house at Saturia village under Rajapur of Jhalakathi – only a fortnight before his HSC examination. He used to work at a brick kiln to bear his educational expenses. Four days later, Limon’s leg was amputated to save his life.

Members of RAB 8 were on a drive that day to arrest members of local Mizan-Morshed gang. However, the elite force until now could not arrest any one of the criminals.

Soon after the incident, RAB filed two cases – one for possessing arms and the other for obstructing the RAB men from performing duties and attempted murder – against Limon and seven members of the gang.

Limon’s mother also filed a case against six RAB members for maiming her son, who is now studying law at Gono Bishwabidyalay. But the police in

their final report termed the RAB men innocent saying that no evidence had been found against them.

Then RAB chief and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina after the incident said Limon had been an accidental victim of a shootout between RAB and criminal gangs, and that the teenager had no involvement in criminal activities.

Hasina also ordered an investigation into the RAB officers involved in the incident. However, the government “withdrew the statement within four hours, without any clarification.”

Following a Home Ministry decision of July 9 last year, a Jhalakathi court dropped charges against Limon in one case the same month. Charges in the other case were withdrawn last week.

After the court order, Limon demanded punishment of the RAB men.

Welcoming the withdrawal decision, New York-based Human Rights Watch in a statement on Tuesday demanded that those responsible for maiming Limon be brought to book.

The organisation reiterated its demand to disband RAB, which comprises members from the armed forces and the police. Formed in 2004, the elite force is blamed for hundreds of extrajudicial killings and other serious human rights violations.

On this, Asaduzzaman said: “The Human Rights Watch has said many things. You know the situation of Bangladesh. RAB has many successes. RAB is given responsibility when the police fail to deliver. RAB has been turned into a special force, equipped with all kinds of arms.”

He claimed that RAB had done a tremendous job in maintaining law and order. “It is not right to blame an entire force for some misdeeds.”

Asked about the BNP’s movement, he said as a political party it could organise political programmes. But destruction of properties and damaging educational institutions in the name of movement would be tackled strictly. l

HC forms Ebola monitoring teams at entry points n Tribune Report

A government vehicle driving on the wrong side defying all traffic laws is gradually becoming a common sight in the capital. The photo was taken at Doyel Chattwar yesterday SYED ZAKIR HOSSAIN

10 more victims of Tazreen fire tragedy identified Karim and n Mohosinul Rabiul Islam The government has identified the bodies of 10 more victims who were killed in a fire at garment factory of Tazreen Fashions Ltd at Ashulia on the outskirt of the capital.

This brings the total number of the identified victims killed in the tragedy at 111, according to government statistics.

The newly identified victims are Ahenur Begum, daughter of Rahul Hannan hailed from Gaibanda, Salma, daughter of Shaheb Ali hailed from Jamalpur, Rojina, daughter of Ansar Ali from Rangpur, Aklima Begum, daughter of Hasen Ali from Kurigram,

Mahfuza, daughter of Khandker Mohammad Ali from Kurigram, Rehena, mother of Shumon from Rajbari, Hena Akter, daughter of Rokeya Begum from Dhaka, Laily and Lovely, daughters of Babul Mia from Rangpur and Jonab Ali, father of Md Nahid from Kishoreganj.

Labour Ministry’s Joint Secretary Md Faizur Rahman told the Dhaka Tribune yesterday: “We have identified these 10 victims with the help of deputy commissioners and intelligence agencies.”

“The families of the victims will be compensated at the Prime Minister’s Office,” he said. The government is giving each Tazreen tragedy death victim Tk7,00,000.

Joint Secretary Faiz said: “We have written to the deputy commissioners and the intelligence agencies across the country to locate the relatives of the victims”.

At least 111 people were killed and many others injured in the Tazreen fire tragedy on November 24, 2012.

Of them, 58 victims could be identified prima facie immediately and 43 others identified through DNA test and only the 10, now identified, remained unidentified at that point in time.

Two more families had claimed that two victims each belonging to each of the two families had been killed in the tragedy, Joint Secretary Faiz added, but their claims could not be proved. l

Petrobangla files rejoinder against Niko at ICSID

5 Bangladeshis die in Saudi road crash n Aminur Rahman Rasel n Rabiul Islam Bangladesh Oil Gas and Mineral CorpoFive Bangladeshis were killed and two others injured in a road accident in Saudi Arabia’s Makka city yesterday.

The accident took place early in the morning as the driver of a big taxi they all were travelling in lost control over the steering and hit two pediatricians who were Saudi nationals.

The deceased were named as Md Aiyub (driver), Nazir Hossain, Md Sharif, Md Alam and Md Monsur. They hailed from Cox’s Bazar. The bodies of four of them have been kept at King Faisal Hospital and the fifth at Al Noor Hospital.

Two others injured were Md Islam and Jainal. However, where they hail from in Bangladesh could not be known immediately. Of them, Islam has been released from hospital after first aid while Jainal is still undergoing treatment.

Labour Counsellor Md Mokkamal Hossain of Bangladesh labour wing in Jeddah confirmed. l

ration, widely known as Petrobangla, filed a rejoinder against Niko Resources (Bangladesh) Ltd at The International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) concerning the compensation declaration requested by Niko.

Petrobangla, along with Bangladesh government Bangladesh Petroleum Exploration and Production Company Limited (Bapex), filed the rejoinder as respondent on September 25.

“We have already submitted our rejoinder against Niko at the tribunal.

We have heard that the tribunal will respond within one month,” Md Shafiqur Rahman, secretary at Petrobangla, told the Dhaka Tribune yesterday.

The ICSID is a member institution of the World Bank Group based in Washington, DC. It facilitates arbitration and conciliation of legal investment disputes between international investors and host states.

The three-member ICSID tribunal to resolve this dispute was constituted in 2010 with Michael E Schneider of Germany as its president. On September 11, the tribunal issued a decision on the payment claim, where it asked Petrobangla to pay Niko a significant amount of money in interest.

Petrobangla owes Niko $25,312,747 (around Tk200 crore) plus Tk139,988,337 as per Niko’s invoices for gas delivered from November 2004 to April 2010, the tribunal said.

Petrobangla must pay simple interest on Niko’s invoices at the rate of sixmonth LIBOR (The London Interbank Offered Rate, the average interest rate estimated by leading banks in London that the average leading bank would be charged if borrowing from other banks) plus 2% for the US dollar amounts and at 5% for the Bangladeshi taka amounts.

Interest is due on the amount of each invoice as from 45 days after delivery of the invoice, but not before May 14, 2007, and until it is placed at Niko’s un-

restricted disposition, it directed.

The tribunal also said the entitlement of Bapex to payments under the Gas Purchase and Sale Agreement is not affected by the present decision.

On August 19, 2013, the tribunal issued a single decision on its jurisdiction, involving the two cases brought before it by Niko against Bangladesh government, Petrobangla and Bapex. One of the cases relates to the compensation for the two blowouts while carrying out drilling at the Chattak gas field in Sunamganj, locally known as Tengratila field, on January 7 and June 24 in 2005.

Following the incidents, a government-formed probe committee held Niko responsible for the blowouts and estimated the damage caused. On June 15, 2008, a case against Niko was filed with the Dhaka District Judge’s Court seeking Tk746.5 crore in compensation. The proceedings of this trial are still pending.

Niko brought the case to the ICSID Tribunal, asking whether they should

pay any compensation and seeking a declaration that it was not liable.

In the second suit, Niko demanded $35.71m from Petrobangla as payment of gas sales from the Feni gas field.

The amount includes $8.55m that Petrobangla owes to Bapex, according to the joint venture agreement.

Petrobangla refrained from making any payment to Niko following a High Court order, unless the company paid the compensation for the Tengratila blowouts.

The High Court gave the verdict on June 17, 2009 in response to a writ filed

by Bangladesh Environmental Lawyers’ Association, which had brought public interest litigation against Niko.

The Canadian firm stopped gas production from the Feni field in May 2010.

In 2011, a Canadian court convicted Niko for bribing Bangladesh’s former minister for energy and mineral resources, AKM Mosharaf Hossain, with a Toyota Land Cruiser valued at US$188,000 and other “non-business-related” expenses. l

The High Court has ordered the government to make advance arrangement for Ebola treatment by specialist doctors in some hospitals.

The HC bench comprising Justice Mirza Hossain Haider and Justice Md Ataur Rahman passed the order yesterday following a writ petition filed

by Advocate Manzil Morshed on behalf of Human Rights and Peace for Bangladesh .

The government was also directed to collect necessary medicines and medical equipment for the treatment and the Finance ministry was asked to allocate money to this end.

The court issued a six-week ruling asking why the government’s failure of not taking proper steps to identify incoming infected persons and treat them should not be declared contradictory to Article 32 of the Constitution. and why it should not be directed to take effective measures in this regard.

The court asked the government to carry out medical check-up of the six people who reportedly returned to Bangladesh from Liberia. l

Editor who guided Watergate coverage dies n Agencies Ben Bradlee, who oversaw the Washington Post’s reporting on the Watergate scandal that brought down US president Richard Nixon, has died at the age of 93. Bradlee, who died of natural causes at his Washington DC home on Tuesday, leaves a lasting legacy at the Washington Post and in the wider media, and has been hailed as a genius and for having “the courage of an army.”

Donald E Graham, who served as publisher of the Post and was Bradlee’s boss, said: “Ben Bradlee was the best American newspaper editor of his time and had the greatest impact on his newspaper of any modern editor.”

It was Graham’s mother, Katharine Graham, who was publisher of the Washington Post when Bradlee charged young reporters Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein with investigating the Watergate burglary.

The reporting uncovered a vast scheme of surveillance and dirty tricks, and the resulting coverage led to the impeachment and resignation of Nixon in 1974, and the prosecution of dozens of administration officials.

“Ben was a true friend and genius leader in journalism,” Bernstein and Woodward said in a joint statement on the Washington Post website as news of his death emerged.

“His one unbending principle was the quest for the truth and the necessity of that pursuit. He had the courage of an army.”

Barack Obama, who awarded Bradlee the Presidential Medal of Freedom last year, said for the newspaper man, “journalism was more than a profession.” 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 Quiet critic of Kuroda’s

‘monetary shamanism’ turns up the volume

B4 APEC finance chiefs

meet as global worries persist

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 23, 2014 www.dhakatribune.com/business

Banking sector returns to sorry state again NBR to chase Bangladesh Bank identifies rising NPL and provision shortfall as the main concern n second home settlers abroad Jebun Nesa Alo

n Tribune Report

National Board of Revenue (NBR) has undertaken a plan to chase and identify Bangladeshis, who have siphoned off money to settle in different countries like Malaysia under various second home schemes through massive money laundering.

The target is to collect revenue from the people, NBR Chairman Md Ghulam Hussain said in Dhaka yesterday.

He said depriving the government of huge taxes, many people have laundered money to different countries only to seek second homes.

They have taken away the money without consent from Bangladesh Bank, he said, unveiling the “Tax Pocket Guide” a 32-page publication by Eastern Bank Limited at a city hotel yesterday.

The tax guide was jointly unveiled by the NBR chairman and EBL Managing Director and CEO Ali Reza Iftekhar.

“As these people are not paying any tax in the country, the NBR can easily mobilise crores of Taka as revenue,” Ghulam said.

He also said the board would soon identify and seek info on second home seekers to Malaysia, United Arab Emirates, Canada and Qatar, through the respective embassies at the initial stage.

The tax pocket guide was published to make tax computation easier for the customers and to promote tax compliant culture in the country.

Regarding the misuse of avoidance

of double taxation agreements, Ghulam categorically said Bangladesh had signed treaties with 33 countries on the avoidance of double taxation avoidance, which is now being misused by some people.

“If any person operates business or settles abroad under second home scheme in these 33 countries, they can pay tax in any of the two countries in line with the agreements on the avoidance of double taxation,” he said.

“Seeking a second home is not an offence, but those people have to pay tax in any of the two countries. Availing this opportunity, many are not paying tax in any of the country,” he alleged.

Under such circumstance, the NBR has decided to take legal actions against those tax-evading people through identification and collection of primary information about them, he pointed out.

In addition to the regular tax, he also warned of recovering penalties from those people, if they were found guilty for non-payment of tax.

“Tax evasion has now become a culture as economists estimates that there should be over 60 lakh taxpayers in Bangladesh while the number of businesses are now over 80 lakhs.

However, the number of taxpayers remains unchanged from 10 to 12 lakhs for the last few years,” the NBR chairman said.

EBL CEO Iftekhar said the tax guide is to increase awareness among the bank clients, and also its officials. l

Banking sector indicators have fallen further in June due to rise in gross non-performing loans (NPLs) and shortfall in actual provisioning maintained by the sector.

Bangladesh Bank, in its quarterly review released early this week, expressed concern over the weakening performance by the banks, mainly the state-owned ones having major portion of the NPLs. After showing a noticeable improvement in December, the banking indicators faced setback again in the last two quarters.

An abnormal increase in NPLs pushed the indicators down, said a senior executive of the central bank.

He said the default loan ratio, however, improved in December, but it did not sustain as maximum loans were rescheduled, abusing policy.

As a result, the default loans started rising further in the last two quarters, taking advantage of the relaxed policy, he said. Provision requirement increased in the banking sector due to rise of NPL which hit the profitability of the banks, raising concern of the central bank, he added.

According to the review report, the ratio of gross non-performing loans to total outstanding loans increased to 10.8% at the end of June from 10.5% at the end of the previous quarter.

The ratio of net NPL of the sector has also increased from 3.4% at the end of March 2014 to 3.9% at the end of June 2014 – partly due to the increase of gross NPL as well as increased shortfall in actual provision maintained by the sector.

The NPL ratios for state-owned commercial banks, state-run banks and

Anti-money laundering law amendment row continues n Asif Showkat Kallol Home ministry and Anti-Corruption Commission have remained at loggerheads on police involvement with the investigation and trial process of anti-money laundering cases.

The proposed amendment to the anti-money laundering law 2012 asks for law enforcers’ involvement in the work along with the graft body officials. But the ACC is opposed to such move.

Such disagreement is causing delays to dissolving anti-money laundering cases.

Besides, the government has also international pressure to amend the present law to maintain international standard.

In these circumstances, the issue was discussed at a meeting yesterday, presided over by the bank and financial institutions division secretary M Aslam Alam.

After the meeting he told Dhaka Tribune: “As the matter is unresolved, the trials of cases under anti-money laundering law are delayed. To find a solution (of this stalemate), we have listened to both parties in the meeting.”

M Aslam Alam said the opinions given by the parties on the matter will be

placed to the coordination council of anti-money laundering committee headed

by Finance Minister AMA Muhith.

Earlier, the division stepped to make changes to at least four clauses of the law despite opposition from the ACC. Currently, the anti-graft body has the sole authority to conduct investigation and trial of an offence under the anti-money laundering law.

In support of the proposed changes, the logic was that the ACC lacked skilled manpower in dealing with the cases.

But the ACC officials ruled out such “lack of manpower” and said the body’s performance in dealing with cases was satisfactory.

Since 2009, the anti-graft body inquired 285 cases on money laundering. Of them, 254 cases were filed and charge sheets were given in 112 cases.

The court settled three cases and the ACC won in all of them. The ACC confiscated 1,011 bank accounts found linked with money laundering while the frozen accounts had around Tk289 crore.

On August 6, the parliamentary standing committee on ministry of finance came up with some suggestions to have a stronger anti-graft body which can better deal with money

laundering.

A good number of cases relating to cash transactions and suspicious transactions are currently under the central bank monitoring.

The central bank has the power to take fines from the banks and financial institutions for violation of the law.

The rate of penalty might be proposed for amendment, said the official sources.

The Anti-money Laundering Act, 2012 was passed in the Parliament in February 2012.

Financial Action Task Force and Asia Pacific Group, two international anti-money laundering watchdogs, keep putting pressure on the Bangladesh government to amend the anti-money laundering law, which they said will elevate the law to international standard.

Earlier in 2012, a working group was formed with then bank and financial institutions division secretary Shafiqur Rahman Patwary at the helm.

The group was tasked with identifying the shortcomings and loopholes in the money laundering law.

Representatives from the home, law and foreign affairs ministries and the ACC were also included in the high-level working group. l

A recent picture shows the customers taking service at the local office of Sonali Bank in Dhaka. Bangladesh Bank, in its quarterly review, says the performance by the banking sector, especially the state-owned banks, is poor MAHMUD HOSSAIN OPU foreign commercial banks increased to 23.2%, 33.1% and 6.2% respectively at the end of June 2014 as compared to 22%, 30.9% and 5.3% at the end of March 2014.

However, the ratio of private commercial banks have improved marginally as it reduced from 5.8% to 5.7% during the period.

The country is yet to get back business-friendly environment following a prolonged political unrest, said Rupali Bank Managing Director Farid Uddin.

As a result, business groups could not perform well in accordance with the banks’ expectations, he added.

During April-June quarter, the capital adequacy ratio (CAR) decreased to 10.7% from 11.3% in previous quarter.

All types of banks witnessed decline in CAR. The ratios for state-owned commercial banks, state-run banks, private commercial banks and foreign commercial banks decreased from 9.8%, negative 12.4%, 12.4% and 22.4% respectively to 8.7%, negative 13.7%,

‘Firefox App Challenge’ contest announced n Tribune Report Mobile phone operator Grameenphone and popular browser Mozilla Firefox are going to jointly organise a mobile application contest titled “Firefox App Challenge.”

Winners of the competition will be rewarded money worth US$27,500 along with a chance to visit the Mozilla

The contest will start from October 22 though the last date for submission his or her own-developed applications is fixed on December 4 headquarterslocated in San Francisco, California, USA. Dhaka-based mobile application developer firm MCC limited, also a local partner of the conference, came up with the disclosure at a press conference held yesterday at Bishwo Shahitto Kendro conference room in the capital.

To take part in the competition all the participants needs to register on

www.firefoxappchallenge.com. Participants can submit proposal in five categories Services- Social, Public, Government; Entertainment, Games, News & Media and Tools & Utility, speakers told the press conference.

The press conference was addressed, among others, by Syed Talat Kamal, head of public relations of Grameenphone and deputy director of MCC Mostafa Zakir Haider.

The speakers also noted that more than hundred competitors could avail the opportunity for a higher training programme, which would ultimately lead them to become a future application leader in the industry.

“The contest will starts from October 22 to December 14, though the last date for submission his or her own-developed applications is fixed on December 4.”

According to organisers, a consolidated amount of $27,500 will be given as prize money while two prizes will be given under each categories, first prize will be $3,000 and runner-up $1,500.

Apart from that, there will be five prizes of $1,000 for the developers, who illustrate outstanding innovation or value, regardless of categories through their developed applications. l

12.1% and 20.6% during the period.

Among the profitability measures, return on assets in the banking sector declined from 0.9% at the end of December 2013 to 0.6% at the end of June 2014 primarily due to maintaining higher provision for the increased NPL and the net losses incurred by the state-owned commercial banks.

Return on equity (ROE) of the banking industry also decreased to 8.4% at the end of June 2014 from 11.1 % at the end of December 2013. l

Janata and Karmasangsthan Banks get new MDs n Tribune Report The Bank and Financial Institutions Division yesterday appointed the managing directors for state-run Janata Bank and Karmasangsthan Bank, a circular of the division said.

Bangladesh Krishi Bank Managing Director Md Abdus Salam has been appointed as the new MD of Janata Bank while Deputy Managing Director Obaidullah Al Masud of the state-run Agrani Bank nominated as the new Karmasangsthan Bank MD. The post of MD for one of the largest state-owned Janata Bank lay vacant for quiet a long time.

The Bank and Financial Institutions Division (BFID) was, however, unable to appoint the MD of state-run Janata Bank that lacked its chairman as well as an effective search committee to pick up three individuals to finally choose one as MD. Former Janata Bank chairman Abul Barakat completed his tenure last month.

Earlier in September, the government had appointed Karmasangsthan Bank managing director Khondoker Md Iqbal as MD to the financially troubled Basic Bank under the new rule of appointment of state bank MDs. l

Bill on FRA goes to parliament next session n Tribune Report State Minister for Finance and Planning M A Mannan yesterday said a bill on the proposed Financial Reporting Act (FRA) is likely to be placed in the upcoming session of parliament.

“If it is passed, the financial statements of companies would then be transparent,” he told the inaugural function of a two-day CSE Internet Trade Fair (ITF) began in Dhaka yesterday.

It is often alleged that the companies, if not all, publish their financial statements with inappropriate information to evade taxes as well as to deprive shareholders.

The Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) organised the fair, aimed at attracting investors and increasing their participation in the stock market. The fair will remain open from 10 am to 8 pm for visitors today.

“Introduction of internet trading is a good initiative, but the CSE has to ensure transparency,” said M Khairul Hossain,

chairman of Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission. He expected the initiative would help CSE to reduce trade gap with Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE).

“Investors can gather knowledge about rules and regulations of stock market through this expo,” said Syed Sajid Husain, CSE managing director.

The fair would also help investors to learn firsthand experience about online trading using smartphones, tabs, ipads and laptops, he added.

CSE Chairman Abdul Mazid, Managing Director Syed Sajid Hossain and ICB Managing Director M Fayekuzzaman, among others, spoke on the occasion.

The ITF was organised in association with Grameenphone, Robi, United Commercial Bank, Lanka-Bangla Finance and AB Bank, where 17 broker houses, three IT Solution firms, two cellular phone operators and 2 internet service providers took part. l

Visitors looking at online materials at the two-day CSE Internet Trade Fair (ITF) which kicked off in Dhaka yesterday MEHEDI HASAN

B2

Stock

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Stocks slide back in red on poor Q3 earnings

DSE key features October 22, 2014

Traded Issues

303

n Tribune Report

Issue Gain (Avg. Price Basis)

94

Issue Loss (Avg. Price Basis)

206

Cement, power, telecommunication, pharmaceuticals and non-banking financial institutions also closed lower.

Lanka Bangla Securities said the benchmark index lost, as investors remained cautious about third quarter (Q3) corporate earnings.

It said unexpected fall in earnings of a bank and a cement company might have taken a toll on the market. “Investors remained cautious and selling pressure was observed throughout the trading session.”

The 2014 third quarter net profit of Heidelberg Cement fell 47.7% compared to the same period a year earlier. Al-Arafa Islami Bank reported net loss of more than 64% during the period.

“These announcements made investors behave cautiously in the market,” said Lanka Bangla.

IDLC Investments said equity market continued absorbing natural sell pressure, shrinking all the indices. Besides, investors continued re-balancing their portfolio on the expectation of upcoming quarterly earnings, it said.

Losers outpaced gainers as out of 301 issues traded, 76 advanced, 205 declined and 21 remained unchanged on the DSE. RSRM Ltd was the most traded stock of the session with total turnover of almost Tk42 crore.

It was followed by KPCL, Mobil Jamuna Bangladesh Ltd, Titas Gas, Square Pharmaceuticals, Heidelberg Cement and Beximco Pharmaceuticals. l

Stocks tumbled back in red yesterday, a day after rise, as poor third quarter corporate earnings started rolling out the market to dampen investor sentiment.

The benchmark DSEX closed at 5,170, shedding almost 64 points or 1% to close at 5,233.

The Shariah index DSES lost 13 points or 1% to 1,220. The comprising blue chips DS30 was down 23 points or 1% to end at 1,949.

Equity market continued absorbing natural sell pressure, shrinking all the indices

Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) Selective Categories Index, CSCX, declined 100 points to 9,706.

Trading activities, however, increased as turnover at DSE crossed Tk700-crore after hovering around Tk600 crore in the last three sessions. Total turnover summed up to Tk720 crore, which was more than 4% over the previous session.

All the major sectors experienced correction except food and allied which went up by 0.5%. Banks posted the highest losses over 1.5%.

Weekly capital market highlights DSE Broad Index : DSE - 30 Index : CSE All Share Index: CSE - 30 Index : CSE Selected Index : DSE LOSER Company

Closing (% Change)

Appollo Ispat CL -N Fu-wang Ceramic-A 7th ICB M F-A Alltex Industries -Z R. N. Spinning-Z SAIF Powertec-N Al Arafa Islami B-A First Lease- A B I F C -A Bay Leasing.-A

-9.77 -9.52 -8.99 -5.88 -5.79 -5.49 -5.29 -5.22 -5.03 -4.94

CSE LOSER Company Appollo Ispat CL -N Pragati Gen. I -A Fu-wang Ceramic-A Provati Insur.-A R. N. Spinning-Z First Lease- A Sonargaon Tex -Z H.R. Textile -A GSP Finance-A Republic Insu.-A

Closing (% Change) -10.08 -9.94 -9.47 -7.49 -7.25 -6.96 -6.80 -6.27 -6.22 -6.00

5170.15251

(-) 1.22%

1948.99832

(-) 1.17%

15966.53580

(-) 1.03%

13243.10540

(-) 0.86%

9714.62590

(-) 0.94%

Average (% Change) -9.05 -8.35 -8.68 -4.94 -6.10 2.27 -7.07 -4.25 -4.84 -3.46 Average (% Change) -9.24 -8.74 -7.83 -6.55 -6.47 -1.56 -4.75 -6.24 -4.53 -2.69

ANALYST

ClosingAvg. 23.31 15.48 81.35 8.28 24.62 67.96 16.04 22.29 17.12 31.56

ClosingAvg. 23.37 42.60 15.54 21.10 24.59 22.68 9.62 29.90 22.99 28.20

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 628.99 526.82 76.65 1132.02 196.30 1397.70 2.90 534.26 896.70 142.54 230.92 88.57 176.42 403.94 28.82 41.67 209.88 182.30 127.99 199.81 0.39

DHIGH

23.10 15.20 81.00 8.00 24.40 63.70 16.10 21.80 17.00 30.80

Closing

24.20 17.30 85.00 8.70 25.90 74.10 17.00 23.20 18.50 35.60

DHIGH

23.20 42.60 15.30 21.00 24.30 21.40 9.60 29.90 22.60 28.20

24.00 42.60 17.60 21.20 25.60 23.90 9.70 29.90 23.20 28.20

Company

7,225.57 162,803,127

Number of Contract

140,268

Unchanged Issue (Avg. Price Basis)

3

Market Capital Equity (Billion. Tk.)

2,739.45

Market Capital Equity (Billion US$)

33.21

CSE key features October 22, 2014 Turnover (Million Taka)

501.24

Turnover (Volume)

13,566,199

Number of Contract

18,645

Traded Issues

230

Issue Gain (Avg. Price Basis)

75

Issue Loss (Avg. Price Basis)

150

Unchanged Issue (Avg. Price Basis)

5

Market Capital Equity (Billion. Tk.)

2,641.94

Market Capital Equity (Billion US$)

32.02

Turnover in Million

DLOW 23.00 15.20 81.00 8.00 23.50 62.10 15.30 21.70 16.50 30.00

23.10 42.60 15.30 21.00 23.60 21.20 9.60 29.90 22.40 28.20

Latest EPS

90.335 55.263 0.178 0.886 16.446 120.779 49.947 12.169 10.449 21.320

Turnover in Million

DLOW

% change 8.71 7.29 1.06 15.67 2.72 19.34 0.04 7.39 12.41 3.20 1.23 2.44 5.59 0.40 0.58 2.90 2.52 1.77 2.77 0.01

Million Taka 33.06 25.99 3.59 86.93 19.30 70.74 60.68 47.69 37.35 23.95 17.36 21.30 27.05 27.26 0.81 4.38 12.29 25.06 19.25 0.10

CSE

% change 5.86 4.61 0.64 15.41 3.42 12.54 0.00 10.76 8.45 6.62 4.25 3.08 3.78 4.79 4.83 0.14 0.78 2.18 4.44 3.41 0.02

1.84 0.49 12.01 -1.24 2.74 1.63 1.35 1.38 1.42 2.32

Latest EPS

12.805 0.013 3.031 0.021 3.844 0.261 0.048 0.150 0.425 0.014

Million Taka 662.05 552.81 80.24 1218.95 215.60 1468.44 2.90 594.94 944.40 179.89 254.87 105.92 197.72 430.99 56.08 42.48 214.25 194.59 153.05 219.06 0.48

Shahjibazar Power-N Khulna Printing-N Rahim Textile -A Rahima Food -Z PragatiLife Insu. -Z Apex Tannery -A Bangladesh Lamps -A Prime Islami Life -A Samata LeatheR -Z Apex Foods -A

Closing (% Change) 9.92 9.49 8.35 7.05 5.76 4.97 4.34 3.95 3.86 3.29

CSE GAINER

1.84 2.44 0.49 1.52 2.74 1.38 -0.96 1.75 1.56 3.26

Latest PE 12.7 31.6 6.8 -ve 9.0 41.7 11.9 16.2 12.1 13.6

Total

Company Samata LeatheR -Z Khulna Printing-N Apex Footwear-A Apex Tannery -A Rahima Food -Z Saiham Tex.A M.I. Cement-A Dutch Ban. Bnk- A Bangladesh Lamps -A Ratanpur Steel -N

Closing (% Change) 9.80 9.52 8.15 5.73 4.77 4.10 3.04 2.99 2.82 2.81

Average (% Change) 9.92 7.19 7.58 2.98 5.76 4.80 3.61 3.61 3.99 2.04 Average (% Change) 9.80 7.35 8.15 4.48 5.82 7.42 2.94 2.49 2.18 5.13

ClosingAvg. 118.60 27.15 379.28 45.59 104.64 169.18 126.69 88.04 24.22 105.89

ClosingAvg. 22.40 27.17 497.50 169.42 48.15 33.43 91.15 98.42 126.79 85.23

Closing 118.60 27.70 382.80 47.10 104.60 168.90 127.50 89.50 24.20 106.90

Closing 22.40 27.60 497.50 169.80 48.30 33.00 91.60 99.90 127.60 84.20

DHIGH 118.60 27.80 384.20 48.30 107.90 172.00 129.90 90.00 24.60 107.80

DHIGH 22.40 27.70 497.50 171.00 48.40 34.20 92.10 99.90 128.00 88.00

DLOW 118.60 25.40 360.00 40.00 95.00 162.00 122.40 86.00 24.00 103.60

DLOW 22.40 25.50 497.50 166.00 48.00 33.00 80.10 97.40 125.00 82.50

Turnover in Million 5.598 141.886 11.530 2.571 0.944 36.332 7.801 2.606 0.218 13.247

Turnover in Million 0.224 24.429 0.100 3.643 0.096 3.166 5.629 0.246 0.317 33.036

Latest EPS 3.00 1.31 11.16 -1.01 2.38 5.51 1.12 4.95 0.09 2.99

Latest EPS 0.09 1.31 -7.40 5.51 -1.01 3.09 4.23 9.28 1.12 2.84

Latest PE 39.5 20.7 34.0 -ve 44.0 30.7 113.1 17.8 269.1 35.4

Latest PE 248.9 20.7 -ve 30.7 -ve 10.8 21.5 10.6 113.2 30.0

News, analysis and recent disclosers BEDL: The Board of Directors has recommended 17% stock dividend for the year ended on June 30, 2014. The Board has also decided to change Company's name from "Barakatullah Electro Dynamics Limited" to "Baraka Power Limited" subject to be approved by the shareholders at its AGM. Date of AGM: 11.12.2014, Time: 12:00 PM, Venue: Hotel Star Pacific, Darga Gate, Sylhet-3100. Record date: 06.11.2014. The Company has also reported net profit after tax of Tk. 249.36 million, EPS of Tk. 1.90, NAV per share of Tk. 19.45 and NOCFPS of Tk. (6.61) for the year ended on June 30, 2014 as against Tk. 187.51 million, Tk. 1.43, Tk. 19.43 and Tk. 1.23 respectively for the year ended on June 30, 2013.

RSRMSTEEL: The Board of Directors has recommended 5% cash dividend and 20% stock dividend for the year ended on June 30, 2014. Date of AGM: 30.11.2014, Time: 11:00 AM, Venue: Hall Room, Bhatiary Golf and Country Club, P.O. BMA, Bhatiary, Chittagong. Record date: 06.11.2014. The Company has also reported net profit after tax of Tk. 154.96 million, EPS of Tk. 5.24, NAV per share of Tk. 58.93 and NOCFPS of Tk. 2.89 for the year ended on June 30, 2014 as against Tk. 166.74 million, Tk. 5.63, Tk. 53.69 and Tk. (6.54) respectively for

the year ended on June 30, 2013.

ALARABANK: (Q3): As per un-audited quarterly accounts for the 3rd quarter ended on 30th September 2014 (July'14 to Sep'14), the Company has reported consolidated profit/(loss) after tax (excluding non-controlling interests) of Tk. (226.86) million with consolidated EPS of Tk. (0.24) as against Tk. 625.63 million and Tk. 0.66 respectively for the same period of the previous year. Whereas consolidated profit after tax (excluding non-controlling interests) was Tk. 952.56 million with consolidated EPS of Tk. 1.01 for the period of nine months (Jan'14 to Sep'14) ended on 30.09.2014 as against Tk. 1,313.97 million and Tk. 1.39 respectively for the same period of the previous year.

BBS: Credit Rating Information and Services Limited (CRISL) has rated the Company as "A+" in the long term and "ST-3" in the short term along with a stable outlook based on audited financial statements of the Company up to June 30, 2014 and other relevant quantitative as well as qualitative information up to the date of rating declaration.

CONTININS: Credit Rating Information and Services Limited (CRISL) has announced the CPA (Claim Paying Ability) Rating of the

Company as "A+" along with a stable outlook in consideration of audited financials of the Company up to December 31, 2013, unaudited financial up to June 30, 2014 and other relevant quantitative as well as qualitative information up to the date of rating declaration.

CONFIDCEM: Credit Rating Information and Services Limited (CRISL) has rated the Company as "A+" in the long term and "ST3" in the short term along with a stable outlook based on audited financial statements of the Company up to December 31, 2013, unaudited financial up to June 30, 2014 and other relevant quantitative as well as qualitative information up to the date of rating declaration.

Board Meeting: TITASGAS on October 23, 2014 at 6:00 PM, DSHGARME on October 28, 2014 at 4:00 PM, SHURWID on October 27, 2014 at 6:00 PM, FUWANGCER on October 23, 2014 at 3:30 PM. APEXFOODS: The Company has requested the concerned shareholders to collect their dividend warrants for the year 20132014 on 23rd October, 25th October and 26th October 2014 during business hours from the Registered Office of the Company at Rupayan Golden Age (5th & 6th Floor), 99 Gulshan Avenue, Gulshan, Dhaka-1212.

Latest PE 12.7 17.5 31.7 13.9 9.0 16.4 -ve 17.1 14.7 8.7

The benchmark index lost, as investors remained cautious about third quarter (Q3) corporate earnings

SECTORAL TURNOVER SUMMARY Sector

▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼

DSE GAINER

Turnover (Million Taka) Turnover (Volume)

Thuresday, October 23, 2014

DSE TURNOVER LEADERS Company

% change 8.50 7.10 1.03 15.65 2.77 18.85 0.04 7.64 12.12 2.31 3.27 1.36 2.54 5.53 0.72 0.55 2.75 2.50 1.96 2.81 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

Ratanpur Steel -N Khulna Power-A MJL BD Ltd.-A Titas Gas TDCLA Square Pharma -A HeidelbergCement -A Beximco Pharma -A Grameenphone-A BEXIMCO Ltd. -A Golden Son -A

Khulna Printing-N IDLC Finance -A FAR Chemical-N SAIF Powertec-N RAK Ceramics-A

CSE TURNOVER LEADERS Company Ratanpur Steel -N Khulna Printing-N Khulna Power-A RAK Ceramics-A SAIF Powertec-N The Peninsula CTG.-N BEXIMCO Ltd. -A Appollo Ispat CL -N Square Pharma -A Familytex (BD) Ltd.-A

Shurwid Ind. -N FAR Chemical-N Golden Son -A UNITED AIR-A HeidelbergCement -A

VolumeShares 4,928,600 5,084,564 2,128,779 2,698,332 793,715 328,500 2,471,520 411,800 3,517,772 2,790,699

Value in Million 418.30 335.76 310.41 248.10 221.10 174.78 170.28 153.06 148.58 146.32

% of TotalTurnover 5.79 4.65 4.30 3.43 3.06 2.42 2.36 2.12 2.06 2.03

VolumeShares

Value in Million

% of TotalTurnover

5,226,500 1,764,233 3,092,900 1,777,200 1,781,584

387,600 899,000 319,996 279,602 254,400 461,200 343,439 548,000 44,137 464,500

256,500 225,900 172,500 798,403 14,650

141.89 137.05 135.26 120.78 116.00

33.04 24.43 21.15 18.20 17.26 15.11 14.44 12.81 12.31 12.07

10.87 9.96 9.06 8.18 7.77

1.96 1.90 1.87 1.67 1.61

6.68 4.94 4.27 3.68 3.49 3.05 2.92 2.59 2.49 2.44

2.20 2.01 1.83 1.65 1.57

ClosingP 84.10 66.00 145.20 91.20 276.90 537.50 67.50 370.80 41.60 52.00

27.70 77.10 41.90 63.70 64.90

ClosingP

84.20 27.60 66.00 64.80 63.80 32.70 41.70 23.20 276.30 25.80

41.70 42.30 52.10 10.20 537.00

Change % 2.31 2.48 -1.76 -2.36 -1.07 -4.00 -1.75 -0.75 -0.95 0.78

9.49 -1.03 -2.33 -5.49 0.93

Change %

2.81 9.52 2.17 0.47 -4.49 1.24 -0.71 -10.08 -1.11 -1.53

1.96 -0.94 0.77 -1.92 -3.83

ClosingY 82.20 64.40 147.80 93.40 279.90 559.90 68.70 373.60 42.00 51.60

25.30 77.90 42.90 67.40 64.30

ClosingY

81.90 25.20 64.60 64.50 66.80 32.30 42.00 25.80 279.40 26.20

40.90 42.70 51.70 10.40 558.40

DHIGH

DLOW

88.00 70.00 150.00 94.50 285.00 546.90 71.00 375.00 44.00 53.00

82.50 59.00 135.00 84.30 256.00 520.00 62.00 369.10 38.00 47.00

DHIGH

DLOW

88.00 27.70 68.00 70.00 73.00 33.20 42.70 24.00 284.00 26.40

82.50 25.50 60.00 58.30 62.10 32.10 40.00 23.10 260.00 25.60

27.80 79.20 47.00 74.10 67.00

43.30 45.00 53.10 10.50 549.00

25.40 71.00 39.00 62.10 58.00

41.30 40.50 51.90 9.40 521.00

AvgPrice 84.87 66.04 145.82 91.95 278.57 532.06 68.90 371.69 42.24 52.43

27.15 77.68 43.73 67.96 65.11

AvgPrice

85.23 27.17 66.08 65.11 67.85 32.77 42.05 23.37 278.88 25.98

42.39 44.08 52.55 10.24 530.52

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Business

Quiet critic of Kuroda’s ‘monetary shamanism’ turns up the volume n Reuters, Tokyo Izuru Kato is a soft-spoken and bookish economist, but his dismissal of the Bank of Japan’s stimulus policy as “monetary shamanism” is ringing loud in the ears of bank Governor Haruhiko Kuroda.

Kuroda’s policy of quantitative and qualitative easing (QQE) increases the money the bank supplies to the financial system by buying high-quality assets. It is aimed at lowering real interest rates, pushing up inflation and stimulating private demand to revive an economy that has stagnated for two decades.

Kato says it relies too much on psychology, and academics and former policymakers are increasingly agreeing with him.

His weekly research notes - with witty insights stretching from monetary policy to how the poor lime crop in Mexico is inflating margarita prices have become a must-read for investors and central bankers.

Years of experience as a money market broker at the receiving end of the BOJ’s market operations has made Kato, now economist and president of the Totan Research think-tank, a dab hand at interpreting the messages of BOJ policymakers.

He remembers, and was critical of, the bank’s previous failed effort in quantitative easing (QE) in the five years to 2006.

The 49-year-old took an even dimmer view of QQE, though few were listening as sentiment picked up and Tokyo shares rose.

Now, as markets lose faith that QQE will achieve the BOJ’s central policy plank that inflation will rise to 2% from early next year, he has the ear of many more.

The policy is flawed, he argues, be-

Izuru Kato, the president and chief economist at Totan Research, and Bank of Japan watcher attends an interview with Reuters in Tokyo REUTERS cause it fails to explain why inflation should rise when economic growth is subdued, and relies instead on people’s belief that the stimulus will cause prices to rise enough to encourage them to spend now.

“While other central bank governors use similar tactics, Kuroda is among the most extreme ‘shaman’ of them all,” Kato said in a recent interview, a metaphor that likens the governor to a mystic claiming magical cures. “But there are limits to how long you can

keep affecting expectations. The transmission channel of QQE just isn’t clear.”

No way out

Advocates of QQE say Kuroda’s massive stimulus is reducing already low interest yields, which should lower expectations of future real borrowing costs and lift inflation expectations.

But Kato’s criticisms are resonating with those BOJ policymakers who always had some reservations about QQE. “He’s spot on about a lot of things,”

B3

Thursday, October 23, 2014

said one central banker and a friend of Kato. “He’s very knowledgeable about the technicalities of monetary policy, perhaps more than even some of us at the BOJ.” A majority on the board has already expressed doubts on the feasibility of setting a two-year timeframe for hitting the inflation goal or on the BOJ’s optimistic economic outlook. What sets Kato apart from many QQE sceptics is his warnings on the dangers even if Kuroda hits the inflation target.

He argues that if it works, that would push consumer prices up more than 9 percent in the three years since its introduction last April, which households would find hard to manage, given slow wage growth.

And higher inflation would push up long-term interest rates and raise the cost of financing Japan’s huge public debt, he says, putting at risk premier Shinzo Abe’s efforts to lift the economy out of stagnation.

Moreover, the BOJ’s bloated balance sheet will exceed the size of Japan’s economy in 2018 if the current pace of asset buying continues, which will make an exit from QQE extremely difficult, potentially triggering a bond market sell-off, he says in his recent book, titled “No way out for the BOJ”.

“What’s worrying is that the current BOJ board does not seem to have the readiness to be well prepared for when they have to exit QQE,” he said in the book.

In such circumstances, says Miyako Suda, an academic who served as a BOJ board member for a decade until 2011, the central bank might need to call on Kato’s services.

“When you think about the time the BOJ were to end QQE, it would be nice to have someone well versed in market functions like him.” l

Shaky Japanese economy hit by growing trade deficit n AFP, Tokyo

Japan’s shaky economy was dealt another blow yesterday, as official data showed a widening September trade deficit that puts the world’s numberthree economy on track to log a record annual shortfall.

The worse-than-expected deficit of 958.3bn yen ($8.96bn) comes on the back of a string of weak figures and a sharp contraction in the second-quarter, which raised fears that a recovery in Japan’s economy has been derailed.

The latest numbers translated into a trade deficit of 10.47tn yen for the first nine months of the year, a 35% leap from a year ago.

Earlier this month, the International Monetary Fund almost halved its 2014 growth projections for Japan - to 0.9% from 1.6% - underscoring the damage that an April consumption tax hike inflicted on the economy.

And on Tuesday, the government downgraded its outlook for the economy for the second month in a row.

“The government and Bank of Japan (BoJ) have assumed that the domestic economy may be weak due to the consumption tax rise, but that it would be offset by foreign demand,” said Takeshi Minami, an economist at Norinchukin Research Institute.

“That scenario may be collapsing.

China is slowing down and there are risks of Europe entering recession.”

The gloomy figures will heap more pressure on the government of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and his economic growth plan, dubbed “Abenomics”.

The plan stalled when Tokyo raised sales taxes on April 1 - for the first time in 17 years - to help pay down one of the world’s biggest public debt burdens.

Abe’s plan helped sharply weaken the yen as the central bank launched

massive monetary stimulus.

But the currency’s drop has not translated into a strong pick-up in exports as Japanese companies shift production to lower-cost venues abroad.

Tax rise uncertain

Japan’s September deficit of 958.3bn yen was a record for the month, up from 943.2bn yen a year earlier, and it was much worse than a market median forecast of a 768bn yen deficit.

The shortfall was up 1.6% year-onyear. The finance ministry said exports rose 6.9% to 6.38tn yen helped by higher shipments of cars, steel, and ships.

Shipments to China rose 8.8%, while exports to North America rose 4.7% and were nearly flat to the European Union, inching up 0.7%.

Imports climbed 6.2% to 7.34tn yen, boosted largely by purchases of liquefied natural gas and telecommunications equipment, which was partly tied to the launch of the newest iPhone in Japan last month.

Natural gas buying remain high as Japan tried to plug a yawning energy gap after the 2011 Fukushima crisis forced the shutdown of nuclear reactors, which once supplied more than one-quarter of the nation’s power.

Japan’s economy contracted 1.8% on-quarter in the three months to June - or 7.1% on an annualised basis - its steepest quarterly drop since the quake-tsunami disaster, raising concerns about another downturn in the July-September period.

Japan has been hit by lacklustre economic data since sales tax was raised to 8% from 5% on April 1 to help reduce one of the world’s heaviest public debt burdens.

Abe has yet to issue a final decision on whether Tokyo will launch a second tax hike to 10% next year. l

Kolkata’s gold panners Euro rebounds in Asia after drop on ECB reap rewards at India easing plan reports n festival time AFP

n

AFP

As 40-year-old Mohammed Iqbal sifts through sludge in the back alleys of Kolkata’s jewellery market for gold dust, his weathered face brightens slightly at the recent uptick in work.

For generations, the city’s group of “newaras” - gold dust scavengers - have been scratching a living by panning for fine particles swept from the 2,000-odd jewellery workshops operating in the alleys.

Iqbal estimates he normally earns just 150 to 200 rupees ($2.40 to $3.20) a day from selling flecks of the precious metal that he painstakingly finds on the ground and in the drains of the grimy alleys.

But the onset of India’s raucous festival season, especially the biggest Hindu celebration of Diwali on Thursday, brings a relative bonanza for Iqbal, with his income more than doubling.

“There is a lot of work during Durga Puja and Diwali. We make more money then,” Iqbal told AFP as he hunched over his pans filled with thick, black muck early one morning.

“We never got an education. This is the work that my grandfather and my father did and this is what I do now. My two sons do this too. We have no other work,” he said of his boys aged 18 and 16.

Over the several days of Diwali, known as the festival of lights, middle-class families throng Kolkata’s Bowbazar and other markets throughout the country to buy gold jewellery.

The Hindu goddess of wealth is worshipped on Diwali, which is considered an auspicious time to buy gold, especially as gifts for family members.

The festival coincides with India’s wedding season, which runs from October to February, with gold a crucial part of a bride’s dowry.

In the lead up, jewellery workshops, including in the former British colonial capital, go into overdrive, with hundreds of craftsmen spending hours at their benches to produce intricate necklaces, bracelets and earrings on sale in showrooms.

Yellow particles are swept outside, while some are washed into drains, surfacing in the alleys where the newaras sift through the sludge to find them.

Prayers and gold Jewellery traders predict a prosperous Diwali this year, with world and local gold prices lower, making resulting ornaments more affordable.

“We are expecting a very good Diwali

compared to previous years,” All India Gems and Jewellery Trade Federation director Bachhraj Bamalwa told AFP. “The mood is upbeat and there have been incremental increases in sales of gold jewellery,” he said this week.

India is the world’s biggest buyer of gold alongside China, and imports normally jump during the festival season, further widening the trade deficit.

Gold traders and importers had been hoping that Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government would lift stiff 10% import duties slapped on the metal last year by the previous administration to rein in imports.

Although the duties have remained, India’s central bank has lifted restrictions on importing gold, allowing more private agencies to bring in shipments.

Bamalwa said that has pushed down the local price of the commodity this year, lifting consumer spirits. In New Delhi, shoppers crowded the capital’s old quarter searching for gold and other bargains for Diwali.

“It doesn’t really matter that the price keeps going up and down. Buying gold is a tradition, it’s a custom ... you cannot offer prayers without also offering some gold,” housewife Aswani Puja said.

Newaras play key role Some jewellery manufacturers in Kolkata are grateful for the newaras, who help keep production costs down for the industry, which was formed in the 1800s and employs some 20,000 people.

“If they are not doing this then we have to buy gold and the only gold source is Western countries,” said Nabin Kumar Chanbar in his shop which opened in 1883.

“They are very ... helpful for us because ... the wastage of gold is converted to the industry,” Chanbar said, rows of jewellery glittering behind him.

On the main street of Bowbazar shortly after dawn, Mohammed Ashu, 25, and his two younger brothers are pouring over some soft polystyrene packaging found dumped outside a workshop.

The youngest, teenager Mohammed Amir, who is unsure of his exact age and has never been to school, is convinced the packaging contains flecks of silver.

The brothers consider the find a stroke of luck, and good timing for Ashu, whose wife had a baby 10 days ago and struggles to put enough food on the table.

“This is very good but we will have to share,” Ashu said with a smile, pointing to his brothers. l

The euro rebounded modestly in Asia yesterday after it dropped in New York on reports that the European Central Bank could expand its bond-buying programme.

In Tokyo afternoon trade, the common currency fetched $1.2723 and 136.15 yen against $1.2714 and 136.04 yen in US trading on Tuesday. The single currency had been at $1.2800 and 136.86 yen the previous day.

The dollar edged up to 107.02 yen from 106.99 yen, after fresh data Tuesday showed US existing-home sales rebounded in September from a dip in August to their highest pace of the year.

Investors will be looking to US inflation figures later in the day after a

series of uneven data has thrown into question the strength of the world’s top economy, ahead of the US Federal Reserve’s policy meeting next week.

“The US CPI (consumer price index) is at the forefront of attention,” Ayako Sera, head of research team at Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank, told Dow Jones Newswires.

Late Tuesday, reports that the European Central Bank was considering buying riskier corporate bonds on the secondary market, perhaps as early as next year, pushed down the euro against the dollar and the yen.

If it happens early next year as some reports suggest, the ECB move could further push down long-term interest rates in the eurozone, which would tend to weaken the currency by dent-

ing demand for euro-denominated assets.

“The slippage in the euro-dollar rate was exacerbated by comments from German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble that a lower euro exchange rate helps the (German) economy,” National Australia Bank said in a note.

On Wednesday, traders largely shrugged off Japan’s trade balance data, which showed the worst-ever September deficit of 958.3bn yen ($8.96bn), putting the world’s numberthree economy on track for a record annual shortfall.

The monthly result - which was much worse than the market median forecast for a deficit of 768bn yen comes on the back of a string of weak figures and a sharp economic contrac-

tion in the second-quarter that have stoked speculation the Bank of Japan will expand its monetary easing plan and weaken the yen.

The dollar was mixed against other Asia-Pacific currencies.

It strengthened to 44.78 Philippine pesos from 44.76 pesos Tuesday, to 32.31 Thai baht from 32.24 baht, to Sg$1.2707 from Sg$1.2692, to Tw$30.37 from Tw$30.36, and to 12,010.00 Indonesian rupiah from 11,987.00 rupiah.

The greenback weakened to 1,052.77 South Korean won from 1,054.81 won and to 61.22 Indian rupees from 61.28 rupees.

The Australian dollar weakened to 87.88 US cents from 88.21 cents while the Chinese yuan firmed to 17.49 yen from 17.38 yen. l

At least 11 banks to fail European stress tests n Reuters, Madrid At least 11 banks from six European countries are set to fail a region-wide financial health check this weekend, Spanish news agency Efe reported, citing several unidentified financial sources.

The results of the stress tests on 130 banks by the European Central Bank are due to be unveiled on Sunday.

Four banks in Greece, three Italian lenders and two Austrian ones are among those that preliminary data showed had failed the tests, Efe said. It

gave no details of how much capital the banks would have to raise and said this could yet change as numbers could be revised at the last minute.

The euro fell on the report. The ECB could not immediately be reached for comment.

Efe also identified a Cypriot bank and possibly one from Belgium and one from Portugal. The exercise is designed to see how banks would cope under various economic scenarios, including adverse ones, and is likely to reveal capital shortfalls at some entities. l

Kazi Food Industries Ltd has recently launched its Kazi Farms branded outlets at 3 locations in Dhaka for selling Kazi Farms frozen food products and catering everyone with one-stop snacking needs from the Kazi Farms. Tanvir Haider Chaudhury, Chief Executive Officer, Kazi Food Industries Ltd has inaugurated these outlets at Dhanmondi 9/A, Khilgaon (opposite Pollima Sangsad School) and Khilkhet (Moddhopara)

An agreement was recently signed between NRBC Bank and DPDC on receiving electric bills of DPDC consumers online at all branches of the bank. The bank’s MD and CEO, Dewan Mujibur Rahman and Mohammed Munir Chowdhury, company secretary of DPDC have signed the agreement

Jamuna Bank Limited and South Bangla Agricultural & Commerce Bank Limited have jointly inaugurated a programme for disbursement of foreign remittance through Trans Fast Remittance LLC. Khairuzzaman, country head of Trans Fast LLC, Harunur Rashid, EVP & head of ID at South Bangla Agricultural & Commerece Bank Limited and Abdus Sobhan, SAVP & head of NRB banking division at Jamuna Bank Limited were present on the occasion

B4

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Back Page

Thursday, October 23, 2014

Azevedo asks for ideas as WTO hits a brick wall n Reuters, Geneva

World Trade Organisation chief Roberto Azevedo will begin consulting with WTO ambassadors on Wednesday to try to work out how to pick up the pieces after global trade negotiations appeared to suffer a final defeat on Tuesday.

“Whether, and how, we make progress will be in your hands,” Azevedo told the envoys at a meeting of the WTO General Council.

Some diplomats had said the meeting was the final deadline for India to stop blocking a global agreement or they might give up negotiating and split off into smaller groups instead.

That would undermine the role of the WTO, which is based on global rules accepted by all its members.

India plunged the WTO back into stalemate in July, just months after the 160-member trade body appeared to have struck the first global deal in its 19year history. Although the agreement was a modest success, streamlining and standardising customs rules around the world, diplomats had high hopes that it would be a springboard to new talks.

But India has resisted pressure to give way, insisting that its demand to be allowed to stockpile subsidised food be approved in parallel with the new

customs rules. Senior officials at the Indian Trade Ministry have said that New Delhi remains committed to its stance.

WTO spokesman Keith Rockwell said he had never seen a similar situation at the agency, which has been dogged by “impasse” in multilateral trade negotations for a decade. “(There have been) some pretty horrific situations but this is a unique one in its uncertainty and complexity,” he said after the General Council meeting, one of the shortest on record.

Azevedo said last Thursday that “a continuation of the current paralysis would serve only to degrade the institution” and he saw little hope of a breakthrough. Since then, none of the WTO members are known to have contacted Azevedo to report any progress.

“He’s not warning members about an impending crisis, he said we’re in the middle of it now,” Rockwell said.

After a week of consultations with WTO members, Azevedo will convene their ambassadors next Thursday to give an update on progress.

Trade experts say that the WTO still has an important role as a forum for settling commercial disputes, but that role will be degraded and increasingly obsolete if its two-decade-old trade rules do not evolve. l

A worker demonstrates Apple Pay inside a mobile kiosk sponsored by Visa and Wells Fargo to demonstrate the new Apple Pay mobile payment system on October 20, 2014 in San Francisco City. Apple's Apple Pay mobile payment system launched today at select banks and retail outlets AFP

More hackers targeting mobile phones to get bank info Love will keep us alive n AFP

Hackers are increasingly targeting mobile phones to get into bank accounts of victims and steal money, security researchers said Tuesday.

A report by Kaspersky Labs with Interpol found that 60% of the malicious programs targeting Android devices between August 2013 and July 2014 were designed to steal money or banking credentials.

The report focused on Android, which accounts for roughly 85% of the mobile device market and 98% of mobile malware.

Just like other online operations,

hackers are moving into mobile because more users access the Internet from these devices.

The survey of users registered with Kaspersky found more than 588,000 Android users worldwide faced financial malware attacks, six times higher than the prior 12 months.

“It is easy to understand why cybercriminals create so many malicious programs targeting Android devices: these days, smartphones are increasingly often used as a tool to pay online for merchandise and services,” the report said.

“Apps can be installed through Google Play as well as third parties

such as Amazon App store. Third party apps pose a security threat to users who enable the installation of apps from unverified sources. These unverified packages may carry malware that would be installed on a device without the user’s permission or knowledge.”

Kaspersky found the largest number of victims were Android users in Russia. Other countries affected included Ukraine, Spain, Britain, Vietnam, Malaysia, Germany, India and France.

Over the 12-month period, the users surveyed reported some 3.4 million malware detections. The number of monthly attacks increased tenfold from August 2013 to March 2014.

The report said the biggest growth is coming from “Trojan-Banker” and “Trojan-SMS” malware that allow hackers access to bank accounts.

“A successful Trojan-Banker infection can give a fraudster access to all of the victim’s money, while a Trojan-SMS needs to infect dozens or even hundreds of devices to show a worthwhile profit,” said Kaspersky analyst Roman Unuchek.

The report comes amid growing interest in mobile payments, allowing consumers to use their phones to pay at participating stores.

Apple’s mobile payments system began operating on Monday. l

In emerging beauty markets like Brazil, new products key n AFP

Chinese Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli (left) speaks during the opening ceremony of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Finance Ministers's Meeting in Beijing AFP

APEC finance chiefs meet as global worries persist n AFP The global economic recovery is beset by “downside risks”, China’s vice-premier told Asia-Pacific finance ministers yesterday, a day after growth in the world’s second-largest economy hit a five-year low.

The meeting in Beijing of ministers from the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum precedes the group’s annual summit next month, when Chinese President Xi Jinping is to host counterparts including US President Barack Obama, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. “Now global economic recovery remains difficult, with downside risks still existing,” China’s Vice-Premier Zhang Gaoli said in a speech formally starting the finance meeting.

The Asia-Pacific faced challenges including what he described as “policy adjustment of major developed economies”, apparently a reference to the US Federal Reserve winding down its vast bond-buying programme put in place to help fight the global financial crisis.

His comments came a day after China, a major driver of global growth, said gross domestic product expanded 7.3%

in the third quarter, its slowest pace since the depths of the worldwide downturn.

APEC, established in 1989, groups 21 economies spanning Asia, Oceania and North and South America and includes the United States, China, Japan and Russia, emerging economies such as Mexico and Indonesia and small nations such as Brunei and Papua New Guinea.

“The Asia-Pacific region is the main driving force and engine for global economic growth,” Zhang said, stressing that the group’s economies account for 40 percent of the world’s population, 70% of the global economy and 46 percent of world trade.

Zhang said ministers would be discussing, among other issues, the global and regional economy, infrastructure investment and financing cooperation, and fiscal and taxation policy.

The gathering . attended by Chinese finance minister Lou Jiwei, Japan’s Taro Aso and others, though US Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew skipped the event, instead sending Deputy Secretary Sarah Bloom Raskin.

Sri Mulyani Indrawati, managing director of the World Bank, warned the meeting of wider global risks, including weakening commodity prices, the Ebola outbreak in west Africa and po-

litical instability characterised by the rise of the Islamic State group and the conflict in Ukraine.

“The picture has changed, and 2014 could turn out to be a disappointing year for the global economy,” she said.

“Global growth has been revised downwards and is now expected at 2.6% this year, only marginally up from 2.4% in 2013,” she added, highlighting “a systematic underestimation of global headwinds and inadequacies of policy responses”.

‘A new world’

Over its quarter-century history APEC, which is a consensus-based grouping, long sought free trade among its members and now says its main objective “is to support sustainable economic growth and prosperity in the Asia-Pacific region”.

Alan Bollard, APEC executive director and former head of New Zealand’s central bank, said both near- and mediumrange challenges were on the agenda.

“The general theme on the shortterm monitoring side is very much how normalisation of monetary policy in the US goes and what positive or negative spillovers there could be,” he told AFP on the meeting’s sidelines. l

In Brazil, women primarily wear their hair long, and need to tackle the country’s generally hot, humid climate when they style it. They also demand a wide range of sun protection creams.

Beauty industry giants such as L’Oreal, Unilever and Procter & Gamble that are looking to crack key emerging markets like Brazil are quickly adapting their product lines to suit local tastes.

In the South American country, where women use an average of five products a day, the investment is a crucial one - but quickly pays dividends, industry experts say.

The changes “mainly involve offering new colors and textures to suit the needs and expectations of these new consumers,” according to Gaelle de la Fosse, an expert in consumer goods and retail with the Roland Berger consultancy in Paris.

But companies must also find the right balance between expanding their product offers and keeping costs in check, she added.

L’Oreal, the world’s leading beauty group, just launched a new investment program in Brazil - the number four market after the United States, Japan and China, and one expected to double in size by 2025.

Product lines in Brazil must be extremely diverse, given its ethnic makeup - skin tones and hair textures differ widely. Blaise Didillon, who heads L’Oreal’s R&D team in Brazil, says there are at least eight types of hair.

“The challenge of adapting ... is so important that there is value in being close to the markets, in order to serve them better,” notes de la Fosse.

L’Oreal - currently number four in Brazil - is learning that lesson, with plans to open a new regional R&D center in Rio de Janeiro in 2016 and “micro-distributors” selling products in the favelas of Rio and Sao Paulo.

Using local ingredients

Oru Mohiuddin, a cosmetics analyst at London-based consultancy Euromonitor International, says tailoring products to emerging markets has become much easier. l

n Ivdad Ahmed Khan Mojlish

During a long conversation with a good friend, I found out how unhappy he had been at work recently. In fact, so much so that he had decided to quit, erase every memory, and even burn bridges with his employer. Why? There’s a unanimous belief among the workers in his organisation that none of them ever felt genuine love and care from their boss. A lack of love and respect translated into fierce debates, opened up a culture of public defamation, and fostered a vicious blame game of ruthless finger pointing, leading to organisational performance tanking.

This episode is not a one-off occurrence. Incidents of mounting tension between bosses and subordinates, loss of transparency between co-founders, communication failure between customers and organisations are downright banal.

Consequently, relationships become frail and businesses shut down. Whatever the case, rest assured that more often than not, both the source of discontentment and the upshot are the same – a tale of lost love.

Broadly speaking, there are two emotions that drive performance in an organisation: Fear and love. One group works out of fear of punishable repercussions (promotion halt, bonus cut, poor recommendation, etc), the other pour their heart out and not even dread the extra sweat because of their love and loyalty to the work and to the team. While some may argue that eventually what matters is the accomplishment of tasks, but when you consider long-term implications, trust me you don’t want to resort to fear to lead an organisation. From my personal experience, I can tell you that love ticks and fear trickles.

Love is a gift, which inspires and yet challenges us every day. As an entrepreneur I can totally relate to this. The companies we dream of and build from scratch, the people we team up with to share those visions, the community we serve to scale our missions, are all a part of us and are intensely personal. They are akin to our families. Our lives. Our souls.

If you are a professional, chances are you spend most of your waking hours working with your colleagues and other professional stakeholders. If you don’t harbor love, empathy, respect, and compassion for these people, you are not living a great life. Could you do a greater disservice to yourself?

From the pages in history dating back 1400 years, we learn that the love of one man – Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) – for a clan that put him through unimaginable trials, is what eventually helped him transform the entire lifestyles of millions of people who still walk the earth today.

Look at IBM, Disney, Boeing. No wonder

DILBERT

these are some of the greatest companies in the world. When their founders were asked what made them successful, among other characteristics, each of them attributed an undying love for their cause and the people they work with in the same breath.

Herbert Kelleher, former CEO of Southwest Airlines, a popular domestic US airline, took his love for his staff one step further – once when an irate customer aired her grievances against Southwest’s customer service to Herbert, his one-liner email response couldn’t have been more sarcastic. It read, “Dear Mrs. Crabapple, We will miss you. Love, Herb.”

Another great love story can be found in the proliferation of Starbucks. At a time when Howard Schultz, CEO of Starbucks, was visiting Italy early in his career, he was taken aback by the palpable human connection existing between the baristas in the coffee shops and the customers. To him, it looked more like a scene out of a family living room than a typical restaurant where customers and employees alike transcended all formal boundaries, indulged in sharing stories and emotions in a manner that clearly befit love’ s omnipresence in the air. Had Howard not stumbled upon that open culture of love and had come to appreciate it, Starbucks probably wouldn’t be what we know it to be today.

“But what about Apple?” one might ask.

In stark contrast, Apple, under Steve Jobs, stood out as a total anomaly. As testified by many of his subordinates, Jobs didn’t spread love, rarely showed leniency in leadership, and cared less for what customers thought. Yet, he made Apple one of the most sought-after brands in the world. I’d say it’s a rare exception where work of the brain exceeds warmth of the heart.

In business, you need a combination of both the mind and the heart to succeed. While it’s true that the brain drives the rationale behind seeding the big ideas in the ground, make no mistake that it’s the heart that infuses love and care in the form of water to warrant that the seed grows to produce fruits.

As business professionals, it’s important we nurture this gifted emotion from within and care to practice outside ourselves. Embrace people with love from your core, treat them with respect, and give ample share of appreciation for whatever role they play in your organisation. Not only will your brand wear a beautiful external facade, but also glow your interior in ways that will invite talented workforce and loyal customers much like how bees flock to honey. Believe me, it will work. Let there be love. l Ivdad Ahmed Khan Mojlish is the Co-founder and Managing Director of LightCastle Partners. The write-up was originally published in the LCP bloglightcastlebd.com/blog.